From the early 1740s to 1829, an African American woman lived and unexpectedly became an important woman in history. Even though most people have never heard of her, what she did changed the way people look at other African Americans. She was born in the early 1740s to African parents and grew up as a slave with her sister Lizzie in Claverack, New York, about twenty miles south of Albany. Their owner was Pieter Hogeboom, who was the head of a wealthy Dutch-American family. In 1735, Hogeboom's daughter Hannah married John Ashley, who was the son of one of the first landowners authorized by the Massachusetts General Court to organize settlements along the Housatonic River. When Hogeboom died in 1758, she and Lizzie were taken to the home of Hannah and her husband, she was about fourteen years old at the time. Her slave name was Bett, she was called Mum Bett as an adult, and eventually became Elizabeth Freeman. At this time, John Ashley became a very important figure in Sheffield, Massachusetts, which is a large part of western Massachusetts and would later be known. as the county of Berkshire. In 1761, Ashley was elected judge of the Court of Common Pleas, from which he resigned twenty years later. He was known as an honorable and prudent man, "'patriarchal in appearance, of average height,' according to an early biographical sketch" (Swan). In 1768, he signed a letter written by Samuel Adams, since he was a member of the Massachusetts Assembly. The letter disagreed with “several acts of Parliament imposing duties and taxes on the American colonies” (Swan). Along with her colleagues, Ashley gave in to the governor's demand to reject the letter. Hannah Ashley, on the other hand, was known for her unpredictability, once thrown... middle of paper... legal costs. Brief court records do not reveal the legal arguments or evidence presented, but later Sedgewick's descendants boasted that Theodore Sedgewick had invoked the Massachusetts constitution to argue that slavery could not exist in the state. Bett chose a new name to accompany her freedom, and it was Elizabeth Freeman. She left Colonel Ashley's employ and became a paid housekeeper in the Sedgewick family, eventually raising her ten children when the mother developed mental illness. Works Cited Roark, James L. "Chapter 8". The American Promise: A Compact History. Flight. 1. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2010. 187-90. Print.Swan, Jon. “The slave who sued for freedom.” American Heritage. Flight. 41. Issue 2. March 1990. Web. February 27, 2012. “The Massachusetts Constitution, Judicial Review, and Slavery.” Supreme Jewish Court. 2010. Internet. February 28. 2012.