Boston, Massachusetts-biology According to reports preservationists have identified the gravestone of a former enslaved man who died in Boston in the early eighteenth century. The stone is located in the Granary Burial Ground, which was established in 1660 and contains over 5,000 graves. “I was reviewing photos of the headstones, and then I noticed the stone only had one name,” said Kelly Thomas of the Boston Parks and Recreation Department’s Historic Burial Grounds Initiative. He said enslaved people were often known by only one name. A search of historical records revealed that the man’s name was Sebastian or Bastian, but he changed his name to Boston. In 1701, Boston and his wife Jane Lake baptized their daughter at the First Church of Boston. At that time, both were slaves and lived in separate houses. It is believed that Boston was freed in 1702 after the death of John Waite, who enslaved him. His name then appeared in a list of free black people compiled in 1708. Boston’s obituary was published in New England Weekly JournalThis shows that he was well known and respected as a hard-working servant. In addition to his name, the stone bears a stylized skull with wings on either side known as Death’s Head. The tombstone also records his death at the age of 70 on February 28, 1728, according to the Julian calendar. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu commented, “This discovery is possibly one of the oldest burials of a free black person in America.” To read about the excavations of the razed community in the early days of the American Revolution, visit “Letters from Boston: In the Shadow of Bunker Hill“
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