Oney Judge

Oney Judge
"Advertisement," The Philadelphia Gazette & Universal Daily Advertiser, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, May 24, 1796 (2365).
Born	c.1773 Mount Vernon, Virginia, British America
Died	February 25, 1848(1848-02-25) (aged 75) Greenland, New Hampshire, U.S.
Spouse(s)	Jack Staines
Children	Eliza Staines Nancy Staines Will Staines
Parent(s)	Andrew Judge Betty Davis

Oney "Ona" Judge (c.1773—February 25, 1848), known as Oney Judge Staines after marriage, was a mixed-race slave on George Washington's plantation, Mount Vernon, in Virginia. Beginning in 1789, she worked as a personal slave to First Lady Martha Washington in the presidential households in New York City and Philadelphia.

With the aid of Philadelphia's free black community, Judge escaped to freedom in 1796 and lived as a fugitive slave in New Hampshire for the rest of her life.

More is known about her than any other of the Mount Vernon slaves because she was twice interviewed by abolitionist newspapers in the mid-1840s.

She was born about 1773 at Mount Vernon. Her mother, Betty, was an enslaved seamstress; her father, Andrew Judge, was an English tailor working as an indentured servant at Mount Vernon. Oney had a half-brother Austin (c. 1757 – December 1794), and later a half-sister Delphy (c. 1779 – December 13, 1831).

Betty had been among the 285 African slaves held by Martha Washington's first husband, Daniel Parke Custis (1711–1757). Custis died intestate (without a will), so his widow received a "dower share" – the lifetime use of one third of his Estate, which included at least 85 enslaved Africans. Martha had control over these "dower" slaves, but did not have the legal power to sell or free them. Upon Martha's marriage to George Washington in 1759, the dower slaves came with her to Mount Vernon, including Betty and then-infant Austin.

Under the legal principle of partus sequitur ventrem, incorporated into Virginia colonial law in 1662, the legal status of a child was the same as that of the enslaved mother, no matter who the father was. Because Betty was a dower slave, Austin, Oney and Delphy also were dower slaves, owned by the Custis Estate. Upon the completion of his indenture, Andrew Judge settled in Alexandria, Virginia, some 11 miles away.