John DeBaptist: Revolutionary War sailor
Date published: 2/16/2005
John DeBaptist, who was born in the Caribbean, was among 140 blacks who served as sailors in the Virginia fleet during the Revolutionary War. He was on The Dragon,
a fighting ship that patrolled the Rappahannock River.
Initially, blacks couldn’t have guns because whites feared they would revolt. But as fighting wore on—and the British recruited black soldiers—the Virginia Congress also let free blacks fight.
After the revolution, DeBaptist returned to the Rappahannock River. He operated a ferry between Falmouth and Fredericksburg.
His children were prosperous builders and businessmen, and his grandchildren were active in the abolitionist movement.
The family name is spelled in historical accounts with and without an “e” at the end.
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Revolutionary War sailor
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Sources: "A Different Story" by Ruth Coder Fitzgerald; HistoryPoint.org of the Central Rappahannock Regional Library; The Free Lance-Star archives; State of Michigan Web site; African Within; The Kennedy Center; We Were Always Free By T.O. Madden Jr.; The Richmond Times-Dispatch; Life Magazine; Westmoreland County, Virginia.
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Date published: 2/16/2005
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