Mark (?-September 18, 1755) (sometimes called Mark Codman) was a black slave owned by Captain John Codman (1696-1755) of

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20 years before the

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. Though some texts refer to Mark as "Mark Codman", he was probably not referred to as such during his life as giving a slave the surname of his master was not commonly done with

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slaves. The contemporary documents from the investigation and trial only use Mark for his name. Mark was a slave to Codman for a few years before his execution. He was accused of burning down a building about six years before his death to try to gain freedom. Mark could read, and said that he read the

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to find a way to kill his master without committing a

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. He struck upon poisoning because it did not involve the shedding of blood. According to historical documents from the investigation and judgement, Mark obtained

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from a doctor on the pretense it was to kill pigs, but furnished it to his sister who administered it to Codman. Several other slaves were also implicated in the plot. In 1755, Mark was convicted of assisting in the successful poisoning of his master, John Codman. As punishment, Mark was hanged, tarred, and his body displayed in an iron

gibbet A gibbet is any instrument of public execution (including guillotine, decapitation, executioner's block, Impalement, impalement stake, gallows, hanging gallows, or related Scaffold (execution site), scaffold). Gibbeting is the use of a gallows- ...

for several years after his death at a well-known spot (at the time) in present-day

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.George Francis Dow, John Henry Edmonds (1996). ''The Pirates of the New England Coast, 1630-1730'', p. 113. Dover Publications, New York. . Mark's sister Phillis was tried for the actual act of poisoning; she was convicted and burned alive. Mark's publicly displayed body was a local landmark. In 1775, twenty years after Mark's execution,

Paul Revere Paul Revere (; December 21, 1734 O.S. (January 1, 1735 N.S.)May 10, 1818) was an American silversmith, engraver, early industrialist, Sons of Liberty member, and Patriot and Founding Father. He is best known for his midnight ride to ale ...

came to the same spot in his

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to warn American colonial forces of the movements of the British Army. Revere's 1798 written account noted that "nearly opposite where Mark was hung in chains, I saw two men on Horse back, under a Tree. When I got near them, I discovered they were British officers", whom Revere successfully evaded.

References

1755 deaths Year of birth unknown 18th-century American slaves 1755 in Massachusetts African-American history in Boston Place of birth missing 18th-century executions of American people Executed African-American people Poisoners Somerville, Massachusetts People executed by the Thirteen Colonies by hanging People executed by Massachusetts by hanging People of colonial Massachusetts {{US-hist-stub

See also

References