The Two Governors: A Conversation with Sam Huntington and… Sam Huntington
Location: Connecticut State Capitol Rotunda
Host: Dan Blanchard, Travel in Time
[Opening Scene: Dan stands between two antique chairs, each occupied by a figure dressed in late 1700s attire—one white, one Black. Both are named Sam Huntington.]
Dan:
Welcome back to Travel in Time. Today, we’re exploring one of the most paradoxical and profound chapters in Connecticut’s history. I’m joined by not one—but two Governors named Sam Huntington. One was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and Connecticut’s White Governor. The other, his enslaved man… and simultaneously, Connecticut’s Black Governor. Gentlemen, welcome.
White Governor Sam Huntington:
Thank you, Mr. Blanchard. It’s… unusual to speak of such things across centuries.
Black Governor Sam Huntington:
Grateful to be here. My story has been buried too long.
The Duality of Power
Dan:
Let’s start with the basics. Governor Huntington—white Governor Huntington, that is—how did this “Black Governor” system even come to be?
White Governor Sam Huntington:
Well, it was… a form of governance within the Black community. The elections were held after ours, and the leaders chosen—though enslaved—were tasked with maintaining order among their own. It gave us a way to, shall we say, delegate cultural authority.
Black Governor Sam Huntington:
Let’s be clear—it gave you convenience. It gave us a voice. A constrained voice, yes. But a voice nonetheless. We were expected to maintain discipline, resolve disputes, and serve as the middleman between two very different worlds.
On Being Both a Slave and a Governor
Dan:
Black Governor Sam Huntington, how did it feel to be a Governor… yet still a slave?
Black Governor Sam Huntington:
Strange. Heavy. I wore chains in one world… and was called “Governor” in the other. I had to uphold laws I didn’t always agree with. But it mattered. My people needed leadership, and I could give them that. Even without full freedom, we had dignity.
White Governor Sam Huntington: (softly)
And yet I must admit—I saw how your people looked at you. With respect. Perhaps more than they looked at me.
Power and Performance
Dan:
Governor Huntington—white Huntington—did you ever truly consult your Black counterpart?
White Governor Sam Huntington:
On occasion. If tensions were rising or disputes needed settling, I would say, “Governor, handle it.” He knew better how to reach hearts in that community than I ever could. And frankly, his presence preserved peace.
Black Governor Sam Huntington:
But let’s not pretend it was equality. I couldn’t vote. Couldn’t own land. Couldn’t even protect my family fully. I governed… within a cage.
Representation or Manipulation?
Dan:
Some argue the Black Governor system was just a tool of control—a trick to pacify the enslaved. How do you both respond?
White Governor Sam Huntington:
There is some truth in that criticism. But I also saw leadership rise where few expected it. It was more than pageantry.
Black Governor Sam Huntington:
It was a system of control… but also of survival. We took what little power was offered and made something of it. We found pride, even in paradox.
Leadership Lessons from the Past
Dan:
So what do your stories teach us today, in this age of DEI, representation, and continued racial reckoning?
Black Governor Sam Huntington:
That real leadership doesn’t wait for the perfect system. It leads anyway. It listens. It serves. Even when the chains are still on, mentally or physically.
White Governor Sam Huntington:
And that those with power must do more than tolerate leaders from the margins—we must respect, elevate, and follow them, too.
Final Reflections from the Burial Ground
Dan:
Some say your grave, Black Governor Huntington, may lie unmarked in Hartford’s Ancient Burying Ground. How does that sit with you?
Black Governor Sam Huntington:
History forgets what it finds inconvenient. But I hope, with shows like yours and people like you… the next generation won’t forget me or us.
White Governor Sam Huntington:
May our intertwined stories remind future leaders that dignity, paradox, and power often coexist—and that progress sometimes begins in the most unlikely arrangements.
Dan:
Thank you, both, for this powerful conversation. Connecticut’s dual-governor system may seem contradictory—but it holds deep truths about resilience, resistance, and leadership. Until next time, keep traveling in time—and don’t forget the leaders history tried to forget.
[Fade out to image of the Ancient Burying Ground. Soft music playing. Text on screen: “In Memory of Connecticut’s Forgotten Black Governors.”]
