M. (1) 6 Dec 1757 in New Jersey
Wife: Abigail Tunnison
M. (2) 23 Feb 1763 in Somerset County, New Jersey
Wife: Sarah Hegeman
D. about Jun 1818 in Hillsborough, New Jersey
The enslaving of African-Americans was not confined to southern colonies and states. At the time of the Revolutionary War, there were over 20,000 slaves in New York and New Jersey. And while Peter Abraham Dumont wasn’t the worst offender of this practice, he did use his authority at times to make sure his workers were kept in chains.
Peter was born in Hillsborough, New Jersey on July 11, 1734 to Abraham Dumont and Mattie Bergen, the oldest of their four children. On December 6, 1757, Peter married Abigail Tunnison; they had two daughters, but Abigail died two weeks after the birth of her second child in December 1761. Peter then married Sarah Hegeman on February 23, 1763. They had eight children born between 1764 and 1782.
Peter was a town committee member of Hillsborough, New Jersey from 1776 to 1777. Congress appointed him to act when necessary to organize militia and volunteer companies for service during the Revolutionary War. It was said that he was at the battle of Monmouth, and for many years an officer's uniform and sword hung in the garret of the old homestead which belonged to him.
Peter was sheriff of Somerset County, New Jersey starting in 1774, and was in this position at least until June of 1779. He was also Justice of the Peace from 1781 to 1782 and again in 1786, and Judge of the County from 1782 to 1784.
As sheriff, Peter put this notice in the New Jersey Gazette on June 23, 1779:
"SIXTY DOLLARS Reward. Made his escape a few days ago from the Provost Guard near Raritan bridge, a Negro Man named CUFF, well set, speaks very slow but good English, about 40 years old, very black; he was confined for killing his master, Joseph Moss, of Stony hill. Whoever secures the said Negro, so that he may be brought to justice, shall have the above reward, and all reasonable charges paid by PETER DUMONT, Sheriff of Somerset County."
Then on February 14, 1780, Peter reported his own runaway slave:
“Ran away on Saturday night…, a negro man named Toney…. It is supposed he is endeavoring to go to the enemy. Any person taking up and securing said negro, or returns him to me, shall have [$200] and all reasonable charges, paid by me.”
Peter was a town committee member of Hillsborough, New Jersey from 1776 to 1777. Congress appointed him to act when necessary to organize militia and volunteer companies for service during the Revolutionary War. It was said that he was at the battle of Monmouth, and for many years an officer's uniform and sword hung in the garret of the old homestead which belonged to him.
Peter was sheriff of Somerset County, New Jersey starting in 1774, and was in this position at least until June of 1779. He was also Justice of the Peace from 1781 to 1782 and again in 1786, and Judge of the County from 1782 to 1784.
As sheriff, Peter put this notice in the New Jersey Gazette on June 23, 1779:
"SIXTY DOLLARS Reward. Made his escape a few days ago from the Provost Guard near Raritan bridge, a Negro Man named CUFF, well set, speaks very slow but good English, about 40 years old, very black; he was confined for killing his master, Joseph Moss, of Stony hill. Whoever secures the said Negro, so that he may be brought to justice, shall have the above reward, and all reasonable charges paid by PETER DUMONT, Sheriff of Somerset County."
Then on February 14, 1780, Peter reported his own runaway slave:
“Ran away on Saturday night…, a negro man named Toney…. It is supposed he is endeavoring to go to the enemy. Any person taking up and securing said negro, or returns him to me, shall have [$200] and all reasonable charges, paid by me.”
Typical illustration in a notice about a runaway slave.
The slave Toney was captured and handcuffed in Piscataway, but escaped again. It's significant that this took place during the American Revolution because the man was apparently trying to join the British side in return for his freedom. As for the other slave named Cuff, his fate was unknown, but it's likely that he murdered his master in an effort to escape to the protection of the British.
Peter owned six slaves at the time of his death on July 7, 1818, and had an underaged black male as an indentured servant. His total estate, aside from his land, was valued at $5,730. His wife Sarah survived him by just two years, dying in 1820. By this time, slavery was being phased out in New Jersey, with laws that freed adult blacks born after 1804. But even by 1840, New Jersey residents still held over 400 slaves, most of them in the hands of families like Peter Abraham Dumont’s.
Peter's grave in Old Somerville Cemetery. (Source: Find-a-Grave)
Children:
1. Sarah Dumont — B. 9 Mar 1764, Somerset County, New Jersey; D. 28 Feb 1846, Somerset County, New Jersey; M. Christopher B. Van Arsdalen (1760-1840), 30 Apr 1789, Somerset County, New Jersey
2. Abraham Dumont — B. 24 Mar 1767; D. 28 Aug 1775
3. John Dumont — B. 5 Sep 1769, Somerset County, New Jersey; D. 7 Jul 1822; M. Mary Perlee
4. Adrian Dumont — B. 7 Aug 1773; D. 13 Sep 1774
5. Abigail Dumont — B. 1 Mar 1777; D. 8 Aug 1777
6. Abraham Dumont — B. 16 Jun 1778, Somerset County, New Jersey; D. 9 Nov 1858; M. Judith Davis, 6 Jun 1799
7. Peter Dumont — B. 7 Nov 1782, Hillsborough, New Jersey; D. 12 Aug 1860, Hillsborough, New Jersey; M. Magdalen Davis (1781-1870), 6 Nov 1805
Sources:
"Wallerand Dumont and his Somerset County Descendants," John B. Dumont, Somerset County Historical Quarterly, Vol. 1, 1912
Pretends to be free: runaway slave advertisements from colonial and revolutionary New York and New Jersey, Graham Russell Hodges and Alan Edward Brown, 1994
Manhood Enslaved: Bondmen in Eighteenth- and Early Nineteenth-century New Jersey, Kenneth Edward Marshall, 2011
Will of Peter A. Dumont, Somerset County, New Jersey, 23 Oct 1817
Family bible of Christopher Van Arsdalen
