Born: 1620 (circa), Unknown (Africa)
Died: after 1677
Country most active: United States
Also known as: Unknown
The following is republished with permission from the Boston Women’s Heritage Trail.
Dorcas was an enslaved woman thought to be the first named African to settle in the New England area and also the first to be accepted as a member of a local Puritan church. Arriving in Boston from the Providence Island colony in 1638 aboard the Desire, a ship that engaged in the slave trade, Dorcas was living in Dorchester by 1641 in servitude to Israel Stoughton, a prominent leader in business and government and a militia commander during the Pequot War. She testified to her faith that year in front of the congregation of the First Parish Church and was granted membership. Governor John Winthrop noted in his journal that Dorcas was of good character and had knowledge of the scripture thus easing her acceptance into the church. Thereafter, she worked to convert Native American servants. Dorcas married and is thought to have had two known children. In 1653, a group of male members of the First Parish congregation voted to petition the magistrate for her freedom. They raised the required amount of money through fundraising in the community. She is thought to be the first enslaved person to obtain her freedom in colonial America. In 1677, Dorcas requested that her membership in the First Parish Church in Dorchester be transferred to the First Church in Boston. There she also became a recognized member of the congregation.