4. Gabriel’s Conspiracy or Gabriel’s Rebellion 1800
Slavery was a massive labor force. In 1800 eastern Virginia, tobacco prices had dropped and the soil had been depleted, causing planters to “hire out” their skilled laborers. Gabriel was born into slavery in 1776, trained by his father as a blacksmith, and owned by Thomas Prosser a tobacco planter in Henrico County. At 22, Gabriel was over six feet tall, could read and write, and was considered “of great courage and intellect above his rank and life.” Thomas Prosser hired Gabriel out of the foundries in Richmond. As Prosser benefited monetarily from Gabriel’s labors, the slave interacted with free blacks, racially mixed people, and Europeans. Through these interactions, Gabriel was made acutely aware of the juxtaposition of slavery in a Republic.
Gabriel began planning his revolt in the spring of 1800. People in bondage placed freedom as their ultimate goal, a reality that owners continually failed to recognize. Through his contacts in the foundries, Gabriel had recruited several slaves to participate in his planned revolt and mass killing. Under strict instructions, Gabriel told his followers not to harm any Methodist, Quakers, or Frenchmen. The French had already abolished slavery in their Caribbean islands in 1794, and the Methodists and Quakers were actively seeking complete abolition of slavery while helping slaves escape to freedom via the Underground Railroad.
Owners were suspicious that something odd was happening with their slaves. When rain postponed the planned August 30th revolt, two slaves got nervous and informed their master, Mosby Sheppard. Sheppard sent a dispatch to the Virginia governor, future president James Monroe, who called out the state militia to arrest Gabriel, his two brothers, and all other slaves involved in the revolt. Gabriel had taken a boat from his former overseer. The overseer had converted to be a Methodist and repeatedly overlooked information about a fleeing Gabriel.
Gabriel traveled along the James River from Richmond over 100 miles to Norfolk. The governor had issued a $300 reward for information that would lead to the capture of Gabriel. A slave in Norfolk lured by the monetary reward saw Gabriel and turned him in. The slave received only $50 of the reward. Upon his return to Richmond, Gabriel was interrogated but provided no testimony. Gabriel along with his two brothers and 23 other slaves were hung for their planning of Gabriel’s Rebellion.