Tom Lane (b. circa 1805 - d. ?)
MSA SC 5496-50838
War of 1812 Refugee, Calvert County, Maryland
Biography:
Tom Lane was an enslaved boy who was born about 1805 in Maryland to Samuel and Phillis Lane. Tom and his mother Phillis were enslaved by David Avis, Sr. of Calvert County, Maryland.
During the war more than 200 enslaved people in Calvert County fled from their owners. In the summer of 1814, while the British fleet was at the mouth of the Patuxent River in Drum Point, Tom and his mother Phillis escaped from David Avis, Sr. Tom, who was 9 years old at the time of the escape boarded a British Vessel with his mother. They were never seen or heard from by David Avis again.
Following the War a commission was put in place to handle the claims of Maryland slave owners who were seeking compensation for the loss of their slaves and other property. It was decided by the commission that slave owners in Maryland would recieve $280 for each slave that ran off to or were carried away by the British. David Avis submitted a claim for the loss of his enslaved property, Phillis and Tom Lane. He was awarded $560 by the commission.
Return to Tom Lane's Introductory Page
|
Tell Us What You Think About the Maryland State Archives Website!
|