Peter Salem (October 1, 1750 – August 16, 1816)BlackPast.org
"Salem, Peter" was an

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

from Massachusetts who served as a U.S. soldier in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. Born into slavery in Framingham, he was freed by a later master, Major Lawson Buckminster, to serve in the local militia. He then enlisted in the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

, serving for nearly five years during the war. Afterwards, he married and worked as a cane weaver. A monument was erected to him in the late 19th century at his grave in Framingham.

Early life

Peter Salem was born on October 1, 1750, to an enslaved mother in Framingham,

Province of Massachusetts Bay The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a colony in New England which became one of the thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William III and Mary II, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of Eng ...

.Smithsonian NMAAHC
/ref> His enslaver was Jeremiah Belknap,American National Biography
"Salem, Peter" who later sold him to Major Lawson Buckminster. When Buckminster became a major in the

, he emancipated Salem in 1775 so he could enlist in the Massachusetts militia in what soon became the Revolutionary War. Salem's last name may have been given to him by his original enslaver Belknap, who may have chosen the name after

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem was one ...

, where he once lived. His last name may also be derived from the Arabic word " salaam", meaning ''peace''.

Military service

Salem took part in the war's first battles at Concord on April 19, 1775. He is on the roll of Captain Simon Edgell's militia company from Framingham as having served four days from April 19, 1775. On April 24, he enlisted in Captain Drury's company of Colonel John Nixon's 6th Massachusetts Regiment.

Battle of Bunker Hill

Salem, another hero of this event, fought with his company in the

Battle of Bunker Hill The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Boston, Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peri ...

. According to Samuel Swett, who chronicled the battle, Salem had mortally wounded

Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...

officer

John Pitcairn Major John Pitcairn (28 December 1722 – 17 June 1775) was a British military officer. Born in Dysart, Fife, he enlisted in the Chatham Marine Division of the British Naval Service at the age of 23. He served in North America during the Fr ...

who died from a

musket A musket is a muzzle-loaded long gun that appeared as a smoothbore weapon in the early 16th century, at first as a heavier variant of the arquebus, capable of penetrating plate armour. By the mid-16th century, this type of musket gradually dis ...

shot. This has been disputed. About a dozen other free African Americans took part in the battle, including Phillip Abbot of Andover Mass, Barzillai Lew, Salem Poor, Titus Coburn, Alexander Ames, Cato Howe, and Seymour Burr. Salem reenlisted for another year in the 4th Continental Regiment on January 1, 1776. When that enlistment expired, he signed up for three years in the 6th Massachusetts Regiment of Colonel Thomas Nixon, a brother of Colonel John Nixon. He was honorably discharged on December 31, 1779, having served a total of four years and eight months.''Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War.'' Vol. 13, pp. 743–744. Salem apparently extended his enlistment for two months and served with Captain Claye's Company of Colonel Nixon's Regiment from January 1 to March 1, 1780. Salem fought at the battles of Saratoga and Stony Point.Sidney and Emma Nogrady Kaplan, ''The Black Presence in the Era of the American Revolution'', Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Press, 1989 revised edition.

Later life and death

Salem spent the rest of his life living peacefully. He married Katy Benson in

in September 1783, and he later built a cabin near

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

, where he worked as a cane weaver. Peter Salem died on August 16, 1816, aged 65. He was buried in the Old Burying Ground in Framingham, and the town spent $150 to erect a monument in his memory in 1882. The Freedman's Bank of Boston for many years commemorated Salem's deeds by printing his picture on their bank notes.

Media portrayals

At one time Salem was thought to have been depicted in

John Trumbull John Trumbull (June 6, 1756 – November 10, 1843) was an American painter and military officer best known for his historical paintings of the American Revolutionary War, of which he was a veteran. He has been called the "Painter of the Revolut ...

's painting '' The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker's Hill, June 17, 1775.'' Modern authorities differ. David Barton identifies Salem standing to Thomas Grosvenor's right. Professor David Brion Davis, citing evidence from Professor Sidney Kaplan, states that the African American to Thomas Grosvenor's right "was not Peter Salem". Peter Salem is one of the supporting characters in the 2015 television miniseries ''

Sons of Liberty The Sons of Liberty was a loosely organized, clandestine, sometimes violent, political organization active in the Thirteen American Colonies founded to advance the rights of the colonists and to fight taxation by the British government. It p ...

.'' He is played by British actor Jimmy Akingbola.IMDb
"Sons of Liberty: The Uprising"

References

Sources

''Celebrate Boston'' website, article about role in Battle of Bunker Hill
"Peter Salem"
African American Registry

''Boston 1775'' blog

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Salem, Peter 1750 births 1816 deaths African Americans in the Continental Army 18th-century American slaves People from Leicester, Massachusetts People from Framingham, Massachusetts African-American history of Massachusetts Black Patriots Free Negroes Continental Army soldiers