Anna Maria Weems was a black teenager who escaped slavery in Maryland by disguising herself as a male carriage driver. At just 15, she fled her enslaver’s home and traveled north, evading capture and enduring numerous challenges. After weeks of hiding, she made her way to Canada with the help of abolitionists, where she reunited with her family and began a new life in freedom.
Anna Maria Weems was born around 1840 in Montgomery County, Maryland, to John Weems, a free man, and Arabella Talbot Weems, an enslaved woman owned by Adam Robb. Arabella, described as a woman of “superior culture and endowments,” was the daughter of Cecelia Talbot, who was also enslaved by Adam Robb. The Weems family lived in a rare arrangement for enslaved people: John, who had purchased his own freedom, was allowed to live with his wife, though they remained enslaved. Despite his freedom, John could not protect his children from the legal system that dictated their status based on their mother’s condition.
According to the law of partus sequitur ventrem, a child’s status followed that of the mother. This meant that even though John was a free man, his children inherited the enslaved status of their mother, Arabella. As a result, nine of John and Arabella’s ten children, including Anna Maria, were born into slavery. This legal doctrine reinforced the institution of slavery, ensuring that enslaved women’s children would also be enslaved, continuing the cycle of bondage across generations.
When Anna Maria was just seven years old, her family was torn apart after the death of their enslaver, Adam Robb, whose will divided his enslaved property among his two daughters. Her mom, Arabella, and her children were inherited by Robb’s daughter, Catherine Robb Harding, who was deeply in debt. To alleviate her financial troubles, Harding sold Arabella and her sons to slave traders, who sent them to Alabama. Anna Maria and her sister Catherine were sold to Charles M. Price, a wealthy slave trader in Unity, Maryland. This marked the beginning of a long and painful separation for the Weems family.
Despite the family’s separation, Anna Maria’s father, John Weems, made it his mission to reunite his family. With the help of abolitionist allies, he worked tirelessly to secure the freedom of his wife and children. The Weems Family Ransom Fund, supported by donations from abolitionists, raised over $5,000 to purchase the freedom of Arabella and some of her children. By 1850, Arabella and two of her sons were freed and reunited with John in Washington, D.C. Catherine, Anna Maria’s sister, was also freed after a ransom was paid. However, Charles Price refused to sell Anna Maria, despite repeated offers from abolitionists.
For years, Anna Maria remained enslaved in the Price household, where she was subjected to harsh conditions. By the age of 15, Anna Maria began planning her escape with the help of abolitionists.
On September 23, 1855, 15-year-old Anna Maria Weems escaped from the Price household in Rockville, Maryland. She traveled 15 miles to Washington, D.C., where she stayed with relatives before arriving at the home of Jacob Bigelow, a Quaker whose house served as a station on the Underground Railroad.
With a $500 reward offered for her capture, Weems was forced to remain hidden inside Bigelow’s home for six weeks. During this time, abolitionists devised a daring plan to get her to Canada—they would disguise her as a young male carriage driver named “Joe Wright.” She was dressed in a driver’s uniform, cap, and bow tie and trained to carry herself like a man to avoid detection.
With the help of Dr. Ellwood Harvey, a white physician and abolitionist, Anna Maria began her journey to freedom. Dr. Harvey drove his carriage to the White House, where Anna Maria, disguised as Joe Wright, took the driver’s seat. The pair traveled through Maryland and Pennsylvania, facing numerous challenges, including suspicious toll gate and ferry operators. Dr. Harvey’s quick thinking and humor helped them navigate these dangers, and they eventually arrived in Philadelphia at the home of William Still, a Black abolitionist and key conductor on the Underground Railroad. Still, who helped at least 60 people escape slavery in his lifetime, played an important role in guiding Weems on the next stage of her journey to freedom.
At Still’s house, a photograph was taken of Anna Maria in her disguise, which was sent to her mother as proof of her safety. From Philadelphia, Anna Maria traveled to New York, where she stayed with abolitionist Lewis Tappan and his wife, Sarah, who provided her with warm clothing for the Canadian winter. She was then escorted to Canada by Reverend Amos N. Freeman, traveling by train through Rochester and Niagara Falls before arriving in Dresden, Ontario.
In Dresden, Anna Maria reunited with her aunt and uncle, William Henry and Ann Bradley, who had also escaped slavery. She settled in the Dawn Settlement, a community established for formerly enslaved Africans, and attended the Buxton Mission School, one of the most successful educational institutions for Black students in North America. The settlement provided education, religious services, and opportunities for economic independence, allowing Anna Maria to rebuild her life in freedom.
Anna Maria’s parents, John and Arabella, eventually reunited with their children in Canada, thanks to the continued efforts of the Weems Family Ransom Fund. By 1861, the family had moved to the Dawn Settlement, where they lived for nine years before returning to Washington, D.C., after the Civil War.
After 1861, Anna Maria Weems seemingly disappeared from historical records. It is possible that she changed her name permanently to protect her identity. Despite the mystery surrounding her later years, her story lives on through books such as A Shadow on the Household by Bryan Prince and In Disguise on the Underground Railroad: A Graphic Novel Biography of Anna Maria Weems by Myra Faye Turner, preserving her legacy as a symbol of courage and strength.
Source:
Still’s Underground Rail Road Records: With a Life of the Author…By William Still
https://blogs.law.columbia.edu/abolition1313/files/2020/08/Morgan-Partus-1.pdf
https://www.aaihs.org/slavery-family-separation-and-the-ransom-case-of-john-weems/
