Mark (died September 18, 1755) (sometimes called Mark Codman) was a Black enslaved man owned by Captain John Codman (1696–1755) of

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20 years before the

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. Though some texts refer to Mark as "Mark Codman", he was probably not referred to as such during his life, as giving an enslaved person the surname of his enslaver was not commonly done in

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

. The contemporary documents from the investigation and trial only use Mark for his name. Mark was enslaved by Codman for a few years before his execution. He was accused of burning down a building to try to gain freedom about six years before his death. Mark could read and said that he read the

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to find a way to kill his master without committing a

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. He struck upon poisoning because it did not involve the shedding of blood. According to historical documents from the investigation and judgment, Mark obtained

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from a doctor on the pretense it was to kill pigs but furnished it to his sister, who administered it to Codman. Several other enslaved people were also implicated in the plot. In 1755, Mark was convicted of assisting in the successful poisoning of his master, John Codman. As punishment, Mark was hanged, tarred. His body was displayed in an iron

gibbet Gibbeting is the use of a gallows-type structure from which the dead or dying bodies of criminals were hanged on public display to deter other existing or potential criminals. Occasionally, the gibbet () was also used as a method of public ex ...

for several years after his death at a well-known spot (at the time) in present-day

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.George Francis Dow, John Henry Edmonds (1996). ''The Pirates of the New England Coast, 1630–1730'', p. 113. Dover Publications, New York. . Mark's sister Phillis was tried for the actual act of poisoning; she was convicted and burned alive. Mark's publicly displayed body was a local landmark. In 1775, twenty years after Mark's execution,

Paul Revere Paul Revere (; December 21, 1734 O.S. (January 1, 1735 N.S.)May 10, 1818) was an American silversmith, military officer and industrialist who played a major role during the opening months of the American Revolutionary War in Massachusetts, ...

came to the same spot in his

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to warn American colonial forces of the movements of the British Army. Revere's 1798 written account noted that "nearly opposite where Mark was hung in chains, I saw two men on Horse back, under a Tree. When I got near them, I discovered they were British officers", whom Revere successfully evaded.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Codman, Mark 1755 deaths Year of birth unknown 18th-century American slaves 1755 in the Province of Massachusetts Bay African-American history in Boston Place of birth missing 18th-century executions of American people Executed African-American people Poisoners Somerville, Massachusetts People executed by the Province of Massachusetts Bay by hanging People from colonial Massachusetts Murder in the Thirteen Colonies

See also

References