A Jury of One's Peers

The Maryland Penitentiary Project

Tracing Maryland's legacy of enslavement through the state's history of mass incarceration.

MARYLAND PENITENTIARY (Prisoner Record) 1811-1978 [S275].

Who is "Negro Bob"? Who is "Negro Will"? "Negro Paraway"? "Negro" James, Joe, and Harry? "Negro Cyrus"? Between 1803 and 1809, these enslaved men became seven of the first ten inmates at the Maryland Penitentiary in Baltimore City.

Pivotal moments of their lives — and hundreds of lives like theirs — begin to unfold throughout the columns and pages of the Maryland Penitentiary Prisoner Record. Preserved at the Maryland State Archives, this unique record details vital information about penitentiary inmates from the early 1800s into the 20th century—and it forms the foundation of the Maryland Penitentiary Project.

Fig. 1: Maryland Penitentiary, Annual Report, 1875 [MSA SR 94201-0043].

The Maryland Penitentiary's Annual Report submitted by the Board of Directors in 1875 reveals the surge in Black incarceration following the abolition of slavery in Maryland in 1864 (Fig. 1). The total inmate population nearly doubled between the beginning of the Civil War and the end of Reconstruction. During that time, a steady number of white men occupied the Maryland Penitentiary. However, the black male population spiked around the end of the war in 1865. Though incarcerated at lower numbers, females were also imprisoned at the Maryland Penitentiary. Like Black men, Black women occupied the penitentiary at higher rates than white women (Fig. 2).

Fig. 2: Racial makeup of the Maryland Penitentiary derived from the institution's 1875 Annual Report shown in Fig. 1
[MSA SR 94201-0043]

Today, nearly 40% of all inmates in the United States are Black (Fig. 3).

While making up nearly 1/10th of the nation's population, two out of every five people behind bars in the United States are Black. Contemporary statistics provide one end of the through line connecting the mass incarceration of Black Americans today with the disproportionate imprisonment of enslaved and free Blacks in the early 19th century.

The Maryland Penitentiary Project builds upon decades of research conducted by the Legacy of Slavery in Maryland Program. It explores over 200 years of incarceration data to understand how the judicial sentencing practices of early 19th century Maryland connect with the disproportionate mass imprisonment for people of color today.

Researchers can view data from the prisoner intake ledgers between 1811 and 1930 in full through the LOSIM database. Personally identifiable information (first and last names) found in prisoner intake ledgers created after 1930 has been omitted from the database in accordance with an internal Maryland State Archives policy. The language, "Name omitted for privacy," appears instead. All non-personally identifiable information is truly and accurately represented in the database.

The Legacy of Slavery in Maryland Program began researching the Maryland Penitentiary as early as 2002 when staff and interns used the record to trace Black freedom seekers. The current effort, however, takes a different research approach. The Maryland Penitentiary Project seeks to trace the through-lines of history from chattel slavery in Maryland all the way to the epidemic of mass incarceration.

The Niles' Weekly Register, a Baltimore newspaper, announced the opening of the Maryland Penitentiary on November 30, 1811.

The Legacy of Slavery in Maryland Program began researching the Maryland Penitentiary as early as 2002 when staff and interns used the record to trace Black freedom seekers. The current effort, however, takes a different research approach. The Maryland Penitentiary Project seeks to trace the through-lines of history from chattel slavery in Maryland all the way to the epidemic of mass incarceration.

A view of the Maryland Penitentiary (left) next to the Baltimore City Jail (right) on the corner of Eager Street and Jones Fallsway, c. 1920-1930
Courtesy of Julius Anderson Photograph Collection, Maryland Center for History and Culture
Digital Maryland

View the Maryland Penitentiary Prisoner Record at the Maryland State Archives:

MARYLAND PENITENTIARY (Prisoner Record) 1811-1869 [SE65].

MARYLAND PENITENTIARY (Prisoner Record, Index) 1840-1906 [S277].

For a complete list of government records related to the Maryland Penitentiary preserved by the Maryland State Archives, search “penitentiary” in the “Agency” field on the Guide to Government Records. Consider an additional search of the Agency, “Maryland House of Correction.”

Records related to the Maryland Penitentiary also reside in the Maryland State Archives Special Collections. Those interested should search “penitentiary” in the keyword field on the Special Collections catalog.

Illustration of the Maryland Penitentiary (right) next to the Baltimore City Jail. c. 1920-1930
E. Sachse, & Co.'s bird's eye view of the city of Baltimore, 1869
Courtesy of the Library of Congress

“United States,” Profile, United States Census Bureau, accessed 06 October 2026.

“Maryland: Race and Ethnicity,” Profile, United States Census Bureau, accessed 06 October 2026.

“Inmate Race,” Statistics, Federal Bureau of Prisons (03 October 2026), accessed 06 October 2026.

“Black or African American Population,” Improved Race and Ethnicity Measures Reveal U.S. Population Is Much More Multiracial, United States Census Bureau (12 August 2021), accessed 06 October 2026.

“Racial Disparities in Incarceration,” Incarceration Trends: Maryland, Vera (05 August 2026), accessed 06 October 2026.