Henry Compton
MSA SC 5496-1304
Biography:
Henry Compton was born around 1817. He was a copper color and about five feet seven or eight inches tall. By the time he was about 35 years old he may have been missing a front tooth. Compton was a slave belonging to Dr. Greenfield, who lived in Prince George's County.[1] His wife was one of the 39 slaves belonging to Dr. Louis Mackall, who had a farm in the Nottingham District of Prince George's County.[2] She probably lived in Nottingham on that farm, but the runaway advertisements for Henry Compton disagree on whether she was located there or in Georgetown.
Sometime around 1850, Dr. Greenfield died and Henry sought his freedom. At some point in his escape he was apprehended and confined to the Prince George's County jail. While imprisoned there he met William Carter, another slave who had run for freedom. On June 29, 1851, Henry and William escaped the jail together.[3]
It is uncertain where they went after their escape. Compton's wife was still trapped in slavery and Sheriff James J. Chew speculated that he may have gone to her, either in Nottingham or Georgetown, where he had been caught before. [4] Sheriff Chew wasted little time in pursuing the two men. On July 2, 1851 he posted an advertisement in the Baltimore Sun for the capture of Henry and William, offering a 100 dollar reward for their return, or 50 dollars for either man individually.[5]
Chew's pursuit of Compton and Carter continued even after the end of his tenure as Sheriff. In February of 1825, a runaway notice placed by "James J. Chew, Late Sheriff" increased the reward for the men's return to 150 dollars, or 75 dollars for them individually. The runaway notice was to run in the newspaper until the men were found.[6] The advertisements for Henry Compton and WIlliam Carter stop in July of 1852. The two men could have been caught, or Chew may have stopped paying for the advertisements.
Henry Compton was not the only slave of Dr. Greenfield to attempt to escape to freedom. In 1834 a man named Benjamin ran away from Dr. Greenfield. Like Henry Compton, he was captured, and his committal notice states that he was committed to the Charles County jail as a runaway in December of 1834.[7]
1. "One Hundred Dollars Reward." Baltimore Sun, July 2, 1851.
2. Louis Mackall Slave Schedule, 1850. Ancestry.com.
3. "One Hundred Dollars Reward."
4. "$50 Reward." Marlboro Gazette and Prince George's County Advertiser, August 1, 1851.
5."One Hundred Dollars Reward."
6."$150 Reward." Port Tobacco Times and Charles County Advertiser, February 25, 1852.
7. "Notice" Daily National Intelligencer, February 2, 1834.
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