PDF Summary:Never Caught, by Erica Armstrong Dunbar

In 1796, Ona Judge escaped from the household of George and Martha Washington, fleeing from Philadelphia to Portsmouth, New Hampshire. In Never Caught, Erica Armstrong Dunbar tells the story of Judge's escape and examines the legal and social context that shaped her life as an enslaved woman.

Dunbar explores how the Washingtons maintained control over their enslaved people through secrecy and manipulation, rotating them between states to circumvent abolition laws. She discusses the 1793 Fugitive Slave Act and its impact on the growing divide between North and South over slavery. The book also describes how Judge planned her escape with help from Philadelphia's free Black community and how she evaded multiple recapture attempts, maintaining her freedom through networks of support and resistance.

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The Constitutional Debate Over the Fugitive Slave Clause

The Fugitive Slave Law of 1793 was the result of a long-standing debate over the Constitution’s Fugitive Slave Clause. In 1787, the Constitutional Convention debated whether Congress could force state officials to help seize alleged fugitives. Some delegates argued that this would violate state sovereignty, while others insisted that the Constitution’s supremacy clause gave Congress this power. The final compromise left the issue unresolved, setting the stage for future conflict. By 1793, Northern leaders framed their “personal liberty” laws as defenses of state courts and jails against federal control. Southern politicians, meanwhile, embraced the Fugitive Slave Law of 1793 as a way to push slavery’s legal protection onto the national stage. This early constitutional fight over state versus federal power shaped how both sides would argue about slavery for decades to come.

According to Dunbar, laws promoting personal freedoms mandated a jury trial for anyone charged with escaping enslavement. They also made it possible to charge people who captured enslaved individuals with kidnapping if they didn’t follow the proper legal procedures. The 1793 Fugitive Slave Act permitted slaveholders to pursue their enslaved people across state boundaries. It also imposed a $500 fine on anyone aiding an escaped slave. The legislation highlighted the increasing rift concerning slavery. Northern states argued the law eliminated their legislative rights on the disputed matters related to fugitive slaves. Southern states claimed the law defended their rights to own people and was essential for implementing the Constitution's stipulations about labor fugitives.

The Broader Constitutional Debate

The legal disputes over the 1793 Fugitive Slave Act and laws promoting personal freedoms were part of a broader constitutional debate about slavery in the early United States. In The Sources of Antislavery Constitutionalism in America, 1760–1848, William M. Wiecek explains that Northern jurists argued that slavery was a matter of local law, not federal law. They believed the federal government had no authority to enforce slavery in free states. This perspective led to the development of "personal liberty laws" in the North, which aimed to protect free Black people and escaped slaves from being captured and returned to slavery. These laws and the arguments surrounding them were part of a larger effort to limit the reach of slavery and protect individual rights.

Resistance, Escaping, and Seeking Liberation

Ona Judge devised her getaway meticulously and relied on assistance from free blacks, Dunbar explains. She kept her plans a secret from everyone at the Executive Mansion, aware that slaves who were afraid or envious often foiled escape attempts. Instead, she contacted a servant who was free and Black while escorting Martha Washington on a social call and possibly asked the renowned clergyman Richard Allen for assistance. Allen, who had once been enslaved, became a leading figure in the country's early years. He provided spiritual guidance to the expanding black community and ran a chimney-cleaning service.

(Shortform note: Allen’s rise to prominence as a minister was shaped by his struggle to establish and control an independent Black Methodist church in Philadelphia. In Freedom’s Prophet, historian Richard S. Newman details Allen’s efforts to found Bethel African Methodist Church, defend its pulpit and property against white Methodist authorities, and ultimately organize the African Methodist Episcopal Church as the first durable, national Black denomination. This decades-long battle culminated in an 1816 Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling that affirmed Bethel’s right to self-governance and property ownership, setting a precedent for Black religious autonomy.)

He was an obvious choice to ask for advice on how to escape the city and avoid detection. Judge never publicly stated that Allen helped her, but it's possible she met with him again in spring 1796. The Washingtons provided Judge with $1.25 to buy shoes, and Allen ran a shoe business from his house. Judge could have used the opportunity to discuss her escape with Allen. However, she never disclosed who assisted her with plotting her escape, as helping a runaway was illegal under federal law. Judge made her escape on May 21, 1796, leaving the Executive Mansion as the Washingtons had supper. She then sought refuge in Philadelphia's free black community and left the city by sea, traveling to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, under the command of Captain John Bowles.

Traveling by Sea in the 1790s

In the 1790s, small coastal vessels like the one Captain John Bowles commanded rarely required formal identification or close inspection of passengers. This lack of documentation made it easier for someone in Judge’s position to discreetly arrange passage and leave Philadelphia without creating an obvious paper trail. Ships often relied on personal relationships and word-of-mouth recommendations to fill their crews and passenger lists, which could have allowed Judge to secure her passage through trusted contacts in the free black community. Additionally, the bustling nature of Philadelphia’s port, with numerous ships coming and going daily, provided cover for someone trying to leave the city unnoticed. The sheer volume of maritime traffic made it difficult for authorities to monitor every vessel and passenger, especially when many ships operated on irregular schedules and routes.

Dunbar also describes how the Manumission Society in New York and the Free African Society supported the fight against slavery. The New York Manumission Society comprised prominent people from New York who wanted to end slavery. They tried to persuade New Yorkers to slowly emancipate enslaved people, provided legal assistance to those escaping, and established the initial African Free School for black children, the first of several. Philadelphia's first Black mutual aid society was the Free African Society. They aided widows, those living in poverty, and escaped slaves who couldn't support themselves. They also provided firewood, clothing, and food to impoverished black Philadelphians, and they helped cover the costs of suitable burials.

Benevolent Societies and Early American Political Culture

Historians have noted that the New York Manumission Society and the Free African Society were part of a broader movement of “benevolent societies” that emerged in the decades after the American Revolution. These voluntary associations, which included antislavery societies, mutual aid groups, and educational organizations, reflected a new approach to social reform that emphasized private initiative and collective action outside of government or established churches. In Forging Freedom, Gary B. Nash argues that these organizations were crucial in shaping early American political culture, providing training grounds for self-government and collective decision-making. For free Black communities, such societies offered rare opportunities to build independent institutions, develop leadership skills, and articulate a sustained critique of slavery and racial inequality.

Next, we will discuss the ways Ona Judge evaded capture and stayed independent, and then how free African American individuals and communities supported each other in their pursuit of liberation.

Escaping and Initial Evasion

According to Dunbar, Ona Judge evaded capture and remained free. Washington tried to recapture her by enlisting the help of Oliver Wolcott Jr., who reached out to Joseph Whipple, a customs officer in Portsmouth. Whipple tried to trick Judge into revealing her identity by offering her a job and then attempted to convince her to go back to the Washingtons, but she refused. Whipple then suggested that she go back to the Washingtons, and he would try to convince them to free her after their deaths. Judge pretended to agree to this plan, but she never showed up for the ship that was supposed to return her. Whipple then sent a letter to Wolcott, explaining his failure to recapture Judge and suggesting that Washington hire a lawyer to pursue the matter. Washington was angry at Whipple's failure and rejected any compromise with Judge.

Washington’s Efforts to Recapture Judge

Dunbar’s book was published in 2017, but historians had already examined Washington’s interactions with Wolcott and Whipple regarding Judge. For example, in his 2003 book An Imperfect God: George Washington, His Slaves, and the Creation of America, historian Henry Wiencek discusses Washington’s efforts to recapture Judge. He explains that Washington enlisted the help of Oliver Wolcott Jr., who then reached out to Joseph Whipple, a customs officer in Portsmouth. Whipple tried to trick Judge into revealing her identity by offering her a job and then attempted to convince her to go back to the Washingtons, but she refused. Whipple then suggested that she go back to the Washingtons, and he would try to convince them to free her after their deaths. Judge pretended to agree to this plan, but she never showed up for the ship that was supposed to return her. Whipple then sent a letter to Wolcott, explaining his failure to recapture Judge and suggesting that Washington hire a lawyer to pursue the matter. Washington was angry at Whipple’s failure and rejected any compromise with Judge.

Sustaining Freedom: Networks of Support and Resistance

Free Black individuals and communities supported one another in their pursuit of freedom. Dunbar explains that they provided mutual aid to those in need, including widows, impoverished people, and escaped slaves. They offered donations of provisions, apparel, and firewood, along with financial contributions for burials. Free Black people also helped others escape slavery by buying and freeing enslaved individuals.

(Shortform note: Free Black mutual aid societies functioned like clubs, where members paid dues to support each other. These societies pooled small, regular payments from members to create large funds that could be used to help those in need. This collective approach allowed them to provide significant support to their communities.)