There were several notable enslaved people of Mount Vernon, established by George Washington in Fairfax County, Virginia prior to the American Revolutionary War.
William Lee, who was frequently by George Washington's side, was one of the most publicized enslaved people in Colonial America.
Christopher Sheels was a long-time house servant of Washington's who made escape plans in 1799 that were unsuccessful.
During the American Revolutionary War, Harry Washington escaped from slavery in Virginia and served as a corporal in the Black Pioneers attached to a British artillery unit.
In 1792 he joined nearly 1,200 freedmen for resettlement in Sierra Leone, where they set up a colony of free people of color.