Tarrant, Caesar
TARRANT, CAESAR. (c. 1740–1797). Patriot seaman. Born a slave in Virginia around 1740, Caesar took the last name of his owner, Carter Tarrant. Acquiring the unusual skill of river pilot, a knowledge generally denied to slaves for fear that they would use it to escape, Tarrant saw the American Revolution as a chance to gain his freedom. Though Virginia's royal governor, Lord Dunmore, promised freedom to slaves who joined his forces, Tarrant offered his skills to the Patriots and was named a pilot in the Virginia navy in 1775. Over the next three years he guided ships through the state's coastal waters and become a trusted pilot. In 1777 a small fleet under the command of Commodore Richard Taylor gave battle to the Lord Howe. Piloting the Patriot, Tarrant rammed it into the larger British ship. In the ensuing battle, Tarrant acted with great courage, earning his captain's praise. He behaved similarly in a number of other encounters with the British, for which the Americans rewarded him by returning him to slavery. In 1789, five years after the death of Carter Tarrant, the Virginia assembly finally corrected this injustice by granting Tarrant his freedom, paying Mary Tarrant recompense. Tarrant devoted the rest of his life to attempting to purchase his family's freedom, buying his wife and one daughter in 1793 but leaving two other children enslaved. He clearly earned the respect of his fellow pilots, who petitioned the assembly in 1791 to grant qualified free blacks like Tarrant pilot licenses. He died in Hampton, Virginia, in 1797.
SEE ALSO African Americans in the Revolution.
Tarrant, Caesar
TARRANT, CAESAR. (c. 1740–1797). Patriot seaman. Born a slave in Virginia around 1740, Caesar took the last name of his owner, Carter Tarrant. Acquiring the unusual skill of river pilot, a knowledge generally denied to slaves for fear that they would use it to escape, Tarrant saw the American Revolution as a chance to gain his freedom. Though Virginia's royal governor, Lord Dunmore, promised freedom to slaves who joined his forces, Tarrant offered his skills to the Patriots and was named a pilot in the Virginia navy in 1775. Over the next three years he guided ships through the state's coastal waters and become a trusted pilot. In 1777 a small fleet under the command of Commodore Richard Taylor gave battle to the Lord Howe. Piloting the Patriot, Tarrant rammed it into the larger British ship. In the ensuing battle, Tarrant acted with great courage, earning his captain's praise. He behaved similarly in a number of other encounters with the British, for which the Americans rewarded him by returning him to slavery. In 1789, five years after the death of Carter Tarrant, the Virginia assembly finally corrected this injustice by granting Tarrant his freedom, paying Mary Tarrant recompense. Tarrant devoted the rest of his life to attempting to purchase his family's freedom, buying his wife and one daughter in 1793 but leaving two other children enslaved. He clearly earned the respect of his fellow pilots, who petitioned the assembly in 1791 to grant qualified free blacks like Tarrant pilot licenses. He died in Hampton, Virginia, in 1797.
SEE ALSO African Americans in the Revolution.
