Bazabeel Norman (July 12, 1750 – July 17, 1830) was an American soldier, farmer, and landowner.

Name

"Basil" was his birth name according to the 1750 court records but, due to the lack of 18th century English spelling conformity, he was also known as Bazabeel, Bazaleel, Bazel, Bazil, Bazael, Bazzell and Bazlo.

Military career

Norman was a free mulatto (biracial) Revolutionary War soldier serving in the

7th Maryland Regiment The 7th Maryland Regiment was authorized on 16 September 1776, for service with the Continental Army and was assigned on 27 December 1776. The regiment was composed of eight companies of wiktionary:volunteer, volunteers organized from Frederic ...

under the command of Colonel John Gunby from June 6, 1777, until July 31, 1783. His mother was a mulatto

indentured servant Indentured servitude is a form of labor in which a person is contracted to work without salary for a specific number of years. The contract, called an "indenture", may be entered "voluntarily" for purported eventual compensation or debt repaymen ...

of British and African ancestry named Jane and his grandmother, Elizabeth, arrived in America as an indentured servant from Great Britain. His father was a free "mulatto" man. Basil also served an indenture until age 21 but was never enslaved, nor were his descendants. He was the second landowner of color in the state of Ohio. The first was Richard Fisher whose daughter, Mary Anne Fisher, married Basil's son Aquila. Aquila Norman 1

His direct descendant Major Henry A. Norman was a

Tuskegee Airman The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332d Fighter Group and the 477th Fighter Group, 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of the ...

who fought in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Basil is a great-great-great-grandfather of American opera singer

Maria Ewing Maria Louise Ewing (March 27, 1950 – January 9, 2022) was an American opera singer. In the early part of her career she performed solely as a lyric mezzo-soprano; she later assumed full soprano parts as well. Her signature roles were Blanche, ...

, four times great-grandfather of her daughter, actress

Rebecca Hall Rebecca Maria Hall (born 3 May 1982) is an English actress and filmmaker. She made her first onscreen appearance at age 10 in the 1992 television adaptation of '' The Camomile Lawn'', directed by her father, Sir Peter Hall. Her professional s ...

Stated on '' Finding Your Roots'', January 4, 2022 and sixth generation ancestor of jazz musician Wilbur L. Norman (March 5, 1926 - January 8, 2016). At least three of Norman's descendants served and died from wounds suffered in the U.S. Civil War, Azariah Norman (1827 - September 24, 1864, buried

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

), Henry L. Norman (April 4, 1834 - died Andersonville Prison, July 4, 1864) and Horace Norman (1843 - April 24, 1865, buried Hampton National Cemetery). A bronze plaque in Mound Cemetery in

Marietta, Ohio Marietta is a city in, and the county seat of, Washington County, Ohio, United States. It is located in southeastern Ohio at the confluence of the Muskingum and Ohio Rivers, northeast of Parkersburg, West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, Ma ...

, set by the Daughters of the American Revolution, commemorates Basil Norman and his Revolutionary War service. (There is an error in Basil's birth date on the plaque.) In 1825, General Lafayette of France, who fought with the Americans during the Revolution, visited Marietta. He said of the city's veterans: "I knew them well. I saw them fighting the battles of their country". They were the bravest of the brave. Better men never lived." Basil Norman fought in at least five major military battles/campaigns. He wrote: "I was in the Battles of Monmouth 8 June 1778 Campden ic: Battle of Camden SC, 16 Aug 1780 Cowpens 7 Jan 1781Gilford Courthouse ic: Guilford Courthouse NC, 15 Mar 1781& the Eutaw springs C, 8 Sep 1781. He is one of Maryland's veterans who received land in western Allegheny County by lottery for service during the Revolutionary War. His allotment, Lot #1281, contained a stream with a waterfall and is now a State Park. Norman's obituary was published in the ''American Friend & Marietta Gazette'' newspaper on Saturday, July 24, 1830:

"Casualty. – On Saturday evening last Mr. Bazil Norman, of Roxbury Township, a man of color, left his house to go to watch a deer lick, and not returning in the course of the night, the next day a search was commenced under the belief that some accident had befallen him; after a diligent search by his family and neighbors, he was found dead hav-ing fallen from a precipice about twelve feet From appearances he had been to the lick and stayed the usual time, and late in the evening attempted to return, by the aid of a torch light; having a narrow pass to descend between some rocks about a half mile from the house, he missed his way a few yards, fell, and broke his neck. Mr. Norman was aged about 73 years – was a soldier in the revolutionary war, and at the time of his death received a pension from the United States."

His wife Fortune Stevens Norman applied for (April 14, 1837), and received, his $9.00 military pension seven years after his death.Southern Campaign American Revolution Pension Statements. Pension Application of Bazeleel Norman: W5429, 14th day of May 1818.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Norman, Basil 1750 births 1830 deaths African Americans in the American Revolution Pre-emancipation African-American history Black Patriots People from Frederick, Maryland Military personnel from Maryland