Early Life
Deborah Sampson was born in the town of Plympton, Massachusetts, on December 17, 1760. She was the oldest of 6 children of Jonathan and Deborah Bradford Sampson, both of old Colonial stock. The elder Deborah was a descendant of William Bradford, once Governor of Plymouth Colony. Her siblings included Jonathan, Elisha, Hannah, Ephraim, Nehemiah, and Sylvia. The family lived in Middleborough, Massachusetts, during her youth. Her family was poor, and when Jonathan Sampson abandoned them, Deborah became an indentured servant. Jonathan Sampson told the family that he was going to England. However, some sources say that Jonathan Sampson instead sailed to Maine and remained there for the rest of his life.
Deborah lived in several different households: first with a spinster, then with the widow of Reverend Peter Thatcher, and finally, in 1770, she ended up an indentured servant of Deacon Jeremiah and Susannah Thomas. There she lived for many years, from the ages of 8-17.
When she turned eighteen and was released from her indentured servitude with the Thomas family, she became a school teacher.
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