File photo An image from an actor’s portrayal of Christopher Malbone, aka Kitt Putnam, in the documentary film “Opening the Door” west is shown during a 2018 display at Campus Martius Museum.

Here are profiles of three remarkable Black men, who lived as free men in the Northwest Territory and State of Ohio where slavery was prohibited.

Christopher Malbone, aka “Kitt Putnam,” panicked as the flatboat started to sink crossing the Ohio River in 1793. He was helping Aaron Waldo Putnam and Maj. Robert Bradford move cattle from Belpre to Virginia. Kitt could not swim; he shivered in the freezing water. Fortunately, he was rescued.

Kitt Putnam’s given name was Christopher Malbone. He came to Washington County from Connecticut in 1789 as a servant of Col. Israel Putnam Jr. He lived as a teenager at Farmer’s Castle stockade in Belpre. Kitt Putnam was popular, described as friendly with “a cheerful disposition,” athletic and a hard worker. He was trusted as a sentry, often standing watch to warn of American Indian danger.

Putnam was the first Black man to vote in Ohio. He voted in the 1802 election of delegates to the Ohio Constitutional Convention. Ironically, the Ohio Constitution when adopted denied Black people the right to vote. He later worked for Capt. Jonathan Devol helping clear fields and tend the floating mill. Putnam died unexpectedly in 1802. There was “great sadness at his passing.”

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Bazael (Bazaleel) Norman was a native of Maryland born in 1758 and a Revolutionary War veteran. Black men served in the war from the beginning in 1775. Some questioned their bravery and whether enslaved Black soldiers might leave their masters.

Thousands served throughout the entire war with distinction.

In 1777, Norman enlisted in Capt. Richard Anderson’s company in the 7th Regiment of the Continental Army Maryland line. His service included the battles of Monmouth, Camden, Cowpens, Guilford Court House and Eutaw Springs. He served the entire war until his discharge in 1781.

Norman married Fortune Stephens in 1782 at the Montgomery County, Maryland, courthouse.

They had six children. Sometime before 1819, they moved to Decatur Township in Washington County, where he farmed. The family was poor. Norman’s service pension application in 1818 stated plaintively: “I am by occupation a farmer, but owing to age and infirmity I am unable to (support) myself.”

He died in 1830. His cause of death was “falling from a rock … his family found him dead at the foot of a precipice.” Thank you, Bazaleel Norman, for your service.

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William Peyton, “Uncle Billy,” was proclaimed the oldest person in the United States in 1912 at age 120. He died in 1919 at age 128. He was born as a slave in 1792 in Prince William County Virginia. Peyton was bought for $333 as a child by George Creel of Wood County, Virginia (today West Virginia). He remained with the Creel family for decades. He moved to Decatur Township in Washington County in 1868.

Uncle Billy was one-of-a-kind in many ways. He was described as a “large man with a splendid physique” who loved work. His long life was remarkable because “he used liquor, chewed and smoked tobacco.” He could recall events when Thomas Jefferson was president. His fitness was legendary; he often walked 15 miles or more to Marietta and Wood County for visits.

“Uncle Billy” died Dec. 26, 1919. His headstone at the Decatur United Methodist Church reads: “William Payton, Sept. 2, 1792, Dec. 26, 1919, 127 Y. 3 M. 24 D.” Twenty-eight presidents from George Washington to Woodrow Wilson had served during his long life.