“Sacred to the memory of Amos Fortune, who was born free in Africa, a slave in America, he purchased liberty, professed Christianity, lived reputably, and died hopefully, November 17,1801, AET 91.”

Epitaph of Amos Fortune at Olde Burial Ground of Jaffrey, NH by Rev. Laban Ainsworth

Amos Fortune (c.1710-1801) was a prominent tanner, bookbinder, and philanthropist who bought his freedom in colonial New England as an African-American man. A survivor of the trans-continental slave trade, Fortune was captured in Africa and trafficked to America around 1725 at the age of 15. Auctioned off at the Boston waterfront, he was purchased by local Quaker bookbinder Deacon Fortune. Though little else is known about his ancestry and early life (including his birth name), Fortune became highly educated in English and the bookbinding trade during his enslavement in Boston. It was also during this time that he converted to Christianity.

In 1740, at the age of thirty, Fortune was sold to tannery owner Ichabod Richardson of Woburn, Massachusetts, as an apprentice in the tannery trade. The first known historical record of Fortune appears in December, 1763: an unsigned “freedom paper”, drafted by Richardson. The document, which would grant Fortune his freedom after four years, remained incomplete after Richardson’s death in 1768. Although Richardson’s will provided no mention of his freedom, Fortune managed to craft an agreement with the Richardson heirs to “pay off his bond”. In 1770 at the age of 60, Fortune made his last payment—securing his status as a free man in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Fortune spent the next ten years in Woburn. Continuing his work as an expert tanner, he purchased land in town and built a home. He married Lydia Somerset in 1778, an enslaved woman whose freedom he secured through purchase from enslaver Josiah Bowers of Billerica, Massachusetts. Somerset died shortly after their marriage. The next year, on November 9, 1779, Fortune bought the freedom of his second wife, Violate, from enslaver James Baldwin. Amos and Violate (Violet) Fortune married in Woburn the very next day.

In 1781, the Fortunes relocated to Jaffrey, New Hampshire, where Amos established a prosperous tannery and trained two apprentices. He and Violate adopted a daughter, Celyndia. A dedicated community member in Jaffrey, Fortune became a founding member of the Jaffrey Social Library, whose members met weekly for literary discussion. A prominent member of the First Church of Jaffrey, Fortune also maintained a close friendship with the first minister, Laban Ainsworth—the longest serving Congregational minister in American history. In 1801 at the age of 91, Fortune died in Jaffrey. He is buried in Jaffrey’s Olde Burial Ground next to Violate, who died one year later.

A former slave, Fortune became a successful businessperson in both Woburn and Jaffrey.  Upon his death in 1801, he bequeathed $233 to the town of Jaffrey for educational programs, and $100 to the church to purchase “a handsome gift,” making him the town’s first benefactor. His contribution to the town for educational purposes established the Amos Fortune Fund, which to this day funds literary contests in local schools. The Amos Fortune Forum also honors him today by hosting a Lecture Series each summer featuring distinguished guest speakers.

Sources: The Amos Fortune Forum, Jaffrey Center Village Improvement Society, Los Angeles Times, Oxford African American Studies Center

Illustration: Amos Fortune by Nora S. Unwin, Courtesy of the Jaffrey Civic Center