One of the overlooked sources for Jefferson’s early draft was a now largely forgotten pamphlet written by Judge Samuel Sewall in 1700 titled , “The Selling of Joseph: A Memorial.” It is a remarkable document, one of the earliest antislavery declarations published in the American colonies. It’s very much a religious essay. The odds are that Sewall, a prominent Boston Puritan, actually read it in his church, the Old South Meeting House, on Sunday, June 23rd, the day before its publication. Eight years earlier he had done something …
Read More