Asbury Irwin
(b. circa 1818 - d. )
MSA SC 5496-8603
Fled from slavery, Kent County, 1858
Biography:
Asbury Irwin was one of three enslaved African Americans who escaped from Michael Newbold's Kent County farm. There is no record of how he came into the New Jersey native's possession. Asbury may have labored for Newbold as early as 1840, when the property owner was first recorded in Maryland, owning two male slaves younger than 35.1 The white man had moved to the Eastern Shore shortly before that time, perhaps with the intention of pursuing the lucrative career of a southern planter. This migration was all the more unusual because Newbold was a Quaker, a religious group which had officially condemned slavery.2 In fact, much of the local Friends community had fled the area for the new midwestern territories, where the institution was either outlawed or extremely limited. Others such as James L. Bowers and Arthur W. Leverton were well-known for their abolitionist sentiments.3
Irwin could no longer take the harsh treatment of his master by 1858, when he decided to utilize the established Underground Railroad route from Maryland to Philadelphia. Once in the northern city, he explained his situation to famed operator William Still. Asbury told Still that "three years ago I was knocked dead with an axe by my master; the blood run out of my head as if it had been poured out of a tumbler." According to his account, Newbold's drinking and other sinful activities had even driven his wife to retreat to Philadelphia, where her Quaker family resided. Irwin's companions Ephraim Ennis and Lydia Ann Johns similarly cited their master's treatment as the motivation for their flight.4
William Still made no note of where he had forwarded the three freedom
seekers after they visited his office. Asbury Irwin may have settled in
the growing fugitive communities of upstate New York and Ontario,
Canada, as many former Maryland slaves had during the decade. However,
there is no documentation of his whereabouts following the brief stop
in Pennsylvania.
Researched and written by David Armenti, 2012.
Return to Asbury Irwin's Introductory Page
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