I don’t know precisely when through the mid-1700s that Newport Philips entered this world however I do know the “the place” and the “what” of his beginnings. What he was, from the occasion of his beginning, was a slave, and the place he endured that servitude was on the big Philips Farm centered round their manor home “Mowbra Fort.”

The Philips household was most assuredly among the many landed gentry of the area; and though they’re by no means talked about as members of the Narragansett Planter elite, I’ve bought to say that I’m undecided why not. Philips’ landholdings within the 18th century have been measured within the a whole bunch and a whole bunch of acres, the Mowbra Fort was arguably the most important and most interesting house on the West Bay and eventually, and most significantly, their agriculturally targeted enterprise dealings have been completed all through the interval with ample portions of slave labor. Newport Philips was a type of slaves.  

Early on in his existence, no written document exists of the milestones in his life. Except maybe the monetary ledgers of their homeowners such issues weren’t deemed worthy of notation as nobody goes right down to the City Clerk and information the beginning of an ox or the wedding of an excellent herd canine so why take that effort with a slave, which many house owners famously seen as property reasonably than individuals?

However then in March of 1789, one thing fairly exceptional occurred. It was one thing worthy of recording within the everlasting document of our honest city, one thing really worthy of a celebration and probably the most momentous occasion, for sure, in Newport Philips’ life: his proprietor, it appeared, had a change of coronary heart.

Newport Philips, as soon as owned by Samuel Philips, was the property of Peter Philips. Peter Philips transferred possession of Newport to neighbor Beriah Waite and in that month each males went right down to the City Clerk and proceeded to do one thing life altering for Newport and slave brethren Jack Phillips — they legally set them free.

The authorized time period for that is manumission and Beriah Waite stuffed out an order of manumission for Newport Philips and Peter Philips did the identical for Jack.

I count on these actions have been motivated partially by the Quaker religion practiced by each males, however there is no such thing as a manner to make sure of this. Moreover they each put up a $100 bond as a surety guaranteeing that Newport and Jack would do nothing as free males to interrupt the legal guidelines of the State of Rhode Island. Each paperwork, recorded by City Clerk George Thomas and witnessed by Benjamin Davis, talked about “setting him free to his personal use and liberty” executed in “recognition and consideration of excellent servitude and labour.”

In different phrases, Newport and Jack as of that day weren’t solely free males however they have been entitled to no matter they earned for themselves, they owed no man something. Actually a replica of those certificates was given to every man and so they have been despatched on their manner greedy an important piece of paper of their lives.  

Newport appears to have stayed in North Kingstown for a time, however by 1800 he’s dwelling as a free black man in Portsmouth, working as a farm laborer. Evidently someplace round that point he met a slave lady named Margaret owned by the rich Easton household of Portsmouth and Middletown. They fell in love and have become man and spouse, though on account of Margaret’s standing as a slave, no marriage was recorded.

They’d a minimum of two kids collectively, John and Phebe, and people kids, as a result of staggered state of Rhode Island’s authorized path in the direction of the top of slavery — spelled out in Rhode Island’s 1784 gradual emancipation laws — have been technically born free, though sometimes, sure to their mom’s proprietor by the identical legislation that said her proprietor was financially liable for them till they attained the age of 21.

This although, didn’t appear to be the case right here because the 1810 census of Portsmouth reveals Newport Philips as a free black head of family with two different members of the family, most certainly John and Phebe.  

By 1820, Margaret reveals up in Portsmouth as the pinnacle of family with the youngsters underneath her care. Newport was again in North Kingstown at that juncture in time, working once more as a farm laborer, saving cash, socking it away, planning one thing extraordinary.

On April 1st, 1824, Newport Philips, a free black man, made his solution to Middletown with cash and his writ of manumission in hand and went to purchase his spouse of greater than 20 years. The outcomes of that transaction have been recorded within the city ledgers of Middletown simply as his manumission had been recorded right here in Wickford some 35 years earlier. Newport and Margaret Philips each left Middletown on that day free. What a glory day that should have been.

This exceptional couple disappears from the document at this level; I don’t know when or the place they breathed their final breaths, though I count on it was both North Kingstown or Portsmouth. Their son John stayed on in Portsmouth and married Persistence Sherman. They’d a minimum of one little one, James, collectively and John, who labored his complete life as a farmhand, died in 1876.

Their son James lived in Newport as an grownup, had a spouse named Louise and was a fisherman till the top of his days. Newport and Margaret’s daughter Phebe ultimately married Daniel N. Morse, a sexton on the Methodist Episcopal Church in Windfall’s second ward. They’d kids collectively and he or she died in 1871. The slave Newport Philips lives on via the heirs of his kids and grand kids wherever they might be.

The outdated Philips household graveyard may be discovered within the midst of the Haverhill neighborhood off of Tower Hill Street on land that was as soon as a part of the huge household holdings; in it stand plenty of wonderful gravestones of this vital household.

The slave graveyard of those self same Philips’ is misplaced as of now; it was final seen within the Fifties and was famous to incorporate 17 graves, the 2 named of them, Lonnon’s and Hagar’s, have been inscribed ceaselessly with the phrase “servant of Christopher Philips.” Lonnon might have been Newport’s father or Hagar might have been his mom. Newport and Margaret could be buried right here or maybe underneath an identical unmarked stone in Portsmouth. Wherever they’re is of no actual consequence I assume; what issues is that they’re collectively and ceaselessly free.