Character+List

Pseudonyms are used throughout the narrative. This List of Characters provides the names and a brief history of the real persons Harriet Jacobs describes in her narrative. Linda Brent—Harriet Ann Jacobs (1813-1897), born a slave in Edenton, NC, she eventually escaped to the North and gained her freedom. She wrote her autobiography using the pseudonym of Linda Brent in 1861; later she worked as a reformer and activist. Aunt Martha—Molly Horniblow, Harriet’s grandmother, made a living selling baked goods to black and white townspeople. She purchased the freedom of her son Phillip and eventually became free at the age of 50 due to the kindness of an elderly white woman. Uncle Phillip—Mark Ramsey was Molly Horniblow’s older son. Aunt Nancy—Betty was Molly Horniblow’s daughter. Uncle Benjamin—Joseph was Molly Horniblow’s younger son who escaped to Baltimore after one unsuccessful attempt. William—John Jacobs, Harriet’s brother, escaped from slavery when his master brought him North. He worked as a whaler in Boston, lectured for the abolitionist cause in Rochester, NY, and traveled to California to pan for gold. Elijah—Daniel Jacobs, Harriet’s father, was the slave of Andrew Knox and a skilled craftsman, who tried unsuccessfully to buy his family’s freedom. He died in Harriet’s youth. Delilah—Harriet’s mother and Molly Horniblow’s daughter, was the slave of Margaret Horniblow. Upon Margaret’s death, Harriet and her brother Phillip were moved into the household of the Norcoms, and the semblance of normal family life was destroyed. Miss Fanny—Hannah Pritchard purchased Molly Horniblow’s freedom for $50. Later, Miss Fanny looked out for Harriet when she lived on James Norcom, Jr.’s plantation. Dr Flint—Dr. James Norcom was Harriet’s slave master. She entered his household when Harriet was willed to his step-daughter. According to Harriet he owned a residence in town, in addition to several farms, and about 50 slaves. He pursued Harriet, after she escaped, until his death. Mrs. Flint—Mary Matilda Horniblow Norcom and wife of Dr. James Norcom, was unable to control her husband. Humiliated by his advances towards Harriet, she directed abuse at Harriet. Young Mr. Flint—James Norcom, Jr. Miss Emily Flint, later Mrs. Dodge—Dr. Norcom’s daughter Mary Matilda Norcom, later Mrs. Daniel Messmore, traveled to New York with her husband, Messmore, to seize Harriet and her daughter, after her father’s death. Mr. Sands—Samuel Treadwell Sawyer was a white, unmarried lawyer and the father of Harriet’s two children. He was later elected to the United States House of Representatives. Benny—Joseph Jacobs (b. 1829) was Harriet’s son with Sawyer. Ellen—Louisa Matilda Jacobs (c.1833-1913) was Harriet’s daughter with Sawyer. Mr. & Mrs. Hobbs—James Iredell Tredwell and Mary Bonner Blount Tredwell are Sawyer’s cousins. Mr. Thorne—Joseph Blount was Mrs. Tredwell’s brother. Mr. Bruce—Nathaniel Parker Willis was the head of the family in which Harriet worked as a nursemaid. Mrs. Bruce—Mary Stace Willis, Nathaniel Parker Willis’s first wife, helped Harriet flee to Boston when Dr. Norcom arrived in New York; she died in 1845. Baby Mary—Imogen Willis was Mary Stace Willis’ daughter. Harriet worked as her nursemaid and later escorted her on a trip to England. The second Mrs. Bruce—Cornelia Grinnell Willis was Nathaniel Parker Willis’s second wife and employer and friend of Harriet. She arranged for the American Colonization Society to act as an intermediary and in early 1952 bought Jacobs from the Messmores (Dr. Norcom’s daughter and her husband). Lydia Maria Child—Child was the white abolitionist editor who helped Harriet publish her narrative in 1861.