Joseph Robinson

Joseph Robinson (ca. 1742 – August 24, 1807) was an American-born lawyer, judge and political figure on Prince Edward Island. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island from 1790 to 1794.

Early years He was born in the Province of Virginia in 1742. He prepared for entry into the Presbyterian Church in Virginia, where he received some classical education.

He moved to a colony in South Carolina where he served as justice of the peace and surveyor while managing his own plantation on the Broad River. Robinson had enslaved Africans working on the plantation and in his household. In the early 1770s, when he was in his twenties, he married Leila Whitley. They had two daughters, Rebecca and Matilda. Robinson's slaves included Sancho, Amelia Byers, her husband John (Jack) Byersthe first black couple on the islandand their three sons, Edward, John, and William. In a 19 July 1800 document, Robinson clarified that the promise of potential freedom from slavery offered to Jack and Amelia, did not apply to their children. By 1825, slavery had ended on Prince Edward Island.

Robinson died in Charlottetown in 1807.