John Alleneese, 68, died this date, December 19th, in 1848 of heart disease and was buried at Bethel Burying Ground. Formerly enslaved in Maryland, he purchased his release for $500. John and Rachel Alleneese had three children in their late teens when he died according to the 1847 African American Census. They had two daughters, Mary Jane and Rachel, Jr. according to the records of the Philadelphia Saving Fund Society. Two of the women in the household worked as cloth washers and one as a dressmaker. John is reported at his death as a “tradesman” It may have well been a dealer in shoes since he was once employed as a bootblack and his son was listed as a shoemaker according to the 1847 Census. John was a Freeman and a member of the Grand Temple Lodge.
The Alleneese family lived at #2 Little Pine Street, now 502 Addison Street, which is within sight of Mother Bethel AME Church.
Bethel Burying Ground Project 