Grandison is a man enslaved by Colonel Owens on a plantation in Kentucky. To the white, slave-owning characters, he presents as the archetype of a content and obedient servant who prefers his life on the plantation over the prospect of freedom. Highly observant, he is aware of the colonel's racial prejudices and preconceived notions, knowing exactly what words and actions will secure his enslaver's trust.

Richard "Dick" Owens is the wealthy, twenty-two-year-old heir to a Kentucky plantation. Described as intelligent and handsome but extremely lazy, he relies on his social position rather than personal effort. Driven entirely by a desire to win Charity's hand in marriage, he constructs a selfish, ill-conceived plan to take an enslaved man to the North and orchestrate his escape.

Colonel Owens is a Kentucky plantation owner who built his fortune from relative poverty through hard work. He views the people he enslaves as visible markers of his social status and wealth. Deeply invested in the institution of slavery, he believes he is a benevolent master and demands absolute loyalty, finding comfort in the archaic, feudal idea of a master's protection in exchange for absolute servitude.

Charity is a young Southern woman with Quaker ancestry and the object of Dick Owens's affections. She continuously challenges Dick to better himself, having previously shamed him into studying law. Unlike Dick, she expresses sympathy for the abolitionist cause and admires those willing to take risks for humanity, an attitude that sparks Dick's sudden interest in freeing a slave.

Tom is a young man enslaved on the Owens plantation. Because he was once caught looking closely at a newspaper, Colonel Owens suspects he knows how to read. This suspicion makes the colonel view Tom as too intelligent and likely to escape if taken into free territory.

Betty is an enslaved woman on the Owens plantation who works as a maid for Dick's mother. Her presence on the estate is viewed by the Owens family as a primary reason Grandison would never attempt to run away.