Hayden (Lewis) is born in Kentucky.

Born enslaved, Lewis Hayden subsequently marries Harriet Bell, escapes from the South, and arrives in Boston in 1846, where he operates a clothing store as well as a boarding house that becomes a stop on the Underground Railroad at 66 Phillips Street. Hayden protects the building by claiming to keep two kegs of gunpowder under the front steps and telling unwelcome guests who come to his door that they can “go in peace or pieces.” Hayden is appointed a messenger at the State House in 1858* and serves in the Massachusetts House of Representatives (1874-75) [1873-MLBC]. He dies in Boston on April 7, 1889.