From Archaeological and Historical Research at the Cesar and Sim Peters House Site, Hebron, CT
Cesar and Sim Peters were free people when they moved to Hebron, Connecticut and purchased two acres with a house in 1806, but the Peters family had a much longer history in the community. For nearly 30 years, Cesar lived as a captive of the wealthy and influential Peters family (from whom he received his surname) in Hebron until he was freed by the Connecticut General Assembly in 1789. The Peter family’s story is remarkable. It is a tale of perseverance, friendship, and community, and it is a proud episode in Hebron history. Nonetheless, the established narrative about the Peters family focuses on their dramatic rescue from southern slavery by their white neighbors. The event is marked by a site on the Connecticut Freedom Trail, was featured in a play written for the 250th anniversary of Hebron in 1958, and is the subject of a short 2009 film, Testimonies of a Quiet New England Town. The story is an important episode in Connecticut’s history and likely a defining moment for the Peters family. However, the prominence of the rescue story in local history frames the Peters family as victims, dependent on the good will and kind sentiments of the white residents of Hebron. It diminishes the fuller story of their perseverance and resourcefulness first as captives, and later as free people. Our research focuses on the Peters as free people and aims to tell a more complete story about the family through an investigation of their home site, material culture, and the documentary record.
