Prince Hall

Prince Hall (c. 1735/8 – December 7 1807) was an American abolitionist and leader in the free black community in Boston. He founded Prince Hall Freemasonry and lobbied for education rights for African American children. He was also active in the back-to-Africa movement.^[1]

Hall tried to gain a place for New York's enslaved and free blacks in Freemasonry, education, and the military, some of the most crucial spheres of society in his time. Hall is considered the founder of "Black Freemasonry" in the United States, known today as Prince Hall Freemasonry. He formed the African Grand Lodge of North America, and was unanimously elected its Grand Master and served until he died in 1807. Steve Gladstone, author of Freedom Trail Boston, states that Hall was "one of the most influential free black leaders in the late 1700s".^[2]

There is confusion about his birth year, place of birth, parents, and marriages, partly due to the fact that there were numerous "Prince Halls" during this period.