Caesar (slave) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Caesar
|
|
|---|---|
An 1851 daguerreotype
|
|
| Born | 1737 (supposedly) Bethlehem House estate, New York, Thirteen Colonies
|
| Died | 1852 (aged 114–115) New York, U.S.
|
| Known for | Candidate for being the earliest-born person ever photographed while alive, and for being the last enslaved person to be manumitted in New York. |
Caesar (born around 1737, died 1852) was an enslaved person who is famous for two main reasons. He might be the earliest-born person ever photographed while still alive, when his picture was taken in 1851. He was also the very last enslaved person to be officially freed in New York State.
Contents
Caesar's Life Story
Early Life and Enslavement
Caesar was supposedly born in 1737. This was on a large property called Bethlehem House in Bethlehem, New York. This property belonged to a man named Rensselaer Nicoll.
Caesar lived his entire life on this estate. He saw many generations of the Nicoll family come and go. He stayed with them even after he was allowed to stop working in 1817, when he was about 80 years old.
Becoming Free
Most enslaved people in New York were freed by July 4, 1827. However, Caesar was not officially freed until around 1841. This was when all forms of slavery were completely banned in New York State. To be "manumitted" means to be officially set free from slavery.
The Famous Photograph
In 1849, an artist named G. W. Woodward drew a sketch of Caesar. This drawing showed Caesar dozing in a chair, but it has since been lost.
Two years later, in 1851, the son of Caesar's last master convinced him to pose for a special kind of picture. This picture was a daguerreotype. A daguerreotype is one of the very first types of photographs ever made. Caesar's daguerreotype is one of the earliest photos of an African American person.
This small photograph later became known as Daguerreotype of Caesar: A slave. A note found with the picture gives us some details about him. It says: "Ceasar [sic], born a slave of Van R. Nicoll... in 1737 at Bethlehem, N.Y., where he died in 1852. The last slave to die in the North. This daguerreotype was taken in 1851."
His Final Years
Caesar passed away in 1852. According to the words on his marble tombstone, he was 115 years old. This would make him incredibly old!
However, experts have not yet found any old documents that can prove his exact age. We only know for sure that he died in 1852. If his age is correct, he would be one of the oldest people ever photographed. He would also be one of the longest-lived Americans known in history.
