Lemuel Haynes (1753–1833) was the first Black American ordained as a minister in a mainstream Protestant denomination in the United States. Born in West Hartford, Connecticut, to a white mother and a Black father, Haynes was indentured to a Massachusetts farmer until age 21. He enlisted in the local militia as a Minuteman in 1774 and was called to arms following the outbreak of hostilities with British forces at the Battle of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. Haynes joined other Minutemen units and served during the Siege of Boston, which followed soon after. He later served with the militia in Fort Ticonderoga in 1776.
In 1785, he was ordained and became the pastor of a predominantly white congregation in Rutland, Vermont, where he served for over 30 years. His influential sermon, Liberty Further Extended, challenged the institution of slavery and recognized it as a direct contradiction principles of American Democracy.
The Joy Trip Project celebrates the enduring legacy of Black American History. The Unhidden Minute is part of the Unhidden Podcast Project supported through a National Geographic Explorer Grant from the National Geographic Society, with the cooperation of the National Park Service. This series elevates the untold stories of Black American historical figures, events and cultural contributions.
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