Peter Salem (1750-1816) is one of the iconic names in the history of Leicester. I don’t know what the situation is now, but 80 or so years ago we Leicester school kids were taught about Mr. Salem, a former slave who became a hero at the Battle of Bunker Hill.
There used to be a marker on Peter Salem Road in Leicester that identified the spot where he lived for many years before ending up at the Framingham poorhouse. He had been born in Framingham and thus was deemed, in his old age, to be the responsibility of that town.
Born a slave, he was given his freedom when he joined the Colonial forces fighting the British redcoats in the Revolution. He was a soldier at the Battle of Lexington on April 19, 1775, and his moment of fame came at Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775, when the British forces, under the command of Maj. Pitcairn, came charging up Breed’s Hill toward the Colonial fortification. According to the account, Peter Salem drew a bead on the major and killed him with one shot from his musket.
That dramatic moment is supposedly pictured in John Trumbull’s painting, “The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker Hill.” According to Wikipedia, Mr. Trumbull interviewed many of the participants on that bloody day, and “Peter Salem is believed to be in Trumbull’s painting also. Salem is at the far right, observing the carnage and death of General Warren.”
I remember years ago visiting the Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown and seeing an old musket displayed on the wall. The legend said that it was the gun that Peter Salem used that fateful day. I wonder if it’s still on display.
Mr. Salem has long been considered one of the early heroes of the Revolution, and one account says that he met George Washington. A monument to him was erected in Framingham in 1882. He died in 1816.
And now Peter Salem is taking on a new historical role. Amir Mohammed, a researcher in the role of Muslims in early American history, has raised the possibility that Mr. Salem was a Muslim. When he was freed, he dropped the name of Buckminster, the name of his master, and took the name of Salem. Salem, sometimes spelled “Saleem,” is an Arabic word for peace. Several entries on Facebook and other Internet sites discuss Mr. Salem and his possible Muslim background.
Although it is possible that he had Muslim roots, it will be hard to prove, given the lack of documentation. Arab slave traders were active in Africa in the 1700s, and some of their captives were exposed to Islamic teachings. Researchers have identified a number of slaves as Muslims. But whether Peter Salem was one of them is hard to say. The main histories of Leicester do not mention any Muslim connection.
Emory Washburn’s “History of Leicester” has several pages on Peter Salem. Some of his account seems based on the personal reminiscences of some old-timer: “Peter served faithfully as a soldier, during the war, in Col. Nixon’s regiment. A part of the time, he was the servant of Col. Nixon, and always spoke of him in terms of admiration.”
After the war, he came to Leicester for reasons unknown. According to Washburn, “He lived at various places in the town; but his last abode was a cabin which he built for himself, on the south side of the road leading to Auburn (now Peter Salem Road) … In front of his cabin he planted and reared two or three poplar trees ...
“Horticulture, however, was not his forte. He earned a precarious livelihood by making and mending baskets, bottoming chairs and the like, which gave him admittance into everybody’s house, where his good nature rendered him a universal favorite especially with the children. His military training in the army had given him a sort of instinctive soldierly bearing … and a marked courtesy of manner, which he never omitted or forgot.
“It was a treat, too, for the younger members of the family to gather around Peter, while engaged in mending the household chairs; or sitting in his chimney corner, with the youngest on his knee, while the flickering blaze let up his black face, to listen to his stories of the war ...”
If Peter Salem is ever clearly identified as a Muslim, it will be another feather in Leicester’s hat. The town already was remarkable for its religious tolerance. Unlike most 18th-century Massachusetts towns with a single, official church, Leicester had a Quaker meetinghouse, a Baptist church and a colony of Jews along with its Congregational Church on the Common. If it also had a Muslim in residence in those years, Leicester would certainly be unique.
But, Muslim or not, Peter Salem deserves to be remembered. I like to think of him as an old codger, surrounded by wide-eyed children, telling about the battles of Bunker Hill and Saratoga, or walking along the streets of Leicester, impressing onlookers with his erect military style and his courteous greetings.
As Washburn puts it: “But will anyone say that this humble black man, whose hand did such service in the very redoubt on Bunker Hill; who perilled his life … for that freedom of others which he had never been permitted to share till he won it personally by personal valor … does not deserve a place among those whom it is the purpose of these simple annals to commemorate?”
Yes, it is time to remember Peter Salem.
Albert B. Southwick’s column appears regularly in the Telegram & Gazette.
