The Database

Data Collection: New Bern Enslavement & Fugitive Notices. 

This digital collection gathers primary sources—such as runaway slave advertisements, jail notices, and legal claims—tracking the capture, detention, and identification of freedom seekers across the 18th and 19th centuries. 

List of Notices and Advertisements (Unstructured Data): Features textual excerpts and hyperlinks to original newspaper advertisements and notice text, original transmissible notices, and brief biographical details that lead to broader individual accounts—such as William Maclin's travel pass or Tom's changing testimony in the New Bern district jail. 

Spreadsheet (Structured Data): Organizes abstract information into searchable, standardized fields, including the name of the freedom seeker, the year of the notice's publication, the name of the enslaver, the advertiser if different from the enslaver, the previous enslaver, the location escaped, possible destinations, and enslavment status.