My name is John Mills.  I'm pursuing the placement of an Honorary Street name at the corner of Goffe and Winter Street in New Haven, Connecticut to honor Thaddeus and Mary Newton...both of whom were officials of the Bethel AME Church in New Haven in the late 1800's.  

Thaddeus was a North Carolina enslaved man.  His enslaver was Peter Custis, a relative of Robert E. Lee. Thaddeus’ wife Mary was free.  In 1859, Mary fled with her kids to New York, where she worked with well known abolitionists (such as Henry Ward Beecher and Henry Highland Garnet) to raise money to free her husband Thaddeus from the south, as well as to help free other enslaved people. Thaddeus and Mary moved to New Haven, CT in 1860. In New Haven, Thaddeus would become a peddler, selling ice cream and fruits, and Mary washed clothing for soldiers during the Civil War. They would eventually raise enough money to purchase a home at 18 Winter Street.

Thaddeus became an official in the First AME Bethel Church of New Haven, listed as a church trustee on the 1866 land record for property to build their first congregation on Sperry Street. 

Thaddeus and Mary’s son Stephen enlisted in the 54th Massachusetts Colored Regiment, which is the regiment featured in the movie “Glory". Stephen died in the assault on Fort Wagner, the battle depicted at the end of the movie.  His body was buried in a mass grave by the Confederates, never returned to New Haven. Their son Alexander served with the 29th Connecticut Colored Regiment. Alexander wrote an autobiography called, "Out of the Briars" which was published in 1910.

Thaddeus and Mary Newton are buried at Evergreen Cemetery in New Haven, CT.  Their grave has been neglected for decades.  The headstone fell over and cracked many decades ago... so my non-profit is funding the repair.  We’re working to get their gravesite added to the Connecticut Freedom Trail and the National Park Service Underground Railroad Network to Freedom.  I've also written to the Office of Veterans Affairs to acquire a gravestone for Stephen Newton since his body was never recovered when he died. 

I’m collaborating with the State of Connecticut, the Connecticut Old State House, Evergreen Cemetery and the New Haven Museum to hold a ceremony in New Haven in the 3rd week of June, 2024 to unveil all of this and honor this incredible family. In coordination with our ceremony, I would like an Honorary Street sign placed at the corner of Goffe and Winter Street, near where their home stood.  The city requires that I get 250 signatures before they will allow me to make the request.

Please consider signing this petition.  God Bless.