Across State Lines: Slavery & Freedom on the Delaware-Pennsylvania Border

In May 1830, Parke Dennis packed a bag with his most valued items: a drab cloth coat, grey trousers, and a white fur hat, before fleeing to Chester County. Dennis was enslaved by a farmer in New Castle County, Delaware. Though he reached Pennsylvania’s “free” soil, his freedom was short-lived. He was captured, brought before a Chester County judge, and forced back into bondage. His story was not unique.

While slavery was largely abolished in Pennsylvania by the early 1800s, freedom was far from guaranteed for those who crossed the Delaware-Pennsylvania border. Still, thousands fled to Pennsylvania in pursuit of liberty.

Join us on June 18 at 12pm for our virtual program “Across State Lines: Slavery and Freedom on the Delaware-Pennsylvania Border.” Archivists from the Chester County Archives and the Delaware Public Archives will examine records from our collections that highlight the powerful stories of Delaware’s freedom seekers, and the legal systems that sought to keep them in bondage.

Admission is Pay as You Wish! Your donation is greatly appreciated. All proceeds benefit the development of future programming and the preservation of the History Center and its collections. The History Center is home to over 750,000 manuscripts, 100,000 photographs, and 70,000 artifacts. Your donation helps us to preserve and share those resources. Register here for this pay-as-you-wish event

This virtual event will be recorded, and a link to the recording will be emailed to all registrants.