There were hundreds of slaves living in the Massachusetts Province of Maine in the 18th century. At least 21 were known to be living in Portland and close to 500 in the Kittery area brought to the colony aboard sailing ships. Most of these slaves worked for wealthy merchants, but some were purchased by more simple white families living in areas close to Maine’s rugged coast. They were used to perform the manual labor that the white settlers once did themselves, such as building houses and wharves  and cutting down trees that might be made into masts for British ships.

There is no evidence that points directly to slavery here in Windham, but there is a story about Romeo Smith who was born a slave and was living in Windham during the American Revolution. He may have been employed by one of the Quaker families living in town at the time. He enlisted in the Continental Army with the promise of freedom in exchange for his military service. He served in the 7th Massachusetts Infantry for three years during the War for Independence and was released from slavery, or manumitted, when the war ended. In 1784, he was threatened with being reclaimed by his former master and went to General Henry Knox for assistance in the matter. Knox backed Smith’s freedom and the slaveowner’s efforts were thwarted.

“This is to certify that the bearer hereof, Romeo Smith, is a free man and has served three years in the Army of the United States of America. Any person attempting to circumvent or trepan him as a slave will incur the severest penalty of the Law and indignation of Heaven,” Knox said.

The foreign slave trade was made illegal in 1794 and in 1820, when Maine became a state, a federal law was passed that made participation in the trade an act of piracy. Maine’s organized anti-slavery efforts began in 1833 with the formation of the First Maine Anti-Slavery Society in Portland. This group was not well received with most people being indifferent to their efforts. Mainers were also reluctant to get involved due to their reliance on the shipping industry. Ships from Maine did business with merchants and businesses that relied on slave labor. For example, cotton mills from Biddeford to Waterville often used cotton supplied by Southern plantations whose slaves were used to harvest their product.

In the 1850s, the Portland group was revitalized and became known as the Portland Anti-Slavery Society. This group was made up of both Black and white people, women and men, and offered an ambitious program of speakers and activities and was supported by a mission in Canada that took in fugitive slaves.

Also about this time, a Mainer and Windham native, John Albion Andrew, was making a name for himself in Massachusetts where he was working as an attorney. He gained distinction for his work on the fugitive slave case of Shadrach Burns and Sims which arose under the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850. He became closely identified with the anti-slavery party of Massachusetts and, in 1860, was elected governor of the state, receiving the largest popular vote in Massachusetts history.

During the Civil War, Andrew obtained authority from the Secretary of War to raise the first Black regiment, the 54th Massachusetts. The regiment was dispatched from Boston in 1863, supplied with the best officers Andrew could find and complete with all of the equipment the troops would need to fight effectively. He remained in office until 1866 and was remembered as “modest and simple in his habits, emotional and quick in sympathy for the unfortunate, exceedingly joyous and mirthful in temperament and companionable with all classes of persons.”

Meanwhile, here in Windham, there was a healthy Quaker population opposed to slavery. There are a few places in town with what could have been “escape rooms” for runaway slaves traveling through the Underground Railroad. The Walker Farm on River Road in the Newhall section of town is one and the residence once known as the Old Town Tavern in Windham Center is another. Also, in the Popeville section of Windham, the Pope family living at the Elijah Pope House were sympathetic to the anti-slavery cause and had not only had a hidden room in their residence, but also allowed slaves refuge in the orchard behind their home.

Maine author Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” was all the rage after its publication in 1852. Millions of copies were sold and plays depicting the story were popular all across the country. Windham was no exception. A production of the story that depicted the harsh conditions experienced by many enslaved African Americans on Southern plantations was presented by a group of traveling actors and the Historical Society still has the promotional boards used to advertise the show to this day.

We still have much to learn about this dark chapter of our country’s history. More and more research is being done all the time. We’ve come a long way in the struggle for equality, but progress must continue in the ongoing search for freedom for all.

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