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battery upon Walker. at led to the April 1783 ruling ending slavery in the state. An earlier case, in the Berkshire County town of Sheffield, involved an enslaved woman known as Mum Bett, who had learned of the statement in the constitution, that "all men are born free and equal" and, on the strength of that language, prevailed in her search for freedom in 1781. But it was Walker's case that established legal footing. "e trials involving Quock Walker in the Supreme Judicial Court rested on the principle that slavery was contrary to the new Massachusetts Constitution," Rep. Jeffrey N. Roy (D-Franklin) explained. Chief Justice William Cushing stated in his charge to the jury in Walker's case that the Massachusetts Constitution declared the freedom and equality of all men, with liberty, life and property protected, "and in short is totally repugnant to the idea of being born slaves." By the time of the first U.S. Census in 1790, no enslaved people were to be found in Massachusetts. — Alan R. Earls • March 1766: Britain repeals the Stamp Act due to resistance from the colonies but immediately replaces it with another tax edict, the Declaratory Act. In Worcester, a political agenda emerged advocating for governmental reform, aimed at British rule. • June 1767: Britain imposes the Townshend Revenue Act, taxing imports of British goods to the 13 colonies. • March 1768: A proposal is made at Worcester's Town Meeting to resist the Townshend duties and boycott British goods, as Boston merchants did. • April 1770: Britain repeals the Townshend Acts, except the tea tax due in part to pressure from Boston merchants and British importers. • December 1773: e resistance group dubbed the American Political Society is formed in Worcester by blacksmith Timothy Bigelow, in opposition to the British-appointed state Gov. omas Gage. • 1774: e Massachusetts Government Act, which revokes the state's 1691 charter, brings Britain and colonial conflict from Boston to every town in the state where men have voting rights. It is scheduled to go into effect on Aug. 1. • September 1774: Militiamen from across Worcester County, 4,622 in all, march to Worcester, the county seat, to close the courts as a response to British authority. ey succeed in driving out British authority from Worcester for good. • April 1775: Gov. Gage gets his troops from Britain to seek to reclaim Worcester, but before sending them out, he dispatches spies to determine where to attack. e verdict: A march on Worcester, armed to the teeth with Patriots, weaponry, and powder, would be disastrous. Gage chooses to go to Concord instead. SOURCES: e First American Revolution: Before Lexington and Concord; allthingsliberty.com; A History of Worcester 1674-1848; www.masshist.org/revolution/townshend.php Anti-slavery poster marking the anniversary of slavery's end in Massachusetts Worcester presages start of the Revolutionary War A year and a half before Lexington and Concord, Patriot militiamen marched to Worcester, the county seat, and drove out British rule for good. Image | Adobe Stock.com 1722-1821 Mum Bett's quest for freedom preceded Walker's case, but his case, with its edict from the Supreme Judicial Court, set the legal precedent. W o r c e s t e r 3 0 0 : C i t y o f I n n o v a t o r s 13 Image | iStock Image | Worcesetr Historical Museum