Named Africans at Point Comfort: Antoney, Mary, and the 1619 Arrivals

Among the first Africans arriving in English Virginia in 1619 were individuals recorded by name: 'Antoney Negro,' 'Mary Negro,' and others. They arrived as war captives seized from the Portuguese slave ship São João Bautista by English privateers. Their initial status was ambiguous — some served as indentured servants rather than permanent slaves — a legal ambiguity that would close decisively over the following decades.