Phillis was one of the sixteen known enslaved people held at the Bush-Holley House. She was the oldest child of Cull Bush Sr and Patience, who were also enslaved by the Bush family. We know that Phillis lived in the Bush household with her family until the age of 9. We also know that she is no longer there by the age of 19. It seems that after the death of David Bush, the Bush family began to send Cull and Patience’s daughters out to serve in other households once they were old enough to work independently.
Phillis was willed to David’s Widow, Sarah, after his death, and would have served her, or had the money for her labor sent to Sarah, until she was legally freed on her 21st birthday by the Gradual Emancipation Acts. We do not currently know where Phillis lived and worked after she left the Bush household. No records of her in freedom have been found.
