Free Frank McWorter – Father of Freedom

Free Frank McWorter was an American frontiersman who found fortune, became the first African American to register a town, and spent his life liberating his family.  He was born enslaved  in 1777 in South Carolina.  His mother, Juda had been kidnapped from West Africa and his father is thought to be her enslaver[1].  Frank moved … Continue reading Free Frank McWorter – Father of Freedom

A Rare Find: Passport Applications of Free Blacks

Today's post was written by Rebecca Sharp, Archives Specialist at the National Archives in Washington, DC. Several years ago, I received a telephone call from a researcher that turned out to be an extremely intriguing and challenging question.  The researcher wanted to know if there might be additional documentation relating to the passport application of … Continue reading A Rare Find: Passport Applications of Free Blacks