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Wednesday, May 24, 2023

Benjamin & Sarah Lay - Mr. and Mrs. Quaker Comet

In the future, if I am ever asked about "historical figures you'd love to meet," I will most definitely put Benjamin Lay on the list. He has been described as "a troublemaker at every moment of his life." He was one of the earliest Quakers to oppose slavery and did so with a militant zeal that few can emulate. He and his wife, Sarah, both were Quaker ministers with dwarfism. Originally this post was only about Benjamin, as it is very difficult to find information about Sarah, but I did my best to include her here as well. They were a fascinating couple who were key in advancing the cause of abolition in the first half of the eighteenth century.

Portrait of Benjamin, 1750s