Slavery in New England

There's an interesting discussion going on over at Our Georgia Roots about genealogical research and slavery.  I commented that I just recently posted the genealogical sketch of Samuel Wallis whose will shows that he owned a slave.  I assumed that New Hampshire was like Massachusetts and slavery ended shortly after the American Revolution.  I was wrong.  New Hampshire had slavery until 1857.

Northern slave states

Significant dates	VT	PA	MA	NH	CT	RI	NY	NJ
European settlement	1666	1638	1620	1623	1633	1636	1624	1620
First record of slavery	c.1760?	1639	1629?	1645	1639	1652	1626	1627
Official end of slavery	1777	1780	1783	1857	1784	1784	1799	1804
Actual end of slavery	1777	c.1845	1783	c.1845?	1848	1842	1827	1865

I didn't hesitate posting something about slavery, because it is purely historical.  Our ancestors were products of the times in which they lived.  I've never been one to lionize them and possibly, this is why I don't consider myself a family historian.  I've been around so-called family historians for 30 years and they tend to sugarcoat things.  In any case, Samuel Wallis isn't my direct line, but I know I have New England ancestors who owned slaves.  I mean, I must have.***  I'm sure that because I've relied upon compiled genealogies in some instances that I haven't seen wills where such things are mentioned.  And even if they didn't own slaves then, they did a bunch of things that we, in the modern times, would find reprehensible.  The Salem Witch Trials come to mind.  

One branch of the Yeaton family owned slaves as well.  I know that Joe Anderson included Fortune Yeaton in his Yeaton study noting him as a free person of color according to the 1810 census, living in Maine.

In any case, I was thinking that as part of my Wallis study, I should try to follow the family of Caesar and Phyllis Wallis.  He's certainly living in Gilmanton, N.H. with a household of four people in the 1790 census. This source says he died there at age 104, however the History of Rye insists that he and Phyllis died there and were buried at the Wallis farm.  Of course, I'm completely ignorant of how to approach such a study.

***UPDATE 2/25/2010: Kenelm Winslow 1668-1729 owned three slaves.  He was a resident of Harwich, Massachusetts.  He was a successful merchant, clothier and represented Harwich in the Massachusetts legislature in 1720.  Kenelm is my 8th great-grandfather.