Explore the Probate Administration file of Benjamin Fitch, who died in 1767. Included are the inventory of his property made after his death and the probate settlement dividing his possessions among his five children — but not his wife.

While no enslaved people are listed in the inventory, it includes evidence that an enslaved woman and her baby had been present in the house (and were probably removed by one of his sons before the property was assessed). Can you spot the evidence on the first page of the inventory?

Historic Genealogical Society, 2017-2019. (From records supplied by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Archives. Digitized images provided by FamilySearch.org) https://www.americanancestors.org/DB2735/i/48698/13988-co1/0