Hugh Gwyn

Hugh Gwyn (c. 1590 - c. 1654) was a British colonist who owned the first legally-sanctioned slave in the Colony of Virginia, John Punch.

Sir Hugh Gwyn (sometimes spelled "Wynne",[1] "Wing",[2] or "Gwinne"[3]) either immigrated to Jamestown with the 1608 second supply, or arrived c. 1620 on the George as a servant to Captain William Peirce.

[10] A relation, Hugh Gwynn, was the son of Sir Owen Wynn, 3rd Baronet and represented Gloucester in the House of Burgesses from 1652 to 1690.

[11] In 1640, indentured servants John Punch ("a negro"), Victor ("a Dutchman"), and James Gregory ("a Scotchman") fled their master Gwyn.

[12] The General Court of Virginia ruled that all three be whipped, but Punch would be Gwyn's slave for life as punishment for escaping.