Born into slavery in Andover, Massachusetts

Andover, Massachusetts

Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It was incorporated in 1646 and as of the 2010 census, the population was 33,201...

, Salem Poor managed to buy his freedom in 1769 for £

Pound (currency)

The pound is a unit of currency in some nations. The term originated in England as the value of a pound of silver.The word pound is the English translation of the Latin word libra, which was the unit of account of the Roman Empire...

27. Poor soon married a free African American woman named Nancy. In 1775, he enlisted in the militia, serving under Captain Benjamin Ames in Colonel James Fryes' regiment, opposing the British troops stationed in Boston. Poor is best remembered today for his actions during the Battle of Bunker Hill

Battle of Bunker Hill

The Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775, mostly on and around Breed's Hill, during the Siege of Boston early in the American Revolutionary War...

 on June 17, 1775, where he is credited with mortally wounding British Lieutenant Colonel James Abercrombie.

Poor's valor and gallantry at the Battle of Bunker Hill caused 14 officers, including Colonel William Prescott

William Prescott

William Prescott was an American colonel in the Revolutionary War who commanded the rebel forces in the Battle of Bunker Hill...

, to cite him for heroism and petition the General Court of Massachusetts with the following statement:

The Reward due to so great and Distinguished a Character.