Oney Judge

Oney (Ona) Judge, born about 1773, was a slave at George Washington's plantation, Mount Vernon, in Virginia. A servant in Washington's presidential household beginning in 1789, she escaped to freedom in 1796, and defied his attempts to recapture her. More is known about her than any other Mount Vernon slave because she was twice interviewed by abolitionist newspapers in the 1840s.

Youth

The daughter of Betty, an enslaved seamstress, and Andrew Judge, a white English tailor indentured at Mount Vernon, Oney was moved into the main house at about age 10, probably as a playmate for Martha Washington's granddaughter Nelly Custis. She eventually became Martha Washington's personal attendant or body servant.

Presidential Household

She was among the 7 slaves — Oney, Austin, Giles, Paris, Moll, Hercules, William Lee — brought to New York City in 1789 to work in the first presidential residence. Following the transfer of the national capital to Philadelphia in 1790, she was among the 9 — Oney, Austin, Giles, Paris, Moll, Hercules, Richmond, Christopher Sheels, Joe Richardson — to work in the President's House. Austin was Oney's half-brother, about 15 years her senior.

Pennsylvania had begun an abolition of slavery in 1780, and prohibited non-residents from holding slaves in the state longer than 6 months. If held beyond that period, the state's Gradual Abolition Act gave slaves the legal power to free themselves. Washington argued (privately) that his presence in Pennsylvania was solely a consequence of Philadelphia's being the temporary seat of the federal government, and that the state law should not apply to him. On the advice of his attorney general, Edmund Randolph, he systematically rotated the President's House slaves in and out of the state to prevent their establishing a 6-month continuous residency. This rotation was itself a violation of Pennsylvania law, but the President's actions were not challenged.

Escape

According to the 1845 interview, Oney made her escape to freedom in May or June 1796, after learning that the First Lady had promised her as a wedding present to another granddaughter, Eliza Custis. She slipped away one night while the Washingtons were eating dinner, was hidden by her Philadelphia free-black friends, and put aboard a northbound ship, The Nancy.

By September, Oney was discovered in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Washington considered having her abducted and returned by ship — Portsmouth's collector of customs, Joseph Whipple, interrogated her and reported back to the President — but the plan was abandoned after Whipple warned that should news of an abduction become public it could cause a riot on the docks. Following Washington's 1797 retirement, his nephew, Burnwell Bassett Jr., traveled to New Hampshire to convince Oney to return. She refused, and the nephew's attempt to kidnap her was unsuccessful. She met and married a free-black sailor, John Staines, and had 3 children by him: Eliza, Nancy and Will.

Following Oney's escape, her younger sister, Delphy, became the wedding present for Martha Washington's granddaughter. Delphy and her children were manumitted in 1807.

Never Freed

Oney was a "dower" slave, owned by the estate of Martha Washington's first husband, Daniel Parke Custis (1711-1757). Therefore, she was not one of the 124 Mount Vernon slaves freed following George Washington's 1799 death, under the terms of his will. Instead, the 153 or so "dowers" reverted to the Custis Estate following Martha Washington's 1802 death, and were divided up among her grandchildren. Legally, Oney's children also were "dower" slaves — even though their father was a freeman and they had been born in New Hampshire. Staines and all 3 children predeceased her.

The Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 established the legal mechanism by which a slaveholder could recover his property, a right guaranteed by the Fugitive Slave Clause of the U.S. Constitution (Article IV, Section 2). The 1793 Act — passed overwhelmingly by Congress and signed into law by Washington — made it a federal crime to assist an escaped slave, overruled all state and local laws giving escaped slaves sanctuary, and allowed slavecatchers into every U.S. state and territory.

Because of this federal law, Oney Judge Staines lived the last 52 years of her life as a fugitive.

Death

Oney Judge Staines died in Greenland, New Hampshire on February 25, 1848.

Legacy

On February 25, 2008, the 160th anniversary of her death, Philadelphia celebrated the first "Oney Judge Day" at the site of the President's House, 6th & Market Streets. The ceremony included speeches by historians and activists, a proclamation by Mayor Michael A. Nutter, and a memorial citation by City Council.

Oney Judge's story has been the inspiration for recent works: Taking Liberty by Ann Rinaldi (2002 novel); The Escape of Oney Judge by Emily Arnold McCully (2007 children's book); A House with No Walls by Thomas Gibbons (2007 drama); and Drunk History vol. 3 featuring Danny McBride (2008 YouTube dramatization).