For centuries, Derrick Oxford’s remains sat in an unmarked grave in a tiny town in New Hampshire, a long way from Stonington, the town he once called home. It was all that was left of a man who spent most, if not all, his life as a slave.

But now Oxford’s burial site will better reflect that of Revolutionary War soldier and, more importantly, a man.

Next month the Plainfield Historical Society will host a dedication service commemorating Oxford alongside a new headstone that has been placed in his honor in the Coryville Cemetery in Plainfield, N.H.

“I think it is good to know, it’s a sad situation but it’s a happy one,” said Bonita Johnson of Bridgeport, a descendant of Oxford. “Something good came out of something bad.”

Slave of prominent southeastern Connecticut families

Although most often associated with the South, slavery was prevalent in the North, as well — especially in Connecticut, where a gradual emancipation bill wasn’t passed until 1784.

By 1730, Connecticut had at least 700 slaves living in the state, a number that grew to over 4,000 by 1750, said Jane Stephenson of the Plainfield Historical Society, adding that New London County was documented as one of the largest slaveholding sections in New England.

Stephenson led the charge in researching Oxford’s history and was responsible for providing the documentation to the Department of Veterans Affairs to get his headstone.

It is unlikely he was born any later than 1730. He was a slave of Isaac Wheeler Jr., whose family owned land in North Stonington and Stonington, and Oxford is mentioned in Wheeler’s inventory in 1737, Stephenson said.

Through multiple wills and marriages, Oxford then was passed to the Williams family, bequeathed as part of a group of slaves that included a woman named Jenny, an infant named Cate and a young girl named Jenny. The elder Jenny is believed to have been Oxford’s wife and the two girls, his daughters.

Oxford was brought into the Gallup family household sometime between 1760 and 1772, likely by Eunice Williams, who married Joseph Gallup, Stephenson said. Their son William Gallup moved north in 1775, bringing his large family, Oxford and perhaps Jenny, to Hartland, Vt., a town just across the Connecticut River from Plainfield, where Oxford later would enlist with the Continental Army.

Revolutionary War and life after

By the time Oxford first appears on the military payroll in 1777, he is by no means a young man, likely being between 50 and 60 years old, according to Stephenson’s research.

Counted as an enlistee from Plainfield, Oxford was part of Capt. John House’s company and went on to fight in the Battle of Saratoga and Siege of Ticonderoga during 1777. He then was left at the Battle of Albany because he was “wounded or sick,” according to records Stephenson found.

He was listed as “sick” a couple of more times in the following months before he joined the Vermont state militia, where he was in the company of Capt. John Benjamin until 1781, according to Stephenson. That same year a Hartland selectman certified that Oxford, “a negro slave to Mr. William Gallup,” had enlisted three years of service and continued until he obtained a furlough home to “recruit his health.”

After that, it is unclear what happened to Oxford.

At some point he joined the household of Benjamin Cutler of Plainfield. One possibility is that Gallup, who was serving in the Vermont legislature, which had banned slavery, felt pressure to unload his slaves, Stephenson said.

Regardless, Stephenson said Plainfield town lore is Cutler had two slaves — one named “Darock” — both of whom were buried at Coryville Cemetery. The graves are not side by side, suggesting the other slave was probably not Oxford’s wife, Jenny, Stephenson said.

In the 1790 census, Cutler had two “free people of color” in his household, although it’s unclear if they were truly free; although slavery was outlawed, the ban wasn’t strictly enforced, Stephenson said. By the 1800 census, Cutler didn’t list any “free people of color” in his household, suggesting Oxford died sometime between 1790 and 1800, Stephenson said.

He would have been between 70 and 80 years old, she said.

Uncovering Oxford’s past

After his death, Oxford seemed a bit lost to history. It is unclear what happened to his wife, Jenny. His daughter Jenny married Levi Randall, a slave of the Randall family from Stonington, in 1778. Jenny and Levi stayed in Stonington, while her father went north with the Gallups.

What happened to his other daughter, Cate, is unknown.

However, through the years there were people in Plainfield who were at least aware that two slaves were buried in the Coryville Cemetery.

Then, about a year ago, someone approached Stephenson following an event about the Underground Railroad and said they knew where some slaves were buried. The group went, saw the two unmarked graves and began to do some research, eventually learning one of the graves belonged to a “Derrick” whom town records described as “Darok a negro” and referenced as serving during the Revolutionary War, Stephenson said.

From there, she began to research how Oxford got to Plainfield, which led her to William Gallup and Stonington. From there she made use of several early Connecticut wills, which are now online, and discovered multiple Wheeler and Williams wills that mentioned Derrick. The book “Black Roots in Southeastern Connecticut” also provided valuable insight on Oxford and other slaves in Stonington, she said.

“I feel gratified that we will have the ceremony and he will get recognition for his service, and that his family will be able to say they are descendants of a Revolutionary War veteran,” Stephenson said of the coming May 19 dedication, adding that she thinks it’s important people realize that slavery was part of New London County’s history.

For descendants of Oxford, the discovery of his history reveals a missing part of the family tree.

Johnson, Oxford’s descendant who lives in Bridgeport and plans to attend the dedication with her family, said she had been researching her family genealogy since the early 2000s, but only had luck with her mother’s side of the family tree. Her father’s family can be traced back to Oxford, Jenny, Levi and the younger Jenny.

“I would never in a million years have thought I could find someone that far back,” said Johnson, adding it’s the type of thing you see happen to celebrities on shows like "Finding Your Roots."

“I just think there’s not that many people that can say that, we’re just regular old Joes,” she said.

c.clark@theday.com