The day before he died, Balfour published an official request for Herriet to be freed from slavery. He died on 13 July 1841 and Herriet's manumission was granted on 4 August. After her father's death, Herriet was briefly given the Dutch surname of Schoonebeek, one register recording her name as Henriette Schoonebeek. Jan van Schoonenbeek was the surveyor of the Woordtsburg plantation where she was born. On 29 December 1841, her name was officially changed to Herriet Balfour.
