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In 1843, citizens of Boston gathered to sign this petition asking the state of Massachusetts to pass legislation protecting citizens against insults and discrimination while traveling on public transportation. Charles A. Battiste (Sr.) attended the…

Boston citizens gathered in 1843 to demand that the state government of Massachusetts repeal laws that prohibited interracial marriage. Charles A. Battiste (Sr.) attended the meeting and signed the petition.

In this 1843 petition to the state government of Massachusetts, the colored citizens of Boston protested the treatment of colored citizens of Massachusetts when traveling outside the state. Charles A. Battiste (Sr.) attended the meeting and added his…

This 1845 petition called on the state government of Massachusetts to protect its citizens from mistreatment in other states. As with earlier petitions, the primary concern as the abuse and kidnapping of free African-Americans from Massachusetts when…

In this 1845 petition, colored citizens of Boston called on the state government of Massachusetts to remove the word "color" from statue books. In particular, the petition mentions the disadvantages of the label "colored" placed next to names in the…

The federal census of 1850 depicting the free inhabitants in Wilmington in the county of New Hanover in the state of North Carolina

Pages from the 1850 federal census showing the Battiste siblings as residents of the Colored Orphan Asylum in Manhattan.

The Federal Census of 1850 that depicts the ownership of slaves.

Charles A. Battiste (Jr.) appears here in the 1855 New York State Census as a resident of the Colored Orphan Asylum in New York City. The census lists him as a 10 year "mulatto" boy.