So. Brunswick slaves must not be forgotten

It's one thing to go from rags to riches, quite another to go from property to property owner. Yet that was the life arc of Thomas Titus, a former slave in early 1800s South Brunswick.

Titus, whose story was recounted in a fascinating article by staff writer Chris Gaetano in last week's edition, was one of the many slaves whose labor helped build South Brunswick. After gaining his freedom, he managed to buy a small farm from the VanDyke family located off Benson Road, and the land sustained his children and his children's children.

There may be many stories like his from the time, but it is difficult to know for certain because basic records on the lives of slaves in that era are so hard to find. But that hasn't stopped James Shackleford from trying.

Much of what we know about South Brunswick's history with slavery and the life and times of Titus is due to Shackleford's work. The township resident has spent countless hours of his free time over the last few years tracking down any records, headstones and personal accounts of South Brunswick's history from the area's elders in order to forge a more complete picture of the depth of the "peculiar institution" in our corner of New Jersey. His is important work, and we can't thank him enough for bringing it to the public light.

One cause Shackleford has advocated is for Middlesex County to place a historical marker at the Titus farm. We urge them in the strongest terms to do it.

Titus should be celebrated in perpetuity as a local hero, someone who broke the horrendous cycle of human bondage to carve out a dignified life for his family for generations to follow. The site should serve as a reminder that slavery is not a strictly Southern legacy, and also as a poignant place of contemplation on how far we've advanced and how far we need to go regarding racial equality in this country.

Beyond that, it strikes us as a moral imperative. As South Brunswick as grown, its streets and neighborhoods have adopted the names of the prominent families who founded this township, most of whom were slave owners. Meanwhile, the burial sites of their slave laborers have been paved over for roads and some of their tombstones have been callously pushed aside by backhoes. In Titus' case, alert township workers managed to find his headstone broken in two and to preserve it in storage, although the exact spot of his final resting place is not known for certain.

These people were torn away from their homes and families in Africa and sold as commodities on the free market in Perth Amboy, so they could make money for their masters in South Brunswick. We as a society can never atone for this; the most unjust thing we can do is allow them to go forgotten.