Will Moore's
Site of Knowledge
New York Slave Conspiracy
The New York slave conspiracy took place in the colony of New York. It occured in April of 1741. The blacks began to burn buildings in the town, the whites suspecting a larger plot gathered over one hundred slaves and accused them of attempting to burn down the whole city and trying to kill all the whites.(Black Past) The conflicting parties involved were the white landowners of New York and the slaves they owned. At the time the English settelers felt threatened by French and Spains to gain control of the colony (Negro plot trials), to add to that insercurity twenty percent of the population was slaves and they were competing with white tradesman for jobs (Black Past). In the spring of 1741 there were ten fires in the city, four occuring on one day (Negro plot trials). Fearing a revolt would follow over one hundred slaves were brought to the basement of the city hall building and were convicted of crimes like arson, burglary, and insurrection. Over thirteen slaves were burned at the stake and seventy plus were sold into back-breaking slavery in the Caribbean.(Black Past)
Contribution to American Identity
Similarities to Salem Witch trials?
Consequences of Conflict?
As a result of the whites fear of an uprising they limited the already slim rights of blacks. The New York Assembely expanded their night watch and passed laws that only allowed blacks to fetch water from the closest pump (Negro plot trials). In New York before the slave conspiracy the Caribbean accounted for three/fourths of the slaves in the colony, as a result of the conspiracy the settelers began to import slaves from Africa rather than the Caribbeans because they believed that African slaves were less likely to organize a revolt. (Black Past)
The New York Slave Conspiracy has many historians comparing it closely to the Salem Witch trials which occured in the spring of 1962.In fact, the nature of the confessions closely resembled the confessions at Salem. During their interrogation, slaves were beaten, harassed and heckled by whites. These tactics probably contributed to the confession of eighty-one blacks (Black Past). At the time the Enlgish had a lot of concerns and throwing all their worries on the blacks seemed as good a way as any. Due to the little rights the slaves had at the time it made them an easy scape goat.
