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Stairwell Room: Revolutionary Annapolis Wall

Lord Ligonier Advertisement

Maryland Gazette, October 1, 1767
Ink on paper
MSA SC 2731


Lord Ligonier Advertisement   

The "Roots" of One of America's Best-Known Slaves

Advertisements for the sale of slaves appeared regularly in colonial newspapers. Alex Haley, author of Roots (1976), was able to document the arrival of his ancestor, Kuntae Kinte, in Annapolis from West Africa through this advertisement published in the Maryland Gazette in October 1767. Kinte’s saga of freedom, enslavement, and perseverance has come to represent a legacy shared by millions of Americans of African descent.

The subscribers in the advertisement, John Ridout and Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer, held prominent positions in the provincial government. Ridout was Royal Governor Horatio Sharpe's personal secretary. Jenifer served in both houses of the provincial assembly, as president of the Council of Safety, and the first president of the Maryland Senate, and oversaw the state's finances in the years after the Revolution.





 
 

 
 



KEy Images on the
Wall

Samuel Chase
Burning of the Peggy Stewart
Plan of the Harbour and City of Annapolis
The Honorable Thomas Stone
A Front View of the State House...
Charles Carroll of Carrollton

William Paca

Lord Ligonier Advertisement

Charles Calvert and Slave

The Fatal Stamp


Key Documents on the Wall

The Deputy Commissary's Guide...

Exhibits in the Stairwell Room

John Shaw # 1 Des