Fighting for Freedom – Exeter’s Prince Light

by Barbara Rimkunas

This "Historically Speaking" column was published in the Exeter News-Letter on Friday, July 2, 2021.

Like most of the Black Revolutionary War veterans who settled in Exeter after the fighting ended, we aren’t entirely sure about Prince Light’s origins. In “Strong and Brave Fellows,” author Glen Knoblock offers convincing evidence that Light began his days enslaved to John Light of Exeter and later to Ephraim Robinson. We’re also uncertain about exactly when he gained his freedom. He may have first enlisted in the Continental Army as Prince Robinson or he may have used Prince Light as his name. The records are sparce and not specific enough to help researchers several centuries out.

What can be certain is that Prince Light was living and working in Exeter when the 1790 census was taken. He is listed as the head of household to six people – remarkable, considering we have no idea who the other five members are. Ten years later, he married Phillis Currier, a free Black woman, in Exeter. Phillis brought a baby daughter to the marriage named Hannah. Hannah would marry John Blossom in Portsmouth in 1820 using the name “Hannah Light.” There doesn’t seem to be any evidence that Prince and Phillis had any other children.

According to Charles Bell, who was writing in 1888, Prince Light was “a favorite leader” among the Black population of Exeter. Bell never met Light, he was relying on the stories of older Exeter residents. One doesn’t have to be wealthy to be a leader and Light certainly had his economic difficulties. Another writer, listed only as “L” wrote that “he and his wife were often employed by the farmers of that day in pulling flax.” Whether they later helped with the ensuing tasks involved in turning flax into linen we do not know. Light and his wife were often listed on the pauper rolls in Exeter.

Which brings us to what must have been the lowest point in Light’s life. In 1812, he and Phillis were convicted of theft and committed to the county jail. They were involved in an unspecified dispute with a neighbor – another Black Revolutionary War veteran named Bob Duce. During the encounter, Duce’s house was burned and some of his household effects stolen. Prince and Phillis served their one-year sentence, but could not afford the $100 fine and therefore remained in custody for several more years. They were released in 1817 after twenty-nine Exeter residents signed a petition asking for their release. “Your petitioners inhabitants of Exeter humbly pray your Honours that the said Prisoners may be released from their confinement that they may once more enjoy the Blessings of Liberty.” They were released just a year before the U.S. government began a pension program for indigent veterans. Prince Light applied.

In his application, he stated he served at Ticonderoga in 1776-77 and later at West Point in 1780 for a total of nine months. He was honorably discharged, but owing to the fact that he could not read or write, did not know the importance of the papers he was given and having moved often due to poverty, the discharge papers had been lost. Backing up his claim were depositions from Jeremiah Rollins, Jonathan Hill and Cato Fisk, who all stated they’d served with Light. He was granted a small pension, which must have seemed like a small fortune. The pension provided for Light and Phillis and removed the town’s requirement to keep the couple on public support.

Having served at West Point in 1780, Light was witness to one of the more unsavory events in the war’s history. It was at West Point that Major John Andre, of the British forces, was arrested and hanged as a spy for serving as the contact person when Benedict Arnold committed treason. He would later recount the execution to local residents, one of whom only remembered that Light said Andre’s boots “shone like a glass bottle” as he stood at the gallows. Interestingly, this tale, along with the memory of Light pulling flax, does not mention the unfortunate incident with Bob Duce. Perhaps by the time the piece was written (in 1879) there was an attempt to tidy up the story of Prince Light.

In his later years, with his sparce finances in order, it became obvious to his neighbors that Prince was no longer capable of taking care of himself. In 1820, he was placed under the guardianship of John Kimball. His household possessions were meager – a table, two chairs, a broken kettle, a fireplace shovel, some dishes. Kimball helped him reapply for his pension and made small purchases for him. The accounts at the time of his death indicate that the guardianship purchased sheets, handkerchiefs, shoes, wood, potatoes, meats and medical care for Light. Kimball made sure that his rent – paid to Hannah (Holland) Merrill, a woman of color – was covered. Final accounts included a “long shirt” and grave digging. He is most likely buried in the Winter Street Cemetery in an unmarked grave.

Barbara Rimkunas is curator of the Exeter Historical Society. Support the Exeter Historical Society by becoming a member! Join online at: www.exeterhistory.org

Image: Unable to read or write, Prince Light signed his pension application with his mark in 1818.