David Dudley (1787-1841) was a descendant of Thomas Dudley (1576-1653), who served
four terms as governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony. Although there is no evidence
that Thomas Dudley owned slaves, he was governor while the laws establishing slavery
in Massachusetts were developed and approved. His son, son-in-law, grandsons, and
greatgrandsons owned slaves. It is unlikely that slaves lived or worked at the David
Dudley house because it was built more than 40 years after slavery was abolished in
Massachusetts in 1783, but David Dudley’s family wealth and money he earned through
his career in pre-Civil War banking helped build the house.