225 years after signing his freedom documents, Peter Oliver is celebrated this Juneteenth week in Winston-Salem

On June 13th, 1800, an enslaved man named Peter Oliver signed the documents for his freedom. He returned to his home of Salem, North Carolina, married, and lived out the rest of his life as a valued tradesman, entrepreneur and Moravian Church member.

Two-hundred-twenty-five years later, Oliver, his life, work, and emancipation journey are being celebrated with an entire week of activities and plans for a public park in his honor. 

The week began with Mayor Allen Joines proclaiming Friday, June 13, 2025, as Peter Oliver Freedom Day in Winston-Salem. He reaffirmed that the site of the announcement will one day be home to the Peter Oliver Pavilion Gallery, a public gathering place spearheaded by the Creative Corridors Coalition and Oliver descendants. And he urged all of its citizens to take note of this man and his wonderful achievements.

While still a teenager, Oliver was hired out as a laborer to a Moravian man in Bethania. But fearing that his enslaver in Virginia was going to sell him, Oliver asked the Moravians to buy him.

Old Salem Director of Moravian Research Martha Hartley says at 19 years old, Oliver was already using his agency to press for what he wanted. 

"He’s asked them to buy him which they did," says Hartley. "He’s baptized, which provides him the opportunity within this Moravian world to be a spiritual equal."

Baptized Petrus — or Peter — Oliver, he went on to leverage his agency in many other ways. He became a skilled potter, further enhancing his value, and he saved money through the sale of his wares. Then, in 1800, after being sold to a Moravian in Pennsylvania, Oliver was eventually able to purchase his freedom through diligence and, Hartley says, a well-orchestrated plan.

"By 1800, it was illegal for an enslaved person to be held in Pennsylvania," she says. "So he went before this judge and said, 'I'm held as a slave, and this is not legal.' And the judge says, 'That's right.' So that's how Peter Oliver became a free man."

Teddy Reeves is a curator at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture. Last week, he led a Family Remembrance Walk through Old Salem with a group of Oliver descendants. They visited several points of interest, including Oliver’s farm and pottery sites, and his final resting place. 

Reeves says it’s important for the nation to reclaim stories like this one.

"Because there's also Winston Salem acknowledging both the beauty of what emerged out of this story, but also the tragedy and the harm," he says. "This man was enslaved; he had to buy his own freedom, right?  He had to support his own freedom claim before a judge because he was not seen as human. And so we can't talk about the joy of the moment of his freedom and what he was able to do without sitting with the heaviness of chattel slavery."

Eventually, keeping the conversation going will be the Peter Oliver Pavilion Gallery. The timber-framed elliptical pavilion will sit surrounded by trees on the same 4-acre plot of land homesteaded and farmed by Peter Oliver himself more than two centuries ago. Planners hope to create a peaceful public space for reflection, with educational exhibits and visual elements that will honor Oliver’s legacy. The project was spearheaded by the Creative Corridors Coalition and Oliver's descendants. 

Among those descendants is Robin Paul, mother of Wake Forest University standout and NBA basketball superstar Chris Paul. She says they’ve come full circle.

"Whoever would have thought, you know, that the list of names and you know all of our ancestors, and that now we’re talking about Peter Oliver Pavilion and Gallery," says Paul. "This is just an exciting time for the Oliver family and the Winston-Salem community because this is for all of us."

The 225th anniversary freedom celebration continues this week with a tour of the Peter Oliver Archives. Then on Thursday, Juneteenth, a symposium will be followed by a premiere of the documentary film, “The Life and Legacy of Peter Oliver.” On Friday afternoon, the public is invited to walk in Peter Oliver’s footsteps at Historic Bethabara Park. And on Saturday, it’s the Winston-Salem Juneteenth Celebration at Bailey Park downtown.