In July 1680, New Paltz Patentee Christian Deyo purchased an enslaved African man named Jack from a New York City physician named Hartman Wessels. Nine years later, Christian's son, New Paltz Patentee Pierre Deyo, purchased an enslaved African woman named Betty from a trafficker of enslaved people in New York City named James Barré. These are the first recorded purchases of enslaved people by the European founders of New Paltz following the community's establishment in 1677, and Jack and Betty are the earliest recorded African residents of the town.  In this presentation, Ulster County Historian, Eddie Moran, will guide attendees through documentary sources to discuss what we know about Jack and Betty, and what their lives in New Paltz may have been like. 

This talk will be presented entirely online via a link provided after registration. 

Eddie Moran currently serves as the appointed Historian for Ulster County, NY. Eddie graduated with a B.A. in history from SUNY New Paltz in the Spring of 2020, and began work as a tour guide at Historic Huguenot Street in New Paltz while still a student in 2017. He managed guided tours and historical interpretation full-time at Historic Huguenot Street beginning in 2022, and was appointed Ulster County Historian in September 2024. He is a lifelong resident of the Wallkill River Valley, and a descendant of the region’s Huguenot and Dutch colonizers.

$8 General Access

$5 Discounted Access (For seniors, students, active military personnel and their families, and veterans

FREE for HHS Members

2025 Witness Stones Project is sponsored by Devine Insurance and partially funded by the Deyo Family Association.

This virtual presentation is sponsored by Jim DeMaio, State Farm Insurance Agent, and is, additionally, made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.