Archives of Maryland
(Biographical Series)

Collin Brooks (b. circa 1804 - d. ?)
MSA SC 5496-050610
Part of large slave flight from Poolesville area, Montgomery County, Maryland, 1831

Biography:

In September 1831, Collin Brooks escaped from the farm of William Vinson in Medleys District of Montgomery County. He fled along with five other slaves: Joe Carroll, Tobias Martin, Clem Proctor, and the brothers Sandy Swine and George Swine. Vinson advertised in the Daily National Intelligencer for the slaves' capture, describing Collin Brooks as "about 27 years old, thin features, very black, and about 5 feet, 8 inches high."1 He added that all six men wore clothing typical "this season for plantation hands." These escapes directly followed the Nat Turner rebellion in Virginia in August 1831.2
 

1.     "150 Dollars Reward." Daily National Intelligencer 14 September 1831: 3.

2.     Albert Bushnell Hart. Slavery and Abolition: 1831 to 1841 (New York and London: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1906) 218.
   

Researched and written by Rachel Frazier, 2010.

Return to Collin Brook's Introductory Page


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