23 April–30 November 1783
Black evacuees leave New York as officials record and contest their freedom
New York; evacuation principally to Nova Scotia
During the British evacuation of New York, officials registered roughly 3,000 Black men, women and children in the Book of Negroes. Many had escaped enslavement during the war. The register documented departures and claims by enslavers, while hearings determined whether some people could leave or would be returned to those claiming them.
Dates preserve the source’s precision. This entry is part of a selected historical record; its qualifications and sources are retained below.
Context / qualification
Registration did not mean that everyone aboard was free: some departed while still enslaved. The register also contains cases of people returned before sailing. Its dates and count concern this evacuation record, not all wartime escapes or all Black Loyalists.
Sources
- Howard Zinn, A People’s History of the United States, chapter 5, p. 88 (postwar evacuation; register identified through follow-up research); supplied print pages, edition/year unidentified
- Nova Scotia Archives, Book of Negroes; register dates, approximate total, competing claims and British/American versions ↗
- The National Archives (UK), The Book of Negroes, PRO 30/55/100; selected register pages, hearing transcripts and final certification ↗
- Library and Archives Canada, Book of Negroes, 1783; free, formerly enslaved and still-enslaved passengers ↗