Col. John Glover (43) is the commander of the Marblehead Regiment. A prominent ship owner and a husband and father of nine, his background helps him spearhead the conversion of fishing boats into vessels of war, and oversee daring river crossings of the entire Continental Army.

Sarragoshah (30) is an unassimilated Abenaki sailor whose fishing abilities earn him respect and camaraderie with white compatriots he shares no culture with. He fights for personal honor, not belief in the cause, as his family and tribe struggles not to get caught up in the war.

Moses Stacey (32) successfully sues his master for his freedom and enlists in the regiment as a newly freed man. He’s enthusiastic for the cause of liberty, even though they’re not fighting to free slaves. His idealism is soon tempered by the harsh realities of war.

Boston Black (19) is an enslaved valet to John Glover – a “body man” which was customary for officers at the time to have. Seen by some as soft, with a cushy job, he aspires to do and be more and looks to prove himself by fighting – something Glover does not want.

Isaac Morgan (24) is a private, son of a deceased white father and Natick mother who wants nothing more than for him to be accepted in Marblehead, which fighting in the regiment could help with. Like his mother, Isaac is Christian and assimilated – which Sarragoshah challenges.

Cato Putnam (24) enlists in place of his master’s drafted son, with a deal to buy his freedom through his military pay – if he can survive the war and collect what’s owed to him. Even better would be to buy his wife’s freedom from her master, who is his company commander.

John Rhodes Russell (19) is a white private from a prominent family who finds himself a candidate for promotion quickly, due in part to the privilege of his background. He’s awakened to what life is like for others without that privilege by fighting alongside them.

Patrick Bartlett (23) is a white private who believes his struggling family’s economic prospects have been compromised by labor coming in from outside the community, including the enslaved. But he will learn some sympathy for blacks and Natives as he fights alongside them.

Ezekiel Trask (35) is a white sergeant who our privates report to. A tough, grizzled, no-nonsense fisherman with combat experience from the French-Indian War (unlike most in the regiment), he treats everyone pretty equally – which doesn’t mean it’s easy for anyone serving under him.

Hannah Glover (42) is John Glover’s wife. She has her hands full with her husband off fighting and 9 kids at home – and a community that suddenly looks to her to be something of a reassuring leader. Her thoughts on slavery evolve when she employs abolitionist Prince Martin.

Rev. Nathaniel Gale (39) is the town’s most prominent minister – a gifted speaker and ardent patriot who strives to educate his enslaved servant in reading and the Bible, not yet awakened to slavery as an institution being evil. A view that will soon be challenged.

Prince Martin (38) is a free black abolitionist and itinerant preacher who studied under Rev. Gale and looks up to him, but challenges him on the evils of slavery. He’s also the estranged father of John Glover’s valet Boston Black who wants better things for his son.

Polly Morgan (41) is the assimilated Natick mother of Isaac Morgan and a devout Christian who looks up to Rev. Gale in a way that isn’t entirely platonic. While they’re both widowed, such a relationship could be seen as scandalous for him, while legitimizing for her.

Caesar Gale (17) is the enslaved servant of Rev. Gale. Aware that he has about as good of a life as someone in his position can have, he isn’t eager to try his luck as a free man, and doesn’t like Prince Martin pressuring Rev. Gale over it – even if his points are starting to resonate.