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early devoted to God in
Baptism: that she united with the church in Deerfield in 1744—Was married to Abijah Prince, May 17th, 1756, by Elijah Williams, Esq. and that she had been the mother of six children. In this remarkable woman there was an assemblage of qualities rarely to be found among her sex. Her volubility was exceeded by none, and in general, the fluency of her speech was not destitute of instruction and education. She was much respected among her acquaintances, who treated her with deference.
281:, who found that she had been "much injured" by the Noyes who were "greatly oppressing" her and her husband. Soon afterward, a mob assembled by Noyes invaded the Princes' farm in the middle of the night, beat a black farmhand nearly to death, burned crops, and left the household in ruins. The state of Vermont prosecuted the mob and sentenced them to prison. Noyes bailed out his henchmen, was not himself prosecuted, and served as a
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Only a single letter in Abijah's handwriting and none in Lucy's has survived. Because the shopkeeper's records show that the household sometimes purchased paper, it is suspected that Lucy wrote other literary works, which were eventually lost during the attacks on her household and declining fortune.
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At
Sunderland, Vt., July 11th, Mrs. Lucy Prince, a woman of colour. From the church and town records where she formerly resided, we learn that she was brought from Bristol, Rhode Island, to Deerfield, Mass. when she was four years old, by Mr. Ebenezer Wells: that she was 97 years of age—that she was
268:
man from a slaveholding family, who referred to Lucy's husband as "Abijah Negro." Noyes and various men he had hired damaged the
Princes' farm and filed frivolous lawsuits against them. The Princes won every lawsuit but failed to end the feud. After a particularly fateful incident, the Princes
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The Prince family was remembered in
Guilford for many decades after their death. John Noyes' daughter was once startled off a horse by the sight of their ghosts, and ghost sightings on their farm have been reported even into the 21st century.
296:
made against them by
Colonel Eli Brownson. She was awarded a sum of $ 200. She was the first woman to argue before the high court, holding her own against two of the leading lawyers in the state, one of whom later became Chief Justice.
315:. This oral history was recorded at the time of Lucy's death by a resident, who also reported that Lucy remained popular in her hometown until her old age and that young boys would often come to her home to hear her talk.
627:
History of
Western Massachusetts: The Counties of Hampden, Hampshire, Franklin, and Berkshire. Embracing an Outline Aspects and Leading Interests, and Separate Histories of Its One Hundred Towns
640:
Huse, Ann A. "Beyond "The Bars": Lucy Terry Prince and the
Margins of the Colonial Landscape." Liminality, Hybridity, and American Women's Literature. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2018. p.43.
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while trying to gain admittance for her son Festus. She was unsuccessful, and Festus was reportedly denied entry on account of the school's
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genre. The attack occurred in an area of
Deerfield called "The Bars", which was a colonial term for a meadow. The poem was preserved
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183:, who had purchased her freedom. They were married by justice of the peace Elijah Williams. In 1764, the Princes settled in
187:, where all six children were born. They were Tatnai, Cesar, Drucilla, Durexa, Abijah Jr., and Festus. Cesar fought in the
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227:. This poem is the only surviving work by Terry. However, she was famous in her own time for her "rhymes and stories".
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136:. It was preserved orally until it was published in 1855. It is considered the oldest known work of literature by an
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to purchase an additional $ 200 (~$ 3,896 in 2023) of land from
Brownson for her use, to provide for her family.
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Mr. and Mrs. Prince: How an
Extraordinary Eighteenth-Century Family Moved Out of Slavery and Into Legend
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The Trials of Phillis Wheatley: America's First Black Poet and Her Encounters with the Founding Fathers
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Terry was born in c. 1733 on the African continent. She was abducted from there and sold into
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Brethren by nature : New England Indians, colonists, and the origins of American slavery
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as an infant in about 1733. She lived in Rhode Island until the age of five, when she was
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The following obituary was published for Prince on Tuesday, August 21, 1821, in the
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but were eventually ruined by a dispute started by their neighbor John Noyes, a
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Lucy reportedly delivered a three-hour address to the board of trustees of
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In 1806, after months of petitioning, Lucy convinced the town selectmen of
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248:, printed in 1773, was the first published work by an African American.
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837:
Afro-American Women Writers 1746-1933: An Anthology and Critical Guide
132:", about a 1746 incident in which two white families were attacked by
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204:
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Lucy Terry Prince and Abijah Prince became prominent and prosperous
630:. Vol. II. Springfield, MA: Samuel Bowles and Co. p. 360.
536:"Lucy Terry's " Bars Fight. " Text from San Antonio College LitWeb"
323:
Prince's husband died in 1794. By 1803, Prince had moved to nearby
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New England bound : slavery and colonization in early America
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of the era. In 1785, Lucy successfully pled her case before the
854:(August 1977). "No Crystal Stair: The Black Woman in History".
164:, who allowed the five-year-old Terry to be baptized into the
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Black firsts: 2,000 years of extraordinary achievement
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on August 25, 1746. This poem is part of the American
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We Were There: The story of working women in America
408:. New York: W. W. Norton & Company. p. 111.
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Terry's work is considered the oldest known work of
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The Norton Anthology of African American Literature
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65:
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39:
32:
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108:(c. 1733–1821), was an American settler and poet.
175:In 1756, Lucy married Aijah Prince, a successful
288:In 1803, Lucy, now destitute, returned to the
245:Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral
124:before their marriage in 1756. She composed a
292:to argue on behalf of her sons against false
8:
396:
394:
973:19th-century African-American women writers
561:Derounian-Stodola, Kathryn Zabelle (1997).
207:about an attack upon two white families by
839:. New Haven, Connecticut: Meridian Books.
789:: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
502:: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
453:: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
29:
903:African-American history of Massachusetts
727:. New York, NY: Pantheon Books. pp.
564:The Indian captivity narrative, 1550-1900
388:, London: Jonathan Cape, 1992, pp. 16–17.
116:, she was taken to the British colony of
805:"Lucy Terry Prince: "Singer of History""
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84: 1756; died 1794)
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750:. Detroit, MI: Gale Research. p.
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983:19th-century African-American writers
567:. James Levernier. New York: Twayne.
219:until 1855, when it was published in
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968:18th-century African-American people
943:People from Deerfield, Massachusetts
870:PBS: Africans in America: Lucy Terry
518:"Literature | Encyclopedia.com"
963:18th-century African-American women
958:18th-century American women writers
953:19th-century American women writers
598:Phillis Wheatley, Complete Writings
948:People from colonial Massachusetts
600:. New York: Penguin. p. 199.
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811:. Greenfield, MA. August 21, 1821
404:; Valerie A. Smith, eds. (2014).
252:Farm sabotage and oral arguments
225:History of Western Massachusetts
468:Newell, Margaret Ellen (2016).
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768:Negro slavery in old Deerfield
596:Vincent Carretta, ed. (2001).
285:in Vermont for over a decade.
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978:19th-century American writers
742:Smith, Jessie Carney (1994).
938:18th-century American slaves
771:. Boston, Mass. p. 57.
55:1821 (aged 87–88)
928:19th-century American poets
923:18th-century American poets
650:Gates, Henry Louis (2003).
538:. Alamo.edu. Archived from
104:, often credited as simply
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933:Writers from Massachusetts
684:Gerzina, Gretchen Holbrook
203:", composed in 1746, is a
189:American Revolutionary War
332:Greenfield, Massachusetts
313:racist admission policies
269:retained the services of
765:Sheldon, George (1893).
162:Deerfield, Massachusetts
881:Encyclopædia Britannica
777:2027/uc1.31175035177206
622:Holland, Josiah Gilbert
898:African-American poets
717:Wertheimer, Barbara M.
654:. Basic Civitas Books.
419:Warren, Wendy (2017).
345:
221:Josiah Gilbert Holland
382:(ed.), "Lucy Terry",
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290:Vermont Supreme Court
160:to Ebenezer Wells of
122:purchased her freedom
120:. Her future husband
918:American women poets
883:entry for Lucy Terry
875:Entry at AA Registry
852:Bennett, Jr., Lerone
522:www.encyclopedia.com
336:The Frankylin Herald
833:Shockley, Ann Allen
809:The Franklin Herald
385:Daughters of Africa
302:Sunderland, Vermont
279:Governor of Vermont
213:captivity narrative
110:Kidnapped in Africa
59:Sunderland, Vermont
402:Gates, Henry Louis
704:978-0-06-051073-2
481:978-1-5017-0573-1
432:978-1-63149-324-9
352:Historical record
262:Guilford, Vermont
185:Guilford, Vermont
168:faith during the
102:Lucy Terry Prince
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913:1821 deaths
815:23 February
690:. Amistad.
294:land claims
266:Connecticut
126:ballad poem
892:Categories
858:: 164–170.
474:. Ithaca.
361:References
325:Sunderland
232:literature
201:Bars Fight
177:free Black
144:Early life
130:Bars Fight
106:Lucy Terry
34:Lucy Terry
785:cite book
498:cite book
490:950929510
449:cite book
441:987209708
238:, though
179:man from
166:Christian
835:(1989).
719:(1977).
686:(2008).
624:(1855).
583:39199784
546:June 29,
334:, paper
114:enslaved
92:Children
181:Curaçao
150:slavery
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43:c. 1733
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275:jurist
234:by an
217:orally
205:ballad
195:Poetry
66:Spouse
46:Africa
856:Ebony
319:Death
80:(
76:
841:ISBN
817:2014
791:link
731:–36.
700:ISBN
692:ISBN
602:ISBN
579:OCLC
569:ISBN
548:2011
504:link
486:OCLC
476:ISBN
455:link
437:OCLC
427:ISBN
242:'s,
158:sold
112:and
52:Died
40:Born
773:hdl
752:417
260:in
223:'s
152:in
128:, "
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.