Black History at the Vassall Estate: Special History Study
DeAngelis C, Martin CD, Gray R, Allibhai A, Sherley E. 2025. Black History at the Vassall Estate: Special History Study. National Park Service. https://doi.org/10.36967/2315759
This report comprises a Special History Study for Longfellow House–Washington’s Headquarters National Historic Site focusing on Black history. The study documents and analyzes the Black experience during and after John and Elizabeth Vassall’s occupancy in Cambridge, MA. Darby Vassall’s life dates provide rough brackets for this study: born enslaved at the Vassall house in Cambridge in 1769, about ten years after its construction, he died a prominent member of the free Black community in Boston in 1861. The report uncovers the lives and communities of enslaved people who worked at the Vassall House and lived in the surrounding community before, during, and after the American Revolution. The information produced from this study greatly expands existing baseline information. The report further illuminates the site’s national significance and is likely to inform visitor programming and cultural resource management.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- DeAngelis, Caitlin; Martin, Carla; Gray, Rayshauna; Allibhai, Aabid; Sherley, Eshe
- Date of Issue
- 2025-09-15
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- DOI
- 10.36967/2315759
- Units
- LONG
- Keywords
- American Revolution, Black History, Massachusetts, Slavery, Special History Study
- License
- Public Domain