Amos Fortune

Located at 15 Laban Ainsworth Way, Jaffrey, NH 03452

This marker honors Amos Fortune. 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. In 1781, Amos and his family relocated to Jaffrey, New Hampshire, where Amos established a prosperous tannery. 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.