Archives of Maryland
(Biographical Series)

Babb (b. ? - d. 1729)
MSA SC 5496-51890 
Slave Hanged for Crime in Kent County, Maryland

Biography:

    Negro Babb, as she was referred to in colonial terminology, resided in Kent County, Maryland.1 There are no known records giving an age for Babb. On May 30, 1729, the assizes court convicted Babb on a felony charge.2 The court issued a death warrant "for the Execution of Negro Babb."3 The exact crime is unknown, but he was convicted for "felony." The execution was to be on "the seventeenth day of June" in 1729.4 Babb became a victim of colonial justice where many people were executed for various crimes that ranged from murder to passing counterfeit money.5 In Maryland, from 1726-1775, 146 out of 268 people who were hanged for their crimes were Negro or mulatto slaves.6

Endnotes:

1. GOVERNOR AND COUNCIL (Commission Record) 1726-1786. Negro Babb. May 30, 1729. Page 10. Location: 02/26/03/010. MdHR Number: 4010-1. MSA S1080-1.

2. Ibid.

3. Ibid.

4. Ibid.

5. Ellefson, C. Ashley. Seven Hangmen of Colonial Maryland (Cortland, New York, 2009), 19.

6. Ibid.

Researched and Written by Tanner Sparks, 2013.  

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