For Nearly 300 Years, History Forgot This Formerly Enslaved Man. Now Boston is Remembering

For hundreds of years, one of the oldest graves of a free Black American told almost nothing about the man buried beneath it. Its slate marker in Boston’s historic Granary Burying Ground carried only a single name: “Boston.” Now, after months of archival research, historians have restored his identity as Sebastian Lake, a formerly enslaved man who earned his freedom and whose long-forgotten story is returning to light just as the nation marks Independence Day.

Mayor Michelle Wu announced the discovery during her speech commemorating July 4th.

“That discovery is likely one of the oldest gravestones of a free Black person in America,” she said. “It’s been there all along. We just had to go look and share the story.”

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Months of research led historians to Lake, who lived as a free man for roughly three decades before he died in 1729, according to WBZ News Radio. Records showed he was known by several names, including Sebastian, Bastion and Boston, forcing researchers to compare church registers, probate files and burial records before confirming that they all referred to the same individual.

For hundreds of years, Lake’s headstone lay quietly among notable American Revolutionary figures also buried at Granary Burying Ground, including three signers of the Declaration of Independence: Samuel Adams, John Hancock, and Robert Treat Paine; Paul Revere; James Otis; Crispus Attucks and the other Boston Massacre victims, according to the city’s official website.

Director of Historic Burying Grounds for the Boston Parks and Recreation Department, Kelly Thomas, explained to WBZ that Lake’s gravesite likely went undiscovered for so long because it was lying down and covered in dirt. In the burial ground, which has over 2,000 sites, Lake’s history was unfortunately drowned out.

“It sounds silly, but they all look the same. They’re all grey, dirty stones. And I don’t mean that with any disrespect, but there’s thousands of them,” she told the outlet. “It’s just an overwhelming amount of work. It’s not just one burying ground, there’s 16 of them, and they’re all several hundred years old.”

Now, Lake’s gravesite has been honored with an American flag.

In addition to the discovery, the city of Boston is dedicated to telling the full truth of American history through 40 new historic markers, according to WCVB. “While the federal government tries to narrow the story of America, Boston keeps expanding it,” Mayor Wu said during her speech.

She added that preserving and sharing overlooked stories gives young people a more complete picture of the nation’s history. Whether they encounter those stories in classrooms, museums or while exploring Boston’s historic streets, she hopes children will “find proof of what’s possible in America.”