James Summers of Delaware

In the late 1700s, James Summers, a free Black man living in Kent Co, Delaware, entered into a relationship with Judea (also “Jada), a woman enslaved by the Lowber family in Murderkill Hundred (see map at end). They are said by some to have been married; however, marriage by a slave was usually forbidden. Whether James Summers and Judea were legally married or not, Judea took the last name "Summers" and the relationship lasted throughout their lives.

Slaves were seldom shown with a last name, but Peter’s will stated “I give and Bequeath to
Catharine Duhadaway . . a Negro girl named ruth summers . . .”

In 1794 Peter Lowber died, and his will freed Judea. But the will did not free the two children of James and Judea, Ruth and Thomas, who were born into slavery because their mother was a slave. According to the will, 4-year-old Ruth was given to Peter's sister Catharine Duhadaway, to be enslaved until Ruth was 21 years old, at which time she should be freed. The will makes no mention of 2-year-old Thomas, who, needing a mother’s care, was probably given by Peter Lowber's heirs  to James and Judea Summers, but was not officially freed.

Manumission document, Delaware Public Archives

When Catharine Duhadaway died in Maryland, her possessions, including Ruth, became available for distribution. James must have purchased Ruth, by payment or labor, because on 14 October 1797, James signed with his mark a document to free both his children. John Lowber, Peter's grandson, signed the manumission document as a witness. The document states

I the said James Summers for divers Considerations me especially moving do Manumit, Liberate and set at full Liberty . . .my affectionate Children, namely Thomas Summers who is now age about five years, and Ruth Summers aged Seven years . . . that they the said Thomas Summers and Ruth Summers liberated as afores^d shall from and immediately after the date on these presents enjoy their Freedom as Other Free Citizens Can or ought to do.

Today there are over 300 descendants of James and Judea Summers (Photo from a Delaware Day 2020 film, Delaware Historic and Cultural Affairs).

In Delaware, Hundreds were essentially townships. “Murderkill” is believed
to have come from the Dutch “moeder kille,” meaning “mother creek.”

And who was James Summers? At the time he signed the manumission document, he was living in Murderkill Hundred, just north of Mispillion Hundred, where the descendants of Thomas Sr. and Rosanna Summers lived (see In The Beginning). And in 1800 James was actually living in Mispillion Hundred. Given his name, it is not unlikely that James Summers, who was probably born somewhere around 1760, was a child of one of Thomas Sr’s four sons—Thomas Jr, John, William, or Joseph. These, their spouses, and their children were the only Summerses (yes, that is the plural of Summers) living in all of Kent Co around this time. Born in 1749, Joseph would have probably been too young, but the other three sons, who are known to have been living in Mispillion Hundred in the 1750s and 1760s, could have fathered James with an enslaved woman, though admittedly the Summers were not known to own slaves. No records, however, exist showing this, and autosomal DNA evidence is very unlikely to provide proof. Thomas Summers’s known descendants living today are likely seven or more generations removed from any of Thomas’s children, and an autosomal DNA match probability would be well under 1 percent. yDNA could provide proof or disproof if DNA results become available for male-line descendants of both James and Thomas Sr. Are there volunteers out there?