Reading Town Common Flagpole (4B) - Remembering Reading's Black and Enslaved Soldiers

As you may have noticed, Reading’s Black soldiers had several things in common.

Toward the end of the war, the town was required to furnish a set number of soldiers for certain periods. Thanks to the service of Black veterans like Cato Eaton and Caesar Freeman, “the town always filled its quota.” As white men with means were drafted, some paid to send a substitute in their place. Those substitutes were often African Americans, who stepped up to meet the town’s needs.

Another commonality was the surname Freeman. As Reading soldiers earned their freedom through war service, several of them shed their former slave names to recognize their new status as a free man, hence Freeman..

These Reading men would have joined the Continental army or state militia for a variety of reasons, including cash and their freedom. Historians also recognize that “many… Black men fought and served because they were patriots, willing to sacrifice everything for their new country.” 

During the American Revolutionary War, freedom was doubly meaningful to enslaved men who served, including those from Reading, for it meant both freedom from Britain and freedom for themselves.

Plans have been in the works for over a decade to honor African Americans of the Revolutionary War on the proposed National Liberty Memorial in Washington D.C. In June 2011, the Reading Board of Selectmen indicated its support for the monument by pledging to back efforts to pass a congressional resolution for the National Liberty Memorial Act. 

What follows are the names of African American veterans from Reading, which included Wakefield and North Reading at the time, who will be included on the proposed National Liberty Memorial. Let us remember and say their names: 

Baccus

Cato Eaton

Israel Eaton

Caesar Freeman

Doss Freeman

Jonas Freeman

Sharper Freeman

Caesar Gary

Jack Green

Edmund Thomas

Caesar Wyman

We recognize Reading’s Black and enslaved veterans for their service in the fight for independence against Great Britain and in the fight for freedom and equality within our nation. Now that you've learned more about the contributions of Reading's Black and enslaved veterans in the American Revolution, how should the town of Reading remember and commemorate these men's service to the country?