Lemuel Haynes

Veteran of the Revolutionary War, poet, and preacher, Lemuel Haynes (1753–1833) was the most prolific African American writer of his era. Haynes was born in Connecticut. His mother was a white indentured servant and his father was an enslaved African. Haynes was sent to serve as an indentured servant in Massachusetts. Released from service when he was 21, Haynes signed up with the Minutemen, joined the rebels at the siege of Boston, and served at Fort Ticonderoga.

In 1780, Haynes was licensed to preach and in 1787 became perhaps the first ordained Black minister in the United States. He served white and integrated congregations in Massachusetts, Vermont, and New York, publishing sermons and essays on racial equality.