
The never-ending nightmare of slaves
Soon after the incident, Elizabeth left Hannah’s residence, never to return. She was perhaps the first Black in Massachusetts to do so, as every slave feared the law and retribution. But Elizabeth knew what other slaves might not have known at that time. The law had changed. While running errands one day, she had heard people discussing the newly ratified constitution of Massachusetts that read: “All men are born free and equal and have certain natural, essential, and unalienable rights; among which may be reckoned the right of enjoying and defending their lives and liberties; that of acquiring, possessing, and protecting property; in fine, that of seeking and obtaining their safety and happiness.”
Armed with this knowledge and hope of freedom from slavery, Elizabeth sought the council of Theodore Sedgwick, a Yale University law graduate, who was one of the city’s most reputed lawyers and a supporter of abolition. He was faced with the biggest test of his career and life as such a case was unprecedented. On the one hand, he had to fight against his friend, the Ashleys, but on the other, he knew she was right about the law. His moral compass pointed towards Elizabeth and he agreed to defend her case.
Sedgwick first filed a writ ordering the Ashleys to release Elizabeth and another male slave Brom as they weren’t their ‘legitimate property’. When the Ashleys refused, Sedgwick filed an action in the County Court of Common Pleas in Great Barrington. Brom and Bett versus Ashley was tried before the jury, where Sedgwick argued that slavery was against the constitution of Massachusetts. The jury ruled in favour of Elizabeth and Brom, and the court granted them their freedom from slavery. Her case became an inspiration for other slaves who decided to follow in the footsteps of Elizabeth and sue their masters for inhumanity and equal rights. It was a kind of revolution that Massachusetts had never seen before. Eventually, the court abolished state-wide slavery from Massachusetts setting every slave free—so long considered a vague and distant dream.
After gaining her freedom, Elizabeth got a job at Sedgwick’s house as a housekeeper and governess to look after his children. One of them was Catharine Sedgwick who wrote about Elizabeth in her books. Catharine grew up listening to stories from Elizabeth about her life—the author admired her grit and courage, but above all, she idolised her view towards humanity and equality.
In 1829, Elizabeth died a free woman. She was buried in the Sedgwick family cemetery known as “Sedgwick Pie”. Her epitaph reads: “She was born a slave and remained a slave for nearly thirty years. She could neither read nor write, yet in her own sphere she had no superior or equal.”