Enslavement to
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Mercer County and Stoneboro History
From Kristy Lommen, January 3, 2004 Mercer County was formed from Allegheny County in 1800, and the first white settlements were established in about 1802-1803. Why the book makes no mention of slaves enumerated in the censuses from 1810 and 1820 is a mystery. It also contained this paragraph from a profile of Stoneboro Township:
Another book, "Pennsylvania, A Guide to the Keystone State," (first published in December 1940), says the following about the same area:
I know you are interested in the status of slavery in each of Pennsylvania's counties, so I thought I would share with you what I've discovered in Mercer County so far. I'll let you know if I turn up more. Until then, I also wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed our correspondence last month. You were incredibly helpful, and I appreciate all the time you took to answer my questions in such detail. The topic of "Slavery in Pennsylvania" turned out to be far more complex than I had imagined, and you really lent a keen insight to the issues. Thank you. I'm certainly no expert at this point, but I'm far better educated than I could have hoped to be before you helped me understand the issues. Thank you for being so generous with your time and knowledge on the topic. I very much appreciate it. Kristy Editor's 2023 Update: The Borough of Stoneboro has published an online history of the borough, including a good summary of the early free African American settlement then referred to as Liberia. As Underground Railroad researchers know, these remote, small free Black communities provided valuable shelter and aid to freedom seeekers. Like many such communities, this one disappeared due to the loss of legal protections and dangers posed by the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act. The webpage is located at https://stoneboropa.com/history/
Hi George,
Since you and I last corresponded, I bought a copy of "The History of Mercer County," a 1985 reprint of a two-volume set that was originally compiled in 1888 (gotta love that eBay!). I scanned it pretty thoroughly for evidence of slavery in the county. Although several pages are devoted to abolition movements that occurred in Mercer County, the 1200+ page work includes only these few words regarding the presence of enslaved people in Mercer County:
"According the census of 1830 there were six slaves within the limits of Mercer County, as follows: Males between 10 and 24 years, 2; males between 24 and 36 years, 1; Females under 10 years, 1; females between 10 and 24 years, 2; total, 6." (page 334).
"This enterprising place, situated on the beautiful sheet of water known as Sandy Lake, was first settled as early as 1825 by a colony of colored people. After the lapse of time this republic of Liberia gradually disintegrated, so that by the middle of the present century but one lone specimen of the sons of Ham remained. His tastes were commercial in character, and consequently from his hut on the lakeside he retailed cigars and whisky to those disposed to patronize him. The land on which this negro colony lived was ultimately sold to Messrs. John F. Hogue and William Shields, who, in turn, sold it in 1862 to Jeremiah Bonner and the Mercer Iron and Coal Company, Bonner purchasing Hogue's interest, and the company that of Shields. J.M. Goodwin, now a resident of Sharpsville, surveyed these lands and laid out the village of Stoneboro in 1865, on territory belonging to both Lake and Sandy Lake Townships." (page 467).
"Sandy Lake...first settled in 1800, lies between a valley at the eastern end of the lake for which it is named. In addition to a flourishing resort business, it has two small dairies. Bungalows and tourist houses line the shore of Sandy Lake (fishing, boating, bathing). A few Negro freedmen settled beside the lake in 1825 and named the spot Liberia, but their community disappeared just before the Civil War."