Lydia Broadnax
Lydia "Liddy" Broadnax ( – ) was a free Black woman, former enslaved person, and businesswoman who lived in Williamsburg and later Richmond, Virginia. Broadnax has been regarded by some historians as the possible concubine of her former owner and later employer, Founding Father of the United States George Wythe. She was denied the right to testify in the trial regarding his murder because of her race. Life Lydia Broadnax was born into slavery around 1742. She was enslaved by owner George Wythe in Williamsburg, working as a housemaid and cook for his household. She may have first been referenced in 1778, when Martha Jefferson noted that she "gave Mrs. Wythe's cook" eighteen shillings. Wythe filed manumission papers for Broadnax on August 20, 1787, two days after his wife Elizabeth's death. It is likely that she adopted her surname after gaining her freedom. Broadnax continued to work for Wythe as a paid servant. Four years later, Broadnax accompanied Wythe as he moved to Richmond, where he had previously commuted four times yearly to handle Chancery Court business. In addition, a young mixed-race youth, Michael Brown, born free in 1790, lived in Wythe's household. By 1797, Broadnax owned her own home,