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Experiences of a Black Loyalist
April 1, 1798
Edited and introduced by
Boston King’s (1760–1802) memoir recounts the experiences of an enslaved man who sought freedom during the American Revolution by escaping to the British army. After Lord Dunmore’s Proclamation (1775) and later British policies promised freedom to enslaved people who fled patriot owners and served the Crown, thousands of enslaved men and women seized the opportunity to escape. King fled in 1780 during the British invasion of South Carolina, served with Loyalist forces, and remained with the British until the end of the war. His account demonstrates that the Revolution was not simply a struggle between Patriots and Loyalists, but also a conflict in which enslaved people pursued their own goals of freedom and security. King’s memoir also reveals the uncertain fate of Black Loyalists after the war. Although the Treaty of Paris ended the conflict in 1783, many formerly enslaved people feared being returned to their former owners. British officials ultimately evacuated thousands of Black Loyalists to Nova Scotia rather than surrender them, where they faced new hardships but remained free. Published in 1798, King’s memoir offers a rare first-person account of slavery, war, and emancipation, encouraging students to consider how the Revolution expanded opportunities for liberty while leaving the institution of slavery largely intact in the new United States.  

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When I arrived at New-York, my friends rejoiced to see me once more restored to liberty,… (in 1783,) the horrors and devastation of war happily terminated, and peace was restored between America and Great Britain, which diffused universal joy among all parties, except us, who had escaped from slavery, and taken refuge in the English army; for a report prevailed at New-York, that all the slaves, in number 2000, were to be delivered up to their masters, altho’ some of them had been three or four years among the English. This dreadful rumour filled us all with inexpressible anguish and terror, especially when we saw our old masters coming from Virginia, North Carolina, and other parts, and seizing upon their slaves in the streets of New-York, or even dragging them out of their beds. Many of the slaves had very cruel masters, so that the thoughts of returning home with them embittered life to us. For some days we lost our appetite for food, and sleep departed from our eyes. The English had compassion upon us in the day of distress, and issued out a Proclamation, importing, That all slaves should be free, who had taken refuge in the British lines, and claimed the sanction and privileges of the Proclamations respecting the security and protection of Negroes. In consequence of this, each of us received a certificate from the commanding officer at New-York, which dispelled all our fears, and filled us with joy and gratitude. Soon after, ships were fitted out, and furnished with every necessary for conveying us to Nova Scotia. We arrived at Burch Town in the month of August, where we all safely landed. Every family had a lot of land, and we exerted all our strength in order to build comfortable huts before the cold weather set in.

Source

General Research Division, The New York Public Library. “Memoirs of the Life of Boston King” New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed September 1, 2026. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/a30e3fe0-749c-013e-ab3a-0242ac110002 – April excerpt only.

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