Belinda

(c. 1713 - c. 1800)

Belinda was enslaved by the Royall family for fifty years. In 1778, after fleeing America for England when the revolution broke out, the Loyalist Isaac Royall Jr. made a will instructing that Belinda be paid thirty pounds a year for three years, so that “she shall not be a charge to the town of Medford.” Royall died in 1781, and Belinda presented a petition to the Massachusetts General Court in order to secure a pension from the proceeds of his estate. The court granted her an annual pension of fifteen pounds and twelve shillings; records suggest she received payment only twice.