Samuel, an African American man residing in Perquimans County, North Carolina, was born in about 1736. Samuel had been enslaved by Phineas Nixon, a Quaker. When Phineas died in 1771, he bequeathed Samuel's labor to his wife, Mary Nixon, along with that of several other enslaved people. Due to the Nixon's religious beliefs, Mary freed Samuel in about 1776. Later, North Carolina passed a law stating that enslaved people could not be freed without permission of the courts. In 1778 local officials arrested Samuel, arguing that he had violated the law even though he had been emancipated prior to the law, and sold his labor at public auction. Any further information regarding this individual has not been located.