Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Kevin Wade Mitchel as Jack Staines

Seafaring was one of the most significant occupations among both enslaved and free Black men between 1740 and 1865. Black sailors sailed on whalers, warships, and privateers. Some were enslaved and forced to work at sea, but by 1800 most seamen were free to seek adventure and economic opportunity aboard ship. On this tour you will meet a mariner who was also husband to Ona Marie Judge, the escaped servant of President and Martha Washington. Experience old Portsmouth through the stories of Jack Staines, one of the seamen known as a “Black Jack.”