Legal documents pertaining to the Easter Plot of 1802 [Decimalized .01-.16]
High-resolution images are available to schools and libraries via subscription to American History, 1493-1943. Check to see if your school or library already has a subscription. Or click here for more information. You may also order a pdf of the image from us here.
Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC06338 Author/Creator: Place Written: Halifax County, Virginia Type: Header Record Date: 1802 Pagination: 16 items Order a Copy
An archive of legal documents related to the Halifax County, Virginia trial of slaves following Sancho's Rebellion, also known as the Easter Plot of 1802. Includes six indictments, five mittimus warrants, one arrest warrant, and four writs of summons.
Sancho, a participant in Gabriel's Rebellion of 1800, instigated a slave uprising intended to take place on or around Good Friday 1802. The ferment spread through southern Virginia (including Halifax County), and northeastern North Carolina. In his book "Gabriel's Rebellion: The Virginia Slave Conspiracies of 1800 & 1802," Daniel Egerton notes that Sancho was a ferryman (a bondman whose work required extensive absence from his home plantation). Unlike Gabriel, Sancho sought to enlist a small dedicated group of followers, using his mobility as a ferryman to do so. The goals of the uprising included freedom, the right to earnings, and equitable distribution of property.
Though no whites were killed during the rebellion, Sancho, Absalom, Frank, and Martin were sentenced to death after a co-conspirator (Abram) supplied information to authorities. Abram was also sentenced to death after others testified against him. The five men were hung on 15 May 1802. The only female participant, Phebe (spelled various ways in the following documents), was released. The death sentences were carried out despite Jefferson's advice that the conspirators be transported to Africa, possibly as indentured servants, rather than executed.
Coupled with Gabriel's Rebellion of 1800, Sancho's 1802 plot led Virginia legislators to clamp down more tightly on slaves' nighttime activities and on free blacks' ability to work.
Sancho, a participant in Gabriel's Rebellion of 1800, instigated a slave uprising intended to take place on or around Good Friday 1802 (this rebellion is also known as the Easter Plot). The ferment spread through southern Virginia (including Halifax County), and northeastern North Carolina.
According to Daniel Egerton's book, Gabriel's Rebellion: The Virginia Slave Conspiracies of 1800 & 1802, Sancho was a ferryman (a bondman whose work required extensive absence from his home plantation). Unlike Gabriel, he sought to enlist a small dedicated group of followers, using his mobility as a ferryman to do so. According to Egerton's study, the goals of Sancho's Rebellion included freedom, the right to earnings, and equitable distribution of property (Egerton argues that Gabriel's rebellion focused more on the contemporary politics of the Jefferson election).
Though no whites were killed during the rebellion, Sancho, Absalom, Frank, and Martin were sentenced to death after a co-conspirator (Abram) supplied information to authorities. Abram was also sentenced to death after others testified against him. The five men were hung 15 May 1802. The only female participant, Phebe (spelled "Phebey" in the following documents) was released.
Citation Guidelines for Online Resources
The copyright law of the United States (title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specific conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be “used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research.” If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of “fair use,” that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law.