Portsmouth

The Black Whipple Family

Prince and Cuffee Whipple, possibly brothers or cousins, had been owned by the white Whipples. The men were given lifelong use of this plot of land after their emancipation in the 1780s. They moved a small wooden house onto the site and lived there with their wives Dinah (Chase) and Rebecca (Daverson), and their children At assemblies and society balls Prince worked as a steward, Cuffee as a musician. Dinah did sewing for the North Church and with Rebecca kept a school in their home for Black children sponsored by the Ladies Charitable African Society.