Miles Newton (1762-1822) was a Waterbury farmer. He and
his wife, Hannah, had at least three children. Miles owned
at least one slave, Comfort Homer, whom he purchased from
John Thompson in 1795. This may have been the John Thompson
(1748-1801) who lived in the part of Waterbury that is now
Middlebury. The 1790 census does not show him owning any
slaves.
Comfort was baptized in the Congregational church with Newton’s
children and with Lucy, a girl enslaved by Harmon Payne,
and Payne’s children, in 1801. In 1810, Comfort sought
legal assistance to gain her freedom from Newton, who apparently
refused to accept that she was eligible for Gradual Emancipation
and was not a slave for life. Comfort was declared to be
free, because the date of her birth was within the provisions
of the state law for Gradual Emancipation, and Miles Newton
was told to pay her back wages. Comfort immediately left
the Newton household.
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