Caesar Lyndon

Biography

Caesar Lyndon (sometimes spelled Cesar, active 1761–1770) was a highly literate Black man enslaved by Josias Lyndon, known for his Sundry Account Book, a valuable historical record of life in Colonial Rhode Island. Caesar carried out Lyndon's business, acting as a purchasing agent and a secretary. His Sundry Account Book chronicles his financial transactions from Newport's famed slave traders like Aaron Lopez, as well as free and enslaved people. By way of double-entry bookkeeping, Caesar itemized the sale and acquisition of goods and services. He also noted deaths, marriages, and a pig roast. This nearly thirty-five-page book represents a lesser-known but fascinating example of the early African American literary tradition of the United States. Lyndon was not only an enslaved man who could read and write; his penmanship was so good that Caleb Godfrey, a noted slave ship captain, paid him to copy a lengthy letter.

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