Onesimus (Bostonian)

Onesimus was an enslaved African man who lived in the late 17th and early 18th centuries in Boston, Massachusetts. He is best known for his contributions to the development of a smallpox inoculation technique in Colonial America.

Early Life

Onesimus was enslaved by Cotton Mather, a prominent Puritan minister in Boston. Little is known about his early life, including where in Africa he was born or how he came to be enslaved. However, it is known that he was a "gift" to Mather from his congregation in 1706.

Contribution to Smallpox Inoculation

Onesimus is most notable for his role in the development of a smallpox inoculation technique. He described to Mather a procedure he had undergone in Africa, which involved extracting material from an infected person and scratching it into the skin of a healthy person. This procedure, which Onesimus said protected him against smallpox, was similar to a practice that had been used in China and the Middle East for centuries.

Mather was intrigued by Onesimus's description and began to research the procedure. He found that it had been used successfully in Turkey and was being advocated for by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, an English aristocrat who had witnessed the procedure in Istanbul.

In 1721, when a smallpox epidemic hit Boston, Mather and Dr. Zabdiel Boylston, a local physician, used the procedure described by Onesimus to inoculate people against the disease. Despite initial resistance from the community, the technique proved to be effective, with a significantly lower mortality rate among those who were inoculated compared to those who contracted the disease naturally.

Legacy

Onesimus's contributions to the development of smallpox inoculation in Colonial America are significant. His knowledge of the procedure, passed down from his African heritage, helped to save many lives during the 1721 smallpox epidemic in Boston. His story also highlights the often overlooked contributions of enslaved Africans to American history and medicine.

Onesimus (Bostonian) Resources
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