Marker to note Boston’s first African American-owned home
BOSTON (AP) — Gov. Deval Patrick is planning to officiate at a ceremony noting the location of the first home in Boston owned by an American-American.
The historic marker will be placed Tuesday where Zipporah Potter Atkins’ 1670 home once stood. The location is now part of the city’s Rose Kennedy Greenway.
Atkins was born free at a time when Africans in Massachusetts were more often enslaved. She lived from 1645 to 1705.
Researchers at the Heritage Guild said Atkins was also the only 17th century woman of African descent known to have purchased land in Boston.
Atkins purchased her house in 1670 and remained a North End resident until 1699 when she sold her house and became the first woman of African-descent to sign her initials to a deed in Suffolk County.
http://wwlp.com/2014/05/20/marker-to-note-bostons-first-african-american-owned-home/
