Guide to African American Manuscripts

In the Collection of the Virginia Historical Society

[Abner, C?], letter, 1859. 1 p. Mss2Ab722a1.

Written at Charleston, S.C., to E. Kingsland, this letter of 18 November 1859 describes a

visit to the slave pens in Richmond. The traveler had stopped there on the way to

Charleston from Washington, D.C. He describes in particular the treatment of young

African American girls at the slave pen.

Accomack County, commissioner of revenue, personal property tax book, ca. 1840.

42 pp. Mss4AC2753a1.

Contains a list of residents’ taxable property, including slaves by age groups, horses,

cattle, clocks, watches, carriages, buggies, and gigs. Free African Americans are listed

separately, and notes about age and occupation sometimes accompany the names.

Adams family papers, 1698–1792. 222 items. Mss1Ad198a. Microfilm reels C001

and C321.

Primarily the papers of Thomas Adams (1730–1788), merchant of Richmond, Va., and

London, Eng. Section 15 contains a letter dated 14 January 1768 from John Mercer to his

son James. The writer wanted to send several slaves to James but was delayed because of

poor weather conditions.

Adams family papers, 1792–1862. 41 items. Mss1Ad198b.

Concerns Adams and related Withers family members of the Petersburg area. Section 4

includes an account dated 23 February 1860 of John Thomas, a free African American,

with Ursila Ruffin for boarding and nursing services in 1859. Also, contains an 1801

inventory and appraisal of the estate of Baldwin Pearce, including a listing of 14 male

and female slaves.

Albemarle Parish, Sussex County, register, 1721–1787. 1 vol. Mss5:8BX5917

AL144:1.

Albemarle Parish was established in 1738 in the part of Surry County that became Sussex

County in 1753. William Andrews and William Willie (d. 1776) kept the register, which

records births, christenings, and deaths of Surry (and later Sussex) residents. Slave

baptisms are listed in separate sections and include names of owners and estates but

rarely name parents.

Alexander, Mark (1760–1804), diary, 1804. 1 vol. Mss5:1AL275:1.

Notes recorded on various pages of The Virginia Almanack for the Year 1804. These

notes were written while Mark Alexander served as administrator of John Goode’s estate

in Mecklenburg County. The journal focuses heavily on crops and horse breeding but

also includes a few brief notes on births, deaths, and escapes in which some slaves are

mentioned by name.

Allen, John James (1797–1871), papers, 1820–1851. 19 items. Mss2AL5375b.

Photocopies.

Papers of a member of the Virginia Court of Appeals. Letter of 29 October 1829 was

written in Richmond by Judge Edwin Steele Duncan, Allen’s half-brother, while he

attended the state constitutional convention. The chief issues being debated were suffrage

and the role of slavery in determining the franchise; Duncan asks for ideas and

commentary on those issues. Originals in private hands in 1989.

Allen family papers, 1850–1910. 106 items. Mss1AL546a. Microfilm reel B1.

This collection consists chiefly of the papers of Robert Henderson Allen (1817–1900),

including a wide range of materials, such as accounts, correspondence, diaries, execution

and judgment books, minutes, and business and legal agreements. The papers reflect the

activities of this Lunenburg County planter with interests in his plantation, his school,

and his tobacco business, with frequent references to his participation in local politics and

activities as a justice of the peace.

The diaries, 1858–1895, describe farm management with references ranging from

weather to labor. December and January entries through 1865 record prices from the

annual hiring out proceedings. He also records births, deaths, and illnesses of slaves at

Oral Oaks and the number of slaves and days involved in building a slave house with a

chimney in November 1858. Numerous springtime entries concern heavy rains and

whooping cough with related illnesses, usually requiring the care of a doctor. Pages 212–

213 list his account with Jonathan Ragsdale, a free African American who later

accompanied Allen’s son to war. A brief eulogy for his old nurse Ginny and description

of her funeral constitutes a January 1861 entry. Entries around election times, beginning

with October 1867, record his comments on African American voting, Radical

Republicans, and Virginia’s failing agricultural economy, which he attributes to a less

energetic work force. Entries in 1865 and 1866 indicate that Allen was an agent for the

Freedmen’s Bureau but tell little more about the agency.

Execution and judgment books, 1883–1900, survive in the collection (items a14 and a15);

the earlier volume contains a few notations on African Americans near the beginning of

the book.

Allen family papers, 1829–1918. 744 items. Mss1AL546c. Microfilm reels C447–448.

The papers of the Allen family contain a wide range of material concerning the

management of a Buckingham County plantation. They include land records,

administrator’s accounts, contracts, and correspondence.

Although plantation life is reflected through the whole collection, details of African

American life appear in a letter to John Allen from Esie Jones, a freedman, asking to rent

a shop from Allen (section 9); a list of freedmen’s accounts with Samuel Allen beginning

in 1865, for items such as shoes, clothing, and meat (section 15); contracts and leases

with freedmen for farming land in Buckingham County (sections 16 and 23; fourteen

freedmen listed by full name); and an account book also containing tenant farmers’

accounts (section 39).

Allmand family papers, 1796–1891. 573 items. Mss1AL566a. Microfilm reels C558–

559.

The papers of the Allmand family of Norfolk concern several generations of family

members with substantial shipping interests. The papers include accounts, deeds,

correspondence, contracts, and court records. The bulk of the documents relate to

contracts with the U.S. Navy for shipbuilding materials.

Among the papers of John Driver Allmand (1799–1851) is a letter to William H.

Allmand (section 6) describing the 1846 capture of a slave ship by the USS Yorktown

and return of the slaves to Africa. Also, among the papers of John Driver Allmand is a

certificate of manumission, 1825, for Thomas, a young slave, and a receipt for $180 from

the boy’s grandmother, Phoebe Spencer (section 8).

Allyne, Samuel, receipt, 1746. 1 p. Mss2AL595al.

Receipt, 13 February 1745/6, issued to Thomas March in Boston, Mass., for sale of a

slave, Crown.

Alston, John J., letter, 1825. 1 p. Mss2AL785al.

Letter of 25 October 1825 written while at Chatham, Pittsylvania County, to Asa Dupuy

of Prince Edward County, concerning the availability of slaves for sale.

Ambler, Philip Barbour (1834–1902), scrapbook, 1860–1911. 142 pp.

Mss5:7Am165:1.

Volume includes obituaries of family members, Civil War reminiscences and articles,

and information on Hollins Institute, Hollins, Va., where Ambler served as an instructor.

Enclosed with the volume is an article concerning Elijah Jones, formerly a slave of

Jaquelin Ambler.

Ambler family (of Jamestown, Richmond, Williamsburg, and Amherst County),

papers, 1638–1910. 142 items. Mss1Am167b. Photocopies.

Collection includes a deed, 13 February 1744/45, of William Broadnax of Prince George

County to Christopher Perkins of James City County for the slave William Liverpool.

Ambler family (of Jamestown, Richmond, Williamsburg, and Amherst County),

papers, 1772–1852. 159 items. Mss1Am167c.

John Ambler (1762–1830) was a lawyer, planter, and lieutenant colonel in the Virginia

militia. His correspondence (section 3) includes varied references to slaves, in particular,

in letters from Samuel Coleman of Richmond (military orders to prevent an illegal

assemblage of slaves), Rawleigh Colston (about a deed of trust concerning slaves), James

Semple (discussing a dispute over the hiring out of four slaves), Littleton Waller

Tazewell (about a deed of trust concerning slaves), and Spencer Watkins (describing an

occurrence of measles and mumps among slaves on an Amherst County plantation). John

Ambler’s legal papers include a conveyance (section 5) of land and eleven slaves to

Edward and Thomas Ambler for the benefit of the children of Mary C. Smith, daughter of

John Ambler; an affidavit (section 6) of Charles McCook concerning two escaped slaves;

and an affidavit of Charles Parke Goodall (section 7) stating that the escaped slave Sam

belonged to John Ambler. John Ambler’s estate papers, 1837 (also section 7), include a

list of slaves at Westham in Henrico County, which provides the slaves’ ages and values.

Papers from the estate of Catherine C. (Ambler) Moncure, wife of Henry W. Moncure,

include a list of slaves at Mill Farm in Louisa County, also with ages and values.

American Colonization Society, Recording Secretary, letter, 1851. [2] p.

Mss4Am353a4.

A letter, 1851 May 8, of J. W. Lugenbeel, as recording secretary of the American

Colonization Society, apparently in response to a letter from William J. Winston of

Louisa County concerning the cost and methods of sending freed slaves to Liberia. This

matter is presumably in reference to settlement of the estate of William S. Winston.

American Colonization Society, Richmond and Manchester Auxiliary, check, 1825.

1 p. Mss4Am353a3.

Check dated 29 January 1825 issued to William McKinney for $300 for an unidentified

expense.

American Colonization Society, Richmond and Manchester Auxiliary, notice, 1824.

1 p. Mss4Am353a2.

Notice dated 12 January 1824 announcing a meeting of the managers of the Auxiliary to

be held in the clerk’s office of the Virginia House of Delegates.

American Colonization Society, Virginia Branch, records, 1823–1859. 2 vols.

Mss3Am353a. Microfilm reel C321.

A minute book covers the period 1823–1859. (The Society became independent from the

national organization in 1828 and thereafter was known as the Virginia Colonization

Society.) The book includes information on the debate over sending freed slaves to Haiti

or to West Africa, philosophy and benefits of emigration, the social status of free blacks,

farming, health and education in the new colony of Liberia, establishment of the Liberian

government and military organization, slave trade, abolitionists, costs of emigration,

special requests for sermons in support of colonization, and the social and political

necessity of colonization. An account book records donations and subscriptions of both

private individuals and churches, salaries and travel expenses for the society’s agents and

delegates, publication costs, and general emigration expenses.

American Colonization Society, Virginia Branch, list, 1831. 1 p. Mss4Am353a1.

List of emigrants, formerly the property of Thomas Pretlow of Southampton County,

bound for Liberia.

American Life Insurance Trust Company, Philadelphia, Pa., policy, 1860. 1 p.

Mss2M9894a1.

Policy issued 16 March 1860 to Caroline Myers on the life of Mary, a slave.

Anderson, Archer (1838–1918), papers, 1852–1911. 51 items. Mss1An233a.

Papers of a Richmond businessman primarily concerning Virginia and national

Democratic party politics and race relations. Section three contains materials compiled by

Anderson concerning incidents of racial violence throughout Virginia during the state

election campaign of 1883 and charges of voter intimidation made by General William

Mahone. Correspondence of Anderson, George Douglas Wise, and William Washington

Baker in this section include letters of William F. Drinkard (enclosing a printed letter of

Isaac Hill Christian concerning an incident at Charles City Court House), Charles Triplett

O’Ferrall (concerning the shooting of a black man in Staunton), and Joseph Stebbins

(enclosing a broadside "To the People of Halifax [County]"). Some of these letters, along

with speeches and notes of Anderson, also contain references to riots at Danville and

South Boston.

Andrews, Charles Wesley (1807–1875), correspondence, 1847–1855. 9 items.

Mss2An263b.

Letters from Daniel Nelson, John Page, Peter Page, Robert M. Page, Solomon S. Page,

and Peggue Potter, former slaves colonizing Liberia. Primary topics are health, education,

and religion of the colonists; farming and blacksmithing; and trade, local government, the

military, and politics. The colonists send specific requests for tools, building supplies, dry

goods, books, and information about personal birthdates. The full text of the nine letters

has been printed in the Virginia Magazine of History and Biography 59 (1951): 72–88.

Archer family papers, 1771–1919. 265 items. Mss1Ar247a.

The collection includes accounts, land records, and correspondence, primarily of Richard

Thompson Archer (1797–1867), a plantation owner of Amelia County and later of

Claiborne County, Miss. The papers reflect the routine management and business of

plantations, from household accounts, children’s education, general family health, and

news to agricultural improvements.

Items of particular interest include a sale document concerning Bob (section 7), several

accounts for advertising, medical care, clothing, and taxes (section 9), a will listing

fourteen slaves on a Mississippi plantation, most by first name (section 11), a letter from

Richard Archer to his wife, Ann, describing a typhoid outbreak and overcrowding among

the slaves, a broadside providing political views on the Missouri Compromise, states’

rights, and rejection of Texas’s application to the Union, a letter to James Hobson

concerning the slave Billy (section 13), an 1882 letter describing spread of whooping

cough among African American children (section 20), and a list of seventy slaves of Jane

Segar Archer (first names only, no date, section 21).

Armistead, Robert Augustus (1808–1891), papers, 1848–1888. 151 items.

Mss1Ar552a.

This collection consists mostly of sermons written by the Reverend Robert Augustus

Armistead, a Methodist minister who also served as a justice of the peace in Elizabeth

City County. Section 3 contains an execution book kept while serving as justice of the

peace, 1852–1861, which makes references to slaves. Section 4 includes a summons for

Charles, a slave belonging to Mrs. L. Garrett, for the theft of corn.

Armistead, William Harrison (1820–1895), letter, 1839. 2 pp. Mss2Ar558a1.

Letter, 8 December 1839, written while at the University of Virginia to Philip Howerton

of Halifax Court House requesting money and arranging the purchase of clothing for

slaves.

Armistead-Blanton-Wallace family papers, 1827–1919. 96 items. Mss1Ar554b.

This collection covers a wide range of materials from correspondence and accounts to

oaths, diaries, and scrapbooks, involving an equally wide range of topics—farming

practices, urban life during the antebellum period and the war years, army life, and

foreign travel. The diary excerpts, 1842–1853, of Frances (Scott) Miller (section 10)

describe the management of a boardinghouse in the college town of Hampden-Sydney,

and several entries reveal her expectations of her slaves and their performance of the

duties required of them.

Armistead-Blanton-Wallace family papers, 1822–1939. 118 items. Mss1Ar554c.

A second group of Armistead-Blanton-Wallace papers also contains materials on a

variety of topics. Among the financial and legal papers of Howson Hooe Wallace (1799–

1844) is a bill of sale for a slave (section 6).

Armistead and Blanton family papers, 1856–1900. 155 items. Mss1Ar554d.

Concerns family members in Cumberland County. Section 1 contains a letter dated 10

August 1868 from Gustavus Ober to Jesse Scott Armistead (1797–1869) concerning

African American labor problems in Virginia and Maryland, which he attributes to an

unsettled state of affairs resulting from emancipation. Section 3 (item d15) consists of a

bond for $70 of Jesse Armistead with Archibald Bolling dated 28 December 1866 to

benefit three named freedmen: Isham Skipwith, Samuel Bolling, and Randolph Miles.

Armstrong, Sally, diary, 1863. 14 pp. Mss5:1Ar585:1. Copy.

Concerns her activities at Rose Hill in Culpeper County, with references to the

Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and the Union Army of the Potomac. Entries for

16 and 17 August report on several slaves who had run away.

Arnold, John, (b. 1782?), papers, 1812–1831. 4 items. Mss2Ar646b.

Collection consists of deeds for slaves belonging to this resident of King George County.

Arter, A. R., letter, 1864. 8 pp. Mss2Ar755a1. Photocopy.

Letter, 23 June 1864, written at Wilson’s Landing, Charles City County, by a Union

soldier concerning his observations of the war’s effects on southern planters and their

slaves and general views concerning African Americans from a northern perspective.

Atkins, James T., compiler, papers, 1864–1928. 56 items. Mss1At527a. Photocopies.

Materials collected while researching the life of Adam Boykin (1842–1927) of Surry

County, who served in Company H of the 37th United States Colored Infantry during the

Civil War. Boykin, also known as Adam Barkins, was born a slave in Isle of Wight

County and after his service in the war settled in Surry. The collection includes a rough

draft of a biography by Atkins; copies of a portrait; service records; affidavits regarding

Boykins’s three marriages in Surry County; record of a land purchase; pension records;

and a death certificate (all section 1). Also include applications and correspondence

regarding pension claims of the widow of Adam Boykin, Eva Crocker (Brown) Boykin

(section 2), and research materials concerning the 37th Colored Infantry and African

American troops from Lower Tidewater Virginia in the Civil War (section 3).

Austin, John, receipt book, 1847–1849. 31 leaves. Mss5:3Au7623:1.

Kept by Austin as a constable of Buckingham County, this volume contains records of

the collection of debts, interest, and fees from judgments rendered by local justices of the

peace. It also bears the draft of a letter to an unidentified physician by M. E. Twyman

concerning medical treatment for a slave named Sammy.

Avary, Myrta Lockett (1857–1946), papers, 1895–1941. 117 items. Mss1Av164a.

Author of Dixie After the War (1906). One folder in this collection contains

autobiographical notes of Harwood Alexander Lockett (b. 1812), especially concerning

his boyhood in Mecklenburg and Lunenburg counties. A significant portion of the text

describes relations between slaves and their masters in the antebellum period.

Aylett, Philip (1791–1848), list, [1831?]. 1 p. Mss2Ay444b5.

List of real and personal property assigned to Mrs. Annah H. Moore by Thomas Moore’s

estate in King William County, including names and values of slaves.

Aylett family papers, 1776–1945. 2,848 items. Mss1Ay455a.

Most of this collection comprises papers of William Roane Aylett (1833–1900), a

prominent lawyer, planter, and politician in King William County.

The earliest part of the collection contains an account book of Philip Aylett (1767–1831)

with entries (on lines 13, 18, and 19) for amounts paid for the sale and hiring of slaves.

Additional accounts concern Sam Mann, a free African American (page 2), and records

of tenants’ accounts (page 43). Records of the estate of Philip Aylett (d. 1831) list sixty-

six slaves and eight children, with values (section 5). Another list names six slaves hired

out in 1832 and records prices (section 6). Correspondence of Judith Page Waller Aylett

(1804–1860) includes a letter from an acquaintance about her suspicions of Mrs. Aylett’s

slaves and the theft of a neighbor’s chickens (section 12).

The collection contains six boxes of letters written to William Roane Aylett. A sampling

of one box indicates the truly diverse nature of the correspondence, which contains

numerous opinions about the conduct of slaves and freedmen and reports specific

incidents. For example, Charles Beakeley (1857) could not move to Virginia because his

slaves had intermarried with his neighbors’ bondspeople; William Braxton (1859) refers

to an annual agreement to hire his aunt’s slaves; W. F. Brockenbrough (1860) comments

that the division and hiring of slaves from Bellevue had to be done at an unusual time;

Jesse Butter (1856) addresses the request to have the slave Henry work on a house and

the propriety of having a slave sleep in the same house as his family; Samuel Compton

(1852) relates a conversation he had with an African American woman while on a

stagecoach; Charles Cook (1871) offers views on removing African Americans from

Virginia.

Other materials include two speeches, 1851–1865, one stating Aylett’s views on the

presence of free African Americans in a slaveholding community and calling for their

removal, another conveying his opinion that the institution of slavery is advantageous to

the South (section 27). A scrapbook kept in The Globe Almanac for 1868 (prefaced by

his personal views) contains newspaper clippings about the entry of freedmen into the

political arena; the almanac also records statistics on state conventions for that year

(section 36). An affidavit, 1863, deals with the valuation and execution of Richard, slave

of William R. Aylett (section 40). More legal material is contained in section 52, in

particular material concerning a King William County case of Commonwealth v. Martha,

a cook accused of lacing food with ground glass. Correspondence of Alice Aylett

includes a letter from Emily Ann, 1863, describing community reaction to a slave’s

attack on a local man. In 1864 she discusses arrangements for hiring a free African

American woman (section 70). A pass, 1862, authorizes John, property of Alice Aylett, to

go to Richmond (section 71). Several incomplete bonds for hiring out slaves to Norman

Sampson are dated 1859; two concern Betsey (section 75).

NOTE: This collection holds several large series of correspondence that contain brief

references to African Americans. No attempt has been made to index all of those

references.

Backus family papers, 1757–1807. 7 items. Mss2B1286b. Photocopies.

Include advertisements, indentures, and receipts concerning the purchase and sale of

slaves belonging to Backus family members in Norwich, Conn.

Bagby, George William (1828–1883), papers, 1828–1917. 1,648 items. Mss1B1463a.

This collection includes business accounts for several newspapers with which Bagby, a

Richmond resident, was affiliated, as well as notes and correspondence compiled in

gathering material for his writings and lectures. He produced popular material on

antebellum social life.

Of special interest are Bagby’s research notes on The Old Virginia Negro. Section 1

includes a response from William Roane Aylett for information. It discusses Aylett’s

views of African Americans in general, as well as offering anecdotes concerning alcohol,

childbirth, religion, and conjuring. Notes for Bagbys speech, The Old Virginia Negro,

and a scrapbook of newspaper clippings concerning African Americans, the Central

Lunatic Asylum, a contemporary list of African American associations in Richmond,

mortality rates, religion, anecdotes of life in antebellum Virginia, and a summary of

hypotheses on the future of African Americans in the South make up section 15. A

broadside advertisement for The Old Virginia Negro is included in section 18. A copy of

Thomas Jefferson’s letter, 1805, to William Armistead Burwell relates Jefferson’s views

that slavery will disappear only after much suffering (section 8).

Bagby family papers, 1808–1942. 181 items. Mss1B1463c.

Primarily concerns family members at Stevensville, King and Queen County. Section 1

features papers, 1808–1818, of George Bagby (1786–1810) of Essex County. These

include records kept as executor of the estate of Richard Richards of Essex County

containing general accounts, an inventory and appraisal of property including slaves, and

accounts of the estate sale. Section 2 contains accounts, 1825–1851, of John Bagby and

Richard Bagby of King and Queen County, including an account for the hiring out of a

young slave named Alexander. Section 4 consists of correspondence, 1860–1890, of John

Robert Bagby (1826–1890), merchant of Stevensville, including a letter to his wife, Betty

Pollard (Fleet) Bagby, dated 4 July 1863 concerning the attitude of a female slave,

Gracey, towards Mrs. Bagby. Section 8 includes a letter written by Alexander Fleet

concerning the hiring out of slaves in Richmond.

Bagby family papers, 1824–1960. 53,178 items. Mss1B1463b.

A scrapbook (item b4,085) contains notes and newspaper clippings concerning African

Americans, mentioning both the race in general and specific individuals.

Bailey family papers, 1824–1886. 285 items. Mss1B1565a. Microfilm reel C380.

William Bailey’s papers reflect his mercantile interests in grain and tobacco in Halifax

County. Section 4 contains an undated list of twenty names (presumably slaves belonging

to William Bailey); section 5 contains a deed of trust, 1828, of Robert and Elizabeth Reed

to William Bailey for 360 acres, twelve slaves, and miscellaneous property in Halifax

County.

Bailey family papers, 1802–1980. 323 items. Mss1B1565b. Photocopies.

An addition to the collection above, section 15 includes correspondence, 1880–1893, of

Annie Cameron (Ruffin) Sims of Wilson, N.C.; of particular interest is an undated letter

from Queen Bruce, a freedwoman living in Newark, N.J. Most of the letter consists of

inquiries about her former master and mistress and the health of family and friends.

Baker, William A. (1796?–1873), papers, 1803–1842. 18 items. Mss2B1788b.

Primarily concern the career of William A. Baker as a merchant in Richmond in the

1820s. Include a bond of Baker and Richard G. Smith, of Hanover County, to George W.

Price for the hire of a woman slave, Fanny.

Baker family papers, 1837–1939. 162 items. Mss1B1787a.

This collection features the business and personal records of Samuel Martin Baker, Sr.

(1815–1890) and his son, Samuel Martin Baker, Jr. (1844–1919), of Burnett’s, a

plantation at Taylorsville in Hanover County. Section 1 contains accounts of the elder

Baker kept as a farmer and later a merchant and includes an account with George W.

Richardson, an attorney, for defending one of Baker’s slaves in Hanover County Court in

1855. Correspondence of Baker’s wife, Mary Anstes (Carver) Baker, includes notes from

C. R. Winston apparently concerning the same case, in which he names the defendant as

the slave Harry (section 4). A letter of William D. Taylor to Baker concerns a slave who

had secured firearms and was making threats locally (section 3).

Baldwin, William Gaines (1838–1861), papers, 1861. 12 items. Mss2B1954b.

Concern the service of Gaines in the Confederate Army. Letter of Samuel Baldwin to

Edwin W. Baldwin concerns William Gaines Baldwin and the punishment of a

trespassing slave.

Balengar, Sary, receipt, 1777. 1 p. Mss2B1954a1.

Receipt dated 27 February 1777 issued to Curtis Corley as agent of Thomas, Lord

Fairfax, for midwife services provided to a slave woman.

Ball, William Selwyn (b. 1846), reminiscenses, 1929. 98 pp. Mss5:1B2106:1.

Typescript.

Primarily concerns antebellum plantation life in Fairfax County. Pages 7–10 and a

section beginning on page 65 include songs and information on daily living. Several

letters from Bedie, a former slave, appear in an appendix.

Ball family papers, 1716–1983. 1,450 items. Mss1B2105a.

Primarily the papers of George Washington Ball (1828–1912) of Washington, D.C., and

his descendants. Section 1 contains a deed, 1716, of Newman Brockenbrough and Mrs.

Sarah Brockenbrough of Richmond County to William Ball, conveying slaves. Section

13 includes extracts from "Reminiscences of a Refugee Family in the Sixties" (i.e., 1861–

1863) by George Washington Ball concerning, among other topics, slavery.

Ball family papers, 1829–1914. 117 items. Mss1B2105b.

Concerns members of the Ball family of Virginia and Maryland, and the related McNeale

family of Culpeper County. Section 1 consists of papers, 1836–1857, of Isabella (Favor)

McNeale of Culpeper County. These include personal accounts, in part concerning board

for herself and an elderly slave woman named Pender, and the hiring out of Abby and

Obed. This section also contains bonds, 1842–1843, including one for the hiring out of

the young slave Albert. Section 2 consists of records, 1836–1850, of the estate of Harriet

A. C. McNeale of Culpeper County kept by Isabella McNeale as administratrix. Primarily

consist of accounts, some of which concern the hiring out and sale of the slave Sopha.

Section 3 includes records, 1857, of the estate of Isabella (Favor) McNeale, featuring an

inventory and appraisal of personal property that lists several African American slave

women.

Banister, John, account book, 1731–1743. 1 vol. (102 pp.). Mss4V819a5.

Kept as collector of customs for the Upper James River District of Virginia. Includes

listings of duties on cargoes of wine and alcohol, tobacco, slaves, salt, corn, molasses,

sugar, animal skins, and oranges.

Banister, John (1734–1788), letter, 1781. 4 pp. Mss2B2254a2.

Letter, 11 May 1781, concerning loss of slaves as a result of the British raids near

Petersburg.

Banks, Henry (1761–1833), papers, 17811817. 1,123 items. Mss1B2264a. Microfilm

reel C2.

Papers of a businessman of Philadelphia, Pa., and Richmond. Correspondence, 1781–

1799 (section 1), includes a letter, 1797, from Absalom Jones requesting that Banks look

into the matter of Richmond Bryan, an African American who had been owned by the

Shewel family, because Banks is familiar with that part of Virginia. Jones is willing to

pay to see that Bryan receives appropriate manumission papers.

Barbour family papers, 1741–1876. 1,353 items. Mss1B2346a. Microfilm reel C3.

Primarily the papers of Philip Pendleton Barbour (1783–1841), a prominent lawyer and

later United States Supreme Court associate justice from Orange County. His personal

papers and accounts include bills of sale for slaves (sections 1 and 18), some indicating

family relationships among slaves, and most dated between 1806 and 1818. Section 39

includes an affidavit, 1806, of John Nicholas concerning the appointment of Benjamin

Brown as attorney for Sam, slave of Thomas Macon, for an unidentified felony. A

statement of John Jaquelin Ambler in 1828 relates that the slave John asked for $5 and

traveled between Orange and Richmond with Ambler (section 66).

Sections 74, 87, and 92 contain records of Orange County real and personal property that

list slaves by name and indicate family relationships in several instances (one in section

87 provides for a family unit to be kept together). Section 93 contains an 1806 affidavit

testifying that William Lovell had rented land to Thomas Field, a free African American,

and that Field owned a gray horse and wanted to travel to Greenbrier County.

Barbour family papers, 1810–1890. 1,368 items. Mss1B2346b. Microfilm reel C4.

This collection also relates to the family of Philip Pendleton Barbour, planters of Orange

County. Two items are specifically pertinent to African Americans. A letter, 1863

(section 6), from Joseph Hiden to Frances Todd (Johnson) Barbour concerns a suggested

cure for impudence of the hired slave Delpha, in particular, the administering of lashes. A

hiring agreement, 1846, of Dr. Sextus Barbour with Edmund Pendleton Barbour states no

price for a slave’s services but does include the standard food and clothing clause and an

additional clause that the boy Edwin not be allowed to cross the Libertyville millpond or

the watercourse when it is high (section 26).

Barbour family papers, 1812–1998. 125 items. Mss1B2346c.

Concern family members in Orange County and related families of Collins, Taliaferro,

and Waters in Maryland and Virginia. Section 4 includes correspondence, 1817–1842, of

Governor James Barbour (1775–1842) of Barboursville, Orange County, with various

family members, in part concerning the slave trade in Virginia. Also, includes a deed

(copy), 1823, of John Taliaferro to John Seymour Taliaferro conveying slaves.

Bardin, Sally Norvell Nelson, papers, n.d., and 1915–c. 1937. 4 items. Mss2B2365b.

Include an undated slave inventory with valuations.

Barksdale, Claiborne (1782–1839), bond, 1826. 1 p. Mss2B2472a1.

Bond of Barksdale to pay Paulina Legrand for hire of the slave Isaac.

Barksdale, Eliza Lavalette (b. 1818), diary, 1836–1837. 134 pp. Mss5:1B2475:1.

Microfilm reel C448.

Kept at Rough Creek, Charlotte County. Entry for Wednesday, the 11th (no month

given), briefly mentions runaway slaves.

Bartley, Reuben, papers, 1787–1895. 93 items. Mss1B2848a.

Primarily concern the service of Reuben Bartley of Pennsylvania in the U.S. Army Signal

Corps and on the Kilpatrick-Dahlgren Raid in 1864, during which he was captured and

held at Libby Prison in Richmond. His memoir (section 1), dated ca. 1868–1869,

discusses the raid and living conditions in prison, and includes comments on various

African American Union soldiers held at Libby.

Baskervill family papers, 1747–1928. 1,962 items. Mss1B2924a. Microfilm reel B3.

This collection contains a variety of fairly typical documents generated by a Mecklenburg

County family of plantation owners. There is a significant amount of general

correspondence and many accounts.

Of particular interest is section 15, which holds a number of post-Civil War agreements

between William Rust Baskervill and former slaves. These agreements outline the work

that various individuals had previously done as slaves and agreed to continue to do as

hired laborers. Former domestic slaves had specific parts of the house and grounds

(upstairs rooms, dining room, porches, and greenhouses) assigned to them for regular

maintenance, as well as attendance on certain individuals. Men signed the contracts for

their wives, but single women signed for themselves. The tenant farmers all signed one

contract.

An undated list of slaves allotted to Mary Baskervill includes valuations for fourteen

men, twelve women, and four children opposite a list of fifty slaves—names only.

Another undated item consists of a list of birthdates for thirteen slaves, including parents’

names (section 20). An account book belonging to Dr. Robert Dortch Baskervill (section

22) contains two lists, one of males belonging to Eureka plantation and one of females.

The lists include parents’ names and dates of birth and death, where applicable. Later

entries in the account book delineate medical accounts with freedmen and indicate

plantations with which they were affiliated, as well as who settled the accounts. Entries

vary in detail from "visit for sick child" to "tooth extraction" and matters of women’s

health.

Baskervill family papers, 1751–1904. 755 items. Mss1B2924b. Microfilm reels B004

and C384.

Concerns family members in Mecklenburg County. Section 10 contains agreements,

1823–1852, made by Charles Baskervill (concerning the purchase of slaves) and Mary

(Eaton) Baskervill (concerning a gift of slaves).

Baskervill family papers, 1785–1912. 35 items. Mss1B2924c. Microfilm reel C385.

Primarily contains financial and legal records of Robert Dortch Baskervill (1826–1891)

and William Rust Baskervill (1869?–1960) of Mecklenburg County. Section 7 includes

an agreement, 1866, of Robert Baskervill with Louisa (a freed African American) for her

services as a servant and seamstress.

Baskervill family papers, 1787–1891. 622 items. Mss1B2924d. Microfilm reels C385–

387.

This addition to the collection above contains several items of interest to researchers of

African American subjects. A number of slave lists indicate how many pairs of shoes

were distributed among the slaves, 1838–1848, how many sides of leather were required

for the manufacture of the shoes, and how many items were made on the plantation and

how many had to be bought (section 5). The dates of distribution are also indicated. One

list also tallies seventy-two blankets and thirty-six hats; the reverse side has comments on

the number and value of slaves owned in 1825 and in 1850. In the same section (separate

folder) is a letter, March 1865, to W. E. Baskervill from the president of the Slave Claims

Board concerning the values of four unnamed slaves belonging to Mark Alexander, W. R.

Baskervill, and Charles Lewellen.

Three deeds, 18341837, cover slaves bought by Mark Alexander. The first names nine

slaves; the second is for Dorcas, a slave woman; and the third is for Billy and his wife

Nancy together with their eleven children (section 24). The 1866 agreements of James T.

Alexander with nine freedmen outline the conduct and duties of freedmen for operating

the plantation and the compensation for each worker (section 35).

Bassett family papers, 1728–1923. 2,271 items. Mss1B2944a. Microfilm reels C5–6

and C234–237.

The papers of the Bassett family span two centuries and six generations of merchants and

plantation owners, mostly from New Kent and Hanover counties; items of African

American interest, however, date from the 1820s and 1830s.

An account book kept at Farmington, Hanover County, by Bassett Smith Claiborne

includes an 1835 cotton list containing names of thirty-two slaves and amounts of cotton

picked placed next to each name. An 1816 letter of Betty Carter (Browne) Bassett to her

son, George Washington Bassett, provides a religious context in which to instruct him in

the appropriate treatment of slaves. She addresses food, clothing, housing, and labor,

reminding him to follow the "golden rule" (section 21).

An 1826 pass signed by John Bassett allows Edward to go to Richmond. Also, R. Brooke

signed for receipt of $5 delivered by the slave Edward (section 17). A list, 1830, of

property assigned to Bassetterre, King William County, and Farmington, Hanover

County, includes farm implements, livestock, and thirty-three slaves.

Bates, Charles Edward (b. 1840), papers, 1858–1865. 44 items. Mss1B3183a.

Consists primarily of letters written by Bates to his father, Isaac Bates, concerning his

service in Company E of the 4th United States Cavalry Regiment during the Virginia

Peninsula Campaign and in Tennessee and Georgia. Section 4 contains a letter, 1862,

written by Charles concerning his attitude toward the Emancipation Proclamation.

Bates, Edward (1793–1869), papers, 17781872. 82 items. Mss1B3184a. Microfilm

reel C448.

Edward Bates was a lawyer, Missouri state legislator, congressman, and U.S. attorney

general during Abraham Lincoln’s administration. The collection also includes records of

his brother Frederick (1777–1825) in Detroit and St. Louis and of members of the Bates

family at Belmont plantation in Goochland County. The only specifically identified

African American record in this collection consists of a deed of Charles Woodson to

Caroline Matilda (Woodson) Bates for the transfer of slaves (section 8).

Bayley, Wealthy, deposition, 1791. 4 pp. Mss2B3433a1.

Deposition given by Wealthy Bayley of Accomack County concerning Southy, slave of

Levin Joynes.

Baylor, John (1705–1772), bond, 1742. 1 p. Mss2B3444a2.

Covers the 22 July 1742 importation of slaves purchased from Moore & Robinson.

Baylor, John (1750–1808), letter, 1772. 3 pp. Mss2B3445a1.

Letter, 14 July 1772, from John Baylor of Caroline County to John Backhouse,

Liverpool, Eng., concerning the death of Baylor’s father and the extent of his father’s

estate, including twenty-six slaves on a Caroline County plantation and eighty slaves in

Orange County. Names of slaves are not given.

Baylor, George Daniel, papers, 1743–1963. 29 items. Mss1B3445d.

Include two documents, August 1743, issued by Caroline County justices of the peace

concerning Jack, a runaway slave belonging to Robert Powell, believed to be in Caroline

County (sections 5 and 6). An inquest, November 1743, of the coroner of Essex County

(item d8) concerns an African American found near Piscataway Creek, with presumed

stolen goods and insufficient clothing for the weather.

Baylor family papers, 1662–1962. ca. 3,000 items. Mss1B3445eFA2.

Baylor family members of Essex and Caroline counties were active in mercantile and

agricultural ventures. At one point they also owned a sawmill in Charles City County.

Their agricultural efforts in the nineteenth century centered on several plantations in

Charles City, Essex, and Caroline counties.

Box 6 contains information concerning the operations at Sandy Point, Kinloch, and Port

Tobago, owned by Richard Baylor. The first folder consists primarily of bills of sale for

slaves (some individuals and some in groups of up to twenty-five) spanning 1840 to

1860. Various supporting documentation is also included (one bill of sale for Albert has

the note attached that the sale does not warrant that Albert is sound). Many of the bills of

sale (and later folders that include lists) recorded the slaves by family unit. An 1847 sale

of two girls, Margaret and Maria, indicated that the purpose of the sale was to restore the

girls to their mothers, after being separated at an auction. Lists in later folders record

distribution of blankets and coats and also specialized jobs, in particular carpentry and

milling. Notes on Port Tobago include hiring out and accounts for number of days

worked. In folder 4, an 1853 auction broadside advertises that slaves were for private sale

and in family units only. A folder for Sandy Point includes distribution lists, as well as a

record of births and deaths for 1853 and 1854, with notes on sicknesses and a schedule of

hiring.

Box 7 contains among 1863 estate papers a tax form printed in Tappahannock, including

tax on 334 slaves. An 1862–1871 account book provides information on costs of

greatcoats and for whom the coats were bought, as well as leather for shoes.

Box 20 contains farm labor agreements, 1875, for Kinloch, designating rules and such

issues as holidays, sick leave, dismissals, shares of crops, and how many hogs were

allowed per family (to be raised at the family’s expense). Marlbank account books record

day laborers’ wages and attendance, 1905–1907.

Baylor family papers, 1737–1865. 21 items. Mss1B3445a. Microfilm reel C583.

Primarily the eighteenth-century papers of John Baylor of Newmarket, Caroline County,

and later records of his descendant Doctor Warner Lewis Baylor (1825–1894). Section

five contains records compiled by Dr. Baylor while a surgeon at the Confederate hospital

at Petersburg. These items include a register of patients that includes slaves and free

African Americans, along with a second volume of case records, surgical reports, and

patient registers.

Baylor family papers, 1779–1963. 50 items. Mss1B3445c. Photocopies.

A letter, 1800, from Frances (Norton) Baylor of Caroline County to Governor James

Monroe (section 9) expresses her concern that the slave Harry is to be executed without

due notice given to Harry’s master, so as to provide appropriate counsel. An 1810 letter

(item c38) describes the Baylors’ intentions to move to Natchez, Miss., mentioning the

price of hiring slave men and women by the month.

Bayol family papers, 1830–1873. 53 items. Mss1B3455a. Photocopies.

An 1832 deed of David Townsend of Greene County, Ala., to Edward Bayol of the same

county for the slave Peter, age thirty-five years, warrants soundness of mind and body

(section 4).

Beale family papers, 1815–1894. 274 items. Mss1B3658a.

Includes papers of members of the Beale and Digges families of Fauquier County.

Section 1 contains accounts, 1815–1817, of Hancock Lee (1740–1819) of Fauquier

County, including a payment for hiring out the slave Hannah. Slave lists and additional

materials concerning the hiring out of slaves are located in Section 2. Numerous slave

materials can be found in section 4, including a business card and printed circular of

Lucien Lewis of Richmond identifying him as a hiring agent; hiring bonds, some for

enslaved women; an account for medical care of slaves; and an affidavit of the

Confederate States Quartermaster’s Office in Staunton, concerning the hiring of Joseph

and John. Section 5 contains materials concerning the estate of Sarah W. Gillison, which

were compiled by William Beale of Fauquier County, including accounts concerning the

medical care and hiring out of slaves.

Beckwith, Margaret Stanley (b. 1842), reminiscences, 1844–1865. 3 vols.

Mss5:1B3896:1–3. Microfilm reel C271.

Concern her experiences at Woodbourne in Prince George County and Petersburg, and in

Lincolnton, N.C. The front endpaper of volume 1 records the tombstone inscription of the

slave Lucy Locket (1774–1836). Volumes 1 and 2 contain many scattered references to

domestic slaves during the 1850s and 1860s. Volume 1 features music and lyrics for

several popular songs, including "Old Uncle Ned" and "Old Black Joe." On page 47 is an

account of the ship Minot, manned by free blacks during the Civil War.

Bedford County, affidavit, 1864. 1 p. Mss4B3904a1.

This April 1864 affidavit of Albon A. Arthur states that Benjamin Ruff has been taxed as

a free Negro and has been treated accordingly.

Beirne family papers, 1921–1945. 942 items. Mss1B3969a.

Contains correspondence between members of the Beirne family of Ashland. Folder 27

includes a letter from Clara Haxall (Beirne) Leake to her daughter, Mary McDermott

Beirne, discussing her interactions with African Americans in Richmond and Ashland.

Bell, William Waverly (1908–1991), "‘This Carries Me Back . . .’: Some

Recollections of My Childhood." 50 pp. Mss5:1B4138:1.

A privately printed version of a memoir (noted as second edition, June 1989) written

originally in 1986. Concerns growing up in rural Surry County in the early 1900s. Also,

includes observations on local African American families during that period.

Bemiss, FitzGerald (b. 1922), papers, 1952–1978. 184 items. Mss1B4252b.

Materials concerning the career of Democrat FitzGerald Bemiss of Richmond in the

Virginia House of Delegates, 1955–1959, and Virginia Senate, 1960–1967, and his later

service on state commissions. Scrapbooks and newspaper articles covering his legislative

campaigns and service include extensive materials on school integration (section 1).

Bendall family papers, 1749–1819. 89 items. Mss1B4325a.

This collection is centered on James Bendell (d. 1814), a farmer of Sussex County who

served in the militia during the War of 1812. Of particular interest is a deed (section 1),

1806, from his mother for the slave Phebe as part of his father’s estate. Section 4 holds

two bonds for the hire of slaves. An 1811 bond to Thomas Dunn concerns Vilet; an 1818

bond to John Chappell concerns Hannah, who is to receive two suits of winter clothing

with her hat and blanket.

Bennett, John, papers, 1827–1880. 47 items. Mss1B4395a. Microfilm reel C387.

Much of the John Bennett collection consists of the correspondence of members of the

Bennett and Rainey families, especially between those who moved to Illinois and those

who stayed in Halifax County. The correspondence deals with family health and

relationships, but a considerable amount is also political.

The correspondence in section 1 contains many political opinions, especially on

Reconstruction. Harry Bennett’s 1861 letter relates that slaves are asking their masters to

let them go to fight the Yankees. Alexander Boyd’s letters state that slave traders are

borrowing up all the "loose money" and describe slave behavior in 1865 (slaves are

"running off" or being sent away by their masters). William Owens writes in 1865 that

slavery is gone and wishes that freedmen were, too. Section 2 consists of a power of

attorney, 1835, for John Bennett to act on behalf of his sister Nancy Bennett to sell her

slave James because she is preparing to move to the West.

Berkeley, Carter (1767–1839), letter, 1802. 3 pp. Mss2B4552a2.

Letter written 19 October 1802 at Edgewood plantation, Hanover County, to Charles

Carter of Shirley plantation, Charles City County, relating the slaves’ displeasure with the

supply of meat provided for them and suggesting the sale of slaves that do not work to

their potential.

Berkeley, Edmund (1824–1915), accounts, 1848–1860. 16 items. Mss1B4553a.

This small collection includes an account book and loose accounts concerning

agricultural activities at Evergreen Plantation in Prince William County. The records

concern, in part, blacksmith work done for neighbors and include an 1858 account with

Hector Davis for the board and sale of a male slave.

Bernard family papers, 1742–1867. 74 items. Mss1B4568a.

This collection concerns the Bernard family of Gloucester and Buckingham counties.

Section 12 contains an affidavit, 1841, of William Edward Carrington and John L. Trent

concerning the value of two slaves belonging to Elizabeth (Bernard) Wills.

Bernard family papers, 1821–1903. 233 items. Mss1B4568b.

Largely the papers of Overton Bernard (1798–1866), a Methodist minister of Norfolk and

Portsmouth. Section 1 includes a letter from his brother Jesse Talbot Bernard of

Woodlawn, Alachua County, Fla., concerning his move from Virginia to Florida,

farming, teaching, and the treatment of slaves. The correspondence of Frances Ann

(Bernard) Capps of Portsmouth in Section 4 includes another letter from Jesse Bernard

concerning his career in agriculture and teaching, and disciplinary problems with slaves.

Berryman family papers, 1664–1815. 15 items. Mss2B4598c.

Include a deed, 1722, of Behethland (Gilson) Berryman to Gilson Berryman for land and

slaves in Stafford County.

Besch, Edwin W., "Action at Wilsons Wharf, 1864." 4, [5] pp. Mss7:2F77595:1.

Photocopy.

Concerns the first major clash between U.S. Colored Troops and the Confederate Army

of Northern Virginia at Fort Pocahontas, Wilsons Wharf, on 24 May 1864. Includes

maps.

Betts & Gregory, Richmond, circular, 1861. 1 p. Mss4B4666a1.

A printed circular, March 1861, issued by this auction house concerns prices current for

the sale of African American slaves in Richmond, with listings of prices for specific

categories of persons.

Beverley, Robert (1740–1800), letter, 1763. 2 pp. Mss2B4677a2.

The letter concerns, in part, the incidence of smallpox near Williamsburg among the

slaves of Landon Carter.

Beverley, William (1696–1756), letter, 1737. 3 pp. Mss2B4679a1.

Letter dated 20 January 1737 to William Fairfax reporting on the boundary

commissioners of the Northern Neck Proprietary and salmon being delivered to Fairfax

by the slave Pompey.

Beverley family papers, 1654–1901. 4,788 items. Mss1B4678a. Microfilm reels B5–7.

Of particular interest are several account books (section 111) that contain entries for cost

of shoes, clothes, blankets, hats, and traveling expenses, and hiring costs for the

Blandfield plantation. The earliest volume records the names of male slaves who left

Blandfield to join the Union forces, 1864, and also includes a list, 1850, of names, dates

of birth, and ages of Blandfield slaves, with a note that the slaves were inoculated. The

second volume in the series is an account book kept by Robert Beverley (1769–1843) in

connection with his executorship of the estate of William Augustine Washington (1757–

1810), including inventories of slaves in Westmoreland County and Port Royal. The

inventories include name, age, value, to whom sold, and some family relationships.

Beverley family papers, 1654–1929. 22,037 items. Mss1B4678b.

This collection primarily comprises material relating to the business activities of Robert

Beverley (1858–1928), a prominent civic leader in Essex County.

Section 12 contains an agreement whereby William Bradshaw Beverley (1791–1866)

would sell his property in Marengo County, Ala., to John Nelson of Greene County, Ala.,

along with the fifty-three slaves on the property. The agreement names eight slaves for

whom Beverley does not warrant soundness of mind; other slaves are unnamed. Notes

and an essay in section 32 concern the feasibility of racial equality for African

Americans, religious training, education, and morality (no date, but sometime after 1910).

Section 136 contains a segregated list of poll tax payers for Essex County, 1910–1913.

Beverley family papers, 1718–1780. 5 items. Mss2B46796c.

Contain notes, 1739, of William Waller concerning the ownership of slaves of the estate

of William Stanard with respect to Ann Hazlewood, discussing right of use for life and

dower rights. Approximately forty slaves were involved, but no names were provided.

Birchett, Peter, receipt, 1865. 1 p. Mss2B5317a1. Photocopy.

Receipt of William Mallory to Peter Birchett for the purchase of a slave.

Bispham, William N., bond, 1854. 1 p. Mss2B5426a1.

Bond, 4 January 1854, of William N. Bispham of Warrenton to the estate of John

Marshall Washington for hire of the slave Frances and her two children. The printed form

requires that the slaves be treated with humanity and not rehired.

Blackford family papers, 1836–1858. 4 items. Mss1B5645c. Microfilm reel C92.

Diaries and an account book kept by John Blackford (1771–1839) and Franklin Blackford

of Ferry Hill plantation, Washington County, Md., planters and ferry owners. John

Blackford’s diary, 1836–1838, records daily plantation and ferry activities, including

work done by slaves. The ferry itself was operated by slaves. An entry for 29 December

1837 notes the capture of two unnamed fugitive slaves. Franklin Blackford’s diaries,

18381846, also record daily events at Ferry Hill plantation.

Blair, John Durburrow (1759–1823), papers, 17841826. 9 items. Mss2B5753b.

Among the papers of this Richmond clergyman is an 1817 deed to his wife, Mary

(Winston) Blair, for the slave girl Mary, age eight, daughter of Lewis and his wife, Aggy.

See also Virginia Magazine of History and Biography 45 (1937): 148–149.

Bland, Theodorick, letter, 1784? 2 pp. Mss2B61079a1.

This letter of Theodorick Bland to his son relates his refusal to lend out one of his

blacksmiths. He is dependent on the work they produce, and he has turned down a

generous offer of a hundred pounds a year for Will and his tools.

Bland family papers, 1713–1825. 236 items. Mss1B6108a. Microfilm reel C7.

Much of this collection focuses on the activities of Theodorick Bland (17421790), a

prominent eighteenth-century physician of Prince George County, Continental Army

officer, and member of the Continental Congress. Some material has been published in

The Bland Papers (1845), edited by Charles Campbell.

Section 1 contains an order, May 1723, for transporting six slaves to the West Indies and

reimbursing the county for costs in ascertaining the values of the slaves. (For additional

references to the same slaves, see entry for Virginia House of Burgesses Papers, 1711–

1730, Mss3V8b, Sections 8, 10, and 12.) Section 2 includes a one-page, undated letter

from a Dr. Greenway that provides many details of attempted treatments for the slave

Billy for epileptic seizures—blisters, purgings, leeching, and electricity. Section 3

includes a deed of gift, 1784, from Theodorick Bland to his daughter-in-law Susannah

Murray for two slaves, Hannah and Rose, to accommodate an existing informal

arrangement.

In section 4, James King of New York City, 1789, writes that he has not been able to

persuade Bland’s slaves who had escaped to the North to return to their owner. Section

16 contains an 1825 letter from the slave Charles, the property of David Callahan of

Campbell, Ala., asking his former master, William Greenhill, to stop by if he is indeed

moving to Alabama, as Charles has heard. He also asks after his brother Jacob and

requests Mr. Greenhill to tell him that his own health is good for his advanced age.

Another letter in the same section is addressed to Tom, a slave, concerning the care of

horses.

Blanton family papers, 1818–1961. 352 items. Mss1B6117a.

Although most of this collection concerns the education and careers of several prominent

Presbyterian clergymen, there is an extensive narrative (forty-five typewritten pages) by

Jane Minge (Friend) Stephenson reminiscing about her life as a plantation owner’s

daughter at Whitehall Plantation in Prince George County. She reflects on general

treatment and discipline of slaves, provides several character sketches of slaves

associated with the plantation, comments on working mothers’ child care arrangements,

family living arrangements, courting and marriage, religious education, a funeral,

Christmastime, clothing and shoe distributions, and cooking and laundering, as well as

life in and around Petersburg during the Civil War. Work arrangements with former

slaves after the war are mentioned briefly.

Blow, Richard (1746–1833), letterbook, 1807–1809. [44], 410pp. Mss5:2B6235:2.

Kept as a commission merchant in Portsmouth and Norfolk. Includes a letter dated 11

February 1807 to Miles King concerning Plymouth Flinn, a free African American who

was detained in a Portsmouth jail on suspicion of being a runaway slave.

Blow family papers, 1653–1905. 352 items. Mss1B6235a.

The papers of the Blow family concern a family prominent in eighteenth-century Virginia

shipping and as planters in the nineteenth century. The family is geographically focused

in the areas of Portsmouth, Norfolk, Sussex County, and James City County.

Section 2 contains an 1806 letter written by Richard Blow requesting that slaves be

instructed to deliver letters promptly instead of at leisure, arranging accounts for shoes,

complaining of hired slaves not coming to work on time, and hiring of slaves unused to

work, and suggesting a dose of alcohol daily for good behavior. Section 4 includes a

letterbook of George Blow that relates dates of upcoming trials for several leaders of the

Southampton Insurrection (few details of the event itself are described). An October 1831

letter records selling ten slaves to a New Orleans buyer. A commonplace book included

in section 8 records several entries about hiring out slaves.

Section 11 consists of correspondence of George Blow. An 1844 letter from his son

Norborne indicates his disbelief that runaway slaves could account for all the missing

hogs in the neighborhood, the need for patrols, and slaves being flogged for stealing

when seen on neighboring estates. There is a note, August 1831, authorizing George

Blow to acquire more men for patrols. In 1844 Bushrod Washington Hunter writes from

Port a Praya describing skirmishes and the burning of towns on the African coast. In

September 1831 Dr. Robert Page Waller expresses his concerns and fears about slaves

since the Southampton Insurrection and suggests that whites sell their slaves in New

Orleans while the prices are still good and then move to a country without African

Americans.

Blue family papers, ca. 1830–1870. 4 items. Mss2B6252b.

Collection includes a letter (incomplete) of George William Washington to his future

wife, Sarah A. Wright (of Loudoun County), in part concerning the sale of slaves.

Blunt, Simon Fraser (1818?–1854), papers, 1833–1921. 40 items. Mss2B6289b.

Simon Fraser Blunt originally came from Southampton County. His correspondence

reflects his career as a United States naval officer serving primarily in the Pacific Ocean,

the Gulf of Mexico, and the Mediterranean Sea. In 1845 journal extracts (section 3),

Blunt, while serving on the USS Truxton off the coast of Liberia, writes about the

African slave trade, some of which occurs close to the freedmen’s colony of Liberia.

Boatwright family papers, 1815–1953. 448 items. Mss1B6304a. Microfilm reel C387.

The papers of this Cumberland County family contain several items of slave purchase

and hiring: receipt, 1824, of Drury Boatwright for $130 for selling Lucy to Leonard

Boatwright (section 3); deed, 1827, signed by Orson Martin of Cumberland County,

transferring the slave girl Jenney to Leonard Boatwright (section 5); and two hiring

bonds—S. Boatwright and J. M. Shepherd to Benjamin Hudgins for hire of Chapion for

1862 for $75, with usual clothes, hat, and blanket, and S. Boatwright and J. A.

Boatwright to Silas S. Bryant for hire of a slave boy Tom for 1861 at $130 (section 11).

Bolling, John (1832–1905), account book, 1855–1891. ca. 200 pp. Mss5:3B6385:1.

Photocopy.

Kept sporadically, this volume concerns Bolling’s activities as a tobacco merchant in

Asheville and Raleigh, N.C., and Richmond, Va., and as a planter at River Side

plantation in Cumberland County, Va. Several entries concern slaves.

Bolling, William (1777–1849), slave register, 1752–1890. 73 pp. Mss5:5B6387:1.

Microfilm reel C388.

This register was kept at Bolling Hall plantation and Bolling Island plantation in

Goochland County. It records slaves’ birthdates and mothers’ names, dates of death, and

names of slaves purchased with prices and sellers’ names. Occasionally a note

concerning cause of death is added, but this is not consistent. One entry (for Lucinda)

indicates that she is a native African.

Bolling family papers, 1748–1905. 58 items. Mss1B6386b. Microfilm reel C389.

This collection contains a single item of interest—a list of rules for employed freedmen,

[1865?]. It generally concerns such matters as care of stock, rotation of Sunday work,

night work, and house rents.

Bolling family papers, 1749–1956. 663 items. Mss1B6386a. Microfilm reels C388–

389.

The papers of the Bolling family of Centre Hill plantation in Powhatan County contain

two series of slave bills of sale and deeds (sections 2 and 7) dated between 1819 and

1834 and a plantation account book that holds a list of births, parents’ names, dates, and

location of birth (including one on a boat in the James River). Section 7 has one bill of

sale, 1833, which is a printed form for slave sales.

Bolling family papers, 1785–1875. 34 items. Mss1B6386c. Microfilm reel C543.

Primarily consist of the papers of Robert Bolling and Robert Buckner Bolling of Centre

Hill, Petersburg, concerning municipal government and a proposed canal between the

Appomattox and Staunton rivers in Virginia. Accounts kept by the Petersburg city

chamberlain, 1785–1787, concern the services of the city vendue master and include

references to commissions collected on the sale of slaves at public auction (section 2). A

letter written by Robert Buckner Bolling in 1856 concerns land on Walnut Street and in

the Blandford section of Petersburg set aside as cemeteries for African Americans

(section 6). In 1858 the city common council passed an ordinance to provide water

services to the poor and destitute of the city when they could not afford such services

(section 7).

Booker, Richard, inventory, 1838. 4 pp. Mss2B6447a.

Inventory of Richard Booker’s property in Amelia County. Includes approximately

twenty-five slaves by name and value. One family unit is noted.

Booker, William Marshall, will, 1802. 1 p. Mss2B64471a. Typescript copy.

Will recorded in Amelia County, in which Booker leaves the slave Rachel to Judith

Townes.

Boone, William, letter, 1862. 1 p. Mss2B6445a1.

In his letter of 31 December 1862, William Boone of Northampton County thanks

William Drewry of Southampton County for sending payment by Moses and requests that

Drewry attend to Moses in the coming year in the same manner.

Booth, R. W., receipt, 1863. 1 p. Mss2B64478a1. Photocopy.

Printed receipt of Booth, in Richmond, to William T. Clark for the purchase of the slave

William.

Bouldin family, papers, 1737–1960. 3,757 items. Mss1B6638a.

The bulk of this collection concerns Thomas Tyler Bouldin (18131891), a lawyer and

planter of Golden Hills plantation in Charlotte County. There are a variety of slave and

freedmen’s records.

Section 3 contains a bill of sale dated 1744 for Lucy at 35 (Henry Lucas to Clement

Read). Section 7 includes a Lunenburg County court order to bring five slaves before the

justice of the peace to be tried for the theft of a quilted coat, 21 November 1763. An

account book, 18661867, kept for freedmen in Charlotte County records such details as

daily and monthly wages, jobs assigned to each (such as milking and spinning), their

expenses (wool, leather, sundries), and sick days (section 32).

Section 40 contains a list of slaves received on behalf of Thomas Tyler Bouldin

(18391875) from the estate of Grief Barksdale, with twenty names and family

relationships indicated along with values. An added note records that one slave woman

was blind.

Section 65 contains an 1845 response to a complainant in Mississippi concerning

ownership of forty-one slaves, an issue to be resolved in the Mississippi Superior Court

of Chancery. The list is not appended, but several pages into the document references to

specific slaves appear—for example, that Tom and Amy (ages thirty-eight and thirty

respectively) have died since the original transaction and that four boys (Joe, Jesse,

Stephen, and Hobson, ages five to eight) had been sent to Alabama.

Bowles family papers, 1817–1874. 44 items. Mss2B6818b. Copies.

A letter from the slave Gallant in Alleghany County to his master, Benjamin Bowles, in

Fluvanna County (no year given), lets his master, family, and friends know that he is well

and hopes they are, too.

Bramham, James C., compiler, "Civil War letters of Pvt. Joseph F. Shaner, C.S.A.

(1841–1904)." 13 items. Mss1Sh183a.

This compilation includes 12 original letters, 1861–1865, of Joseph Shaner of Lexington,

who served in the Rockbridge Artillery, C.S.A. One letter dated 15 February 1865

discusses the possibility of recruiting African Americans into the Confederate Army later

in that month.

Branch & Company, Richmond, records, 1837–1976. ca. 125,000 items.

Mss3B7327aFA1.

This massive collection details the operations of a prominent post-World War II

Richmond investments firm and its nineteenth -century antecedents: Thomas Branch &

Brother of Petersburg, a commission merchant firm and auction house (1836–1848);

Thomas Branch & Sons of Petersburg, also commission merchants (1853–1872); and the

banking and investments firm of Thomas Branch & Co. of Richmond (1865–1946). The

Petersburg companies, and some related subsidiaries documented in this collection, were

heavily involved in the auction sales of estates, personal property, and slaves, evidence of

which survives throughout the companies early records. These include letterbooks

(beginning in 1846), financial journals (beginning 1849), ledgers (beginning 1837),

daybooks (same year), and cash books (beginning 1848). Also, two volumes of auction

sales record books cover the period 1847–1867, while a receipt book (miscellaneous),

1858–1868, also records sales of estates, personal property, and slaves. A detailed finding

aid in the repository is available to assist researchers in locating and requesting specific

materials.

Brand, Benjamin (d. 1843), papers, 1779–1863. 1,254 items. Mss1B7332b. Microfilm

reels C515–517.

Papers of a merchant and landholder of Hanover County and Richmond. Two letters

identified in section 4 pertain to African Americans. The first, 1809, from Elkanah

Talley, gives Brand permission to correct the behavior of the hired slave Nead for going

to "that place" in town on Sunday nights. The second, also 1809, is from John Walker

Tomlin, who complains that the slave Lewis, whom he hired from Brand, is impertinent

and wants to work for others instead.

Brand, Benjamin (d. 1843), papers, 1790–1838. 417 items. Mss1B7332a. Microfilm

reels C514–515.

This collection covers in significant detail Brand’s activities as an officer of the Virginia

Colonization Society, as well as his activities with the Richmond Mining Company. Most

of the papers relating to colonization appear in sections 4 through 10. Sections 5 and 9

comprise accounts; sections 4, 7, and 8 are correspondence; and sections 6 and 10 contain

various materials, such as broadsides, lists, newspaper clippings, certificates, and bills of

lading.

A considerable amount of Brand’s correspondence (section 4), mostly dating from the

1820s, involves Lott Cary, a free African American who had loaded tobacco on the

Richmond docks. Although acquiring only limited education, he bought his own freedom

, then emigrated to Liberia, where he became a prominent citizen and minister. He writes

of the health and education of the general population, crops grown and trade in coffee and

spices, ivory and flour, books needed, and trading especially with the ships Cyrus and

Hunter. He describes convicts’ choice of slavery or emigration, concern over trading

alcohol, public opinion in Baltimore and Philadelphia, Haitian emigration, education of

women, the need for a doctor and teacher in the community, blockading the slaver ships,

and misrepresentation and misinformation about Liberia in American reports. Joseph

King’s letters tell more about Lott Cary; Hugh Nelson lists emigrants and their trades;

Richard Smith makes references to the Female Colonization Society of Richmond and

Manchester; and John Taliaferro requests additional copies of the society’s publication to

be distributed in King William County.

Section 7 is primarily concerned with the settlement of Lott Cary’s estate, 18311832.

Caroline Lundy also writes of scarlet fever taking hold of much of Richmond, including

African Americans in the tobacco factories. John McPhail notes an Augusta County

family (names and ages) bound for Liberia. Joseph Shippard writes from Liberia asking

for the Mechanic’s Pocket Companion and about building a Presbyterian church and

school. Section 8 contains notes of a town meeting in Monrovia about suppression of the

slave trade and outfitting a vessel to patrol the coast.

Accounts in section 5 relate to passage to Liberia or subscriptions to the society. A note

in the 1823–1826 folder includes weights, measures, and values for a variety of items

traded with Liberia (tobacco, lumber, and ivory). Printers’ accounts for society

publications are also included. Other items that figure prominently in trade are coffee,

flour, and blacksmithing supplies. (Section 9 also contains job press accounts for

publications.)

Section 6 consists of a variety of materials, from lists of subscribers to lists of emigrants,

in particular from Richmond and Sussex County. There is also a list of books (about

twenty-five titles) sent to Lott Cary for a school in Liberia, a song by Jonathan Watt sung

by emigrants as they left for Liberia, 1822 vital statistics for the community at Cape

Montserado including returns to America, and statistics on the free and slave status of the

African American population in Virginia in 1820. Also included are notes on land

allotment in Liberia, the history of the colonization society and its purpose, clippings of

reports and addresses from the 1820s, and proslavery commentary on St. Paul’s biblical

context for slavery. Section 10 contains an 1825 broadside exhorting ministers to set

aside the first Sunday in July for contribution to the society and clippings on emigration

to Haiti.

Brand, Benjamin (d. 1843), papers, 1807–1833. 27 items. Mss2B7332b.

Correspondence and accounts of a commission merchant in Hanover Town and

Richmond. Includes a letter dated 17 March 1819 to Martin Dawson concerning the sale

of slaves; and a receipt issued in 1820 by John, the head-man of a canal boat, for the

shipment of flour.

Brannock, James (1798–1854), letter, 1850. 1 p. Mss2B7351a1.

In this letter of 15 September 1850, James Brannock of Guilford County, N.C., requests a

neighbor to consider buying Amos, an excellent shoe- and bootmaker and shop foreman.

Brannock will be moving to Tennessee, and Amos would like to stay with his wife, a free

woman.

Braxton, Carter, account, 1820–1829. 1 p. Mss2B7397a2.

This account of Carter Braxton with Thomas C. Braxton records an amount of $40.40 for

building three log slave cabins at Pine Top Quarter. A January 1822 entry for $100

covers two years’ hire of Zachariah before Carter Braxton purchased him in December

1821.

Breckinridge, James (1763–1833), papers, 18051831. 110 items. Mss1B7425a.

Microfilm reel C8.

Lawyer and congressman from Virginia, of Grove Hill, Botetourt County. Papers include

correspondence with Francis Crutchfield and Robert Gamble.

Much of the correspondence in section 1 concerns farm and plantation management,

agricultural products, and mercantile affairs. Correspondence with Crutchfield reveals

that transport services were provided by African Americans in August 1812 and March

1819; between January and April 1822 letters concern arrangements for hiring a slave for

carpenter’s services; in September 1823, Gamble discusses the health of African

Americans in his household; and in December 1825, Gamble refers to the reduced

African American work force in his industrial operations, some free and some hired, and

his own slaves making up the remainder.

Breckinridge family papers, 1740–1902. 331 items. Mss1B7427a. Microfilm reel C9.

James Breckinridge (1763–1833) is the focus of this Botetourt County family collection.

Much of it consists of correspondence and a variety of accounts, but the estate records for

a Jefferson County, Fla., property contain slave lists, 1834–1838, for the Weelaunee

plantation of Robert Gamble of Jefferson County, Fla. (sections 6–7). The lists contain

names (some with surnames) and values of approximately fifty slaves. Section 11

includes papers, 1846, pertaining to fulfillment of the mortgages on the above-mentioned

slaves and clarification of family relationships.

Brent, Martha Buxton Porter (b. 1849), memoirs, 1934. [56] pp. Mss5:1B7526:1.

Primarily concerns the history of the related Luke, Porter, Pritchard, and Buxton families

of Norfolk and Portsmouth, with particular emphasis on Martha Brent’s upbringing as the

daughter of famed U.S. and Confederate shipbuilder John L. Porter, her education and

religious life, and the family’s movement around the South before the Civil War. Part of

the story relates to events involving the family’s African American slaves.

Briery Presbyterian Church, Prince Edward County, papers, 1850–1894. 3 items.

Mss4B7666a.

Includes an account of the church with Doctor Francis Joseph Mettauer dated 1 January

1851 concerning his medical treatment of a male slave named Fred.

Brinson, Betsy, papers, 1894–1999. ca. 2,000 items. Mss1B7725bFA2.

This collection is comprised of research and administrative materials compiled by Dr.

Brinson in the course of her work for the American Civil Liberties Union’s Southern

Women’s Rights Project, the Virginia Women’s Cultural History Project, the Richmond

branch of the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA), and Virginia

Commonwealth University’s Women’s Studies Task Force, and while conducting her

dissertation research. Also, includes her research on a variety of subjects relating to

women’s history, including the history of African American women in Richmond, the

history of Richmond during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, labor history in the

South, especially in relation to discrimination against women and African Americans, the

influence of women on Virginia’s history over four centuries, racism and sexism in

American culture, and biographical information on notable Virginia women. A

supplementary finding aid is available for this collection online and in the repository.

Broad Run Baptist Church, Fauquier County, records, 1762–1873. 77 pp.

Mss4B7805a1. Typescript (carbon copy).

Included in the church records are listings of baptisms and comments on the conduct of

slaves who were members of the church.

Brooke family papers, 1851–1927. 10 items. Mss2B7908c.

In this Richmond family collection there are about three pages of minutes of several

meetings that took place in Richmond in 1884 and 1885 for the purpose of forming a

Presbyterian church and Sunday school for African Americans under the leadership of the

Reverend William H. Lee.

Brown, Aubrey Neblett (1908–1998), papers, 1944–1995. 730 (ca.) items.

Mss1B8122aFA2.

Collection primarily concerns Presbyterian minister and editor Aubrey N. Brown’s

involvement in activities designed to foster improved race relations in the southern

United States, including his membership on and presidency of the Virginia Council on

Human Relations and the Richmond Area Council on Human Relations. Includes

organizational records, correspondence, newspaper clippings, and pamphlets concerning

school desegregation, racial integration, and the Civil Rights Movement in general. Also,

includes articles and other materials concerning Brown’s editorship of the Presbyterian

Outlook of Richmond, especially concerning the magazines treatment of racial issues.

Brown, Robert D., and Abrigail Collins, "First Mount Olive Baptist Church," 1996.

2 pp. Mss7:4F5197:1.

A brief history of the church, located in King and Queen County, including sketches of

pastors who have served and the contributions they have made to the growth of this

African American congregation.

Brown, Thomas (1785–1867), letter, 1827. 2 pp. Mss2B8153a1.

Letter, November 1827, of Thomas Brown at Ephraim plantation in Westmoreland

County to Richard T. Brown in which he expresses relief that most of the slave sales have

been settled; two men have been asked if they wish to go with their wives.

Brown family papers, 1801–1889. 335 items. Mss1B8157a.

The Brown family collection comprises chiefly papers of planter Robert Lawrence

Brown (1820–1880) of Nelson County. Section 11 contains three items, all pertaining to

the same group of five slaves—a notice of sale, a deed of trust, and an unexecuted deed

for two of the slaves. Ages are given, and note is made of recording in Nelson County

court in September 1842.

Bruce, Louise Este (Fisher) (1866–1945), papers, 1786–1974. 1,103 items.

Mss1B8305a.

Collected papers include a receipt, 1819, of Edmund Milton to William Milton for

plantation and slaves in Rapides Parish, La., and an emancipation certificate, 1829, for

Jacob Bush and his wife Polly, ages forty-eight and forty-five respectively, signed by

William Milton of Cincinnati, Ohio (section 2). An 1814 apprenticeship indenture binds

James (an African American, son of Betty) to William Harrison of Cincinnati, Ohio, to

learn the farmer’s trade (section 4). Arranged by the overseers of the poor, the agreement

provided for James to be released in 1834 at the age of twenty-one.

Several additional items relate to African Americans, among them a 1919 letter of

Margaret Loughborough concerning an antebellum maid charged with the care of her

mistress’s belongings while in the free city of Philadelphia. An image of the family’s

African American maid is included in a scrapbook (item a821, section 30).

Bruce, Robert (b. 1836?), affidavit, 1836. [2] pp. Mss2B8305a1.

Affidavit dated 5 October 1863 at Fort Smith, Ark., of a Prince Edward County native

concerning enlistment in the U.S. Army (Dept. of the Missouri, 1st Colored Kansas

Infantry Regiment [later became the 79th Infantry Regiment]).

Bruce family papers, 1665–1926. 1,398 items. Mss1B8306b. Microfilm reels C390–

393.

The papers of this Charlotte County family consist chiefly of several large

correspondence series, providing details of life at Staunton Hill and Berry Hill

plantations. Section 12 contains several 1835 lists of slaves by quarters—Branch Quarter,

River Quarter, and Charlotte Quarter and Mill—giving name, age or approximate date of

birth, family relationships, and dates of death. Section 13 contains a deed that conveys

railroad stock, fifty slaves, and other property from Sally Bruce of Woodbourne in

Halifax County to Elvira and Charles Bruce in 1843.

The letters discussed below (from section 8) were all written to or by Charles Bruce

(1826–1896). This is a large series, in which several letters provide considerable insight

into opinions and attitudes of slaveholders in the mid-nineteenth century. In August 1850,

Sarah (Bruce) Seddon writes from Washington, D.C., and describes incidents from

everyday life that illustrate the tensions between northern and southern attitudes. She

expostulates on abolitionists, the press, Congress, several prominent politicians (Foote,

Badger, Seward, Hale, Giddings, and Clay) and expresses concern that slaves who do not

escape while in Washington will take abolitionist ideas with them when they return

home. She quotes an African American woman’s comments on a street incident.

In August 1862, Thomas Seddon makes several very general statements on the overall

character of African Americans and the need to have them moved before the invaders

arrive. In 1889, Seddon explains why he prefers not to seek a political position above the

local level, in particular his concern about the Republican party and the need to

disfranchise the African American population.

In June 1847, James Coles Bruce says that Charles has too many slaves on his place and

that he must either sell some of them or buy more land to keep them occupied. In

September 1845, he relates that pestilence has taken several slaves at Berry Hill. His

letter of February 1858 contains a considerable amount of political discussion,

particularly his view that slaveholders should represent the South because he believes that

is the best way to have the slaveholders’ interests protected. He refers to the southern

tradition of Jefferson and Washington. His letter of April 1863 urges Charles to make the

food rationing stretch farther, if necessary, by reducing the number of persons to feed, in

particular, old slaves.

In a seven-page undated letter to the Richmond Times, Charles Bruce comments generally

on racial aspects of politics and government in the Reconstruction period. He is

particularly concerned about the occurrence of bribery in elections. He addresses the

advantages of the Australian ballot and its educational requirements and his opinion of

the education of African Americans.

Bruce family papers, 1828–1938. 92 items. Mss1B8306c. Photocopies.

Section 4 includes several slave lists, 18501860, for Berry Hill and Wilbon plantations in

Halifax County.

Bryan, Corbin Braxton (1852–1922), scrapbook, 1772–1924. [10], 360, [6] pp.

Mss10:no. 118. Microfilm.

Includes 1854 slave lists from Eagle Point, Gloucester County, and Carysbrook, Fluvanna

county. Original volume in private hands.

Bryan, Joseph (1845–1908), papers, 1866–1908. 157 items. Mss1B8407a.

Papers of a prominent Richmond attorney, newspaper publisher, and Confederate

veteran. Section 4 contains a typescript copy of a letter from Julia Boggs (Dent) Grant to

Lewis Warrington Wise concerning slaves she owned with her husband, Ulysses S.

Grant.

Bryan family papers, 1757–1922. 8 items. Mss2B84d.

Include a letter, 1783, of John Byran, at Harewood, Berkeley County (later Jefferson

County, W. Va.), to Francis Willis, of Gloucester County, concerning the death of

Willis’s sister-in-law Susannah (Perrin) Holding Washington and the future of the

enslaved population at the Harewood plantation.

Bryan family papers, 1803–1895. 5 items. Mss2B84b.

Includes a letter dated 16 May 1895 from Corbin Braxton Bryan (1852–1922) to Joseph

Bryan of Richmond, containing comments on African American education.

Bryan family papers, 1880–1966. 113 items. Mss1B8408e.

Collection includes papers of Episcopal clergyman Corbin Braxton Bryan (of Millwood

and Petersburg) among which are a commonplace book, 1920–1921, and date book,

1921, kept while rector of Grace Church, Petersburg, the latter of which includes a list of

African American seminarians at the Bishop Payne Divinity School (section 1). The

collection also includes diary entries, January–February 1943, of Clayton Briggs

Townsend (of Petersburg) concerning his service as an officer in the United States Army

Transportation Corps, presumably with the 379th Port Battalion, an African American

unit, and covering the unit’s trip to Casablanca, Morocco, on board the converted

steamship liner Monterey, and activities there in unloading supplies for the North Africa

Campaign (section 4). An incomplete, typescript copy of an undated memoir of Sarah

Jane Brown (Scott) Worthington concerns her early life in Perquimans County, N.C., the

move of her family (free and enslaved) by her father, William Copeland Scott, to a

plantation named Ingleside in Princess Anne County, and experiences during the Civil

War in Princess Anne and Norfolk, including her interactions with the enslaved

population on the family plantation (section 5).

Bryce, Virginia, scrapbook, 1909–1932. [24] pp. Mss5:7B8435:1.

Includes newspaper clippings, pamphlets, and broadsides, in part concerning African

Americans in Henrico County.

Buchanan, Andrew, power of attorney, 1784. [4] pp. Mss2B8515a1.

Executed in Glasgow, Scot., to David Buchanan, in part concerning the sale of land and

slaves near Hatcher’s Run in Dinwiddie County.

Buchanan, Neill, letter, 1789. 1 p. Mss2B8517a1.

Letter of 10 May 1789 to Dr. Wilson of Petersburg relates the misunderstanding of the

sale of Esther, who was sold but intended to be a gift to another. Buchanan states that he

will not interfere should there be a chancery suit to set matters straight.

Buck, Julia E. Johnson (1887–1977), papers, 1952–1977. 91 items. Mss1B8555a.

Collection consists primarily of letters written by Julia E. (Johnson) Buck, an African

American domestic worker employed by the Hofheimer family of Norfolk. Most are

written to Elise Bessie (Hofheimer) Wright concerning affairs of the Buck and Hofheimer

families, social activities, advice on marriage and child rearing, and the declining health

of Mrs. Buck and her husband, Clarence Harrison Buck (d. 1971).

Buford family papers, 1816–1844. 34 items. Mss2B8648b. Microfilm reel B49.

This Mecklenburg County family collection includes two items of particular interest. One

is an 1836 deed (item b28) of John H. Craddock selling his interest in the slave woman

Judah to John Buford. Judah belonged to Craddock’s father-in-law, Abraham Hatchett of

Nottoway County. The second item is an 1816 slave list (items b33b34) containing

twenty-two names, ages, valuations, and prices. The folder containing items b3b8

includes an 1825 receipt of William B. Thompson to Capt. A. Buford for the slave girl

Susan. An 1824 printed receipt accounts for advertising a slave sale in the Petersburg

Intelligencer (see items b9b15).

Bumpass, William, agreement, 1786. 1 p. Mss2B8807a1.

This agreement with James McReynolds, dated 29 April 1786, concerns the sale of Sam,

an African American slave of Campbell County, who is described as a “blacksmith by

trade.” The sale is made to secure payment of a debt.

Burke family papers, 1810–1888. 50 items. Mss1B9177a. Microfilm reel B8.

The Burke family of Nottoway and Prince Edward counties included several members

who performed military service. After the Civil War, A. U. Wright, as agent for the

Freedmen’s Bureau, gave permission for Mrs. Tatum of Farmville to keep Rosie, because

Mrs. Tatum promised to feed and clothe the girl and the girl wanted to stay (section 3,

August 1865).

Burrus family papers, 1802–1869. 60 items. Mss1B9468a.

Primarily concerns family members in Orange County. Section 1 contains a letter to

William Tandy Burrus from Frances (Tandy) Burrus of Christian County, Ky.,

concerning sending the slave Peter to Kentucky. Section 3 contains several pieces of

information pertaining to African Americans, including two receipts: the first dated 1864

for the purchase of a slave girl, Mary, and the second, 1866, for the hiring of free African

Americans. There is also a letter, 1866, from W. C. Adams of Upson County, Ga., to

Robert Banks Burrus concerning Reconstruction and African American freedmen.

Burtt, William, letter, 1788. 1 p. Mss2B9575a1.

Letter, 2 December 1788, written in Amherst County to William Cocke, Buckingham

County, relating arrangements for food, clothing, and ferry passage for several slaves.

Burwell, Ann (Powell), commonplace book, 1746–1839. 1 vol. Mss5:5B9585:1.

Microfilm reel C393.

Contains lists, 1746–1839, of slaves owned by Armistead Burwell and John Burwell,

including ages or dates of birth. One list includes names of mothers.

Burwell family papers, 1770–1965. 2,141 items. Mss1B9585a. Microfilm reels B9

and C394–395.

The papers of this plantation family contain several items pertaining to the operation of

the plantations Carter Hall, Island, and Spout Run in Frederick County (now Clarke

County). Section 9 contains an 1840 deed for the slave Wat, age sixty, for $300. Section

12 holds a list, probably 1862, of George Harrison Burwell’s property, including names,

ages, and valuation for approximately 100 slaves. In the same section are two affidavits

of appraisals of wagons, each set of wagon and gear being identified by the slave in

charge of it. In section 6, Samuel Wilkeson acknowledges receipt of a donation to the

American Colonization Society.

Burwell family papers, 1813–1928. 569 items. Mss1B9585b.

An additional group of Burwell family papers contains a page of notes (section 15)

prescribing the terms for hiring slaves in Granville County, N.C., ca. 1848. The first

paragraph deals with the clothing to be supplied; the second with occupational

restrictions and distance restrictions. It also prescribes terms for rehiring and medical

expenses incurred.

Burwell family papers, 1825–1976. 33 items. Mss1B9585c.

Primarily consists of papers relating to family members in Powhatan County, in the mid-

to late nineteenth century. Includes a letter dated 8 April 1865 from Doctor Blair Burwell

(1830–1915), while serving as surgeon of the 8th Virginia Infantry Regiment,

Confederate States Army of Northern Virginia, to Virginia Beverly (Pickett) Burwell,

which mentions slaves at Indian Camp plantation in Powhatan County.

Butler, James Thomas (1822–1895), diary, 1862–1864. [128] pp. Mss5:1B9773:1.

Kept as a merchant in Richmond and as a planter in Caroline County. Includes lists of

wages for overseers and costs of slave labor, and records Butlers successful attempt to

hide from Federal Army troops during the period of the Battle of North Anna River, with

the aid of family members and local slaves.

Byrd, William (1674–1744), letterbook, 1735–1736. 72 pp. Mss5:2B9966:3.

Microfilm reel C62.

This correspondence has been published in The Correspondence of the Three William

Byrds of Westover, Virginia, 16841776 (1977). Of particular interest is a letter of 6

December 1735 from Peter Beckford in which Beckford states that the colony does not

have such a large number of African Americans that the public safety should be a matter

of concern. A letter of 20 February 1736 complains to Byrd that convicts and felons from

England should not be sent out on ships because they come to Virginia to trade illegally

with local slaves. A letter of 12 July 1736 suggests that the importation of slaves be

prohibited, because the number of African Americans in the colony is so great that racial

tensions are endangering public safety.

Byrd family papers, 1805–1871. 285 items. Mss1B9968b. Microfilm reel C273.

This collection focuses on several family members from Frederick County and

Winchester. A letter, 30 July 1850, from Dr. John Roberts of Fall Hill, Spotsylvania

County, to Richard Evelyn Byrd asks Byrd to make inquiries at the Winchester jail as to

whether a certain African American being detained there might be a runaway slave

(section 7). No name or description is provided. Notes from the 1840s about the

descendants of Juliet, slave of John Russell, concentrate especially on her issue alive at

the time of Russell’s death (section 14). A letter, 28 August 1831, written by William

Byrd Harrison to Ann Harrison Byrd from Petersburg describes what he has heard of the

Southampton Insurrection. It includes general impressions and a few anecdotes. He also

asks about arrangements for the purchase of William.

Byrd family papers, 1795–1826. 29 items. Mss1B9968c. Microfilm reel C274.

The collection includes an unexecuted 1826 bond for the hiring of an unnamed slave for

the year 1827 (section 5). The articles of clothing to be provided to the slave are carefully

specified, as are provisions for the payment of tax on the slave.

Cabell, Abraham Joseph (1800–1831), papers, 1824–1834. 22 items. Mss2C1111b.

Primarily, the papers of a planter of Jefferson County, Fla. Collection includes a letter, 16

March 1828, to William H. Cabell of Richmond in which Abraham Joseph Cabell relates

having difficulties with the slave Jordan since coming to Florida and considering sending

him to New Orleans to be sold. Deed of trust, 1830, lists slaves and indicates several

family relationships, and slave lists, 1832, provide information on values and family

relationships for slaves on Abraham Joseph Cabell’s estate. An affidavit, 1832, of John

Grattan Gamble concerns the sale of the slaves from Cabell’s estate, listing nine slaves,

including two married couples (one couple having an infant child).

Cabell, Nathaniel Francis (1807–1891), letter, 1860. 1 p. Mss2C1116a1. Typescript.

Letter, 6 January 1860, written from Nelson County to Henry Stephens Randall of

Cortlandtville, N.Y., stating his opinions on John Brown’s raid at Harpers Ferry and his

views on slavery in general, with current political thoughts and a biblical and theological

defense of slavery, referring to the Reverend Thornton Stringfellow’s pamphlet in

support of slavery.

Cabell, William (1730–1798), commonplace books, 1769–1795. 9 vols.

Mss5:5C1117:1–9. Microfilm reel C326.

These commonplace books provide information on a wide range of Cabell’s activities as

a surveyor and justice of the peace in Amherst County. Many of the earlier entries deal

with his agricultural estates in Amherst concerning weather, sowing and harvesting, and

livestock slaughtering. Numerous entries concern births, deaths, and purchases of slaves.

Volume 1 contains a hat distribution list for ten slaves, 20 January 1770. Volume 2

contains a blanket distribution list by family units, September 1770. Volume 4 describes

the agreement with Theodorick Scruggs as overseer not to work slaves in rain, snow, or

at night, 20 July 1773. In a later entry Cabell notes that another position must be found

for Scruggs, because his cruelty makes him an unacceptable overseer, 28 August 1773.

Volume 5 contains a blanket distribution list, 20 November 1774, and a later November

entry indicates that fifty-nine pairs of shoes were made for the slaves. In volume 7 Cabell

hired out Joshua, 2 January 1779. In volume 9 several entries relate to hiring out the slave

Bob as a smith and the training Bob should receive, 26 December 1785, 2 January 1786,

March 1786.

Cabell, William (1759–1822), commonplace books, 1791–1822. 2 vols.

Mss5:5C1118:2–3. Microfilm reel C326.

Concerns agricultural operations at Union Hill plantation in Nelson County. Volume 2

includes slave lists, usually a tally given in March of each year to calculate taxes; lists

provide name and general age category (twelve to sixteen and sixteen to fifty).

Cabell family papers, 1739–1996. 20 items. Mss1C1118b.

Consist of diaries, account books, land patents, and scattered correspondence of members

of the Cabell family of Nelson County. Section 2 contains diaries, 1851–1869, of Mayo

Cabell (1800–1869), merchant and planter, in some of which the births and deaths of

slaves and the distribution of clothes and food to slaves are recorded.

Cabell family papers, 1774–1941. 886 items. Mss1C1118a. Microfilm reels C543–

545.

Although the bulk of this collection deals with the activities of the Virginia branch of the

Cabell family, the papers that concern slaves relate to the Florida plantation, Attatulga, in

Jefferson County, and those papers about freedmen and women concern a South Carolina

plantation in the Abbeville district.

Section 14 contains letters to Edward Carrington Cabell, owner of Attatulga, from the

overseer, W. Floyd. He describes the routine operation of the cotton plantation in the

1830s. Each of the eleven letters begins with at least a brief statement concerning the

health and physical condition of the slaves. Some letters provide more detail, as when

whooping cough and typhoid occurred. Births, deaths, sicknesses, and hirings are noted.

A September 1830 letter also lists slaves and the amounts of cotton attributed to each.

Section 16 contains deeds, 1848–1857, and bills of sale. An 1851 deed to Attatulga lists

approximately seventy slaves by name only. Notes dated 1857 concern the hire of

William Wooten and Peter Wooten; William died, and Peter ran away. Additional notes

detail the hiring of slave and free women and their training as domestics.

Sections 24 and 43 contain freedmen’s and women’s agreements to work a South

Carolina plantation as they had been accustomed to do before the Civil War. The former

contains a list by sex and share of each worker’s portion. The latter details what Charles

T. Haskell (owner) will provide and what the laborers promise.

Cabell family papers, 1808–1935. ca. 1,500 items. Mss1C1118cFA2.

Correspondence, financial and legal papers, and other miscellaneous records of members

of the Cabell family of Inglewood, Nelson County. Among a number of family members

represented is George Washington Cabell (1802–1869), and agreements, deeds, and

receipts of his dating from about 1825 to 1845 concern the purchase and hiring of a

number of slaves (series 3). In a miscellaneous folder late in the collection (series 7,

folder 100) may be found tax receipts relating to Nelson County, including one for real

property owned by Henry Scott, an African American. A supplementary finding aid to

this collection is maintained in hard copy in the library and may also be accessed online.

Cadwallader, John N., papers, 1860–1892. 43 items. Mss1C1158a.

Primarily consist of letters, 1861–1864, written by Anna Bell Cadwallader (later

Gregory) of Newtown (later Stephens City), Frederick County, to her brother John N.

Cadwallader (1839–1876) while he served in the Confederate States Army. In particular,

letters mention slaves running away to Union forces (30 March 1863). Anna supported

the Union initially and thought it was too much to give up simply to continue the system

of slavery.

Callis, Robert, receipt, 1817. 1 p. Mss2C1344a1.

Receipt, 23 December 1817, Mathews County, to William Armistead Billups for sale of

Peter, as a consequence of legal action.

Campbell, Archibald (d. 1774), letter, 1763. 1 p. Mss2C1522a1.

Letter, 12 May 1763, Norfolk, to Henry Tucker, Philadelphia, concerning a conviction

and death of the slave Charles.

Campbell, John, account, 1802. 1 p. Mss2C15268a1. Photocopy.

Account with Benjamin Mosby and Peter Tinsley concerning the sale of slaves by

Campbell as an agent for Buck and Brauder.

Campbell family papers, 1802–1879. 43 items. Mss2C1539b.

Members of the Campbell and Stewart families lived in Williamsburg and Fredericksburg

and also in Philadelphia, Pa. In section 1, Ferdinand Stewart Campbell Stewart writes to

his uncle John Campbell that he and his brother agree on the disposition of slaves in his

father’s estate, November 1815, and that he has arranged to hire out a slave in

Westmoreland County so as not to separate the slave from his family, October 1817.

Section 4 contains accounts concerning sale of dower slaves and hiring out of slaves.

Caperton family papers, 1729–1973. 1,004 items. Mss1C1716a.

Much of the material in this Monroe County (now W.Va.), family collection consists of

family correspondence and genealogical notes. Section 10 contains a photocopy of an

1865 slave pass for Lewis to join his master, John Caperton, in Petersburg. Section 22

contains an 1858 bill of sale for Claiborn in Mercer County (now W.Va.). Section 23

includes an undated letter to Henry Alexander of Monroe County from Sam Porter, a

freedman in Madison County, Miss., inquiring after old friends and family, especially his

mother.

Caroline County, enrolling office, certificate, 1864. 1 p. Mss4C22144a1.

Certificate, 26 October 1864, issued to John Baylor for impressment of two slaves, Paul

and Ferry, including estimated values of the slaves.

Carrington, Tucker (1800–1875), account book, 1868–1878. 116 pp.

Mss5:3C23584:1.

Tucker Carrington kept this account book as trustee for R. H. Moss and Bro. of

Mecklenburg County. In addition to general accounts for the Mecklenburg County farm

(cattle, horses, and tools), it contains records of wages, share of crops, and charges for

individual hired hands. Accounts are itemized indicating amounts charged for food,

clothing, medical costs, and various household items. The type of work performed by

each laborer is often indicated.

Carrington family papers, 1744–1940. 5,068 items. Mss1C2358d. Microfilm reels

B10–12.

This collection contains a number of African American records. Certain affidavits dated

1846 and 1848 pertain to fugitive slaves (sections 13 and 34). An 1839 deed involving

Anne Cabell (Carrington) McPhail and John B. McPhail of Charlotte County concerns

forty slaves; names and family groups are indicated (section 14). An 1847 list of names

and ages covers approximately fifty slaves at Mulberry Hill (section 15). Another list,

1845–1849, reports a dozen slave births. These appear to be related to the same group of

slaves (section 62).

Section 39 includes an 1865 Confederate government receipt to Clement McPhail of

Halifax County for impressing the slave Watkins for labor; the verso provides valuation

and physical description of Watkins. In the same section are shoe accounts. Sections 39

and 41 contain labor agreements, 1865, for freedmen and women as field hands, a cook,

and a blacksmith.

Carrington family papers, 1755–1839. 83 items. Mss1C2358f.

The first part of this collection contains a number of Judge Paul Carrington’s account

books. The volume for 1755–1775 (section 2) contains lists of purchases and sales of

slaves, prices, ages, and mother’s names. Additional account books (in sections 5, 11, 14,

and 17) include lists of slaves identified by overseer or plantation (at Halifax or the Fork),

with shares of ownership designated. These lists appear on the last pages of each book

(except for section 17, where this information is located on page 12).

Letters written to Mary Venable (Carrington) Grigsby of Edgehill, Charlotte County

(section 26), include an 1834 letter from George Wilson McPhail, newly arrived in

Connecticut, comparing his impressions of New England with those of his Virginia

home. Among other things, he describes attitudes about slavery and abolition. A letter

from Elizabeth M. Nelson reveals nothing about the Southampton Insurrection (1831)

except for a postscript directing Grigsby to read about it in the newspapers. A September

1831 letter from Mary Elizabeth (McPhail) Smith in Norfolk describes her father’s

preparations during the unrest. An 1828 letter from Sarah L. W. (otherwise unidentified)

includes two brief sentences about the creation of a colonization society in Richmond.

Carrington family papers, 1761–1954. 167 items. Mss1C2358c.

This collection contains several notes, ca. 1772, concerning Judge Paul Carrington’s

investment in fifty slaves imported to Bermuda Hundred and the distribution of shares in

the partnership formed for the purchase and sale of the slaves (section 4).

Carrington family papers, 1817–1895. 334 items. Mss1C2358g.

Considerable detail on the hiring out arrangements for the slave Ephraim over a five-year

period appears in this collection (section 1). Henry Carrington of Ingleside, Charlotte

County, owned Ephraim, who was managed by Thomas Clement Read of Roanoke and

hired out in the Roanoke area. Arrangements were such that whatever Ephraim earned

above a certain amount could be kept for himself.

Carrington family papers, 1832–1884. 26 items. Mss1C2358e.

This collection includes an 1853 bond for the hire of seven male slaves to work on the

Richmond and Danville Railroad and provides for the employer to pay for runaway

expenses and doctors’ bills (section 2). A large group of lists, 1850–1865, of names, ages,

and maternal relationships cover approximately 150 slaves belonging to various members

of the Carrington family on Charlotte County plantations (section 3). An account book,

1862–1882, kept by Henry Alexander Carrington contains on the back page an 1861 list

of twenty slaves arranged by age and occupation (section 5). The same book also

includes scattered accounts for wages, sundries, and medicine for freedmen.

Carter, Charles (1707–1764), agreement, 1762. 1 p. Mss2C2453a2.

Agreement, 17 April 1762, between Charles Carter of King George County and John

Champe, also of King George County, pertaining to the marriage of Ann Carter and John

Champe, Jr.; Ann was to receive the slave Diana as a gift, and John Champe was to

receive land and unnamed slaves in Prince William County.

Carter, Frances, deed, n.d. 1 p. Mss11:2C2454:1. Imperfect.

Deed of trust to Claiborne Barksdale for slaves in Charlotte County.

Carter, Joseph (1697–1751), deed, 1739/40. 1 p. Mss2C2457a1.

Deed, 2 January 1740, of Joseph Carter to James Davis of Spotsylvania County for the

slave man Robin and woman Bet.

Carter, Robert (1728–1804), account book, 1769–1783. [84], [62] pp.

Mss5:3C2466:1.

This account book, maintained by Carter while living at Nomini Hall, Westmoreland

County, concerns the estate of Benjamin Tasker and includes records of the sale of slaves

at Belair, Prince Georges County, Md.

Carter, Robert (1728–1804), papers, 17601815. 12 items. Mss1C2465a. Microfilm

reel C222.

Letterbooks, account books, land books, and books of prayer kept by the planter Robert

Carter III of Westmoreland County. A letterbook covering the early 1770s makes several

references to the slaves belonging to the Baltimore Iron Works, in which Carter planned

to buy an interest. Of particular note is a December 1772 reference to Mr. Randall’s

claim against the government for the loss of the slave Moses, who escaped from the

public jail. In October 1773, Carter arranges for the hire of a baker, Samuel, and refers to

the current practice of owners being chargeable for clothes and taxes of hired slaves.

An account book, 1773–1774 (section 3), concerns provisions for slaves at Nomini Hall,

Dick’s Quarter, Billingsgate Quarter, Old Ordinary, and Coles Point. An account book,

1784–1787 (section 4), contains several entries for medical bills and blankets for slaves.

The account book covering 1785–1792 (section 5) includes entries for salt and tallow for

the slaves at Nomini Hall, Gemini, Taurus, Old Ordinary, and Coles Point. Entries for

James Harrison, overseer (l. 91), 1783–1785, refer to "tax on Aggy not tithable," and for

Frances Bell, mulatto (l. 106), include charges for her nursing services.

The 1802 land book (section 7) provides a general background on the transfer of land and

slaves at Nomini Hall for the eighteenth century, and page 29 makes reference to the

rental of Sagittarius with thirteen slaves in 1797 and removal of the slaves by 1798.

Carter, Robert (1774–1805), letter, 1803. 11 pp. Mss2C2466a1. Typescript.

Photocopy.

Letter, 12 and 14 October 1803, to his children concerning his abhorrence of slavery, his

view that individual emancipation does not solve the social concerns of slavery, and an

isolated incident involving slaves. The letter is an apology and also contains advice for

his children.

Carter, Sarah S., diary, 1866. [22] pp. Mss5:1C2467:1.

Concerns a trip made by Sarah S. Carter from Philadelphia, Pa., to Baltimore, Md.,

Hampton, Petersburg, Richmond, and Williamsburg, Va., and Washington, D.C. A

companion on the trip, Sarah Cadbury, was on her way to Yorktown to teach at a school

for freedmen. Journal entries describe visits to freedmen’s school churches and

neighborhoods in York County and a tour of an African American church and hospital in

Richmond.

Carter, Thomas Henry (1831–1908), account book, 1859–1888. [464] pp.

Mss5:3C2468:1.

Includes records of the purchase of land and farm animals in Louisiana in 1859 by

Thomas Nelson Carter, Thomas Henry Carter, and William Page Carter, as well as a

record of slaves sent from Pampatike, King William County, and Clarke County, Va.,

presumably to Louisiana, ca. 1859. Another section of the volume, maintained 1874–

1888, bears accounts with agricultural workers and house servants, some African

American, indicating days worked and wages earned while at Pampatike.

Carter, Thomas Henry (1831–1908), account book, 1869–1872. [120] pp.

Mss5:3C2468:2.

Includes records of wages and rations of agricultural laborers, plantation overseers, and

house servants (some African American). Kept at Pampatike, King William County.

Carter family papers, 1651–1861. 2,556 items. Mss1C2468a. Microfilm reels C217–

222.

Much of this particular family collection centers around the papers of Robert Carter

(1728–1804) and George Carter, prominent plantation owners in Virginia’s Northern

Neck, in particular the county of Westmoreland. Of special interest is Robert Carter’s

correspondence in 1792 and 1793, during which time he emancipated a number of his

slaves. George Carter of Baltimore, Md., and Oatlands in Loudoun County, however,

dealt extensively in buying and selling slaves.

The letterbook, 1727–1728, of an earlier Robert Carter (1663–1732) contains much

information regarding the buying and selling of slaves for Corotoman plantation in

Lancaster County. There is an index accompanying the volume (section 2). Inventories,

1733, of Carter’s estate include records for a number of plantations on the Northern

Neck. The inventories contain names, ages, trades, and some family groupings of slaves.

(A typescript is available; this information has been published in the Virginia Magazine

of History and Biography, 6 and 7 [1898–1899]).

Simon Sallard sent his reports, 1732–1739, as overseer for Nomini Hall plantation to

John Carter of Corotoman and briefly reported on the health of the plantation hands at the

close of each document (section 12).

The correspondence of Robert Carter III (section 22) contains much information about

attitudes toward slavery, social obligations pertaining to slavery and emancipation of

slaves, individual slaveowners’ obligations toward slaves (letters of Samuel Jones,

Thomas Carneal), concerns of overseers who must manage slaves who are awaiting

freedom during a "phased" emancipation plan, some of whom run away (letters of

Littleberry Apperson, Christopher Collins), Pennsylvania’s emancipation plan (Samuel

Jones), renting land to freed African Americans, buying, selling, and hiring slaves to keep

husbands and wives together (Christopher Collins), and a specific instance of abuse of

slaves by a family member (report of Benjamin Dawson). John Jack of Hampshire

County (now W.Va.) details his concerns for a boy being sold for life whose mother was

freed by Robert Carter. The boy had lived in Maryland with Carter; Jack implies that this

circumstance provides freedom. Nicholas Ridgely Warfield of Maryland relates the story

of Thomas Mahoney, who was sold by the Baltimore Company to ten subscribers to

obtain his freedom; some of the subscribers defaulted, and by 1802 there was evidence

that perhaps Mahoney was born free. The court case was dragging, and interest was

accruing on the loans.

Section 23 contains accounts, some for shoes bought and repaired in bulk, for delivery of

babies, bleeding slaves for medical reasons, and hirings (see accounts for 1771, 1790, and

1792). In section 36 are several lists. A 1775 list of "census" information at Nomini Hall

includes sixty-two inhabitants by color (including white), trade, and age; white males in

service have the number of years served indicated as well. There is also a 1784 Nomini

Hall list of tithables and a 1789 Aries plantation list of tithables, in which slaves are

grouped by family.

Two bills of lading, both 1774 (section 38), show schooners sailing between Nomini and

Norfolk mastered by African Americans: Cesar (of the Bess) and William Lawrence, a

mulatto, of the Harriet. A number of affidavits (section 40) attest to the character of

William Powell as a compassionate and goodnatured overseer. Another affirms that

Edmund Henry, although born a slave, is to live with the Robert Carter family in

Maryland as a family member. Another (Peck, 1792) states that Peck is no longer

responsible for the maintenance of Abraham and Betty, property of Robert Carter. A

1792 memorandum also indicates that certain slaves at various Westmoreland plantations

of Robert Carter are to enjoy their own discretion and judgment for renting land and

hiring themselves out.

Correspondence of George Carter (section 52) includes letters from Peter Durting,

William Forbes, and George Whitelock, describing purchases and sales of a number of

slaves; some of the business transactions aroused suspicions, in particular the sale of Joe

(see Whitelock letters).

Cary family papers, 1844–1968. 1,360 items. Mss1C2597b.

Papers of the Cary family of Hampton and Richmond. Section 1 contains a Civil War

letter written by Columbia H. Hudgins Cary (of Hampton) concerning her need for

servants and a letter, July 1861, by John B. Cary concerning his inability to remove

servants from Hampton. Correspondence of John B. Cary with George A. Magruder, Jr.,

discusses a citizen’s desire to reclaim slaves from Fortress Monroe. Section 2 contains a

receipt for the sale of a female slave to John B. Cary. Section 9 includes correspondence

of Maria Barry (Abert) Cary concerning her interest in an incident in Georgia involving

an employee of the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company who tortured an African

American girl for petty theft (includes correspondence with the Atlanta Journal

Constitution regarding the incident and news of the court case). Section 19 includes a

letter written by W. Gordon McCabe concerning his impressions of Charleston, S.C., and

its African American population during the Civil War.

Cedar Park Farm, Middlesex County, papers, 1783–1941. 8 items. Mss2C4621b.

This collection contains a complaint in chancery (copy), 1825, of William Woodford,

David Woodford, Corbin Lane [an infant], and Daphney West, freed slaves formerly

belonging to Maj. James Ross, against Ross’s administrator, John Chinn, calling for the

division of the Cedar Park property. These materials include the court’s decree ordering a

commission to lay off forty acres, including the spring, for Daphney West and divide the

remainder among the other complainants, with William Woodford to receive the dwelling

house and David Woodford to receive the blacksmith’s shop. Also included is a deed of

trust, 1836, of Richard C. Muse to Fortius Q. Keiningham to land in Middlesex County

and partial title to a slave woman named Ruth for the benefit of Walter Healy and

Thomas Muse.

A Celebration of Freedom, Nomini Hall, Westmoreland County, papers, 1991. 64

items. Mss3C3304a.

Include speeches, news releases, photographs, and other miscellaneous items concerning

the two hundredth anniversary of the manumission of the slaves of Robert Carter

(17281804) of Nomini Hall plantation in Westmoreland County.

Chamberlayne family papers, 1821–1938. 2,940 items. Mss1C3552c. Microfilm reels

C291–293.

This collection includes a deed, 2 January 1861, of E. P. Chamberlayne to his mother,

Martha Burwell (Dabney) Chamberlayne, for the slave Otway, son of Molly (section 31).

An 1864 letter of Benjamin Stoddert Ewell (1810–1894) to John M. Speed of Lynchburg

asks Speed to see that the slave bearing the letter is allowed to be hired in Lynchburg and

stay with his mother. The slave was formerly attached to General Joseph Eggleston

Johnston’s headquarters near Atlanta (section 69).

Chambliss, John Randolph (1809–1875), letter, 1863. 3 pp. Mss4C7a3. Photocopy.

Letter, 27 January 1863, Richmond, to the president of the Confederate States of

America, addressing concerns about slaves impressed to work on fortifications, in

particular, Chambliss believes that certain counties have a higher runaway rate than do

other counties.

Chandler family of Caroline County, papers, 1757–1851. 49 items. Mss2C3616b.

Include an inventory, 1822, listing approximately twenty-five slaves with name, age, and

value, belonging to the estate of William Chandler (item b8). Also include an agreement,

1811, concerning Samuel Chiles’s sale of four slaves to Farish Coleman, providing

names of the slaves sold (item b11).

Chappawamsic Baptist Church, Stafford County, records, 17661919. 2 vols.

Mss5:8BX6251C3682:1–2.

These two volumes contain lists of members, dates of baptism, notations of owners or

free status for African American members, dates of meetings, preachers, and texts. The

first volume contains additional details of reasons for church censure of members and

thus recounts much of the members’ social lives. The records document much interaction

between members and nonmembers, regardless of color.

Chappelear family papers, 1803–1998. 429 items. Mss1C3688a.

Concerns the Chappelear and related Baird, Leake, and Snead families of Culpeper,

Rappahannock, and Fauquier counties. Section 3 contains a receipt, dated 1841,

concerning John Chappelear (of Fauquier County) and the hiring of two slaves, Eliza and

Charles. Section 4 contains the legal notes, 1855–1857, of James Pendleton Chappelear

(also of Fauquier County), two of which concern the hiring of African American

servants. A photograph of a slave belonging to Eveline Archer (Leake) Binford is located

in section 11.

Charles City County, Court, records, 1802. 5 items. Mss4C3808b.

A set of writs of execution concerning the satisfaction of debts. The writ issued against

William Spraggins bears a note indicating the satisfaction of the debt by the seizing of

Lucy, an African American slave, and her subsequent sale.

Charles City County, records, 1642–1842. 77 items. Mss3C3807a.

Manuscript records removed from the courthouse of Charles City County in 1862 by the

father of Arthur G. Fuller, who served as an officer in the United States Army. Included

in the records are affidavits, appraisals, bonds, complaints, deeds, indentures, inventories,

judgments, marriage bonds, fragments of order books, petitions, receipts, and wills from

Charles City County. Include a 1693 affidavit of Dudley Digges and others in Warwick

County to Governor Sir Edmund Andros concerning the imprisonment of the slave Frank

for questioning concerning a slave uprising (item a57); a 1780 receipt issued by Samuel

Wills of Warwick County to Matthew Wills for the sale of two women slaves (a72); and

an 1831 bond of George W. Macrae covering the hire of the slave Clary and her child

(a22).

Charlotte County, records, 1763–1896. 1,003 items. Mss3C3815a.

Section 140 contains several lists; the first folder holds 1860 lists of slaves and records

owner, age, sex, color, fugitive status (whether fugitive or manumitted), presence of any

disabilities (deaf, dumb, blind, insane, or idiotic), and the number of slave houses

provided by the slaveowner; the second folder contains lists, n.d., of road hands, some

designated as African American; and a third folder concerns delinquent taxes, 1881,

listing African Americans separately.

Chimborazo School, Richmond, Va., register, 1868–1869. 1 vol. Mss4C442a1.

This register was kept by the teacher, Elizabeth Cartland, a Quaker from New Hampshire.

The volume is a pre-printed formbook that includes names and ages for approximately

seventy students at this school for African Americans. Daily attendence was also

recorded, along with subjects taught.

Chinn, Rawleigh (d. 1816), will, 1816. 3 pp. Mss2C4415b.

Will, 13 May 1816, probated in Loudoun County, including 1843 affidavits concerning

the ownership of the slave women Judy and Eliza by Chinn’s daughters Elizabeth Wilson

and Lucy Beveridge.

Christian, Ann Webster Gordon (1837–1894), diary, 1860–1867. [138] pp.

Mss5:1C4626:1.

This diary was kept before her marriage by Ann Webster Gordon in Richmond and

Staunton, and while the author traveled in the state of Mississippi. It concerns her life as

an educator, governess, and religious teacher of slaves. Along with her comments on

slavery in Mississippi, the diary includes a list of slaves who attended Sunday School in

Richmond and their masters.

Christian, George Llewellyn (1841–1923), letter, 1904. 1 p. Mss2C4623a2.

Typescript.

Letter to the editor of the Richmond Times-Dispatch, 4 November 1904, concerning

slaves’ fidelity to their masters at the end of the Civil War. Bears letter, 11 February

1865, of Dr. F. W. Hancock analyzing a poll taken of seventy-two slaves.

Chrystie, Thomas (1753?–1812), papers, 1783–1818. 421 items. Mss1C4695a.

The correspondence of this Hanover County physician (section 1) contains many

scattered notes requesting his services for slaves, and his accounts confirm that aspect of

his medical practice. Of particular note is an 1811 letter he wrote to Philip Croxton in

response to mistreatment of Chrystie’s slave Bob, details of the injuries, and Chrystie’s

intent to sue for damages. Correspondence in 18051806 with John Simpson and Conrad

Webb provides details on indenturing the slave James with Simpson, a saddle and harness

maker in Petersburg, an arrangement that proved unsuitable. An 1813 note from Michael

Hancock of Richmond to Benjamin Oliver of Hanover Town asks Oliver to be alert for

Billy, a fugitive slave (section 8).

Chrystie, Thomas (1753?–1812), papers, 1784–1811. 15 items. Mss2C4695b.

Additional papers of the Hanover County physician. Include an 1807 letter of John Hill

concerning the hiring out of an enslaved carpenter, an 1811 letter of Edward Hundley

concerning medical care for his slave Billy, and accounts concerning the medical

treatment of slaves and the payment of taxes on land, slaves, and other property.

Claiborne family papers, 1665–1911. 3,671 items. Mss1C5217b. Microfilm reels

C295–297 and C586–589.

The papers of this Richmond family primarily consist of the correspondence and legal

papers of planters and lawyers. A 1760–1761 inventory of John Herbert’s estate in

Chesterfield County includes approximately twenty slaves and valuations, and a 1797

affidavit concerns the purchase of twelve slaves from Augustine Claiborne’s estate

(section 2). An undated note for the division of twenty slaves of Herbert Claiborne’s

estate contains names and values (section 6).

Section 27 consists of the correspondence of Herbert Augustine Claiborne. Letters, 1840,

of Lucian C. Browne concern a misunderstanding on the part of Mary Dudley over a deed

of trust pertaining to two of her slaves. In section 38, the 1840 will of Peter Spain, a free

African American in Richmond, provides for the emancipation of his wife and division of

his estate between her and his two free sisters of Petersburg. He also makes provision for

a free boy, John Finney, who lives with him. Included in the same section is Spain’s

notice to the sheriff of Kanawha County (now W.Va.) for failure to return funds for a writ

issued out of the Henrico County court.

Section 40 contains two judgments, 1845–1846, against a freedman, Joseph R. Dailey of

Richmond, on claims of $38–$90 by two New York companies. Section 45 contains an

1865 lease of Herbert A. Claiborne to Edward Davenport, a freedman, for a two-horse

stable at Broad and 11th streets in Richmond.

Clark, Adèle (18821983), papers, 1882–1983. ca. 900 items. Mss1C5472aFA2.

Clark, noted artist and suffragist, participated in a variety of political activities. Among

her papers (box 2) is a folder labeled "Racial Issues, 1915–1955," which includes an

interview, ca. 1915–1920, with a former slave from Maryland, who as a youth escaped

and joined the U.S. Army during the Civil War. Also included in the folder is material

relating to twentieth-century events.

Clarke County Colored Horse Show Association, Berryville, records, 19201923. 1

vol. Mss4C5585a1.

Ledger, 19201923, of the Clarke County Colored Horse Show Association (Berryville,

Va.). The constitution states that the groups objective was to encourage thrift and the

better breeding of good horses among colored people of this country (p. 12). The volume

contains the associations constitution, order of business, minutes, roll call, list of

premiums paid, and miscellaneous account information. The minutes describe the

structure of meetings, election of officers, plans to raise money for premiums, logistics of

running a horse show, and plans for a banquet. Secretary Benjamin Layton (b. 1883?) and

Corresponding Secretary Hayes W. Brown (b. 1878?) appear to be the main keepers of

the ledger. At its peak, the club numbered approximately 35 members.

Clarke, Herman R. (19072002), Autobiography of Eighty-four Years, 1990. 1 vol.

Mss7:1C5535:1.

Autobiography of Herman R. Clarke of Richmond, who graduated from Armstrong High

School in 1924 and worked several jobs before obtaining a scholarship from the Second

Baptist Church to study at Virginia Union University. He graduated with a degree in

religion and languages in 1932. In the following decades, he taught and served as

principal at a private school and in many public schools in counties including

Buckingham, Goochland, and Mecklenburg. He became an ordained minister and served

as pastor of several churches including Bethany Baptist Church in Charles City County,

Washington Street Baptist Church in Bedford, and Hartsville Baptist Church in Lancaster

County. His teaching career took him back to Richmond, where he taught at Maymont

Middle School, a pilot school for desegregation. He married Elmira Sarah Kenney and

had two daughters, Frances Clarke and Ophelia (Clarke) Patterson.

The manuscript describes Clarkes childhood living on West Moore Street in Newtowne,

an African American neighborhood in Richmond, his educational goals, and his career

path. He reflects on the influences in his life, his experiences with racial discrimination,

and memories of the Civil Rights Movement. The autobiography provides a glimpse into

early twentieth-century social conditions in Virginia, commenting on racial tensions in

Bedford, Lynchburg, and Richmond.

Clarke family papers, 1811–1898. 149 items. Mss1C5587c.

Members of the Clarke family were merchants in Richmond and surrounding areas.

Augustus Burfoot Clarke was also a teacher involved with the Southern Baptist

denomination.

Richardson Henry Griffith writes Augustus Clarke from Washington, D.C., about the

difficulties of transporting slaves into the District of Columbia and the resulting

ownership issues. An 1861 letter from Clarke’s sister Julia Ann (Clarke) Childrey

mentions the slaves’ concerns that more corn should be planted because of the war

(section 2). An 1841 account concerns a doctor’s fee for visiting Jenny (section 4).

Clarke’s postwar essay (damaged) describes his views on the conditions of African

American life (section 6).

Clarke family papers, 1815–1938. 761 items. Mss1C5587a.

Members of this Richmond family include hardware merchants and a Baptist minister

and college professor. Section 21 contains an 1816 letter of John Clarke of Powhatan

County to Frederick Clarke, concerning the unauthorized departures and absences of five

of John’s slaves in Frederick’s care. In section 54 is a badly damaged list, 18331847, of

approximately twenty-five slave births, with some deaths indicated.

Clay, Henry (1777–1852), papers, 1826–1842. 18 items. Mss2C5794b.

Include a letter written by Joseph Richardson of Hingham, Mass., to Clay concerning the

possible circulation of Clay’s recent speech on slavery and Richardson’s opposition to the

abolitionist movement.

Clay family papers, 1769–1951. 181 items. Mss1C5795a.

The more prominent members of this central Virginia family include the Reverend

Charles Clay (1745–1820) of Albemarle and Chesterfield counties and Odin Green Clay

(1795?–1882) of Campbell County and Lynchburg.

The Reverend Charles Clay’s account book, 1773–1818 (section 1), contains scattered

entries concerning the hire of slaves (mostly Suckey). Section 3 contains several 1864

receipts and valuations for slaves of Odin Clay impressed by Confederate authorities for

building fortifications near Lynchburg. An 1861 list of thirty-six slaves owned by DeWitt

Clinton Clay at Tomahawk Creek in Campbell County provides names and ages by

family units (section 5). A commonplace book, ca. 1855, of an unknown compiler

contains newspaper clippings on religion, slavery, and abolitionism. In the back is a list

of eight slave families, including ages of family members (section 12).

Clayton family papers, 1852–1865 (bulk 1861–1865). 104 items. Mss1C5796a.

Civil War–era papers of the Clayton and related Semmes families of Georgia. Section 1

contains a letter of Gen. Paul Jones Semmes (of Wilkes County, Ga.) in which he

discusses that Federal troops stole some of his slaves in Georgia and that he had to

abandon operations on his plantation because of harassment by Union forces. Section 2

contains a letter, 1863 February 10, concerning William Harris Clayton’s need for a

servant and a letter, 1863 April 17, discussing his capture of a free African American

who had been helping Northern troops.

Clemmitt family papers, 18351933. 13 items. Mss1C5915a.

Miscellaneous papers relating to the Clemmitt and related Freeman families of Richmond

and Henrico County, Va. The collection chiefly consists of the writings of Thomas

Clemmitt, Jr. (18531934), receipts, and deeds to land in the city of Richmond belonging

to William Freeman (b. 1805?). Items of interest include a fine, 1839, against William

Freeman for permitting a slave, Dabney Smith, to go at large, and a bill of sale, 1843, of

John Hutcheson to William Freeman for a slave named Amanda. Also of interest is

Clemmitts biography of his father, Thomas Clemmitt, Sr. (18251873), reflecting on the

effects of Reconstruction in Richmond and the increased racial tensions that followed. He

describes a confrontation between former slaves and soldiers over the possession of a

business building on the southern border of the city.

Cobb, Daniel William (1811–1872), diaries, 1842–1872. 25 vols. Mss5:1C6334:1–25.

Microfilm reels C238–240.

The diaries of this Southampton County planter provide information about agricultural

operations in general. Several 1842 entries express concern about unrest and an

anticipated insurrection in Petersburg (pages 100, 116). Cobb’s 1867 diary contains

accounts for hired hands on the back pages, in addition to the usual description of

agricultural operations. The diary for 1868 contains an entry that describes an incident at

the court involving an African American sentenced to four years in the penitentiary (page

66).

Cocke, Philip St. George (1809–1861), formbooks, 1854–1871. 6 vols. Mss1C6455a.

This collection of formbooks contains the plantation manager’s daily record of activities

at Beldale and Belmead in Powhatan County. The first part of each book contains a

printed block of general guidelines for plantation and farm management, including

information on the treatment of slaves, discipline, illness, appropriate clothing and

provisions, rules of conduct for slaves, curfews, yard and quarters maintenance, passes,

permission to marry, Sunday inspections, morning roll calls, patrols, and restrictions on

alcoholic beverages. Following this is a section of agricultural guidelines, which include

daily work expections for plowmen, masons, and sawyers. The second part of each book

consists of a collection of forms for the manager to complete as needed (inventory forms

for slaves, livestock, and tools), followed by the daily record of work. The specific years

on record for these two Powhatan County plantations are for Belmead, 1854, 1861, 1866,

1868, and 1871; and for Beldale, 1863.

Cocke family papers, 1742–1976. 245 items. Mss1C6458c. Microfilm reel C399.

Include a cookbook, 1834–1836 (item c11), of Mary Burton Augusta (Bolling) Banister,

kept in Petersburg. Endpapers record a handful of slave births. (The cookbook also

contains a layout of the kitchen, likely used by the family’s cook.)

Cocke family papers, 1770–1860. 1,840 items. Mss1C6458b. Microfilm reels C395–

399.

This collection houses the papers of the Amelia County branch of the Cocke family. Most

of the papers deal with Woodland plantation in that county. A number of slave lists

appear in an account book that covers 1772–1847 (section 2), including births and deaths

of slaves at Woodland, along with several accounts with freemen and some hiring

accounts. An undated list of slaves belonging to James Powell Cocke includes twenty-

seven names grouped into four families (section 29). Three deeds of trust of James

Powell Cocke also pertain to slaves (section 26).

A 1793 agreement of Stephen Cocke (section 9) provides for his slave Absalom to work

for Charles Hutchenson at the blacksmith trade and for Cocke to provide tools,

provisions, and lodgings for both in return for a share of the income from the business.

Cocke family papers, 1794–1981. ca. 2,950 items. Mss1C6458dFA2. Microfilm reel

C452.

Among the papers of Elizabeth Preston Cocke are references to the family maid,

including a school composition entitled "Mammy." In the correspondence of her mother,

Elizabeth Bernard (Meredith) Cocke, is a letter from M. F. Clay, a family maid (box 9,

folder 1 of the correspondence), and a later account of the maid’s attempt to save the life

of Cocke when hit by a car (in the last folder of the correspondence series).

Box 15 includes correspondence with the Junior League and with the Volunteer Service

Bureau. The third folder (of six) pertaining to the Junior League contains a program with

an image of an African American woman on the front. The records of the Volunteer

Service Bureau are contained in three folders, in the first of which is information

regarding efforts to recruit African American interviewers for the African American

volunteer applicants.

Coffin, Levi (1789–1877), letter, 1849. 4 pp. Mss2C6546a1. Photocopy.

Letter, 11 March 1849, written in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Emory D. Coffin, New Garden,

N.J., concerning the Society of Friends’ efforts to secure the freedom of James Carr of

North Carolina, who had been sold into slavery.

Coleman family papers, 1805–1922. 294 items. Mss1C6773c.

Concerns the Coleman family of Dinwiddie County, Va., and Todd County, Ky. Section

4 includes a deed, 1825, of Williamson Coleman (of Dinwiddie County) to Edwin

Newman Coleman concerning the sale of slaves.

Coleman family papers, 1856–1883. 230 items. Mss1C6773a. Microfilm reel C274.

The papers in this family collection focus on the Williamsburg physician Charles

Washington Coleman (18261894). Among several letters to his wife, Cynthia Beverley

(Tucker) Washington Coleman (section 8), those of Robert Cole of Williamsburg provide

basic information on the hire of Martha for 1858 and 1859 and on a visit during that time.

Letters of Alfred L. Holladay of Richmond describe the same type of hire for Myra in

1861 and 1862.

Coles, Elizabeth (1791–1865), diary, 1829. 58 pp. Mss5:1C6795:1.

Kept at Enniscorthy, Albemarle County, in David Richardson’s Virginia and North

Carolina Almanack for the Year 1829 (Richmond, [1828]), containing brief notations for

slaves, mostly pertaining to the distribution of supplies.

Comfort family papers, 1848–1900. 174 items. Mss1C7345a. Microfilm reels C499–

500.

Includes receipts, 1858, to Daniel McIntosh of Thomas County, Ga., for the slave

George, with age, color, and health indications, and an unnamed slave girl (section 2).

Compton family papers, 1839–1924. 102 items. Mss1C7398a.

Primarily concerns the family of Thomas A. Compton (1802?–1861), who moved from

Virginia to the Vicksburg, Mississippi, area, where Thomas took up farming and

mercantile operations. Some materials reflect generally on the use of enslaved and free

labor in cotton growth and production. A letter from H. Gibbon in 1853 discusses a legal

case in which Compton disputed the title to a slave bought in Baltimore, Maryland, that

was allegedly intended for an owner in New Orleans, Louisiana (section 1). An 1864

letter of W. C. Compton, of Freestone County, Texas, to Thomas’s widow, Eliza (Shaw)

Compton (b. 1805?), concerns safe passage for a slave, Alex, who was being sent by her

son Charles, then serving in the Confederate Army, to deliver letters to family members

(section 1). Correspondence, 1851–1861, of one of Compton’s daughters, Eleanora V.

Compton (b. 1830?), includes an 1860 letter from her sister Mary, who attended a concert

given by an African American pianist, Blind Tom, while an undated missive from her

brother Walter, who was attending Centenary College in Jackson, Louisiana (now in

Shreveport) contains inquiries regarding the punishment of a runaway slave named Buck,

who was recaptured. He also mentions establishments in Jackson that were open on the

Sabbath and traded with African Americans (section 2). An 1852 letter from Walter to his

sister Mary mentions the attack on and murder of an African American youth by one of

Walter’s fellow students at Centenary, while a letter in 1866 mentions his difficulties in

utilizing black laborers in Texas because of problems in working with the Freedmen’s

Bureau (section 2).

Confederate States of America. Army. Department of Henrico, pass, 1863. 1 p.

Mss2G8666a1.

Pass, dated 6 August 1863, Richmond, issued to Mr. [?] Gresham to visit military prisons

to identify African Americans.

Confederate States of America. Army. Department of Henrico, records, 1861–1864.

922 items. Mss3C7604a. Microfilm reels C589–591.

These records largely concern military and civilian prisoners held in military prisons and

hospitals in Richmond. Section eight contains letters written to Thomas Pratt Turner

(1841–1900) as commander of Confederate military prisons in Richmond and includes a

letter from Daniel Brinkley of Nansemond County requesting the release of Jesse

Langston, a free African American.

Confederate States of America. Army. Department of Northern Virginia. Engineers

Office, letterbook, 1861. 325–337 pp. Mss4C7a8.

Pages 325, 331, and 337 of the letterbook concern African American laborers in the

Confederate Army.

Confederate States of America. War Department, pass, 1865. 1 p. Mss4C7609a1.

Pass, 16 February 1865, Richmond, issued to Bob, slave of John C. Maynard, to visit

King and Queen County. The printed form bears handwritten completions for age, height,

and color.

Conn, Francis K., bond, 1824. 1 p. Mss2C7624a1.

Bond, 29 January 1824, to Charles C. Johnston, to pay $50 for hire of a young boy,

payable in Tennessee bank notes, specifying clothing allowance and providing for the

payment of taxes on the slave.

Conrad, Holmes (1840–1916), papers, 1794–1959. 392 items. Mss1C7637a.

Microfilm reel B13.

Includes an agreement, 1833, between Robert Conrad and D. H. Conrad concerning

ownership of Silvia and her three children, Silvia’s choice of owner, and her annuity

(section 25).

Conrad, Robert Young (1805–1875), papers, 1850–1944. 156 items. Mss1C7638a.

The papers of a Winchester lawyer primarily concern Virginia’s 1861 convention and

deal with secession. Many of the notes (for which a typescript is also available) deal with

abolitionism secondarily. About three pages of 1861 notes pertain to the distinction

between manslaughter and premeditated murder, for use in the defense of George, a slave

(section 2).

Converse, Charles S., comp., Memorial of Amasa Converse, D.D. [107] pp.

Mss7:1C7692:1.

Materials concern the life of Amasa Converse (1795–1872), who was editor of the

Christian Observer (newspaper of Richmond) from 1827 until his death. Include

autobiographical sketch, abstract of will written in Richmond, biographical sketch by

Rev. L. P. Yandell, M.D., obituary notices, and printed articles. Collection offers insight

into the educational system of the early 1800s, the division of the Presbyterian church

over the issue of slave ownership, and the development of the Presbyterian publication,

the Christian Observer.

Cooke, Giles Buckner (1838–1937), diary, 1863. 1 vol. Mss5:1C7745:10. Microfilm

reel C593.

One of a series of diaries kept by a Confederate officer serving in the Army of Western

Virginia, this particular volume makes a passing mention of witnessing the hanging of a

slave (belonging to an army man) while in Saltville on 7 July. The lynching mob believed

the slave had raped a white woman.

Cooke, Giles Buckner (1838–1937), papers, 1829–1946. 334 items. Mss1C7752b.

Largely concern the service of Giles Buckner Cooke in the Confederate States Army and

his career serving as an Episcopalian minister in North East, Md., Mathews Court House,

and Portsmouth, Va., much of which focuses on his religious work among African

Americans. Among Cookes correspondence, 1861–1936, in section 1 is also a letter from

Thomas Underwood Dudley, who wrote to Cooke concerning Episcopalian missionary

work among African Americans in Louisville, Ky.

Cooke, Giles Buckner (1838–1937), papers, 1864–1937. 157 items. Mss1C7752a.

Cooke was a former Confederate Army staff officer and an Episcopal clergyman from

Mathews County who served in Virginia, Maryland, and Kentucky following the war.

Cooke kept a diary every year, fifty-eight volumes of which survive in this collection for

the years 1872–1927. During that period he served for twelve years as rector of St.

Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Petersburg, the first regularly constituted black Episcopal

church in Virginia. During that period he was involved in the education of freedmen. A

letter of African American clergyman George Freeman Bragg in 1908 (section 2) reviews

the early history of St. Stephen’s Church, the rectorship of Alexander W. Weddell, and

the construction of a church building with funds channeled through the Freedmen’s

Bureau. Section 6 contains Cooke’s undated notes for a speech on the freedmen of the

South, based on his own experiences.

Coolidge, Joseph (1798–1879), memorandum, [1826?]. 3 pp. Mss2C7784a2.

Notes concerning the loss of Thomas Jefferson’s fortune, incidentally mentioning his

slaves in general.

Coons family papers, 1828–1982. 1,208 items. Mss1C7835a.

This collection of a Culpeper County family is fairly representative of the papers of

smaller estate owners in nineteenth-century Virginia. References to African Americans

are few, but notes in section 5 concern the hire of Solomon for help in the construction of

North Cliff in Culpeper County. Section 27 includes the lots drawn by Clarke Hume

Thompson from an unidentified 1857 estate containing twelve slaves. In the same section

is an 1862 bond of F. McCarthy to Thompson for the hire of a slave at $30 per month.

Cooper, Samuel (1798–1876), letter, 1864. 4 pp. Mss2C7876a1. Photocopy.

Written from Richmond to Sarah Maria (Mason) Cooper concerning hiring out

arrangements to be made for several domestic slaves, Davie, Christine, and Henrietta.

The slaves’ specific skills are also discussed.

Cooper family papers, 1786–1910. 161 items. Mss1C7887a.

Primarily the papers of General Samuel Cooper (1798–1876) of Cameron, Fairfax

County, while serving in the United States and Confederate States armies. Include a

letter, [1857], of Maria Mason (Cooper) Wheaton to her brother Samuel Mason Cooper

concerning the funeral of their grandmother Anna Maria (Murray) Mason of Alexandria

and the disposition of her enslaved servants (section 5).

Corbin, Richard (1714–1790), papers, 17671797. 13 items. Mss2C8114b.

The second folder of section 2 contains a list of slaves at Moss Neck, Caroline County,

and Richland Quarter, King and Queen County, as of 18 May 1778 listing men, women,

and children, with ages provided for children. Deaths occurring in the past year are noted.

Corr family papers, 1688–1975. 145 items. Mss1C8177a.

Most of these papers concern nineteenth-century family members from King and Queen

County. In section 7 is a single item of African American interest: an 1838 deed of

Anthony G. Shackelford to Thomas Corr containing valuations for three men and three

women slaves in the division of the estate of George Shackelford.

Cottrell family papers, 1806–1862. 3 items. Mss2C8297b. Photocopies.

This collection includes two letters concerning slavery, including one to Mary Jerdone

(Denton) Cottrell of Ellerslie, Henrico County, concerning slave children on the

plantation, and a second to Thomas Mitchell concerning the purchase of a slave named

Isham. Originals in private hands.

Couper Marble Works, Norfolk, records, 1848–1942. c. 32,500 items. Mss3C8325a.

This successful Norfolk business, founded in 1848, operated until 1981 (and was later

known as Couper Memorial Works). It specialized in the import and carving of stone for

construction and cemetery monuments. Among the extensive records of the firm,

including letterbooks, account books, contracts, and loose financial papers, is information

regarding the hiring of slaves to work for the company during the late antebellum period.

Cox, John (d. 1793), appraisal, [1791]. 1 p. Mss2C8396a1.

An appraisal of the estate of Edward Cox of Powhatan County, prepared by John Cox,

James Bagbey, Anthony Minter, and Samuel White for the Powhatan County Court,

includes listings and monetary evaluations of slaves, along with other personal property.

Craig, Robert, letter, 1800. 1 p. Mss2C8447a1.

Letter, dated 22 December 1800, from Craig to John Marshall concerning William

Claiborne of Manchester and an exchange of land and slaves in Buckingham County,

Manchester, and Richmond.

Craig House Art Center, Richmond, records, 1938–1941. 250 items. Mss3C8443a.

This collection comprises the records of a fine arts association in Richmond as collected

by the treasurer, Emily Thomason. The center was located in a restored APVA property,

the Craig House. Its primary purpose was to promote an interest in fine arts among

African Americans in the Richmond community. In addition to lectures by prominent

artists, the center also offered classes in such subjects as painting, commercial art,

sculpture, woodworking and carving, and music and dancing. The collection includes

treasurers’ reports, annual summaries, guides to exhibits (including brief biographical

sketches of artists), schedules, minutes, and organizational charts. Correspondents

include Adèle Clark of the Virginia Arts Program, Arthur Durant (on establishing a trade

school program in upholstery), Zenobia Gilpin (concerning a garden party honoring

Marian Anderson), John Davis Hatch (for an excellent summary of the arts program),

Lettice Lee Woodward Whitlock Smith (a reminder that Craig House is not a trade

school), and Jesse M. Tinsely (of the Richmond Branch of the NAACP). The

miscellaneous file contains several photocopies of newspaper clippings about the center.

When the association dissolved, the board decided to give its remaining assets to Virginia

Union University’s Art Department.

Cravens, Addision (b. 1819?), affidavit, 1863. [2] pp. Mss2C8557a1.

Affidavit, dated 15 December 1863, Fort Smith, Ark., concerning enlistment in the U.S.

Army, Department of the Missouri, Second Colored Kansas Infantry Regiment, of

Addison Cravens (of Tazewell County, Va.).

Crenshaw family papers, 1807–1977. 120 items. Mss1C8635a.

This collection primarily focuses on the business enterprises and achievements of

Crenshaw family members of Richmond, including cotton and flour milling and trade in

iron and steel. Correspondence, dated between 1833 and 1838, of Lewis Dabney

Crenshaw (1817–1875) with his parents (section 1) includes references to a fire at the

tobacco factory of William Gray in Richmond, which employed a large number of

African American laborers (8 September 1833); the same letter also describes an attempt

by slaves to escape to freedom in the holds of schooners docked at Richmond. Lewis also

makes frequent references in this correspondence to his relationships with family slaves,

including Uncle Gabriel, Jenna, Reubin (his personal slave), and James (a former slave

who escaped to Boston, Mass.). Later correspondence, 1865–1869, of Lewis Crenshaw

and his son Lewis Dabney, Jr.(section 3), primarily concerns the effects of the fall of the

Confederacy and Richmond’s occupation by Federal forces. Writing to his mother,

Lewis, Jr. (b. 1845), specifically comments on fears of white Richmond residents about

living under an all-African American policy force, as proposed by the Union

commandant (30 March 1869). A series of transcriptions of letters now damaged,

missing, or still in private hands (section 4) includes a letter of Francis Graves, who

emigrated to Warren County, Ky., and wrote back to family members in Orange County

regarding violence among slaves and a planned murder plot by a slave named Jane

against her master, James Cowherd (25 November 1815). Also, a letter from Spotswood

Dabney Crenshaw (1787–1859) concerns a relationship between a free black man named

Buck and a slave named Lucy and offers the perspective of an owner concerned about the

welfare of a premature, sick infant born of their union (16 October 1821). Finally, an

undated letter by Spotswood Crenshaw provides his critical description of a meeting of

the American Colonization Society in Philadelphia run by abolitionist William Lloyd

Garrison.

Crew, A. M., list, [1861?]. 2 pp. Mss2C8676a1.

List of slave births occurring between 1822 and 1861 for slaves belonging to A. M. Crew,

including name, date of birth, and mother’s name.

Cropper, John (1755–1821), papers, 17791820. 396 items. Mss1C8835a. Microfilm

reel B14.

The papers of this prominent Accomack County planter contain several items of

correspondence of African American content. Sampson Mathews of Richmond asks

Cropper in 1775 to look for a slave girl accustomed to waiting on ladies, in addition to his

earlier request for four slaves, because his wife is now in need of a maid. Shortly after he

indicates that he also needs a carriage driver. He specifies what qualities he desires for

each of these slaves (section 1). A 1792 letter from William Seymour of Baltimore

concerns Luke, a runaway slave of Cropper. Luke had been committed to jail for robbery.

For a broader scope, Richard Drummond Bayly of Richmond comments on slavery as he

describes several bills before the Virginia legislature in 1805. With respect to the

nonimportation bill, Bayly adds his perspective on the African race in general. As to the

proposed prohibition on the emancipation of slaves, he writes it is inconsistent with the

national Bill of Rights’ concept of freedom. Taking away the hope of freedom could lead

to insurrections.

Cunningham, Richard Eggleston (1885–1932), papers, 1790–1978. 194 items.

Mss1C9175a.

Much of this collection consists of correspondence of several generations of a Richmond

mercantile family. Investments included several mills on the James River, as well as the

James River Canal Company. The only significant references to African Americans occur

in section 2, which contains a small series of estate records. In this section is an 1836

agreement concerning the division by lots of slaves belonging to the estate of Edward

Cunningham (1771–1836). The division concerns two properties, Hughes Creek in

Powhatan County and Howard’s Neck in Goochland County. Values are provided, and

several children and one cripple are noted. In addition, there is a typescript of an 1813

inventory of property of Richard Cunningham that includes four male and one female

slave.

Curles Neck, Henrico County, records, 1843–1848. 10 items. Mss4C9282b.

Includes lists of slaves, property, and crops, as well as goods received, at Curles Neck

and Tillmans, Henrico County. At the time, Curles Neck was owned by William Allen

(1815–1875).

Curry, Jabez Lamar Monroe (1805–1903), letter, 1859. 1 p. Mss2C9375a1.

Letter, 11 May 1859, Talladega, Ala., to Henry Alexander Wise in Richmond briefly

mentions teaching appropriate behavior to African American youths.

Curtis, Henry (1792–1862), papers, 1774–1865. 324 items. Mss1C9434a. Microfilm

reel C327.

In this collection are the personal papers of a Hanover County physician and a significant

number of medical documents, with a few legal papers. In section 5 is a deed of trust of

Dr. Henry Curtis to Parke Street for eleven slaves. An 1825 deed of trust in section 7

(William Richardson to Curtis) pertains to the slave James.

Curtis, Henry (1792–1862), papers, 1804–1857. 16 items. Mss2C9435b. Microfilm

reel C327.

In this collection of papers (pertaining to the same Hanover physician in the above entry)

are a number of bonds and accounts relating to the hire of several slaves: Dolly, 1840, for

$40; Humphrey, 1850, for $45; and Henry, 1814, for $60; an 1828–1829 account for the

hiring of Tom, Charles, Robin, and Anna; and an 1825 bond to Bowling Batkins

providing values for Old Tom, Charles, Robert, Anna, Becky, Eliza, and Sarah. An 1833

affidavit of John Pate concerns Tazewell Barker’s capture of William, slave of Dr. Curtis.

Also included in the collection is a series of lists of slaves. Lists of slaves at Powhite

plantation, 1831–1845, include about twenty slaves by age and value. A list of Pitman

Kidd’s estate provides information about seventeen slaves, including age, value, parents,

and notes as to who is a carpenter, who is subject to fits, and who has varicose veins. In

1853, Dr. Curtis acquired a life insurance policy for Judy, issued by the Richmond Fire

Association.

Custis, John (1678–1749), agreement, 1712. 1 p. Mss2C9694a7 oversize. Photocopy.

Agreement, 25 April 1712, of John Custis and Frances (Parke) Custis with William Byrd

II, concerning a division of land in James City, New Kent, and York counties in Virginia

and Hampshire, England, and fifty slaves owned by Daniel Parke II, listing them by name

with some indicated by plantation affiliation.

Custis, Mary Lee (Fitzhugh) (1788–1853), papers. 3 items. Mss2C9695a.

This group contains several separately acquired items, two of which are pertinent for the

researcher of African American material. The first (item a1) is an 1831 letter of Mary Lee

(Fitzhugh) Custis to Mary Anna Randolph (Custis) Lee, which refers to the Southampton

Insurrection, the Liberator, edited in Boston, her opinion of northern attitudes and

abolitionism, and colonization, which she perceives as the only "proper" solution.

The second letter (item a2) has no date. It is from Lilly, a freed slave who writes to Mary

Custis, her former mistress, of her affection for Custis, her concern about Custis’s illness,

and her appreciation of Custis’s care when Lilly was ill herself the previous winter.

Custis, Mary Lee (Fitzhugh) (1788–1853), papers, 18181902. 8 items. Mss2C9695b.

In addition to being connected with several prominent Virginia families (Fitzhughs, Lees,

Meades, Randolphs), Mary Custis was an ardent supporter of the colonization efforts in

Liberia. In this collection is a series of correspondence with Bishop William Meade, in

which he speaks of his support for colonization and intention to free his own slaves, in

stages, to send to Liberia. An 1836 letter states that the Virginia Senate will consider

providing $800 for the colonization society; Meade sees this as a "test vote" on whether

the society will be able to expect official support in the future. An 1830 letter of Ann

Randolph (Meade) Page includes a copy of Susan Meade’s will providing for the

emancipation of her three female slaves (a mother and two daughters) and the purchase of

Andy, the husband and father of the family. Susan Meade also expected them to pursue

education and hoped they would join the Liberian colony.

In the undated seventh letter, Ann Randolph (Meade) Page writes to Mary Custis of her

desire to see West Africa christianized by the Liberian colony. She hopes the colonization

prospects will encourage African Americans. She describes American emancipation as

being in a "sorry state," hopes quality freedmen will be the foundation of Liberia, and

speaks highly of Lucy’s family as likely prospective colonists.

Custis family papers, 1683–1858. 909 items. Mss1C9698a. Microfilm reels C12,

C156–157, and C223–224.

This collection contains papers of several members of the prominent Virginia families of

Custis, Lee, Parke, and Washington. The family owned a number of plantations in

Arlington, Fairfax, King William, New Kent, Northampton, and York counties.

Most of the African American information in this collection is found in lists and

inventories. Generally, these contain names and ages and are grouped by plantation.

Occasionally they also indicate a particular trade or skill. A list for plantations in King

William and York counties (undated, section 14) indicates children’s heights. Other

inventories are in section 19 (Samuel Trower’s plantation in New Kent County, 1771),

section 21 (items a394 and a399 are inventories of plantations in Fairfax, King William,

New Kent, Northampton, and York counties, 1771), and section 31 (George Washington

Parke Custis’s plantations in New Kent and King William counties, 1820–1825). Lists of

tithables survive for New Kent County, 1736–1742, indicating that boys under age ten do

not work (section 39), and Middlesex County, 1770 (section 43). Section 6 contains a

deed of trust, 1747, involving Jack, a freedman.

Section 12 contains notes, 1750, of Daniel Parke Custis indicating which slave children

of his father’s estate were sold to whom and which were entailed. In section 20 is an

account, 1760–1770, of slaves and carpenters sold from the estate of Daniel Parke Custis.

An overseer’s agreement, 1796 (section 22), designates that James Anderson’s family

will have at their service a slave woman to wash and cook and a boy, age fifteen or less,

and a girl, age twelve or less, to tend the house and garden.

In correspondence from Joseph Valentine, George Washington’s overseer in York

County in the late 1760s, Valentine informs Washington of which slaves have become

"past labor" in the last year (item a282) and of his problems trying to clothe 140 slaves

(item a289). Items a291 and a294 are imperfect, concerning unnamed slaves.

In section 23 is a 1764 warrant for an unnamed runaway slave. Another runaway slave,

James, was returned by William Boyd (affidavit, 1822, section 32). In 1824, John Walden

responded to accusations of stabbing, drowning, and starving slaves (also section 32).

Cyrus (Ship), bill of lading, 1824. 1 p. Mss4C9935a1.

Bill of lading covers tobacco, books, and clothes shipped aboard the Cyrus to Lott Cary, a

freed African American living in Liberia.

Dabney, Mrs. Charity, papers, 1873–1898. 24 items. Mss2D1123b.

Most of these papers are tax receipts of Charity Dabney, an African American property

owner of Jackson Ward in Richmond.

Dabney, Charles (1744–1829), commonplace book, 1811–1825. 150 pp.

Mss5:5D1124.1. Photocopy.

The contents of this volume are nearly illegible because of the fragile condition of the

original. Scattered entries refer to spinning cloth; the amount of cloth needed to make

jackets, pantaloons, petticoats, shifts, dresses, and shirts; charges for having clothing

made in bulk; and clothing distributions. Some lists of slaves also appear.

Dabney family papers, 1742–1928. 4,012 items. Mss1D1124b. Microfilm reels C328–

332.

The items of African American focus in this collection relate to Charles William Dabney,

a lawyer and planter of Aldingham plantation in Hanover County. Most of the items

concern estates administered or settled by Dabney.

Jesse Mallory executed an 1822 deed to Charles Dabney for Candis, a slave girl (section

16). A deed of trust, 1833, of Henry King and Abner Robinson to Charles Dabney

involves land in Richmond and the slave George. An 1855 deed records the sale of Edith

and her two children, John and Charlotte, from W. C. Shelton to George Doswell for

$700 (section 64). An 1867 agreement with John Tyler, a freedman, his wife Winney and

her son Moses concerns work and provisions for the family (section 65). In the same

section, an 1850 agreement between Dabney, Shelton, and Puryear provides values for

six slaves, while a detailed 1866 agreement covers the hiring of John Wyatt, a freedman,

to farm at Aldingham in Hanover County. A number of activities are concerned, such as

fencing and care of the ice house, tools, fuel, livestock, and buildings. In section 67 is an

estate inventory of Samuel R. Jones, naming sixteen slaves and their values and

indicating two family groups. In section 68 are several notes for hire of slaves by J.

Thacker. In particular, an 1828 bond to Barbara Pettus promises payment for the hire of

Sary, in addition to midwife’s fees for her. An 1859 broadside announcing the sale of

property belonging to the estate of Mrs. Nancy Rountree mentions land, livestock, and "2

men slaves," one being Edmond, a miller, and the other Shadrack, a blacksmith.

Daily Danville News, Danville, "Public (Colored) Schools: A Visit to the Colored

School Monday—How it is Progressing," 1877. 1 p. Mss9:3LC2771D237:1.

Photocopy.

Article appeared in the 20 November 1877 issue of the Daily Danville News concerning a

visit to the school conducted by Alfred H. Jones under the auspices of the Friends’

Freedmen’s Association of Philadelphia, Pa.

Dame family papers, 1836–1901. 436 items. Mss1D1825a. Microfilm reels C454–455.

Papers of George Washington Dame (1812–1895), an Episcopal minister affiliated with

Danville Female Academy, and his wife, Mary Maria (Page) Dame (1813–1895). Section

3 includes newsy letters written to Mrs. Dame from her children while at school. Notable

items are a letter, 28 August 1851, from Jonathan Cushing Dame describing the escape of

the fugitive slave James by ferry and another letter, 14 August, of William M. Dame,

reporting an incident involving a free African American who shot the owner of his wife

and child.

Damerel, John E. (1905–1995), compiler, "Pressures and Reactions: Documents

Relating to the Employment of Negroes by the City of Richmond, 1952–1966." 493

pp. Mss7:2R4155:40.

John Damerel served as director of personnel for the City of Richmond during the 1950s

and 1960s. Included in this compilation are memoranda, correspondence, city employee

registers, and newspaper clippings concerning the attempts of various parties to effect

change in policies regarding the hiring of African Americans by the City of Richmond. A

29 May 1952 listing showed 807 African Americans employed by the city, primarily as

cooks, assistant cooks, kitchen helpers, maids, and janitors. The compilation also contains

documents pertaining to the hiring of African Americans as fire fighters and police

patrolmen. There is significant correspondence on reaction to the city’s pledge to employ

fairly all qualified persons, which was enacted in June 1962. A complete listing of all

persons employed by the city in 1963 is also contained in the compilation.

Correspondents include Roy West (a future mayor of Richmond), Horace H. Edwards,

Richmond city manager, and numerous organizations, including the Richmond Urban

League, Virginia Union University, Ebenezer Baptist Church, and the Right Worthy

Grand Council of the Independent Order of St. Luke.

Dandridge, Julia Burbidge (1770?–1828), letter, 1796. 1 p. Mss2 D19978a1.

Letter, 8 April 1796, Richmond, to William Branch Giles, Philadelphia, concerning

Amos, Giles’s slave currently hired to Major Watts. Watts wants to buy Amos; Amos

does not want to be sold to Watts.

Daniel, Robert Williams (b. 1936), collector, papers, 1776–1882. 26 items.

Mss1D2266a.

Collector of early Virginia manuscripts. Included in section 8 is a receipt, 1827, issued to

Samuel Hawkins of Richmond by Mrs. Eliza Dandridge for purchase of the man

Emanuel, age fifty, and a girl Beck, age two.

Daniel, William V., papers, 1977–1984. 92 items. Mss1D2270a.

The papers of William V. Daniel of Richmond in part concern his involvement with the

Citizen’s Legislative Committee (CLC), 1982–1984 (4 folders). The Richmond City

Council created the CLC in September 1981 upon the recommendation of the Capital

City Government Commission to help advance the city’s agenda before the Virginia

General Assembly. The collection also reflects Daniels leadership with the Metropolitan

Richmond Chamber of Commerce’s "Dialogues on Racial Relations," 1977–1982 (3

folders). The Chamber of Commerce sponsored a series of dialogues in 1981 between

African American and white civic, religious, and business leaders. These dialogues were

prompted by the report of the Richmond Commission on Human Relations on "Racial

Polarization in the City of Richmond" in March 1981. A copy of this report is included.

The Chamber wanted to find a role for itself in "promoting better understanding among

Whites and Blacks as we live and work together under White economic power and Black

political control." These dialogues served as the first steps in this endeavor. Daniel served

as moderator for these sessions and summarized the proceedings in memos to the

executive committee of the Chamber of Commerce. These memos and supporting

materials comprise this portion of the collection. Other than discussing the troubled state

of race relations in general, participants specifically addressed the issues of education, the

local press, city council, and jobs. Also included is a report by J. John Palen and Richard

D. Morrison, both of Virginia Commonwealth University, on the representation of

African Americans and women in positions with policy-making potential. This report is

dated spring 1982, after Daniel and John Howlette made their final report to the executive

committee.

Daniels, Edward (1828–1916), diary, 1888. [408] pp. Mss5:1D2283:1.

Daniels, a native of New York, former Wisconsin state geologist, and veteran of the 1st

Wisconsin Cavalry Regiment, became a newspaper editor in Washington, D.C., after the

Civil War and purchased Gunston Hall, the plantation home of George Mason and his

descendants in Fairfax County. He restored the house, got the plantation operating again,

and owned the estate until about 1891. His diary, kept between 1 January and 6

December 1888, records his various activities, including his involvement with the

Republican Party and an address he made to African American delegates to a party

convention in June at which he urged support for racial intermarriage.

Darby, Thomas F., letters, 1861–1863. 17 items. Mss2D2425a.

A series of letters written by a Union soldier of the 29th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment

while serving in Kentucky, Mississippi, and Virginia. The letters contain many details of

army life and various battles and Darby’s impressions of the South, including samples of

seed and flora for those at home with a horticultural interest. In his descriptions of the

South are several references to slaves, mostly playing with the children, to his desire to

send one back to tend the garden (July 1861 letter to his niece, January 1862 letter to

Ellen), and to a comparison of slave cabins (July 1861 letter to his niece).

Dashiell, Mrs. Segar, "Isham Jordan." 13 pp. Mss7:1J7635:1.

Concerns the life of Isham Jordan (1769–1837) of Isle of Wight County. Included is a

copy of Jordans will, dated 19 July 1834, which lists slaves left to his wife.

Davidson, Charles E. (d. 1870), papers, 1850–1870. 21 items. Mss2D2815b.

Papers of a Confederate Army surgeon. Section 3 contains a commission, 2 November

1865, of Davidson as an agent of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned

Lands in Buckingham County.

Davis, Daniel Webster (1862–1913), papers, 1900–1959. 52 items. Mss1D2915a.

These papers contain notes for speeches and lectures of this prominent African American

educator from Richmond. Geographically his appearances ranged from Toronto, Canada,

to Georgia and Kentucky. As a minister and educator, most of his lectures focused on

family, religion, and education as the answer to the problem of racial inequities. Davis’s

lectures were humorous and anecdotal; he frequently drew on customs and practices of

the daily life of slaves.

In a series of lectures given at the Hampton Normal Institute (now Hampton University)

in 1902 (section 2), he laid a foundation for a plan to improve the life of African

Americans through the home, church, and school. He stressed the need to be proud of

African American culture and the unnecessary practice of imitating white culture. He

reminded his audience of African American history and accomplishments.

In addition to lectures, Davis also wrote poetry (section 4). Drafts of published and

unpublished poems are also included in this collection. Among them are "The Negro

Meets to Pray" and "The Black Woman’s Burden." The typescript of "Daniel Webster

Davis," a biographical sketch of his life (section 8), is also available in published form in

The Negro History Bulletin 18 (1954): 5557. In 1959 Richmond dedicated a new school

to the memory of Daniel Webster Davis. Several of the programs and letters in sections 7

and 9 pertain to this event.

Davis, Daniel Webster, papers, 1970–1973. 32 items. Mss2D29145b.

This collection consists chiefly of correspondence between Joan R. Sherman and Lottie

(Davis) Harrison generated while Sherman conducted research for her doctoral

dissertation on Lottie’s father, African American minister, educator, and poet D. Webster

Davis. Also, includes several of Davis’s unpublished poems and copies of some of his

best-known lectures.

Davis, Sallie Ann Lucy Smith (1827–1900), account book, 1852–1858. [188] pp.

Mss5:3D2975:1.

A ledger kept at Vernon Mills in Fauquier County prior to and just after her marriage by

Sallie (Smith) Davis, this volume contains, among other records, accounts concerning the

services of blacksmiths and teamsters and the sale and hiring out of African American

slaves. Also, includes notes that may indicate the gift of slaves by Davis to her daughters

in 1850.

Dawson, John (1762–1814), letters, 1788–1794. 3 items. Mss2D3253b.

Letter, n.d., of John Dawson to Larkin Stanard of Fredericksburg requests Stanard to send

two slaves, Sal and Sam, to Augusta County with Abraham Lymon, who is taking other

slaves to Augusta to be sold.

Deans family papers, 1794–1863 and 1955. 30 items. Mss1D3464a.

Concerns the Deans family of Gloucester County. Section 1 contains an essay entitled "A

Disregarded Contribution to American Civilization Taken from Plantation Notes of the

Deans Family of Gloucester County, Va.," by Anna Maria Dandridge Yeatman. This

essay concerns, in part, slave life and relations between African Americans and whites on

the Deans’ family plantation.

Deneale, George (1776–1818), papers, 1792–1842. 319 items. Mss1D4116a.

Papers of an Alexandria lawyer and clerk of the Fairfax County court. Include

correspondence, 1805, of Deneale, Richard Bland Lee, Nathaniel Pendleton, and Thomas

Pollard concerning the sale of slaves at Langley, Fairfax County, belonging to Daniel

McCarty Fitzhugh and Henry Lee (1756–1818); bonds issued to Thomas Pollard to cover

losses in the sale of the slaves; and an agreement concerning the sale of fifteen slaves in

the state of New York and the settlement of a debt between Henry Lee and Philip

Fitzhugh (section 40).

Deupree, William (1759–1854), papers, 1818–1857. 90 items. Mss1D4885a.

Primarily correspondence of this merchant and tavern owner in Charlotte County with

family members who moved south and west from Virginia. Many of their letters back

contain news of slave families taken with them when they migrated (section 1). Among

the letters is one from W. Crutcher concerning an 1835 slave insurrection scare in

Mississippi, resulting in the hanging of five white men and a number of African

Americans.

Dews, Julius C., letter, 1855. 1 p. Mss2D5191a1. Photocopy.

Letter, 16 August 1855, Wheeling (now W.Va.), to Arthur Emmerson, concerning the

status of an unnamed slave woman entrusted to Mr. Cooper for sale.

Dickerson, Nathan D., diary, 1846–1899. 1 vol. Mss5:1D5585:1. Photocopy of a

typescript.

Nathan D. Dickerson kept this diary while he worked an overseer at various plantations

in Charlotte, Halifax, and Mecklenburg counties. Early entries are chiefly lists of hogs

killed, tobacco cut, and wheat and fodder sold. There is an occasional mention of the

births of children to female slaves. Also, includes yearly tallies of the number of cattle,

hogs, horses, and sheep on the plantations. Typical entries are monthly summaries of

weather events and agricultural tasks (fields cleared, planted, weeded, and harvested).

December entries often indicate Dickerson’s move from one plantation to another as his

employer changed. Persons for whom Dickerson worked include E. J. Dickerson (of

Charlotte County), [J. W.] Elliott (of Charlotte County), Thomas E. Palmer (of Charlotte

County), John B. McPhail (of Halifax County), William A. Smith (of Charlotte County),

and Dr. George C. Venable (of Mecklenburg County).

Dickinson, Asa Dupuy (1816–1882), letter, 1859. 4 pp. Mss2D5606a1.

Letter, 21 October 1859, Prince Edward Court House, to William Purnell Dickinson

about selling the slave Jim, whose behavior with regard to suspected thievery has become

an embarrassment to Asa Dickinson.

Dickinson family papers, 1805–1988. 339 items. Mss1D5607a.

A Plantation & Farm Instruction, Regulation, Record, Inventory and Account Book

(Richmond, 1852) kept by John Fayette Dickinson (section 2) for Berry Hill in King

George County, 1855–1890, lists slaves’ names, ages, occupations, and values, and notes

births, deaths, and sales (pages 8283). Also includes lists of clothing and bedding

distribution (pages 9091).

Dickinson, Hill & Co., Richmond, receipts, 1856. [2] pp. Mss4D5605a1.

Receipts, dated 4 January 1856, issued to Dickinson, Hill & Co. for monies received from

the sale of slaves. The receipts bear the signatures of John M. Albright (for the sale of

slaves Agnes and Edmund), F. S. Ayres (for the sale of the slave Aaron), Lewis Dabney

Crenshaw (for the sale of the slave Washington), H. I. McLewin (for the sale of the

slaves Peter, Ailsey, and Alleck), and William M. Sutton.

Dobyns, Thomas (d. 1845), register, [1795–1864]. [3] pp. Mss2D6565a1. Photocopy.

This item records the births and some deaths of male and female slaves at Indian Fields in

Richmond County, as well as providing references to slaves who were sold and to those

who escaped to the Union Army during the Civil War. Some of the slaves listed were

owned by Dobyns’s son-in-law Reuben Lindsay Pitts after the older man’s death.

Original in private hands as of March 2006.

Doherty, James Louis (b. 1932), papers, 1969–1972. 155 items. Mss1D6805a.

This entire collection contains materials pertaining to the desegregation of schools in

Richmond and the publication of Doherty’s book Race and Education in Richmond

(1972). Materials include correspondence of Doherty as chairman of West End

Concerned Parents and Friends with local educators, community leaders and fellow

citizens (section 1), a manuscript of the Doherty book, essays and reports concerning

desegregation in Richmond schools (series 2), and some general letters about

desegregation written by or to people such as Thomas J. Bliley, Harry F. Byrd, Jr.,

Clement F. Haynesworth, and Richard D. Obenshain (section 3).

Donaldson, John N., letter, 1863. 1 p. Mss2D7145a1.

This letter, written on 6 January 1863 from Fort Keyes on Gloucester Point to "brother

Andrew," concerns Donaldson’s service with the 169th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment

of the U.S. Army of Virginia and describes contraband African American slaves coming

across Union lines.

Doswell family papers, 1815–1998. 345 items. Mss1D7424b.

Primarily concerns the family of Thomas Doswell (1792–1870) and his son Thomas

Walker Doswell (1823–1890) of Bullfield plantation in Hanover County, renowned for

its horse-breeding and horseracing history. A number of the Bullfield jockeys, referenced

throughout the collection, were African American. Materials concerning the plantations

at Bullfield and at New Market, also in Hanover County, include photographs of Emily

Goodwin, an African American woman who was a cook for the family (section 16). The

brief diary of Frances Anne (Sutton) Doswell (1837–1903), wife of Thomas W. Doswell,

was kept during April 1865 and concerns the evacuation of Richmond and the ensuing

fire, as well as the first arrival of African American troops in the city. She also comments

on the behavior of newly freed slaves and the Union Army’s efforts to restore order, in

part by impressing freedmen to help with the clean up of the city (section 9).

Douthat, Robert William (1840–1925), papers, 1861–1995. 113 items. Mss1D7493a.

Materials compiled by Robert William Douthat, Confederate veteran of Morgantown,

W.Va. Collection largely concerns the battle of Gettysburg, Pa., and the charge of troops

under command of General George E. Pickett. Section 4 contains notes of Mary Jane

(Wells) Douthat concerning a slave.

Douthat, William H. (1801–1858), account book, 1827–1835. [2], 71 pp.

Mss5:3D7495:1.

Covers operations of a general store at Natural Bridge, Rockbridge County. Includes

remarks of an unidentified author concerning African Americans (p. 63).

Douthat family papers, 1795–1922. 1,432 items. Mss1D7495a. Microfilm reels C240–

242.

Family members lived at Shirley and Weyanoke plantations in Charles City County.

Section 4 includes an 1801 receipt of William S. Peachy to Fielding Lewis for purchase

of Milly and her son Richard; an 1826 certificate stating the wishes of Rebecca Jones for

John Lewis to have the slave Monmouth and for Aleck to be freed to be with his family

and be supported; and an 1833 list of thirty slaves at Belle Farm.

Dove, John (1792–1876), memorandum, 1856. 2 pp. Mss7:1W9974:3.

Memorandum concerning the deaths of George Wythe, an African American woman,

Lydia Broadnax, and her son, Michael Brown.

Downing family papers, 1819–1940. 41 items. Mss1D7595a.

Papers of the Downing family of Lancaster Court House. Section 1 includes a report,

dated 18 December 1830, of Robert Alexander, J. Basye, and Thomas S. Sydnor

concerning the division of slaves among Betsy Downing, Hannah Downing, and William

Hendley. The two slaves in question were to be purchased from Hannah Downing by

Betsy Downing and her husband, William Hendley.

Downman, Rawleigh William (1762–1838), account book, 1814–1836. 180 leaves.

Mss5:3D7596:1.

Kept by Downman as a planter and merchant at Belle Isle in Lancaster County, the ledger

records, in part, services provided by blacksmiths, spinners and weavers, and midwives.

It also includes references to the hiring out and sale of African American slaves.

Downman family papers, 1699–1909. 102 items. Mss1D7598a.

A series of letters written to Harriet Jane (Downman) Downman of Fauquier County

includes a December 1863 letter from her daughter, Lavinia Yates (Downman) Hamilton

of Culpeper County, asking Harriet to send for Stanley and to provide him with clothes

and to hire out Mason as she cannot see to this herself because her residence is currently

under Union control.

Dundore, John (d. 1863?), papers, 1791–1861. 10 items. Mss2D9163c.

Resident of Rockingham County. Include a certificate of emancipation, 1827, for Peggy

Jones, age thirty-four, with physical description, freed by will of Elizabeth Baker. Papers

also include a deed of trust, 1827, of Armistead M. Mosby to Jacob Swoop, for land in

Staunton and seven slaves, most listed by name, including two brothers.

Dupuy, Emily (Howe) (1812–1883), papers, 1834–1883. 115 items. Mss1D9295b.

Emily Dupuy of Linden, Prince Edward County, wrote several letters to her kinswomen

Sarah Howe and Anna (Howe) Whitteker (section 1). In particular, on 4 January 1835,

Anna wrote to Emily of cholera striking Stony Point, resulting in four fatal cases among

the local African American population. In May of the same year she described the

emigration of a number of Virginia landowners to plantations farther south and the

process of moving their slaves with them, often involving large numbers of people. In the

same letter she detailed the development of her friendship with a slave woman and the

woman’s change of roles from house servant to field hand to spinning, until her death

while still young. In August Emily wrote to Sarah about southerners’ distrust of strangers

from the North and concerns about abolitionists. In February 1861 Emily wrote about

secession from the perspective of a transplanted New Englander.

Dupuy, Emily (Howe) (1812–1883), letter, 1864. 2 pp. Mss2D9296a1.

In this letter of 19 May, Emily describes an incident of meat stolen from the smokehouse;

two slaves were caught. One of Emily’s slaves was whipped by the owner of another

slave, who maintained that Emily’s slave was involved. Emily is nonetheless convinced

of her slave’s innocence.

Dupuy family papers, 1781–1896. 38 items. Mss1D9295c.

The collection includes commonplace books kept by Joseph Dupuy (1797–1867) at

Falkland, Prince Edward County (sections 3–5). The volume for 1851–1869 (section 3)

contains entries in 1856 and 1857 covering the hire of Mary Eliza. Another volume

(section 4), 1810–1865, serves as a slave register, recording births, deaths, and purchases

for about sixty-five slaves at Falkland. The 1845–1858 book (section 5) contains notes on

the back pages concerning allowances for meal and meat for the slaves, according to sex

and age. Twenty slaves are listed.

Dupuy family papers, 1803–1890. 906 items. Mss1D9295a.

Include material pertaining to the Prince Edward County estates of Thomas Walton (d.

1817), John Purnall (d. 1825), John Watson (d. 1856), William Purnell (d. 1808), and

Jonathan Penick (d. 1845?). A sampling of sections 1–7 indicates that the collection

includes a number of accounts for slave hirings and inventories of estate slaves with

values (sections 3, 5, and 7). Correspondence, 1827–1830, of Asa Dupuy with John Jones

Alston concerns transportation costs and hirings. Section 7 contains account information

pertaining to Thomas Walton’s estate. The 1817 tax form lists "Blacks" instead of slaves

(see folder 2), and an 1820 certificate of Nathaniel Jackson describes the low bidding for

hiring the estate slaves (see folder 6). Costs of transporting slaves from Kentucky are also

included. Section 21 contains slave lists for Linden in Prince Edward County. A slave

preceding description offers but a sampling of pertinent items in this collection.

Durgin family papers, 1849–1950. 40 items. Mss1D9345a.

Most of the papers in this collection are those of John Milton Durgin (1813–1887), a

Baptist minister from New England and chaplain in the Union army. Among his letters,

1861–1862, is an envelope used to write home on which a cartoon portrays slaves fleeing

as contraband to Fort Monroe.

Early family papers, 1764–1956. 437 items. Mss1Ea765b. Microfilm reels C16 and

C456–458.

The papers of this prominent Lynchburg family are primarily centered on Confederate

general Jubal Anderson Early. Several of the items of African American content are

accounts of Samuel H. Early. In section 9 are two 1863 bills of sale, one for William (on

a Richmond printed form) and one for Marshall; 1856 and 1857 state capitation tax

forms; and an account with Diuguids of Lynchburg for coffins, burials, and services for

slaves, 1860–1862. In section 14 is a Diuguids account (1875) for the burial of Caesar.

An 1832 letter from William Daniel to Henry Childs Ward (section 43) concerns politics.

Daniel, while serving in the legislature, describes a session in which a bill for the

abolition of slavery is debated, his opinion that removing free African Americans is too

time consuming, and his worries that Virginia’s population is divided over slavery.

Correspondence of Ruth Hairston Early appears in section 21; it contains an 1896 letter

from Ellen Shearer Helm, daughter of Jane Shearer, the care giver for the children in

Samuel Early’s family. Ellen expresses thanks for kindnesses shown her recently

deceased mother.

Early family papers, 1798–1903. 239 items. Mss1Ea765a.

This collection consists primarily of the papers of Mary Virginia (Early) Brown (1823–

1864), a Methodist minister’s daughter from Lynchburg, but also includes

correspondence, 1817–1856, of her mother, Elizabeth Brown (Rives) Early (1805–1857),

wife of Methodist Bishop John Early. A letter of Elizabeth Early to her sister Martha

Binns Susanna (Rives) Childs dated 19 April 1849 discusses the merits of slave

ownership and plans for the purchase of a slave with funds from their father’s estate

settlement (section 6).

Edmonds, Amanda Virginia (1839–1921), papers, 1857–1960. 28 items.

Mss1C3684a.

Collection consists primarily of three diaries, 1857–1867, kept by Amanda Virginia

"Tee" Edmonds as a young, single woman living with her family at Belle Grove in

Fauquier County. The diary in section 2 of the collection was kept from 8 June 1857 to

12 September 1862, and contains information on the sale of Edmonds family slaves and

reaction to John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry (now W. Va.) in 1859.

Edmonds, Sheppard Randolph (b. 1900), notes, 1975. 9 pp. Mss7:1Ed586:1.

Typescript. Mimeographed.

Notes compiled in 1975 concerning the career of this notable African American dramatist

and educator. Included are lists of his published and unpublished works, his affiliations

with various colleges and professional associations, and other autobiographical notes.

Edmunds family papers, 1826–1950. 99 items. Mss1Ed596a.

Primarily the correspondence and financial and legal records of family members at

Homewood, Charlotte County. Section 8 contains a commonplace book, ca. 1825, kept

by Nicholas Edmunds (1776–1863) that includes a substantial number of birth and death

records of slaves. The slave births recorded in the book date back to 1768, and later

additions record births to 1865.

Edmundson family papers, 1781–1949. 1,402 items. Mss1Ed598a. Microfilm reels

B15 and C546–549.

Much of this collection concerns Henry Edmundson (1774–1847) and the family estate of

Fotheringay in Montgomery County.

Edmundson’s agreement, 1841, with James Mackey of Rockbridge County concerns the

hire of Mackey’s slave, Bob, at $7 per month and designates necessary clothes to be

charged cheaply to Mackey (section 9). A hiring agreement, 1821, of Benjamin T.

Hollins for Maria Antoinette (Radford) Edmundson’s slave, Peggy, also stipulates

necessary clothes (section 22). Section 10 contains a number of bills of sale for slaves; in

1828 Edmundson bought Lewis, Suckey, and an infant with a value placed on the infant;

in 1813 he bought a slave boy Cain; and in 1839 he sold fourteen-year-old William to

Alfred Dillars. In section 19 is an 1819 receipt for Henry Carter Drew’s sale of a girl,

Sally, to John Preston. (In Mss1Ed598b, a related collection, is Henry Edmundson’s 1814

receipt for Harry, bought from William Rogers for $300, in section 2). Section 5 includes

accounts, some of which contain charges for medical services for slaves.

Also in section 19 are notes pertaining to the estate of John Preston (1764–1827), which

Edmundson administered, including lists, one grouping slaves by their family units (an

1820 deed of trust to McDowell; see items a792–796). In section 67, see an 1824 deed of

trust of James and Mitchel Clay to David Hall for the slave Phoebe.

Edmundson family papers, 1812–1953. 148 items. Mss1Ed598b.

This collection primarily consists of the extensive correspondence, 1812–1847, of

planter, lawyer, and legislator Henry Edmundson (1774–1847) of Fotheringay,

Montgomery County. Some correspondence is with Yeatman, Woods & Co. of Nashville,

Tenn., concerning slaves sent by Edmundson for sale there (section 1). Accounts include

a receipt from 1814 of William A. Rogers for the purchase of a slave named Harry

(section 2). Correspondence, 1853–1891, of a grandson, David Edmundson, also of

Fotheringay, includes communication with William Preston Peyton concerning, in part,

plans to sell the slave Bill in Richmond, where they believe they will get a better price

than in western Virginia (section 5).

Edrington family papers, 1766–1967. 503 items. Mss1Ed745a. Microfilm reels

C274–275 and C559–560.

Primarily consists of the personal and business papers of members of this family living at

Myrtle Grove, Stafford County. Several items concern the firm of Edrington & Moncure,

which operated quarries in Stafford County in the 1830s. The firm employed African

American workers, some apparently free and some enslaved. In section 21, an 1897 letter

of Episcopal bishop Francis M. Whittle concerns Angelina Selden Edrington as a teacher

of Sunday school classes for African Americans. Section 38 contains an affidavit, 1854,

of William Carter concerning Sylus Grason, an African American born free in Stafford

County who wished to travel through the Commonwealth of Virginia. The affidavit

provides a physical description and specific destinations.

Edwards, Weldon Nathaniel, letters, 1856–1860. 4 items. Mss2Ed986b.

Weldon Edwards of Poplar Mount, Warren County, N.C., wrote in response to queries

from G. A. Barksdale, of Richmond, Va. In April 1858, Edwards provided a detailed

report of the congressional vote concerning the Missouri Compromise and his view that

John Randolph of Roanoke was cut off by the clerk when requesting a reconsideration. In

December 1860, Edwards responded to queries concerning the fate of the Union.

Edwards expected South Carolina to secede within the week and the states farther south

to secede shortly thereafter. His concern is that North Carolina and Virginia will have no

choice but to leave the Union. His economic predictions are bleak, but he suggests hope

of avoiding war if New England and its abolitionists break away and join Canada. He

states that it would be detrimental to Virginia and North Carolina to try to mediate

between the sections.

Eggleston, Joseph Dupuy (1867–1953), letter, 1942. 3 pp. Mss2Eg375a3. Typescript.

Letter, 14 February 1942, to Robert Elton Berry of New York concerning Berry’s book

Yankee Stargazer: The Life of Nathaniel Bowditch, commenting on the difference

between views of slavery in New England and in the South, especially in the Federal and

early national period.

Eggleston, Joseph William (1844–1927), autobiography, 1844–1923. 80 pp.

Mss5:1Eg375:1.

Concerns, primarily, Eggleston’s Confederate military service in the 44th Virginia

Infantry Regiment and Lamkin’s Battery, Nelson Light Artillery. Pages 13, 44–45

concern African American soldiers.

Eggleston family papers, 1788–1975. 37,000 items. Mss1Eg396b.

The papers of this prominent Prince Edward County family include correspondence and

notes of individuals with significant connections to education and the Presbyterian

church. Joseph Dupuy Eggleston (1867–1953) served as president of Virginia

Polytechnic Institute, Hampden-Sydney College, and the Virginia Historical Society and

was a local historian. Among his files (section 30, box 55) is a folder labled "Slavery,"

containing notes collected to refute the idea that slavery was a malignant institution in

Virginia. There are notes of individuals whose personal convictions led them to free their

slaves, some in great masses, and to buy land for them in free states. Other notes concern

the Presbyterian church’s views on slavery and the encouragement to slaveholders to free

their slaves for colonization in Liberia. He also collected anecdotes of free states denying

opportunity to freed slaves. Much of the material is typewritten, some duplicated;

citations are given in most cases. In box 54, a folder labled "Negroes" and one labled

"Presbyterian Churches" contain typewritten notes pertaining to Presbyterian support for

colonization, formation of a colonization auxiliary society at Hampden-Sydney College,

and several Presbyterian churches that owned slaves and the conditions for hiring them

out in the community. These folders also contain newspaper clippings.

Section 1 consists of a series of estate papers. The folder concerning Thomas Walton’s

estate includes hiring out lists for 1824–1829, indicating several family units, and hat and

blanket provisions. The folder for Asa Dupuy’s estate, 1858, lists about seventy slaves (of

which twenty-seven are dower slaves), including two bricklayers, two carpenters, three

blacksmiths, one cripple, and one diseased. Ages and values are provided.

Elcan Family Papers, 1792–1921. 1,128 items. Mss1EL183a.

Concerns the Elcan family of Buckingham County. Section 2 contains scattered financial

accounts kept by Lionel Elcan (1750–1833) concerning medical care and the taxation of

slaves, along with an inventory of 31 slaves belonging to Elcan’s estate. Section 7

contains the correspondence of Doctor Patrick Henry Elcan (1811–1841) of Buckingham

County, including a note from John T. Bocock concerning slaves in Elcan’s possession to

be taxed. Section 8 also contains materials of Patrick Henry Elcan, including tax receipts

regarding slaves, 1834, and a receipt for the purchase of Adam; a bond concerning the

hiring of five slaves, 1836; an order of the Buckingham County Court concerning the sale

of slaves with a list of the slaves and prices; and a deed of sale for Adam by William W.

Meredith to Joseph Williams. Section 10 contains materials of Ann Elizabeth (Baldwin)

Elcan of Buckingham County. Items in this series include financial accounts concerning

the care and taxation of slaves for the following years: 1838, 1842, 1844, 1847, 1850–

1854, 1856–1857, 1860; an 1838 list of 8 slaves given to Elcan by her father, with ages

and values; an 1844 account for making a coat for Jerry; and an 1852 account of wages

paid to Charles. Also included are an 1849 bond covering the hiring out of 3 slaves; and

an 1843 affidavit of Samuel Baldwin, Elcans father, concerning Jerry and Isaac. Section

12 consists of materials of Marcus Cleveland Elcan, including receipts for impressment

of Ben and Peter by the Confederate States War Department in 1864. Section 16 contains

two accounts of Doctor Thomas C. Armstrong (for medical care of slaves) and Albert

Baldwin (concerning the sale of slaves in 1842 for Samuel Baldwin). An undated list of

slaves with values, and a deed, 1842, of Albert Baldwin to Samuel Baldwin for Isaac are

located in section 17.

Ellegood, Jacob, will, 1801. [6] pp. Mss2EL544a1. Photocopy.

Will, probated in New Brunswick, Canada, on 7 September 1801. It concerns, in part, the

bequest of land, slaves, and other personal property in Virginia.

Ellett-St. Catherine’s alumnae association, papers, 1850–1970. ca. 5,000 items.

Mss3El546a.

Section 12 contains correspondence, including a letter, 30 April 1957, of Josephine

Charlee Knight to Natalie Friend (McFadden) Blanton in which Knight describes a freed

slave, Sara Jackson, who remained with her mistress near Franklin after the Civil War

and who also wrote poetry.

Epes family papers, 1802–1984. 343 items. Mss1Ep275a.

Personal and family papers of members of the Epes family of Nottoway County, the

Robinson family of Amelia County, and the Worsham family of Dinwiddie County, in

part concerning agricultural operations and the payment of taxes. Among the accounts of

the estate of Henry Robinson is an 1837 receipt issued by Thomas P. Bland for fees

involved in the recapture of a runaway slave, Tom, and an 1844 receipt recording the

payment of taxes on nineteen slaves (section 5).

Episcopal Church. Diocese of Virginia, papers, 1709–1972. ca. 8,000 items.

Mss3P9465a.

The collection includes correspondence, notes, and essays, 1900–1971, written or

compiled by Dr. George MacLaren Brydon and George Julius Cleaveland (section 5).

Among the topics covered are the American (and Virginia) Colonization Society, benefit

of clergy, the Freedman’s Commission of the Protestant Episcopal Church (including

lengthy extracts from reports of the Commission on Home Missions to Colored People

and other sources, 1873–1877, concerning educational activities among Virginia’s

African American population), and Liberia (primarily consisting of typescript copies of

letters, 1834–1861, of former slaves in Liberia to John Hartwell Cocke of Bremo,

Fluvanna County).

Epperson, John, account book, 1801–1802. 424–515, [16] pp. Mss5:3Ep733:1.

Kept as a merchants daybook in Buckingham County, probably at Planterstown,

presumably by Epperson as a member of the firm of Epperson & Scott. Includes accounts

concerning the sale and hiring out of slaves (pp. 501 and 513).

Eppes family papers, 1722–1948. 540 items. Mss1Ep734d. Microfilm reels C244–

251.

The Eppes family owned several large plantations south of Richmond. Among them were

Appomattox Manor at City Point (now Hopewell), Bermuda Hundred in Chesterfield

County, and Eppes Island in Charles City County.

Dr. Richard Eppes (1824–1896) kept detailed diaries and closely monitored the routines

of his plantations. The result is a series of diaries (items d289–308) that record a wealth

of information on daily plantation life from 1851 to 1896, including minutely detailed

accounts of monthly pay for farm laborers after the Civil War. Eppes recorded the

condition of the slave quarters (item d289, 1 October 1851; item d291, page 63),

commentary on punishments (item d291, 2 January 1853), and a number of inventories.

Many of the slaves had surnames (many of the birth lists record names of both parents),

received cash gifts at Christmas, and were lectured on New Year’s Day on the rules and

regulations of the plantation (texts are in section 69; a summary of the previous year’s

discipline problems, general conduct expectations, possible increase in rations, and

announcement of holidays). Eppes carefully recorded weekly rations of meat, molasses,

meal, and herring (figured at the beginning of each year), and these lists also designate

occupation, because some specialized workers received additional rations. Skilled slaves

had tools distributed to them each year, and these are also recorded. Item d296 (pages

318–323) lists those slaves who left the plantation between May and August of 1862 to

join the Union forces. (Benjamin Cocke recorded information on his slaves’ shoe sizes,

item d129, an 1834 list.)

Additional lists are in Eppes’s student notebook (section 67), an inventory of slaves at

Bermuda Hundred and Eppes Island (names and birth year), and the last pages of an

account book (section 61, item d343), ca. 1851–1868, which also includes numerous

transactions of hiring, Christmas presents, cost of rations, and postbellum laborers’ pay.

In section 82 is a list, ca. 1819, of slaves belonging to Margaret B. Cocke, containing

names only of fifteen slaves, as well as an 1821 will of Patty Cocke leaving her clothes to

the person who tends her in her illness and everything else to her master. In section 91, a

letter of Mrs. Solomon Mopford, a slave in Aiken, S.C., tells her mother that James

Lewis, their son and brother, has been sold into Florida.

Eppes family papers, 1806–1932. 389 items. Mss1Ep734a. Microfilm reels C242–243.

Papers related to the family above. Section 10 contains a brief note to Dr. Richard Eppes

that ten slaves attempted escape by boat near Jamestown Island. A woman and child were

seized, but the rest eluded capture. The note is not dated. (Also, Mss12:1864 May 5:1

contains a document labeled "List of private property, slaves, . . . taken at City Point." In

spite of its description, the list contains no slaves, just clothes, furniture, medicine,

equipment stores, livestock, and feed.)

Evans, James H., papers, 1856–1865. 6 items. Mss2Ev156b.

Include an incomplete petition, 1865, filed in Prince Edward County for compensation

for the loss of the slave Elijah, a farm hand, impressed by the Confederate States Army,

who died of disease in 1862 while assigned to working on fortifications near Richmond.

Everett, Edward (1794–1865), letter, 1835. 1 p. Mss2Ev265a1.

While serving Massachusetts in Congress, Everett wrote from Washington, D.C., 27

February 1835, on slavery in the District of Columbia and the influence of Maryland and

Virginia on the district’s slavery issue. Everett expects public opinion is such that slavery

will soon be abolished in those areas.

"Ex-Lee Houseboy Honored Here," newspaper clipping, 1950. 1 p. Mss9:1L5152:1.

Article from the New York Times, 19 January 1950, briefly describing a United Daughters

of the Confederacy program commemorating Robert E. Lee’s birthday, in which a former

servant of the Lee household, Richard Lee (b. 1875), is introduced.

Fairfax, John Walter (1828–1908), papers, 1863–1937. 15 items. Mss1F1613a.

Microfilm reel C596.

Fairfax served as assistant adjutant and inspector general on the staff of Confederate

general James Longstreet. Collection includes a letter, 28 March 1865, from General

Robert E. Lee to Longstreet concerning the raising of local and special commands and

the recruitment of African American soldiers in the Confederacy (item 4).

Fairfax County, Court, papers, 1742–1793. 12 items. Mss4F1613d.

Include a summons, 1755, issued by Peter Wagener, clerk of court in Fairfax County,

summoning William Gladdin to court concerning a slave girl, Easter.

Fant, John M., account book, 1847–1848. [204] leaves. Mss5:3F2178:1.

This ledger records accounts of Fant, of Fauquier County, as a labor contractor with the

Rappahannock Company concerning the construction and operation of a portion of the

Rappahannock Canal. It includes accounts with laborers and service providers and

concerns, in part, the use of hired slave labor.

Farmer, Charles Willson, record book, 1762–1887. [24] pp. Mss5:5F2295:1.

Kept on the Farmer family plantation near Jetersville in Amelia County, this volume

contains birth and death records for 100 male and female slaves born between 1762 and

1864.

Farmers Bank of Virginia, records, 1812–1853. 19 items. Mss3F2298a.

The Farmers Bank of Virginia was headquartered in Richmond with branches in

Petersburg, Fredericksburg, Lynchburg, Norfolk, Winchester, Danville, Farmville,

Wytheville, and Charlottesville. Included in this collection is the minute book of the

bank’s board of directors, dated 16 September 1841 to 14 March 1853. The board spent a

fair amount of time overseeing the collection of debts in Mississippi and Louisiana. The

sales of land and slaves in those areas were the primary accounts supervised by the bank.

Faulkner family papers, 1737–1954. ca. 12,000 items. Mss1F2735aFA2.

Papers of merchants and lawyers of a Berkeley County (now W.Va.) family. Located in

box 44 is a folder labeled "Slaves" containing a record of hirings for an unspecified year,

several hiring out agreements, 1830s–1860, and bills of sale for slaves from Maryland,

1855–1858. The hiring agreements are specific about clothing provisions. Some have tax

clauses, and one allows for a deduction for a slave to visit his wife every other Saturday.

Some of the agreements are unexecuted. One bill of sale does not guarantee soundness of

mind or body.

Fauquier County, register of free blacks, 1817–1865. 340 pp. Mss4F2742a2.

Microfilm reel C431.

This register records names, identification features (such as scars), heights, ages,

complexions, and how freed (birth, manumission, by will of owner) for free African

Americans in Fauquier County from 1817 until the close of the Civil War.

Fendall, Philip Richard (1794–1868), papers, 1810–1863. 26 items. Mss2F3525b.

Chiefly correspondence of this Alexandria resident and secretary of the Virginia

Colonization Society. Include a deed, 1825, to Alfred Lee for the slave Henry Tate, with

a note on the back from Lee explaining his religious mission in returning his claim

against Tate to Fendall.

First African Baptist Church, Richmond, Va., minute book, 1841–1857. ca. 295 pp.

Mss5:8Bx6440:1. Photocopy.

The minutes of this church record financial summaries, baptisms, deaths, and status (free

or slave) of its members. The discussions of disciplinary measures detail various aspects

of members’ lives. The church was consulted about the propriety of allowing separated

members to remarry on a case-by-case basis. The church also attempted to buy one of its

leaders when his master’s guardian was faced with selling him (pages 47, 77: he ended up

in Massachusetts). The church also established its own relief fund, the Poor Saints Fund.

The photocopy is incomplete, with the most significant gap occurring from August 1852

to October 1856 (pages 208–283).

Fitts, James Henry (1836–1861), commonplace book, 1849–1862. [41] leaves.

Mss5:5F5684:1.

This volume records slave births, deaths, and sales compiled by this resident of Warren

County, N.C., and Mecklenburg County, Va. Also, includes a list of slaves owned by the

estate of James Henry Fitts.

Fitzgerald, Elie Maury (Werth) (1878–1955), correspondence, 1950. 4 items.

Mss2F5763b. Typescript copies.

Correspondence concerning Richard Lee (b. 1875), a servant in the Lee household. See

also entry for "Ex-Lee Houseboy Honored Here," (number 289).

Fitzgerald, John (1805–1878), papers, 1835–1878. 103 items. Mss1F5764b.

This collection consists primarily of the business and personal papers of John Fitzgerald

of Nottoway County. An affidavit, ca. 1858, concerns the health and pregnancy of a slave

woman named Malvina. Two lists compiled in 1859 concern slaves on several

plantations, while a list of 1868 indicates fees to be paid to African American harvest

workers (section 6).

Fitzgerald, John (1805–1878), papers, 1838–1873. 23 items. Mss1F5764c.

Photocopies.

Collection contains slave lists, 1852–1864, primarily giving only names, although several

indicate ages, and one identifies several family groups of mothers with children. An 1856

hiring bond specifies that David, a carpenter, not be worked in the fields and provides for

taxes, runaway fees, and sickness.

Fitzhugh, Henry, account book, 1749–1787. 209 pp. Mss5:3F5785:1. Photocopy.

In addition to scattered entries for the hiring out of slaves, manufacture and purchases of

shoes, stockings, and other clothing for slaves, and slave purchases, this volume also

includes an incomplete list of names with dates of birth and some family relationships for

his Fairfax County bondspeople.

Fleet, William (1759–1833), letter, 1798. 1 p. Mss2F6247a1.

Letter, 25 March 1798, written at Hill Park in Essex County, to James Webb, briefly

noting that something needs to be done about the slaves who are not involved in planting

crops.

Fleming, William (1736–1824), list, 1787. [2] pp. Mss2F6297a2. Photocopy.

List of taxable property owned by William Fleming in Chesterfield County prepared by

John Farmer, commissioner, 9 March 1787. Includes list of slaves.

Fletcher, John E. (1837?–1906), papers, 1857–1931. 314 items. Mss1F6353c.

This collection consists of the business records of a teacher, merchant, and lumberman of

Greene and Page counties. Sections 8 and 10 include bonds, 1859–1861, of Henry G.

Dulany and William L. Childs for the hiring of slave laborers. The text of each bond

provides details of service and care of the slaves.

Foesee, Mrs. Rebecca, list, 1818–1852. 1 p. Mss2F6862a1.

List, 1818–1852, no location given, of seven slaves, with months and years of birth.

Fontaine, William Spotswood (1810–1882), letter, 1861. 1 p. Mss2F7344a1.

Letter informing Hite Brown that Fontaine will send Nat and Billy to help dig

fortifications at Gloucester Point.

Fontaine family papers, 1760–1892. 929 items. Mss1F7345a.

A Buckingham County lawyer’s papers form the nucleus of this collection. Walter Lloyd

Fontaine (1787–1860) provided legal services for David Ross (1740?–1817), David Ross

(d. 1821), and the younger Ross’s wife, Julianne.

Correspondence, 1815–1819, with the Rosses concerns the status of Julianne’s slaves

from North Carolina who were captured and freed by the British (section 1). Additional

documentation on the subject appears in sections 14 and 19.

A number of deeds are also in the collection: Charles Scott’s 1842 request to exchange

Peyton and Peter for two different slaves (section 3); an 1808 deed to Fontaine for two

slave women and their children (section 25); and an 1842 deed to Fontaine for Louisa and

her two children (section 11). Abolitionism and the voting of the state legislature

concerning a compromise on slavery is the focus of an 1836 letter of Archibald Austin

(section 1).

Ford, Abner Dawson (b. 1830), papers, 1863–1864. 60 items. Mss1F7501a.

This collection consists of letters written by Abner Dawson Ford while serving as a

private in Joshua J. Shoemaker’s [formerly Marcellus N. Moorman’s] Virginia Horse

Artillery, Confederate States Army. Included in the collection is a letter dated 23 January

1863 to his wife, Mary Jane "Mollie" (White) Ford, concerning Ford’s desire to secure a

substitute for military service through the sale of land and slaves.

Fort family papers, 1806–1827. 23 items. Mss1F7755a.

This collection concerns the Fort Family of Halifax County, N.C. Section 1 contains a

receipt, 1818, issued to Ricks Fort (of Halifax County, N.C.) for the purchase of a slave

at the estate sale of Wilson W. Carter. Section 2 includes deeds concerning the purchase

or gift of slaves, 1806–1827, to Ricks Fort; and an account book, 1825–1827, of the

medical practice of Doctor Matt C. Whitaker (of Halifax County, N.C.), concerning, in

part, Ricks Fort and the care of slaves.

Foster, Adam, letters, 1847. 8 pp. Mss2F8111a. Typescript copies.

Letters, 9–20 January 1847, written by a northerner while visiting Mathews County,

describing details of daily life on local plantations, from living arrangements for the

household staff and servants, to clothing and rations, to the value of various types of

laborers.

Fredericksburg, death records, 1853–1896. 1,500 items. Mss3F8726c.

An index on printed cards completed by hand and compiled from the official register

maintained by city officials. Include detailed information on the deceased, including

cause of death, location, date, age, occupation, race, and family information. Officials

also noted if the deceased was a former slave.

Fredericksburg, School Board, records, 1901–1941. 1,500 items. Mss3F8726b.

These printed forms, completed by hand, provide detailed information on families of

school-age children including parents’ birthplace, occupation, address, and so forth.

Records also include information on race and note if a parent was formerly a slave.

Freedmen’s School, City Point, records, 1868. 2 vols. Mss4F8757b.

Records, 5 February to 29 May 1868, kept by Esther Smith, providing names, ages,

subjects and levels, and attendance of students. Also include a list of night school

students.

French, Sarah Scarborough Butler Henry (1808–1873), papers, 1847–1870. 13 items.

Mss2F88992b.

This is a collection of Sarah French of Fenton plantation, Warrenton, Va., and New York,

N.Y. Included is a list of slaves for hire at Brenton, Fauquier County.

French family papers, 1861–1985. 102 items. Mss1F8875a.

This collection concerns members of the French family of Halifax County, Va., and

Chattanooga, Tenn. Section 1 contains receipts issued to Marcellus French (1831–1919),

including an account with his free African American servant, Kit Bowman.

Friend family papers, 1792–1871. 18 items. Mss1F9156a. Microfilm reel C251.

Collection consists mostly of volumes containing the writings of Charles Friend, planter,

of White Hall plantation in Prince George County. His diary, 1841–1846 (section 1), is

filled with daily details of life and work on the plantation. Just in front of the 1841

entries, several "sick lists" provide names, dates, ailments, and lengths of confinement. In

his account book, 1839–1869 (section 4), pages 280–296 contain slave lists, including

name, age, and value, with notations of deaths, sales, and accounts for hired slaves. A

commonplace book, 1792–1860 (section 5), of Benjamin Carter Minge Friend contains

detailed notes pertaining to the disputation of the 1788 will of Richard Eppes. These

notes include lists of the slaves belonging to William Christian and John Gilliam.

Frying Pan Spring Baptist Church, Fauquier County, records, 1791–1908. 7 pp.

Mss4F9494a1.

Records of the Frying Pan Spring Baptist Church, Fairfax County, and Occoquan and

Quantico Baptist churches, Prince William County, edited in 1946 by Flossie C.

McNicol. The records include minutes of church meetings, lists of members (including

slaves), and birth, death, and baptismal data.

Fulks, Claiborne G., diary, 1849–1851. 138 pp. Mss5:1F9575:1.

Most of the entries concern carpentry work in Amherst, Nelson, and Bedford counties

and Lynchburg and daily weather conditions. On page 62 are notes concerning the sale of

two slaves.

Fulton, William Mayo (d. 1853), letterbook, 18381844. 686 pp. Mss5:2F959:1.

Consists of letters written during Fultons military service as captain of Company B in the

2nd Dragoons, later U.S. Riflemen. Most of the correspondence was written from various

forts in Florida during the Second Seminole War (18351842). While the majority of

letters focus on supply needs and personnel issues, some make reference to three African

American guides and interpreters: Sampson, Sandy, and Titus. Sampson and Sandy are

among those listed as missing and supposed killed after the Indian attack on the trading

post on the Caloosahatchee River on July 23, 1839 (pages 4952). There is some doubt in

Fultons letters as to whether Sandy was loyal or a traitor in collaboration with the Indians

(pages 7071). The letters describe looking for Indian tracks and confusing them with

Negro tracks (pages 4, 121, 124). The letters voice suspicion that African Americans

were trading with the Indians, and captured Indian women were to serve as witnesses

against Col. Hansons Negroes (pages 154–156, 161, 163, 165). Several letters testify to

the employment of Titus as a guide and interpreter for the army and the difficulty in

procuring payment for his services (pages 4344, 69, 179, 217218). Captain Fulton was a

resident of Richmond before and after his military service.

Fulton, William Mayo (d. 1853), papers, 1819–1865. 42 items. Mss2F9599b.

Within the papers of this Richmond lawyer are a number of deeds and deeds of trust. In

section 9, two deeds of trust, dated 1849 and 1850, relate to five slaves. Section 10

contains an 1823 deed for five slaves. In section 11 is an 1851 affidavit of Jones Allen of

Richmond in which he releases his claim to four slaves to Charles Zeuer.

Funsten, David (18191866), papers, 1851–1868. 51 items. Mss1F9665a.

Records of an Alexandria lawyer and soldier in the 11th Virginia Cavalry Regiment.

Include a letter, 15 August 1862, of his daughter, Mary Catherine Funsten, in part

concerning the hiring out of the slave Clara and the capture of a runaway slave (section

1).

Galt, James K. (1836–1913), diary, 1889–1892. 2 v. Mss5:1G1393:1-2.

Galt, an itinerant Baptist minister from Reba, Bedford County, kept his diary in two

volumes and recounted his travels through the Lynchburg region of Virginia. Along with

comments on his daily life, ministry, and Virginia social life in general, he mentions

preaching to African American congregations. He eventually had a falling out with the

Baptists and turned to the practice of law. In 1892 he mentions the trial of an African

American man named William Richeson for an unspecified crime.

Galt, William (1801–1851), diary, 1827–1838. [42] leaves. Mss5:1G1397:1.

Photocopy.

Covers Galts farming activities and business accounts at Point of Fork, Fluvanna County,

and includes John Hartwell Cockes directions for governing overseers and slaves.

Gamble, John Grattan (1779–1852), accounts, 1824–1833. 6 items. Mss2C1111b.

Concern the executorship of the estate of Abraham Joseph Cabell (of Jefferson County,

Fla.). Includes an affidavit, 1832, of Gamble concerning the sale of slaves belonging to

the estate.

Gannaway, Theodorick Carter (d. 1863), papers, 1831–1863. 6 items. Mss2G15558b.

Include Gannaway’s 1836 bond to Benjamin Talley of Tennessee for the slave Buck.

Garnett family papers, 1814–1940. 680 items. Mss1G1875c.

This collection features the correspondence, financial accounts, and legal papers of

members of the Garnett and related Garth families of Madison and Albemarle counties.

The correspondence, 1833–1851, of Willis Dabney Garth (1790–1851), planter and

lawyer of Charlottesville, includes letters from Edwin R. Clarke, a nephew in Mississippi

and Tennessee, in part concerning the hiring out of slaves while settling the estates of

family members; Winston Garth, a brother in Alabama, concerning the purchase of

slaves; and J. W. Morehead, a Greensboro, N.C., attorney, concerning the settlement of a

suit against Hezekiah Arnold for the value of slaves owned by his deceased wife,

Susannah Garth (Dalton) Arnold (section 2). Garth’s financial accounts, 1814–1851,

include Albemarle County tax levies for land, horses, and slaves, as well as bills for

services related to the lawsuit against Hezekiah Arnold (section 3). Garth served as

executor of the estate of Thomas K. Clarke and trustee for his widow, Elizabeth (Garth)

Clarke. Estate papers, 1835–1847, include accounts paid for the hire of slaves and also

include lists and prices of slaves as part of the settlement of the estate of Susannah Dalton

(section 4). In the settlement of Garth’s own estate, papers include a will, inventory of

agricultural equipment, livestock, and slaves, lists of slaves and their values, and an

account for medical care provided to slaves by Doctor James A. Leitch (section 5). Legal

papers of Garth’s widow, Martha (Graves) Garth (d. 1874), include an agreement, 1868,

with Edward Twyman, a freedman, allowing him and his family to live in a house on her

lot at Madison Court House and to undertake general maintenance there in return for free

rent and a share of any crops he raises (section 8). Other Garth family materials include

an account of James Woods Garth with George Martin in 1854 for medical care of the

slave Celia, and a letter and receipt, 1856–1857, of John C. Patterson of Charlottesville to

Virginia E. (Garth) Bledsoe concerning the hire of her slave Tom (section 9). Papers

relating to the estate of Robert Garnett (1770–1854), administered by his grandson

Robert C. Garnett (1820–1873), include an 1856 receipt for the medical care of slaves

(section 12), while the younger Garnett’s legal papers in Madison County include a bill

of sale in the same year for two African American slaves, Susan and Martha, and

Martha’s baby sold by Garnett to Martin Bideler (section 16).

Garnett family papers, 1834–1979. 104 items. Mss1G1875b.

Concern the Garnett and related families of Albemarle and Madison counties. Section 2

contains a notice, 1852, of Martha (Graves) Garth (1828–1909) of Madison County to

sell land and other property, including slaves.

Garrett, Benjamin F. (b. 1820), letter, 1866. 1 p. Mss2G1925a1.

Letter, 14 June 1866, Clover Station in Halifax County, to Dabney Cosby referring to the

upcoming trial of some African Americans and the circumstantial evidence against Allen.

Gault, John, letter, 1853. 1 p. Mss2G2365a1.

Letter, 31 December 1853, written in Richmond to Samuel Gault of Boston, Mass.,

providing a northern perspective on the number of African Americans in the city to be

hired out for the coming year and noting that the slaves come from all over Virginia.

Geddy, William (d. 1816), will, 1816. 3 pp. Imperfect. Mss2G2672a1. Copy.

Will probated in New Kent County providing for division of slaves among three heirs and

providing for the use of slaves by Geddy’s wife during her lifetime. Several slaves are

named and identified by physical description and family relationships; the blacksmith

Charles is to be freed, but Charles’s wife and children are to be sold and the proceeds

divided among the heirs.

George, Alice B. Payne (b. 1794?), papers, 1855–1875. 32 items. Mss2G2936b.

Include letters and accounts, 1856–1857, of William H. Brown of Richmond, concerning

the sale of tobacco and purchase of mercantile items for Mrs. George, a widow of

Goochland County, including notes concerning labor performed by Roger, presumably a

slave.

George family papers, 1718–1936. 163 items. Mss1G2937a.

This collection concerns four generations of the George family primarily of Fairford,

Thornberry, and White Chimneys, Caroline County. Correspondence of Lewis George

(1779–1847) with Elliott M. Burruss discusses the hiring of slaves (folder 1). Papers of

John Dudley George (1758–1781) include a copy of his will dated 17 March 1780 giving

directions for the division of his slaves among beneficiaries (folder 5). A will of Reuben

George written 16 May 1799 provides for the bequest of named slaves (folder 6). Papers

of Henry Hortensius George (1824–1902) include an undated list of slaves divided into

lots and with monetary evaluations provided (folder 8).

George family papers, 1798–1864. 17 items. Mss2G2938b.

Most of this collection concerns the administration of Reuben George’s estate. Of

particular note are several bonds (section 1) of John Oliver, Sr., and John Oliver, Jr., of

Caroline County for the hire of several slaves (Tom in 1798 and Sawney in 1815). An

1800 bond indicates that Rene Brown will maintain Sarah until her death "so that she

shall never become chargeable to the estate." A Henrico County certificate of Peter

Anderson’s age in 1826 states that he was born free (section 3).

Gerst, Emanuel (b. 1816?), papers, 1861–1862. 6 items. Mss2G3271b.

Contain letters written to Gerst while serving in Company G of the 6th Virginia Cavalry

Regiment, Confederate States Army, by Mary Wilson (Cunningham) Gerst of Glenmary,

Halifax County. The letters concern family news and her management of agricultural

operations at Glenmary, including tobacco harvesting and the manufacture of clothing

and shoes for slaves.

Giles, William Branch (1762–1830), papers, 1783–1828. 14 items. Mss2G3947c.

These papers are primarily correspondence of Virginia governor William Branch Giles.

In this collection is a 1783 note from Robert Stockton of Princeton, N.J., concerning the

return of a slave hired from Giles. The slave is not named.

Gilliam, Richard Holland (1809–1892), papers, 1792–1900. 1,054 items.

Mss1G4143a.

This collection contains correspondence and other materials of Richard Holland Gilliam,

a planter, merchant, and sheriff of Buckingham County. Section 1 contains

correspondence of Gilliam with William Holeman of Cumberland County concerning the

sale and care of a slave girl named Lucy. Section 4 contains medical accounts, 1835–

1863, of Gilliam concerning the care and treatment of family members and slaves.

Section 6 consists of materials pertaining to Gilliam in his capacity as sheriff of

Buckingham County, in part, concerning the sale and hiring out of slaves. Includes

letters, bonds, agreements, and receipts. Section 11 contains papers, 1823–1875, of

Edward J. Gilliam of Buckingham County, including an 1849 agreement between Gilliam

(1798–1875) and Spotswood Jones concerning the sale of the slave Esther and the care of

elderly slaves Nelson and Anna.

Gilliatt, Paul, compiler, "Genealogical Notes Concerning the Gilliatt Family," 1986.

2 items. Mss6:1G4144:1.

Concerns John Gilliatt, Thomas Gilliatt, and William Gilliatt; also concerns free African

Americans bearing the name Gilliatt.

Gilliatt, Thomas, deposition, 1804. 1 p. Mss2G4144a1.

Deposition, dated 10 December 1804, Richmond, made before Henry Smith Shore

(1768–1832) concerning a slave, Claiborne, believed to be in the custody of David Snow.

Gist family papers, 19251989. 250 items. Mss1G4475a.

Spanning three generations of a Richmond-based African American family, these papers

include photographs, newspaper clippings, certificates, report cards, and identification

cards. The materials focus on Lewis Gist, Sr. (18971989), and his wife, Leonia (Hill) Gist

(18981991); their children Ophelia Addie Mae (Gist) Hawkes (19191993), Lewis

Alexander Gist, Jr. (19211997), John C. Gist (b. 1926), and William Bernard Gist

(19281960); and their grandchildren Marilyn Elaine Gist (b. 1949) and Ronald

Christopher Gist (b. 1957?). A large portion of this collection traces the careers of Lewis,

Jr. (section 4), a university science professor, and Ophelia (Gist) Hawkes (section 3), a

primary school teacher. Although most of the items are records of achievement, section 3

also contains original poetry composed by Ophelia Hawkes.

Gloucester County, Court, order, 1767. 1 p. Mss4G5184a1.

Order, 1767, to the sheriff of Gloucester County to apprehend an escaped slave.

Gooch family papers, 1812–1961. 367 items. Mss1G5906a. Microfilm reels C332–

334.

Primarily the papers of Claiborne Watts Gooch (1791–1844), planter of Henrico County

and newspaper editor in Richmond, and Dr. Philip Claiborne Gooch (1825–1855) of

Richmond.

An account book, 1832–1836, kept by Claiborne W. Gooch includes diary entries

concerning agricultural operations at Airfield and Little Egypt plantations, including

Gooch’s comments on African American laborers. The record book of the Richmond

Board of Health (section 16), kept by Dr. Gooch as secretary during the cholera epidemic

in 1849, contains lists of sick and deceased African Americans, comments on the effects

of the disease on the African American community in Richmond, and reports of health

services provided by and for African Americans.

Correspondence of Maria Rebecca Roane (Barnes) Gooch (section 7) contains a request,

1865, to be exempted from taxes, citing devastation of her land and eight male slaves

carried off by Yankees. Her slave lists, 1839–1852 (section 8), pertain to Airfield in

Henrico County and provide names, ages, values, some family relationships, and a few

notes as to which should be sold and which hired out.

Goodman, Joseph Noton (1811–1862), commonplace book, 1834–1879. 40 pp.

Mss5:5G6225:1.

This volume, kept in Cumberland and Roanoke counties, contains notes on the Goodman

family, lists of horses, and lists of births and deaths of slaves. Approximately forty births,

1809–1856, and five deaths, 1839–1849, are noted, with names, dates, and mothers’

names only.

Goodwin, Frederick Deane (1804–1881), papers, 1824–1868. 29 items. Mss1G6325a.

Diaries and sermons make up the greater part of this Episcopal minister’s collection of

papers. Goodwin grew up in Massachusetts and came to Virginia as a young man. He

was first a teacher and then a minister. In 1837 he married Mary Frances Archer,

daughter of Dr. Robert Archer, U.S. Army at Fort Monroe.

Most of Goodwin’s diaries record daily activities of teaching, visiting, and preaching; his

thoughts on religion take up a substantial amount of space. An entry for 1 January 1849

records his thoughts on slavery and that the institution will be a trial and "vexation" to

him as long as he lives in a land of slaves. He then comments on his own slaves and the

one hired for the current year. While a minister in Amherst and Nelson counties, he also

provided services for the slaves of Mayo Cabell at Union Hill (see entries for the 1840s,

in particular the fifth Sundays) and at Grace Church. In section 19 are several reports,

1839–1841, of a Sunday school for African Americans at Trinity Episcopal Church in

Staunton.

Gordon, Nettie M., collector, papers, 1850–1916. 44 items. Mss1G6575a.

A wide variety of documents collected by Nettie Gordon and her father, primarily

focusing on Central Virginia history and historical figures. Among the materials are an

insurance policy, 1858, issued by the American Life Insurance Trust Company of

Philadelphia, Pa., on the life of William, an African American slave belonging to M. F.

Vaiden of Charles City County, and receipts, 1857–1858, issued by the same company to

Vaiden for payment of premiums on the life insurance policy for Rosanna, another slave

(section 6). Also, includes a newspaper clipping concerning the execution of two African

American slaves (Champion and Valentine) for murder in Goochland County in 1733

(section 9).

Graham family papers, 1798–1925. 353 items. Mss1G7605a. Microfilm reel C17.

Primarily the personal and professional papers of George Graham (1770–1830) of Fairfax

County, chief clerk of the U.S. War Department and commissioner of the U.S. Land

Office, and of George Mason Graham (1807–1891), planter and educator, a Fairfax

County native who eventually moved to Louisiana. Section 6 of this collection contains

as affidavit concerning a slave named John who was hired to work for George Graham at

the Lexington plantation in Fairfax County. In section 14, several undated lists of slaves,

presumably kept in Fairfax County by George Mason Graham, include values.

Grand United Order of Galilean Fishermen, Gideon Tabernacle, No. 14, Berryville,

minute book, 19211934. 1 vol. Mss4G7629b.

Minute book, 19211934, of the Gideon Tabernacle, No. 14, Grand United Order of

Galilean Fishermen of Berryville, an African American fraternal organization that

originated in Baltimore, Md., in 1856. The order is unique in that it was not based on a

previously existing white fraternal society, but rather created within the African

American community. The members paid dues regularly and the organization provided

them with financial support during times of illness or death. The minutes helped to track

member dues, organizations and schools that rented the meeting hall for special events,

the disbursement of sick dues, frequent election of officers, preparations for the annual

sermon, visits by the supreme ruler, pageants and banquets, and miscellaneous expenses.

The volume was kept by several secretaries over the years, including Cora B. Jones

(1867?1925), Fannie Jenkins (b. 1890?), Mary C. Jackson, Ethel Clarke, and Edna Paige.

Grand United Order of Odd Fellows, Millwood Lodge, No. 8501, records 19101960.

118 items. Mss3G7629a.

Miscellaneous records of the Millwood Lodge, No. 8501, Grand United Order of Odd

Fellows in Millwood, Clarke County. Materials generated by this African American

fraternal organization consist chiefly of general laws, by-laws, ritual books, minute book,

correspondence, account books, receipts, and membership information. Most of the

letters in the collection are addressed to Mancefield Paige (19011985), a laborer from

Berryville, who served as the Lodges secretary and past secretary. The account books and

membership book give detailed information about each member, including name, age,

occupation, residence, marital status, and children.

Gravatt family papers, 1864–1933. 262 items. Mss1G7803a.

This collection is composed of papers of the Gravatt family of Port Royal, Caroline

County, chiefly of Doctor Charles Urquhart Gravatt (1851–1922) of the U.S. Navy and

while serving in the Virginia Senate. Section 4 contains correspondence, 1913–1920, of

Dr. Gravatt, including a communication with Thomas J. Edwards concerning the Negro

Reformatory of Virginia, located in Hanover County.

Gray, Harrison (1701–1794), papers, 1750–1774. 5 items. Mss2G7927d.

Include a deed, 1758, of Joseph Turrell and William Story, both of Boston, Mass., to

Gray, a merchant of Boston, for the woman Silway, age thirty-five, and her daughter

June, age three.

Gray, Jean Maynard, "Mulberry Island Cemeteries," 1970. 7 pp. Mss7:2M8968:3.

Concerns cemeteries on Mulberry Island, Warwick County, of the Crafford, Curtis,

Fitchett, Jones, and Nettles families, and for slaves.

Gray, John (1769–1848), papers, 1803–1832. 3 items. Mss2G7933b.

Include a letter written to Gray (as a merchant of Port Royal) by Benjamin Weaver, an

overseer at Wakefield, Westmoreland County, concerning the burning of a barn, possibly

by a slave named Sam.

Gray, Kathryn Viola, papers, 1937. 2 items. Mss2G7935b.

Papers include a diploma issued to Kathryn Gray for completion of the Elective Course,

along with a photograph of the 1937 senior class of Armstrong High School, the first

public school in Richmond for African American students, originally known as the

Richmond Colored Normal School.

Gray, William (1793–1873), papers, 1819–1875. ca. 4,000 items. Mss1G7952aFA2.

Microfilm reels C560–575.

As a tobacco shipper and manufacturer, Gray was prominent in Manchester and

Richmond business circles. He also served as a director of the Bank of Virginia, a trustee

of the Manchester Methodist Episcopal Church, and a justice of the peace for

Manchester.

The finding aid provides an index to many of Gray’s slave hiring transactions and several

purchases. Items of interest include Tom Ford’s 1848 note that he and his wife want to

hire the boy they raised from infancy; Thomas Nance’s praise of the care and housing

accommodations provided by Maurice Langhorne (Lynchburg, 1846), and an extensive

correspondence with the Rev. James Riddick concerning hiring out one of Riddick’s

slaves to the coal mines to make him more controllable and containing Riddick’s opinion

of the end of slavery and what it has done to Virginia’s labor force and economy.

Fugitive slaves are discussed with a Mr. Campbell, a Baltimore jailer. In 1856 Campbell

had custody of Tom Sweeney, a mulatto slave who had run away two years earlier. In

1841, Benjamin Grave asks Gray to intercede for his son, who, fearing an unjust

whipping ran away from Mr. Vaughn. In 1842 Lewis Stiff expresses concern about

Emanuel, whose expired pass had been renewed, but Emanuel still had not returned.

Gray maintained correspondence with several individuals concerning Rivan Mayo, a

freeborn African American who had been sold into slavery in Kentucky. Correspondence

in 1855–1856 with R. J. Brown, R. W. Flournoy, W. T. Martin and Walter Robinson

discusses this matter. (The Robinson letter is in Gray’s business correspondence.)

Richard Graves, 1855, writes inquiring after Preston’s age, because he was to become

free at age thirty according to Mrs. Pleasants’s will. Peter Camel, 1860, writes from a

Richmond jail asking for bail; he has a job in Lynchburg and will be able to repay Gray.

In 1834 J. Woodson sends instructions with John, who will visit his wife (a slave of

Gray); later in the year Woodson offers to sell John to Gray for less than his appraised

value so that the husband and wife would not be separated.

In Gray’s business correspondence, February 1858, is a letter from the president of the

Northern Bank of Tennessee giving particulars of the murder of Gray’s partner in

Tennessee by one of Gray’s slaves, who was then hanged. Gray’s business

correspondence, 1859, with Sawyer, Wallace & Co. provides a New Yorker’s perspective

on John Brown. The writer moves in business circles; he does not involve himself in

politics. He has heard nothing prejudicial about the South, but most accept that Brown

was guilty and deserving of hanging. He notes the differentiation between the practice

and the theory of slavery; in practice New Yorkers do not like anything to disrupt

business and making money.

In addition to Riddick’s comments on the abolition of slavery (see above), Robert Hubard

in 1866 and 1867 makes disparaging comments about freedmen who work at their

leisure.

Green, Charles Jones (1839–1909), papers, 1861–1895. 35 items. Mss1G8207a.

Microfilm reel C597.

This collection contains materials primarily concerning the military service of two

members of the 47th Virginia Infantry Regiment, Confederate States Army, namely

Charles Jones Green and his brother, William James Green (1825–1862). Section 6

contains a letter dated 19 July 1895 of Henry Heth to Charles Green concerning Heth’s

recent visit to the Office of the Rebellion Records in Washington, D.C., to find a letter

recommending Green as a former Confederate in raising an African American regiment

for the U.S. Army.

Green, William (1806–1880), papers, 1726–1880. 323 items. Mss1G8274a.

Business and personal papers of a lawyer and legal scholar of Culpeper Court House and

Richmond. Section 5 includes an antebellum essay by Green on "contingent or

conditional emancipation," while section 16 contains a draft of Green’s argument in the

"case of the Timberlake Negroes," concerning emancipation by the will of a testator.

Section 18 contains a deed of trust covering six slaves in Culpeper County, "with the

future increase of the females"; in section 19, an 1839 affidavit recorded in Pittsylvania

County concerns the death of a slave named Lucy on her way from Madison County to

the home of her new master in South Carolina, while an 1840 affidavit concerns James

King, a free African American apprentice in Rappahannock County.

Gregory, George Craghead (1878–1956), compiler, "Parents, Uncles and Aunts,"

1939. [233] pp. Mss6:1G8623:2.

Includes genealogical charts and notes of the Gregory and allied families. Also includes

an account, 1793, of Francis Taylor (guardian of Benjamin Pearson Thorp) with Peter

Bennett concerning the hire of slaves (p. 162).

Gregory family papers, 1683–1909. 330 items. Mss1G8626c.

Primarily the personal and business records of planters and merchants of Elsing Green,

King William County. Estate materials for Roger Gregory (section 17), compiled by his

executrix, include undated lists of slaves, some of whom are designated as a part of the

dower of Maria Gregory. Additional lists of slaves compiled for Roger Gregory, Jr., as

guardian of Nannie S. Gregory appear to indicate the prices for which individuals were

sold and list men and women by name and by plantation; accounts kept by the guardian

cover medical expenses for the care of slaves during the Civil War.

Griffin, James Lewis Corbin (1814–1878), papers, 1839–1875. 24 items.

Mss1G8754a.

The collection includes diaries and a commonplace book of Griffin kept as a Universalist

minister in Williamsburg. They also include a letter dated 24 April 1860 written by his

father, Samuel Stuart Griffin of Williamsburg, in part concerning the trial of a black

youth for arson.

Grigsby, Hugh Blair (1806–1881), papers, 17451944. 6,563 items. Mss1G8782b.

Parts of this collection are available on Microfilm reel C84.

Papers of a planter, writer, and historian mostly kept at Edgehill in Charlotte County.

Grigsby’s correspondence in section 31 contains several letters of particular interest. A

letter to George Dodd Armstrong compliments Armstrong on his theological defense of

slavery in The Christian Doctrine of Slavery. Mark Alexander’s correspondence contains

much political commentary, including observations on the Missouri Compromise. Allen

Caperton’s letters contain a lengthy treatise on slavery in America and through history

(with many analogies to Greek and Roman practice), question the wisdom of having a

class of free African Americans, consider slavery in Jamaica, remark on the potential

differences between antebellum free African Americans and postbellum freedmen, and

argue the primary concern of the treatise—that conscripted slaves in the Confederate

army should retain slave status and should not be freed.

Also in section 31 are some detailed letters, 1862–1863, from Anne Bradford, writing

from Hillsville, N.C., and Norfolk, Va. She records incidents of slaves that report to

Federal troops for free papers, a freed woman who filed a complaint against a doctor,

discontinuing the Sunday school in favor of learning French and music, and freed slaves

raising cotton for the federal government. She also sends reports on the activities of

slaves on the Eastern Shore.

Grigsby had slaves with the Confederate army, and several of their letters home also

appear in his correspondence. Thomas Black, writing for the slave Oliver in December

1864, states that Oliver is driving a supply wagon near Richmond. In 1863 Grigsby sent

three carpenter-mechanics to Danville with the agreement that they would be vaccinated,

be provided with medical care, food, and lodging, and not be required to work in

inclement weather (section 74). In March 1863, James writes to his master’s wife telling

her that they are well but that the rations are insufficient for the work they do; he explains

the ration allotment and asks her to send food (section 82).

The collection also contains a variety of deeds for slaves. In section 155 is an 1829 deed

to Asa Dupuy for the slave Frank, in section 163 is a 1797 deed to Thomas Walton for

the slave Tom, and in section 197 is an 1845 deed of trust to William Morton for Sally

and her sons Jim and Dick. Section 189 contains an 1817 hiring agreement in which John

Miller promised delivery of oak rails as needed in exchange for hire of the slave Jordan.

Slave lists, 1824, from Thomas Walton’s estate appear in section 167.

Grigsby family papers, 1745–1940. 372 items. Mss1G8785a.

George Hugh Blair Grigsby (1823–1855) was a prominent Virginian who was active in

business and politics. While trading in cotton farther south (Texas and Louisiana, 1850),

he owned Rial, who was hired out regularly (see diary in section 14, back pages, for

hiring out notes) and then sold to Bede Johnson (see entry dated 1 January 1851). An

entry dated 23 December 1850 concerns a slave on a pass to visit his son in Houston. The

slave is not back yet, and there is news that cholera has broken out in Houston. In section

18, Rial writes in 1877 to Mary McCormick in Baltimore, saying he has just discovered

her whereabouts and asking if she knows anything about his folks; he has heard nothing

since the war. Section 40 contains an undated list of thirty-five slaves with values

calculated for an unidentified estate division.

Grinnan, Daniel (1861–1940), papers, 1882–1908. 91 items. Mss1G8853a.

Correspondence, 1902, with James Christian Lamb concerns retaining John Shepherd, an

African American, as janitor in the office of Richmond’s chancery court upon Grinnan’s

appointment as judge (section 1).

Grinnan family papers, 1645–1935. 342 items. Mss1G8855d.

About 1910 St. George Tucker Coalter Bryan (1843–1916) wrote a short anecdotal

biographical sketch about Daddy Frank and other household staff at Eagle Point in

Gloucester County (section 28). It describes family life, homes, religion, Mammy Sarah’s

free relatives, Bryan’s view of relations between masters and slaves, Civil War incidents,

and life before, during, and after the war. An 1845–1865 slave list (section 15)

summarizes family relationships and usual tasks for the slaves at Eagle Point.

Grinnan family papers, 1673–1865. 125 items. Mss1G8855b.

An extensive letter, 1811, of Chapman Johnson of Staunton to John Coalter of Richmond

provides details of a fight between one of Coalter’s slaves and the son of a Captain Perry.

Several points of law are discussed, including the legality of a slave’s evidence, slaves’

self-defense, masters using slaves to protect property, and related points (section 9).

Section 19 contains a 1797 deed (printed form) to John Dare of Fredericksburg for

Hannah and her daughter Matilda. In the same section, a 1 January 1781 bond for hire of

Hannah and her child requires the mother to be returned clothed as she was received and

without charge.

Grinnan family papers, 1750–1901. 807 items. Mss1G8855c.

Joseph Jackson Halsey’s 1854 letter to Dr. Andrew Glassell Grinnan (section 21) gives

Halsey’s reasons for not hiring William and Mitchell for the coming year; too much time

was lost in visiting their wives, business was interrupted, and the asking price for William

was too high. Halsey would hire Frederick for the next year. A pass, 31 July 1862

(section 23), allows a woman, a boy, and two children to travel from Charlottesville to

Lynchburg.

In section 35, Margaret I. Lee’s affidavit concerns her purchase of Betsey from John

Thornton. She will leave Betsey to his family after her death and in the meantime hire

Betsey out to the Thornton family.

Grinnan family papers, 1765–1932. 336 items. Mss1G8855a.

Correspondence and financial records of Daniel Grinnan (1771–1830), Fredericksburg

merchant; Dr. Andrew Glassell Grinnan, Madison County physician; St. George Tucker

Coalter Bryan of Richmond; and Daniel Grinnan (1861–1940), Richmond attorney.

In section 17, an 1850 letter of Archibald Alexander Little of Fredericksburg to Dr.

Grinnan concerns the insuring of slaves and requests Grinnan to act as examining

physician in his region. Section 38 contains copies of wills of John Taliaferro (d. 1744)

and John Taliaferro (d. 1805), probated in Spotsylvania County, that list by name slaves

who were bequeathed to various family members.

Grinnan family papers, 1781–1830. 213 items. Mss1G8855e.

Contains correspondence, accounts, and related materials of members of the Bryan,

Coalter, and Grinnan families of Virginia. Section 2 contains a letter from Daniel

Grinnan (1771–1830), a merchant of Fredericksburg, to Mrs. Mary Lee of Westmoreland

County concerning the protection of the slave Owen from threats made by a runaway

slave. Section 5 contains the will, 1810, of Frances Davenport (of Augusta County),

which includes personal references to slaves. Section 12 contains a deed (photocopy),

1797, of Reuben Bullard to John Dare of Fredericksburg for the slaves Matilda and

Maria. Section 13 contains photographs, including one of the slave Julien and Abram

Carter, a former slave. This section also contains a photograph of the slave burying

ground at Carysbrook, Fluvanna County.

Grymes, Benjamin (d. 1805), will, 1805. 7 pp. Mss2G9292a1. Photocopy.

Will, dated 7 July 1805, probated in the Virginia District Court at Fredericksburg.

Included with the will is an inventory and appraisal of the estate, including slaves, in

Madison and Orange counties.

Grymes family papers, 1815–1919. 103 items. Mss1G9297a.

Primarily papers of Peyton Grymes (1791–1878), Orange County physician. Include a

deed, 1816, to Walter Healy for five slaves listed by name with some family relationships

indicated (section 3).

Guerrant, William Gibson (1829–1892), papers, 1844–1886. 16 items. Mss1G9376a.

Microfilm reel C597.

Diaries, correspondence, and miscellany of a Montgomery County resident, primarily

concerning his service in the Confederate States Artillery. Volume 1 of his diary, 1858–

1861, includes references to the monetary appraisal of slaves, while volume 2, 1864–

1865, includes records of the hiring out of slaves (section 1).

Gunst, Virginia Kaufman (1905–2001), papers, 1941–1963. 734 items. Mss1G9578a.

This collection primarily focuses on the service of Virginia (Kaufman) Gunst of

Richmond as commander of the Volunteer Service Motor Corps of the Richmond Office

of Civilian Defense. The women volunteers under her command were recognized for

countless hours of service during World War II, mainly transporting soldiers and nurses,

driving ambulances, and participating in war bond drives, but the papers include

instructions regarding the segregation of African American volunteers at specific

recognition ceremonies (section 1).

Guy, Samuel Atwell, papers, 1845–1852. 4 items. Mss2G9896a.

Kept in Louisa County, including receipts issued to Guy for the purchase of the

blacksmith Robin, a receipt from Richard Wyatt for purchase of the slave Henry, and a

bond of Leander Woodson to Guy for the hiring of the slave Margarete.

Gwathmey family papers, 1790–1982. ca. 10,000 items. MssG9957cFA2. Microfilm

reels C259–261.

The Gwathmey family of Burlington plantation played a prominent role in the history of

King William County. Joseph Gwathmey (1758–1824) was the first to own Burlington.

His oldest son, John Hill Gwathmey, lived there until his death in 1839, at which time

John’s brother, William Gwathmey, a physician, moved his family from Wakefield to

Burlington. William’s son, Joseph Hardin Gwathmey (1846–1918), was an agent for

Virginia Fire and Marine Insurance Company and superintendant of schools for King

William County. His daughter, Mary Burnley Gwathmey (1883–1974), pursued higher

education and obtained degrees in education and design.

In box 1 of the collection are papers pertaining to Joseph Gwathmey’s estate. The estate

book for 1824–1831 contains his will (slaves referred to generally, not by name) and

several references to hirings and purchases. The 1824–1837 book contains a list of about

thirty slaves and their values; on page 79 is a summary of the estate division, with

children being kept with their mothers. In box 2 are diaries, 1833–1874, kept by Dr.

William Gwathmey. Valuable subject notes on these diaries may be found in the

cataloging notes in box 1; William made references to significant events but rarely

elaborated on them, so details are scarce. Some of these events are hiring day, the

hanging of John Brown, the baptism of slaves, Reconstruction, and the mistreatment of

slaves.

Box 3 contains William’s general correspondence. Letters, 1847–1854, from his brother-

in-law Edwin Burnley reflect the ownership status of slaves during divorce proceedings.

In a letter of January 1854, Edwin recounts a construction accident that crippled one of

his slaves. Papers of Joseph Hardin Gwathmey appear in box 9. His accounts with farm

laborers are sporadic. In his capacity as superintendent of schools, he kept reports and

statistics on the King William school system. Only one report is included in the

collection, 1905–1906, but the form records in two-column style ("white" and "colored")

such information as class size, teacher qualifications, size of school, and a variety of

other educational facets.

The story of Sylvia Hill is the focus of a folder in box 52, which contains the papers of

Mary Burnley Gwathmey. In the early 1940s Mary Burnley decided to write the story of

Sylvia Hill, a former slave who continued to work for the family and maintained close

family ties until her death in 1906. The folder contains a typescript of the work,

approximately twenty pages. The collection also has other notations of Sylvia in various

places: her will is in box 11; in box 7 is a deed of gift for a house and lot for the length of

her employment with the Gwathmeys; and in Dr. William Gwathmey’s 1857 diary he

indicates that she married Dennis Hill on 3 January.

Researchers may also find additional descriptive information from an examination of the

guide to this collection. The above entry indicates only major points of interest.

Gwin, William McKendrie (1805–1885), memoir, 1863. 1 p. Mss5:1G9954:1.

This one-page typescript is an abstract of a memoir by Gwin, former governor of

California, in which he recounts discussions at an October 1863 dinner party in Paris,

France. Several European ministers discussed the necessity of having the Confederate

government announce its intention to emancipate all slaves upon achieving its

independence in order to be recognized by England and France, because of antislavery

elements in Europe. The response of Confederate representatives present was negative.

H. A. White & Co., Warrenton, records, 1852–1867. 6 vols. Mss5:3W5868:4–9.

Concern a major mercantile operation conducted by Hamden A. White in Warrenton,

with customers in that town and the surrounding area of Fauquier County. Along with

journals and ledgers, some loose papers include a bond, 1852, to Dr. Thomas T. Withers

for the hire of Ellen, an African American slave, and her child, signed by Thomas B.

Finks and D. M. Patten.

Hairston, George Stovall (1813–1863), commonplace book, 1835–1864. [4], 31, [25]

p. Mss5:5H1277:1.

Contains lists of slaves with year dates of birth in Henry County, kept by physician and

planter George Stovall Hairston.

[Hall, Nancy Johns Turner (1792–1850)], "The Imaginationist, or Recollections of

an Old Lady," 1844. 4 vols. Mss5:9H1405:1.

Attributed to Nancy Johns Turner Hall (of Bedford County), who later settled in Ohio.

Includes information on slavery and the African American colonization movement.

Hall, William, deed, 1812. 1 p. Mss2H1497a1. Photocopy.

Deed, 13 June 1812, of William Hall of Fairfax County to John Arnold of King George

County for the girl Suckey.

Hallett, Benjamin Franklin (1797–1862), letter, 1856. 1 p. Mss2H1542a1. Printed.

Circular letter, 29 October 1856, Boston, Mass., to Robert William Hughes, William

Anderson Patteson, and William Foushee Ritchee, denouncing abolitionists, Free Soilers,

and northern Whig and unionist parties.

Hamilton family papers, 1798–1990. 450 items. Mss1H1805c.

Concern the Hamilton, Vandergrift, and Withers families of Gloucester County. Section

17 contains a letter, 1816, from Robert Tayler (of Norfolk) to Charles Barrett concerning

the purchase by a free man, Robert, of his enslaved child, owned by Barnett, if she is

willing to go with her parent.

Hankins family papers, 1791–1975. 1,472 items. Mss1H1946b.

Concern the family of John Henry Hankins (1804–1870) and his wife, Louisiana

(Wilson) Hankins (1819–1865), of Bacon’s Castle, Surry County. Include materials,

1837–1839, concerning settlement of the estate of William Jordan Boykin (d. 1823) by

John Henry Hankins, which include an unexecuted bond of Robert W. Gibbs and Robert

Gibbs concerning the hiring of an African American slave (section 3); financial records,

1853–1870, of Hankins, in part concerning the hiring out of two of his enslaved

bricklayers in 1858 (section 5); and records compiled by Hankins in 1868–1870

concerning the settlement of the estates of James Wilson and Eliza M. (Ricks) Wilson,

which include an inventory of property divided among the heirs of James Wilson, among

which are African American slaves (section 6). Also, include correspondence, 1860–

1864, of James DeWitt Hankins (1841–1866) with family members, primarily while

serving in the Surry Light Artillery of the Confederate States Army and in part

concerning the family’s runaway slaves and Isaac, a servant with Hankins in the army

(section 10). Also, include letters, 1858–1865, written to Virginia Wilson Hankins

(1843–1888) by her parents while she was a student, concerning in part slaves at Bacon’s

Castle and runaways to the Union Army (section 13); and letters written to Mary

(Hankins) Fontaine (1863–1921), 1889–1900, by Paulina Boone, an African American

woman who served as a nurse to the Hankins children of Bacon’s Castle (section 21).

Hannah family papers, 1760–1967. 4,721 items. Mss1H1956a. Microfilm reels C400–

407.

Much of the Hannah family collection revolves around George Cunningham Hannah

(1782?–1870) of Gravel Hill plantation in Charlotte County.

A slave register of births, organized by mother’s name at the top of each page, lists

children and dates of birth (section 9). Thirteen families are included; birthdates range

from 1800 to 1851. In sections 10, 11, and 12, account books make scattered references

to hirings and agricultural operations.

In section 24, an 1813 apprenticeship indenture binds John Smith’s four sons to George

Hannah to learn the carpentry trade. Also in section 24 is a deed in which the slave

woman Abba and her three children are released to George Hannah. More deeds appear

in section 39, in which William Hannah and Quin Morton convey ten slaves to George

Hannah. An 1827 summons to the Charlotte County jailer (section 27) refers to Major,

the slave of Jacob Brooks of Campbell County. Section 83 contains an 1861 receipt of

Elizabeth Henderson of Greenville, Ga., to E. T. Cunningham and John Cunningham for

three men, three women, and three children, warranting that they are slaves for life and

sound in mind and body.

In George Hannah’s correspondence (section 33) is a letter from John Field enclosing

information and deposition interrogatives for the 1848 case of David Young, an Arkansas

man suing for his freedom, whose mother, Maria Young, was still in Virginia. Section 42

contains a January 1865 appointment of George Hannah as a commissioner with the

authority to conscript slaves to provide labor for building fortifications. Freedmen’s

contracts appear in section 41 and state annual wages and weekly rations, with family

wages designated individually and collectively. Arrangement for houses and firewood are

provided in the agreements. Another agreement is in section 44—William’s 1866

contract with Thomas McKinney.

Hanover County, assessor, tax book, 1780. 77 pp. Mss4H1973a2.

This volume records lists of tithables as made by the tax assessor for the year 1780.

Included is St. Paul’s Parish and St. Martin’s Parish. Owners were assessed by the

number of slaves; only number and tax assessment are recorded in this volume. A later

entry (pages 67–68) in the book records amounts of corn processed by African

Americans.

Harberts, C., deed, 1858. 1 p. Mss2H2135a1.

Deed, 24 February 1858, recorded in Caldwell County, Tex., to G. W. Miller for the slave

Easau, age thirty, in exchange for Hagah, a slave woman.

Hardaway, Richard Eggleston (1796–1830), account book, 1825–1864. 136 pp.

Mss5:3H2164:1.

The first few pages record the accounts of Hardaway’s blacksmith shop in Nottoway

County from 1825 to 1830. The second part of the book begins at page 16, on which is

written an index to the names of the slaves whose accounts appear in the larger second

part of the book. That second section was kept by John Segar Eggleston for recording his

slaves’ accounts from 1850 to 1864. The accounts are primarily concerned with fodder,

corn, coffee, sugar, and shoes.

Hargroves, Abigail (Langley) Granbery (d. 1763), commonplace book, 1694–1818.

57 pp. Mss5:5H2244:1.

A photocopied transcript accompanies the original volume, kept by Abigail Hargroves in

Nansemond and Norfolk counties. On page 16 (transcript page 5), she notes that in 1733

the court ruled the young slave Sambo to be eight years old. Later, on page 42, Hargroves

records a list of her slaves’ birthdates from 1745 to 1761.

Harris, Uriah, list, 1858. 1 p. Mss2H2442a1.

This 1858 list of property of the estate of Uriah Harris of Louisa County records twelve

slaves, their prices, and to whom sold, including a mother-child pair.

Harris family papers, 1805–1907. 174 items. Mss1H2445b.

William Robert Harris (b. 1822) of Gloucester County participated in the fishing and

oystering industry. Among his papers are a number of bonds for hiring slaves. These

bonds appear in section 1, except for an 1848 bond in section 7. Generally, each year

from 1848 to 1856 Harris would hire a woman for $10–$15 dollars with the usual

arrangement of providing clothes, blanket, and sometimes shoes. Section 1 also contains

tax receipts on slaves for 1848, 1849, and 1856.

Harrison, Jesse Burton (1805–1841), papers, 1822–1839. 76 items. Mss2H24684d.

Collection contains a letter, 1839, to Harrison (of Lynchburg, Va., and New Orleans, La.)

from Nicholas P. Trist concerning British attitudes toward slavery in the United States.

Harrison family papers, 1662–1915. 981 items. Mss1H2485a. Microfilm reels C262–

264.

The first of several interrelated collections, this group of papers contains several clusters

of like information—regarding clothing and the business of hiring. Some documents

pertain to the distribution of various types of clothing (section 10, 1760s list; section 27,

undated list; section 54, 1851 list; section 62, undated list). An 1822 bond for the hiring

of Elsy is specific about the clothes to be provided and the kind of material used.

Correspondence of Robert T. Taylor provides a look at the business of hiring out slaves.

His letters describe prices, quarterly payments, and rates of commission for 1860 and

1861 (section 49, Julia Taylor and Robert Taylor to B. Temple; section 51, Robert Taylor

to B. Temple; section 61, Robert Taylor to Lucy Temple). A related item in section 32 is

Robert Trice’s 1844 letter to Elizabeth Chowning, describing his arrangements for having

her slaves hired out, noting a special price for Betsy and her children because "her

situation this year peculiarly requires that." In section 51, Taylor notes that a special

clause occurs frequently in hiring contracts for that year—that slaves are to be returned to

the owner in the event of civil war.

The collection also contains deeds and bills of sale for slaves. These are in section 19 (a

1760s document from Christ Church Parish), section 68 (Henrico County, 1824), section

69 (George Brand of Baltimore, Md., sold Daniel, who was born and raised in Virginia,

1815; and an 1822 deed for Abner), and section 74 (Caswell and John Poe bought

Andrew, 1823). In section 44 are two statements of Elizabeth S. Temple concerning the

sale of Joe (1846) and Berkley (1858), each of them being ungovernable and threatening

to run to a free state; section 45 contains a letter of Walter V. Cranch to Temple

concerning the sale of Joe in Richmond.

Harrison family papers, 1725–1907. 1,247 items. Mss1H2485c. Microfilm reels

C407–410.

Much of this collection concerns Randolph Harrison (1769–1839) of Clifton plantation in

Cumberland County. His bonds for slave hirings, 1824–1829, are in section 3, some of

which are specific about clothes to be provided as part of the agreement and items to be

deducted from the price of the hire. There is also an 1815 bond of Archer Harrison for

hiring Ned (section 12).

Section 2 contains Randolph Harrison’s loose accounts. They record costs of meals for

slaves, slave sales (including an 1824 sale of Judy for eight barrels of corn), medical

services, 1825–1831, provided by physician Abner Nash and Jonathan Trent, and hiring

accounts. Two affidavits concerning fugitive slaves appear in section 5. An 1824

statement indicates that Randolph Harrison’s slave Tom was picked up in Fredericksburg

(including receipt for return costs); an 1829 affidavit states that John was apprehended in

Cumberland, only one mile from Harrison’s residence.

Harrison family papers, 1768–1908. 74 items. Mss1H2485b. Microfilm reel C407.

Correspondence and financial records of Benjamin Temple (1801–1872) of Spotsylvania

County and materials of Dr. Jacob Prosser Harrison (1834–1908), Richmond physician,

and other family members.

Letters of Julia A. Taylor and Robert T. Taylor of Richmond to their uncle, Benjamin

Temple, provide an accounting for the hire of slaves belonging to their grandmother in

the years 1860–1862 (section 3). Another letter of Robert T. Taylor to Charlotte Carter

Temple in 1860 concerns the same matter (section 8).

An account book kept by Benjamin Temple, 1833–1871, concerns agricultural operations

on plantations in several eastern Virginia counties and includes records concerning the

hiring and labor of slaves and supplies provided to slave laborers and families (section 5).

Two letters of Edgar B. Montague written to Elizabeth B. Chowning of Middlesex

County in 1862 concern the hiring of Thom and his service with Montague while the

latter fought with the Confederate States Army (section 10). The letters also discuss

hiring practices in general and the safety of slaves while attending soldiers in the army.

Harrison family papers, 1791–1875. 19 items. Mss2H2489d.

Papers of members of the Harrison, Skipwith, and Ravenscroft families of Amelia,

Lunenburg, and Mecklenburg counties. Include an 1844 letter of John P. Ballard (of

Palmyra) to William Henry Harrison (of Wigwam, Amelia County) concerning his

complaints about a slave who acted as a carriage driver on a trip between Wigwam and

Richmond. Also, include a letter, 1793, of John Starke Ravenscroft to Lady Jean

Skipwith concerning, in part, clothing made by his wife for slaves and their preparations

for inhabiting the Spring Bank plantation in Lunenburg County.

Harrison family papers, 1802–1869. 130 items. Mss1H2485e. Microfilm reel C412.

Section 11 contains a statement, 6 May 1865, of Hazard, property of Lt. William Ellzey

Harrison, CSA, concerning the arrangements ordered by Harrison for transportation and

care of Harrison’s horse and personal belongings during the evacuation of Petersburg.

The presence of Union forces complicated Hazard’s ability to carry out Harrison’s orders

as planned.

Harvie family papers, 1831–1913. 3,102 items. Mss1H2636c.

The papers of this Amelia County family shed light on work arrangements made by large

landowners of the postbellum period. A significant body of material concerns agreements

between Lewis Edwin Harvie and freedmen for working the farm in 1865 and 1866

(section 11), then contracting the farm work to German immigrants in the following years

(contracts in section 10 for comparative purposes). Some of the freedmen’s contracts

provide for women and children to do housework, and one is for a blacksmith. (Section

40 includes an 1873 agreement of Joseph Willson with freedmen for farm labor.) Also in

section 11 is an 1865 order of the Freedmen’s Bureau, stating that under no

circumstances may freedmen disobey their employer and that employers may require that

laborers work several hours past sunset.

A letter from Thomas Freeman Epes encloses resolutions of the Bellefonte Grange #15

delineating those requirements that an African American must meet before a white man

may sell or rent land to him (section 1). The resolutions provide commentary on African

Americans’ search for social equality and efforts to rise above manual labor.

Harwood family papers, 1774–1908. 544 items. Mss1H2664a.

Personal and business records of Thomas Seawell Harwood, Thomas G. Harwood,

Walter C. Harwood, and Lucy E. Stubblefield Harwood of Airville, Gloucester County,

and records of the mercantile firm of Thomas B. Rowe & Co. of Gloucester Court House.

An 1854 agreement between Thomas G. Harwood and John P. Taliaferro (section 5)

concerns the hiring of Sally Ann and the terms of her service.

Haxall family papers, 1768–1831. 113 items. Mss1H3203d.

Correspondence, accounts, and miscellaneous records of merchants William Haxall and

Joseph Haxall of Petersburg. James Henderson writes in 1795 to Duncan Rose of

Petersburg concerning negotiations for the sale of Clem to a potential buyer in Richmond

and provides instructions to be passed on to Clem (section 3). In section 8, an 1822

agreement between William Haxall and Thomas Pegram concerns the care of Dinah, so

that she will be "comfortable for the remainder of her life." A certificate of insurance,

1823, issued to Haxall by the Petersburg Marine Insurance Company covers the shipment

of five slaves from Norfolk to New Orleans, listing the slaves by name and providing a

valuation for each (section 8).

Haxall family papers, 1835–1920. 243 items. Mss1H3203c.

William Henry Haxall (1809–1888) and Bolling Walker Haxall (1814–1885) of

Richmond figure prominently in this collection, especially among items of African

American content. Bolling Haxall’s account book for 1851–1883 (section 4) contains

several lists of slaves held privately and in partnership. The lists vary; some have

notations of hiring out or sale, deaths, occupations, or health impairments, and one note

reports a slave as having run off to the Yankees. An 1865 account book (section 5)

records accounts with freedmen for wages, and charges for clothes, shoes, and groceries.

William Haxall’s correspondence, 1861–1867 (section 1), with Hector Harris of Bedford

County follows the slave Henry, to whom the family has become attached after having

hired him for several years. Harris cannot afford to buy Henry but investigates the

possibility just the same. They also discuss the estate division of property, in particular,

two unnamed girl slaves. In section 20 are two life insurance policies, 1860, issued by the

Virginia Life Insurance Company of Richmond for Mary Jane and Austen, house

servants of Mary Bell Moncure of Richmond.

Hays, James (1839–1888), papers, 1857–1888. 102 items. Mss1H3344a. Photocopies.

The collection is primarily correspondence between James Hays, a student at Emory and

Henry College, and his mother, Emily Thompson (West) Hays, of The Cedars, Miss. In

section 2, James Hays expresses his opinion of abolitionists (30 January 1859) and on

John Brown (20 November 1859). In section 1 Emily Hays writes to her son, a

Confederate soldier, about the death of Ambrose, a family slave who had died suddenly.

Hebrew Cemetery Company, Richmond, records, 1928–1946. 130 items.

Mss4H3546b.

Primarily consists of financial accounts, 1928–1933 and 1939–1946, concerning the

general operations of the cemetery at 5th and Hospital Streets in Richmond and the care

of grave sites there. Also includes a letter, 1935, of Mrs. Alice H. Harris, supervisor of

the Colored Recreation Association of Richmond, to Irving J. Straus (1881–1939),

secretary of the company, concerning the activities of association members on cemetery

property.

Heely, Edward, receipt, 1848. 1 p. Mss2H3605a1.

Issued to Thomas W. Crowder of Cumberland County for the medical care of a slave

child.

Henderson, John (b. 1802), arithmetic book, 1817–1824. 230 pp. Mss5:4H3835:1.

John Henderson composed this notebook for his own use while teaching school in

Spotsylvania County. In the back of the volume is a copy of an 1823 deed for 146 acres

of land, appurtenances, and six slaves (by name only) from William Henderson to his

children.

Henderson family papers, 1778–1830. 20 items. Mss2H3838b.

John Henderson served in the Virginia House of Delegates for Mason County (now in

West Virginia). In 1813, he and John Cantrill distributed circular letters to their

constituents summarizing the most recent session of the General Assembly (section 2).

They reported that slave owners may move into Virginia and bring their slaves with them

and that other provisions for making it easier to bring slaves into Virginia are under

consideration. They discussed the bills for the new districts (now in West Virginia) that

deliberately do not require congressional representatives to meet landholder

qualifications, indicating concern that an African American could become a

representative. Henderson adds that the militia, although created for defense during war,

could also serve as a guard over slaves.

Henley, Bernard John (b. 1909), notes concerning artists, musicians, and writers in

Richmond, comp. 1972. [16] leaves. Mss7:3N40H389:2.

Compiled from Richmond newspapers, 1858–1888. Concern Theodosia (Burr) Allston,

Robert Armistead, Carter Nelson Berkeley, Frederick Nichols Crouch, Mittie F. C.

(Point) Davis, Nellie Deans, Edwin Farmer, Lucy Virginia (Smith) French, John Jasper,

Lucy T. Redd, [?] Schreiber, John F. Stith, and Adele Williams.

Henrico County, Court, papers, 1817–1820. 6 pp. Mss4V8a15. Typescript copy.

Pertain to the will of Izard Bacon of Henrico County in which he provides for the

emancipation of his slaves as soon as the law allows for them to leave the state. Until

then they are allowed to work for the benefit of the aged and infirm. Includes a hiring list

with the slaves’ names, ages, employers, health condition, cost of hire or keeping, and

several births.

Henry family papers, 1763–1920. 1,085 items. Mss1H3968a. Microfilm reels C18

and C413.

Papers of Governor Patrick Henry, John Henry of Red Hill, Charlotte County, and

William Wirt Henry, attorney and historian of Charlotte County and Richmond.

Section 1 includes a handwritten copy of a 1777 letter of Quaker Robert Pleasants of

Curles Neck, Henrico County, to Patrick Henry concerning the abolition of slavery.

Affidavits, 1845, by two neighbors of Edward Winston Henry concern the health of his

former slave Anthony, recently "carried to the south" (section 7). John Henry compiled a

"List of Negroes owned . . . at the time of the war & surrender," ca. 1865 (section 9).

An 1847 letter of Joel Watkins Marshall at Charlotte Court House to his father, James

Pulliam Marshall, contains a letter to the elder Marshall by Caesar (in the hand of Joel

Marshall) concerning his relatives and operations on the plantation (section 12). Two

deeds, 1817 and 1830, cover the sale of Agness (of Lynchburg) and Caesar (of Charlotte

County) to James Pulliam Marshall (section 15).

William Wirt Henry maintained an account book, 1857–1881. The first few pages of the

volume contain a list of slaves belonging to Henry, with information on their ages,

children, and the means by which Henry acquired them. After the Civil War, Henry used

the book in part to record the employment of freedmen and women on his plantation in

Charlotte County (section 21). A undated draft of an essay by Elizabeth Watkins (Henry)

Lyons called "The Turning of the Sifter" concerns Huck, Ceasar, Lucinda, and African

American plantation life at Red Hill, Charlotte County (section 38). An undated letter, ca.

1810, of Dr. Robert Burton to a Dr. Fontaine concerns the medical treatment of slaves

and includes prescriptions (section 52).

A miscellaneous group of materials (section 56) includes an 1802 receipt of William

Ross, of Mount Ida, Buckingham County, for the sale of Ned; a lengthy 1847 affidavit by

Edward L. Palmer concerning the slave Felix of Halifax County; an 1853 appraisal of

slaves belonging to the estate of George C. Friend of Charlotte County; and another 1817

deed concerning the slave Agness.

Hertford County, N.C., Sheriff, receipt, 1825. 1 p. Mss2K7474a1.

Receipt, 8 August 1825, issued to Mrs. Sarah Knight by R. G. Cowper, sheriff, for the

payment of taxes on land and slaves for the year 1824.

Higginbotham, David (1775–1853), papers, 1811–1891. 414 items. Mss1H5354a.

Primarily personal and business correspondence of planter and merchant David

Higginbotham of Morven, Albemarle County. Much of the correspondence is from

family members, including a daughter, Frances (Higginbotham) Buckner, and her

husband, Bernard Hooe Buckner, concerning their life in St. Louis, Mo., the move to a

cotton plantation in Mississippi, and the acquisition and training of slaves. Also includes

correspondence with another daughter, Elizabeth (Higginbotham) Fisher, and her

husband, Richmond merchant George Daniel Fisher, in part concerning the appraisal and

sale of Bob, a slave, and his family. Also included is a list of thirty-two slaves (with ages)

owned by a son, Elmslie Higginbotham.

Higginbotham family papers, 1799–1865. 114 items. Mss1H5354b. Microfilm reels

C468–469.

The Higginbotham papers consist primarily of letters, 1828–1862, written to Ann Estelle

(Higginbotham) Hoskins (b. 1813) of Morven, Albemarle County, Va., and Philadelphia,

Pa., by various family members. Topics discussed include slavery in general, as well as

specific slaves at Morven and the local effect of Nat Turner’s Insurrection of 1831.

Hightower, Scott Rex (b. 1952), "Genealogical Notes concerning the Hightower

Family," 1972. [29] pp. Mss6:1H5385:1. Photocopies.

Notes include copies of African American slave birth registers, listing those slaves

belonging to the Hightower family born between 1724 and 1750.

Hill, Ambrose Powell (1825–1865), papers, 1843–1864. 29 items. Mss1H5503a.

Papers concerning Hill’s career while at the United States Military Academy, in the 1st

United States Artillery Regiment, and in the Confederate States Army. Section 3 contains

the correspondence, 1843–1864, of Hill including an 1850 letter to his brother, Edward

Baptist Hill of Culpeper Court House, which, among other topics, expressed Hill’s

outrage toward the citizens of Culpeper following the mob-style lynching of a slave

accused of killing a white man.

Hill, William, indenture, 1799. [3] pp. Mss2H5565a1.

Mortgage deed, dated 10 June 1799, to Christopher Tompkins, John Walker Semple,

Isaac Robertson, and Edward Hill for thirty slaves and sixteen horses.

Hill family papers, 1787–1945. 4,375 items. Mss1H5565aFA2. Microfilm reels C334–

337.

The papers of this Culpeper and Madison County family show the diversified interests of

its members. Millwood plantation records reflect the family’s agricultural ventures;

various family members were active in education, the ministry, and medicine.

Material pertaining to the estate of Ambrose Powell Hill (1785–1858) are in box 2, filed

under William A. Hill, the administrator for the estate, and include records of the division

of slaves at Millwood in Madison County. In the same box are accounts and bonds of

John Booton (1796–1845), including an 1823 bill of sale for Jacob and 1834 deeds for

Daniel, Mary, and Ellen, property of James Hill. Tax records for 1832 to 1840 are

incomplete but record the number of slaves taxed.

In box 7, Ann Powell Hill’s "Miscellany" folder contains her contracts with freedmen,

1866–1871. These agreements make provisions for land, livestock, firewood, meal and

bacon allotments. The contracts also designate holidays, conduct, clothing to be provided,

clauses for time lost from work to include charge for board, type of work (field hand,

cook, maid), and names of family members. In box 11 are two commonplace books,

1867–1872, of William Powell Hill (1844–1929) that record pay, days lost, and

distribution of rations to workers.

Box 8 contains papers of Dr. William Alexander Hill, both a doctor and minister. In the

folder "Baptist Church Materials" is a form from the State Mission Board asking Antioch

Church to contribute $20 for 1887, Antioch Church then being an African American

church at Culpeper Court House.

Papers of Albert Hudgins Hill (1866–1933) are in box 19. As a superintendent of

Richmond public schools, he kept records pertaining to local education. An item dated 12

January 1917 discusses the concerns of African American teachers.

Hill family papers, 1831–1857. 8 items. Mss2H5568b.

Include records of the estate division of James Govan of Hanover County. A three-page

list of slaves includes names, values, mothers, and a note that one slave has a hernia.

Hilldrup, Robert Pendleton (b. 1933), papers, 1969–1980. 1,541 items. Mss1H5568a.

This collection includes correspondence, reports, research notes, publicity materials, and

school system publications compiled by Hilldrup as director of public information for the

Richmond public school system. Materials concern school desegregation and busing for

integration, among other topics. Section 4 in particular includes reports of community

reaction to busing, legal information about busing, and correspondence of Hilldrup about

the issue of busing.

Hite, Isaac (1758–1836), commonplace book, 1776–1859. 198 pp. Mss5:5H6375:1.

Microfilm reel C518.

Isaac Hite kept a list of slaves in this commonplace book. The list runs several pages in

length and records births, deaths, exchanges, prices, slaves given as gifts, and runaways.

One page makes a note of several that had the measles. Birth and death dates are 1750 to

1850.

Hite family papers, 1768–1843. 43 items. Mss1H6375a.

Collection concerns the business and personal activities of members of the Hite,

Bowman, and related families in Frederick and Shenandoah counties, Va. Section 3

includes accounts, 1779–1817, of Issac Bowman (1757–1826), in part, concerning costs

for the capture and confinement of Frank, a runaway slave, in Hagerstown, Md. The

section also includes an agreement, 1774, of Charles Beale and John Greathouse

concerning a partnership as farmers and millers in Dunmore County (now Shenandoah

County, Va.), including the use of slave labor. There is also a list, 1790–1839, of slaves,

including birth and death dates.

Hobson, Anne Jennings Wise (1837–1914), diary, 1863–1865. [30] pp.

Mss5:1H6537:1. Typescript copy. Restricted use.

Kept at Eastwood, Goochland County. Concerns, in part, problems with family servants,

the fall of Richmond, the end of the Civil War, and the freeing of slaves.

Hobson, William (d. 1739), deed, 1738. 1 p. Mss2H6537a1.

Written in Northumberland County conveying six slaves to his daughter, Elizabeth Cary

(Hobson) Hampton of Prince William County, including the names of three children and

their parents.

Hoffman, Charles (1766–1825), account book, 1810–1849. [84] pp. Mss5:3H6755:1.

Kept by Charles Hoffman as a merchant in Suffolk and by his son, Charles F. Hoffman.

Includes birth records of slaves.

Hoge family papers, 1804–1938. 1,695 items. Mss1H6795a. Microfilm reels C19–20.

Section 46 includes a three-page mimeographed typescript entitled "Negro Education in

the City [of Richmond] Public Schools," 1905, in which Moses Drury Hoge writes his

opinion on whether African Americans are by nature better suited for academic education

or manual training.

Holladay family papers, 1728–1931. 2,318 items. Mss1H7185a. Microfilm reels

C338–343.

This collection contains a variety of general records pertaining to slaves and freedmen

affiliated with the Holladay family of Spotsylvania County. Among the earliest records is

a tax assessor’s book kept by Waller Holladay for Spotsylvania in 1798 (section 88). It

records names of slaveowners and the number of taxable slaves by age groups from

twelve to fifty. Section 94 contains lists of slaves and hiring records; a list of births

begins with 1793 and continues to 1860; deeds and hiring records pertain to the years

1807 to 1818. Section 63 also contains birth lists beginning with 1762 for slaves owned

by Lewis Holladay at Bellefonte. Dates and mothers’ names are recorded for

approximately fifty-five slaves. Also in section 63 is an undated generic guide of

appraisal values by age and gender in Virginia currency (tobacco pounds). In section 104

is an 1843 affidavit stating the number of slaves (by age group) of Julia Ann Minor

Holladay in Louisa County for tithable records.

As a justice of the peace, Lewis Holladay kept copies of legal records. Some of these

concern legal action against slaves (section 58), including Major, property of Edward

Hyde, for the murder of Ralph, property of David Sandidge (see entry below for more on

this case). Other records pertain to slaves involved in estate divisions that were settled in

chancery and appellate courts (section 95). An 1816 affidavit of Hugh Corran Boggs

concerns Benjamin Carter and George Boxley hiring Aggy for 1816.

A slave insurrection implicating George Boxley is the subject of material in section 72

(see also Mss1H7185b, section 237), in particular a letter by Wilson Cary Nicholas to

Waller Holladay. Boxley’s plan for an insurrection is detailed by the examination of

slaves’ testimony; lists of slaves implicated are also included. Also in section 72 is a

letter of Robert Powell in which he discusses the Virginia constitutional convention of

1829–1830, the chances of abolishing slavery, the possibility of restricting slaves’ access

to northern abolitionist publications, the need for more police, and government-

subsidized African colonization.

Sections 126 to 129 consist of account books, 1866–1875, that record accounts with

freedmen as farm laborers, noting days worked, days lost for attendence at political

meetings, holidays, summaries of labor contracts, and shoes. In section 143 is an 1888

agreement providing for Izzie Coleman to work as a domestic servant for Lucy Daniel

Lewis Holladay at Prospect Hill. Room and board are provided, along with wages,

clothing, visitation privileges, and conditions for illness.

Holladay family papers, 1753–1961. 12,728 items. Mss1H7185b. Microfilm reels

C343–357.

Additional papers of the Holladay family include a number of basic slave records, such as

deeds and lists. In section 1 is a 1789 deed of Benjamin Holladay that includes Jean,

Nelly, and Anthony, among other property. Section 51 contains lists of tithables, 1860,

and an 1854 register of births going back to 1796 and notes of which slaves are assigned

to the mill. Section 166 contains notes, 1847–1885, of James Minor Holladay of slave

births, those removed to Texas, and assignments of weekly chores and routines. J. W.

Holladay’s account book, 1891–1899, in section 183, records chores, wages, and charges

of laborers at Prospect Hill in Spotsylvania County. In section 241 is an 1812 hiring

bond, a 1785 estate list of James Rawlings, and a permission slip for the slave George to

dispose of twelve pounds of seed cotton.

A 1774 deed of trust that was not promptly recorded was the subject of a dispute that

lasted several years in court. The deed of Elizabeth Lewis (Littlepage) Holladay to John

Lewis concerned property that included the slaves Sylvia, Jenny, Delphy, Daphney,

Phoebe, and Phyllis. The details of the case appear in the contents of sections 18 to 22. A

copy of the deed of trust is in section 27. Sections 16 and 17 contain other legal material

pertaining to slaves, in particular charges of theft, receipt of stolen goods, arson, and a

1799 report describing the murder of the slave Ralph by another slave, Major.

Section 237 contains May 1816 letters of Stapleton Crutchfield concerning George

Boxley’s escape from jail. (Boxley was implicated in the April 1816 uprising of slaves in

Spotsylvania and surrounding counties. See also Mss1H7185a, section 72.) In the same

section Henry Tatterson writes to Amy, 1845, about his attempts to buy her from her

master, Mr. Holladay. Tatterson also reassures Amy of his love and reminds Jack to help

care for Tatterson’s son.

Notes of Waller Holladay (folder 7 of section 57), dated 1858, state that an inspection of

various parts of the slave cabins is sufficient but inspections of the blankets are

unnecessary; treatment of slaves should not be harsh, nor should they be made to work in

rain or plow wet soil; some need extra time to get to work, because of age or distance. In

section 114 is J. M. Holladay’s 1857 correspondence with Dr. J. W. Minor of Albemarle

County that relates news from the colony in Liberia, in particular the names of mutual

acquaintances who have died. Section 30 includes Waller Holladay’s correspondence

with Dr. George Dillard, enclosing medical fees for the slaves Julius and Lucy (1859–

1860).

In September 1864, J. M. Holladay requested information concerning the sale price of

certain slaves from Hill, Dickinson & Co. of Richmond (section 114). The response was

that the slaves were unsellable on the Richmond market. Enclosed was a summary of

current prices for slaves by age, gender, health, and family groups.

Box 24 contains a number of small, pocket-size account books of James Minor Holladay

(1823–1891). These are labeled sections 124–144. Generally, the books record

attendance at work, wages, charges, and some miscellaneous accounts for farm laborers

from 1865 to 1887. Section 167 contains an April 1865 general order of the United States

Army of the Potomac prescribing appropriate conduct of former slaves and their rights

and responsibilities and providing for the establishment of an agent to oversee

employment of former slaves, the registration of freedmen, and the restriction on former

slaves from removing to urban areas.

Holladay family papers, 1787–1968. 141 items. Mss1H7185c. Microfilm reel C358.

In this related collection is a series of letters, 1813, of Dr. Richmond Lewis to Lewis

Holladay concerning the details of medical treatment for Jeffrey, a slave of Holladay. The

correspondence is in section 1.

Holladay family papers, 1804–1938. 1,786 items. Mss1H7185g.

Mainly correspondence and accounts of the Holladay family of Prospect Hill,

Spotsylvania County. Section 3 contains an 1862 affidavit of Alexander Richmond

Holladay, concerning the sale of a male slave. Section 7 contains a number of letters

written to Eliza Lewis Holladay concerning African Americans, including

communications from Ann Elizabeth (Holladay) Poindexter (concerning the enclosed

notes of her husband, Dr. William Quarles Poindexter, about the number of slaves he

employed in 1850, and the slavery question); Dr. William Quarles Poindexter

(concerning his feelings of awkwardness in living in a society with freedmen); and

Virginia W. (Minor) Rawlins (concerning the sale of her slave, Moses). Section 12

contains the correspondence, 1854–1904, of Lucy Daniel (Lewis) Holladay of

Spotsylvania County. Among her correspondents are Charlotte A. Armstrong (concerning

Mrs. Armstrongs desire for her slaves to migrate to Liberia and her wish to visit Africa)

and Margaret Campbell (Miller) Holladay (concerning the behavior of servants after

1865). Section 14 contains the correspondence of Virginia Watson Holladay (1829–1888)

of Spotsylvania County. Correspondents include Francis Addison Hill (a school teacher

writing about domestic life and a case of arson in 1853); Mary Jane (Boggs) Holladay

(concerning John Brown’s raid at Harpers Ferry [now W. Va.]); and Rebecca Ann

(Holladay) Willis (referring to selling slaves in 1859). Section 18 contains the

correspondence, 1880–1914, of John Waller Holladay (1864–1914), including a letter

from his wife, Mary Caroline (Harris) Holladay, that makes references to a female

servant.

Holland family papers, 1831–1862. 51 items. Mss2H7195b.

In the papers of this Franklin County family is an 1839 pass for nine male slaves to visit

their home in Franklin County. The slaves were in the employ of Lewis and Shrewsbury,

Kanawha Salines, in Kanawha County (now Malden, W.Va.).

Hood Temple Male Chorus, Richmond, sound recording, “A Celebration of Praise,”

1994. 1 sound cassette. Mss15H7617a.

This recording was made at Hood Temple AME Zion Church in Richmond on 14

October 1994 and features nine gospel songs.

Hooe, Bernard, authorization, 1827. 1 p. Mss2H7614a1. Typescript copy.

Authorization, dated 7 June 1827, Bentsville, to Peyton Norvell to remove from the

plantation of Mrs. Sarah E. Lee in Fairfax County a slave woman inherited by Mrs.

Thomas Moncure from Sarah Chichester.

Hore, Elias A. W. (b. 1820), account book, 1843. [336] p. Mss5:3H7817:1.

This volume, kept by Hore presumably as a deputy sheriff in Stafford County, includes

an alphabetical list of local tax payers and the property on which taxes were levied. Also,

contains a list of free African Americans in Hore’s district of the county.

Horne family papers, 1840–1878. 25 items. Mss2H7839b.

Mainly the papers of the Horne family of Hanover County. Section 2 contains a deed of

sale for two slaves, Mana and Judith, involving Hudson M. Wingfield and Polly V.

Cross.

Horner, Inman (1791–1860), papers, 1817–1858. 24 items. Mss2H7847b.

A receipt, 1829, of John Florance to Thomas C. Roach concerns the slave Chloe, a slave

for life, warranted to be sound.

Hundley, Henry Watkins, account book, 1923–1933. 568 pp. Mss5:3H8925:1.

Kept at Dennistown Junction, Halifax County. A page near the back contains the

beginnings of a list of slave births, with only two names; only Griffin’s birthdate is

recorded (1841).

Hundley family papers, 1817–1900. 80 items. Mss1H8928a. Photocopies.

The papers of this Essex County family include a February 1857 pass for Ben to visit his

unnamed wife (section 4), issued by Larkin Hundley. In section 2 is a letter of Robert E.

Lee to the presiding justice of Essex County (Hundley) requesting fifty free male African

Americans to work on fortifications in Richmond, according to an act of the Virginia

legislature passed 12 February 1863.

Hunter, Dangerfield (d. 1856), will, 1856. 1 p. Mss2H9167a1. Typescript copy.

A will of a slave belonging to Louis Abraham Pauly of Augusta County. Hunter died 20

November 1856 at age seventy-five. His will was written 18 June of the same year. He

distributed his possessions among friends and relatives; the articles consisted of furniture,

clothes, kitchen utensils, and domestic fowl.

Hunter, George Lawrence (1903–1984), papers, 1948–1975. 113 items. Mss1H9173a.

Collection consists of correspondence and related materials compiled by George

Lawrence Hunter while commissioner of revenue for the city of Fredericksburg,

concerning his activities as a member of and local leader in the Virginia Democratic

Party. Section 1 contains correspondence of Hunter with U.S. Senator Harry Flood Byrd,

Sr., 1948–1960, concerning, in part, the African American vote in Fredericksburg.

Hunter family papers, 1766–1918. 4,070 items. Mss1H9196aFA2. Microfilm reels

C251–258.

This Essex County family owned Hunter’s Hill and Fonthill plantations. The volume of

pertinent material in this collection is considerable, and the finding aid (available from

the reference librarian) is essential to locating materials. Many of the basic types of slave

records can be found in the collection, from deeds and bills of sale to hiring bonds. Slave

lists abound in estate records and in commonplace books. Account books and ledgers

scrupulously record time worked, wages paid, and items charged to laborers’ accounts.

Of special interest is a series of letters by Margaret Mercer to Martha Fenton Hunter

(1800–1866), located in box 22. The correspondence covers the 1830s and 1840s; Mercer

writes from Maryland, and her letters are full of newsy tidbits, one of her subjects being

her servant Tom and his three children. She would like to send them to Liberia, but he is

reluctant to go. She expresses her opinions of abolitionists and how her slaves in the

South should be managed.

There are several anomalies that should be noted. The estate papers, 1804–1811, in

Moscoe Garnett Hunter’s "Miscellany" section (box 5) concern slaves of William

Garnett; the bondspeople are referred to generally, and none is mentioned by name. An

1815 bill of sale in the same section lists Rachel and her four children. Another unusual

item is a three-page 1849 circular in box 15, among Robert M. T. Hunter’s congressional

materials (folder 1). Printed as an annual meeting statement for the Religious Society of

Friends of Great Britain and Ireland, it concerns attitudes toward slavery and the slave

trade among British people. Also in box 15 is a section of essays, including a sixteen-

page essay offering Hunter’s opinion of freedmen’s participation in state and national

politics during Reconstruction.

Box 19 contains Mary Evalina (Dandridge) Hunter’s Fonthill plantation papers. Some

1862 passes in that group were issued not so much for permission to travel as to have

cloth made. Sally Hunter’s "Farming Materials" in box 28 contain lists of hirings and

distribution of supplies and rations for 1843 to 1862. In addition to births, deaths, and

mother-children groups, Hunter also noted which persons had measles and mumps,

especially on the late 1850s lists. Her records of gifts and supplies are fairly detailed

about clothing, such as calicos, flannels, petticoats, old dresses, bonnets, and aprons.

Lists of distribution of supplies and loose accounts, some for medical services, and

records of freedmen’s hours and wages are numerous and can be located through the

collection’s finding aid.

Hunter family papers, 1768–1928. 1,072 items. Mss1H9196b.

The Hunter family collection contains correspondence, accounts, legal papers,

commonplace books, school notebooks, and miscellany of the Hunter and related Garnett

families of Essex County and the Stevens family of Hoboken, N.J. The collection

includes scattered references to African Americans from 1780 to 1868. In section 2, the

correspondence of James Hunter (1746–1788), a merchant and supplier to the Continental

Army during the Revolutionary War, contains a letter from Brig. Gen. George Weedon

mentioning the slaves left behind by the British when they evacuated Portsmouth in 1780,

while a letter from Hunter’s business partner John Banks describes the sale of his slave

Paris in 1782. In section 5, a letter from Marianna Hunter to her nephew James Hunter

(1774–1826) concerns the hiring out of her slaves Milly, Betty, and "Aunty" because of

financial difficulties. Section 8 includes a receipt for medical services rendered by Dr.

Alexander Somervail for Martha "Patsy" Taliaferro Hunter and also for her African

American slaves.

Section 10 contains a bill of sale conveying J. William Garnett’s slave Rachel and her

children to Muscoe Garnett Hunter (1779–1818). In Section 13, the correspondence of

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Jane Swann Hunter (1804–1880), a sister of Robert Mercer Taliaferro Hunter (1809–

1887), includes an 1840 letter from James Roy Micou, Jr., regarding the sale of an

overcoat to Jane’s slave "Old Joe," and also includes a medical bill for him, and an 1868

letter from Florentina Isidora (Moreno) Garnett discussing African American farm

workers at Cedar Hill in Hanover County.

Robert M. T. Hunter served in the Virginia legislature and the U.S. Congress before the

Civil War. Several sections of his papers reference African Americans. Section 15

contains an 1833 letter from W. Braden reporting an offer by Col. Williams and John

Branch, Jr., to purchase slaves William, Henry, Arthur, and George from James Mercer

Garnett and Maria (Hunter)Garnett and discusses the Florida Territory’s tax on slaves of

non-residents. The same section includes an 1865 letter from E. D. Bean of the Office of

Support of Freedmen requesting Hunter to allow an African American woman to remain

at his home until she can find housing. Continuing in section 16, Hunter corresponds with

the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands in 1866, responding to claims

by his former slaves Milly and Emily that they deserve aid because Hunter did not

provide clothes for them. Hunter’s personal legal papers in section 19 contain slave lists

from 1862 and 1864.

Section 30 contains a letter to Martha "Pink" Taliaferro Hunter (1841–1909) from a

"Cousin M," who describes events in Richmond on 3 April 1866, which included "a

grand fandango" held by the African Americans of the area, racial disturbances between

whites and blacks, and an account of having tea with two African American women.

Hunter family papers, 1802–1907. 330 items. Mss1H9196c.

This collection consists of the papers of the Moses T. Hunter family of Winchester and

the related Alfred C. Weeks family of Bell Grove near New Iberia, St. Martin’s Parish,

La. Section 2 contains letters between Nancy Weeks and her husband, Alfred C. Weeks,

discussing relations between them and their slaves (letter of 24 December 1853 discusses

stopping sugar production at the behest of Weeks’s slaves because it was Christmas Eve).

Section 3 includes letters concerning Alfred C. Weeks’s loss of slaves, as well as his

confidence in the Confederacy’s desire to protect slavery in future. An undated letter

from Mary Weeks discusses slaves’ behavior and her hope they will remain loyal.

Postwar items include a letter of May 1867 complaining of freedmen’s "depridations" on

livestock; a letter of April 1868 mentions African American suffrage. The collection also

contains an account book, 1862, belonging to Alfred C. Weeks, apparently containing

names of slaves Weeks took with him to Texas during the Civil War and including a

record of money paid to him for the hire of slaves. Section 6 includes a bill of sale for

slaves from Dunwick Hicks to Nathan Swayze.

Huntington, William (1793–1867?), papers, 1808–1856. 143 items. Mss1H9262a.

Microfilm reel C414.

In this collection of papers of a New England merchant and schoolteacher is a diary,

1839–1841 (section 1), containing several entries pertaining to Huntington’s lay ministry

to the slaves at Retirement in Charlotte County. This ministry is best documented in the

first few months of 1839 and is mostly noted by dates on which he spoke to a gathering

101

of the slaves and the scriptural text for his sermons. An entry for 10 February records his

visit to an enfeebled old woman in her slave cabin who seeks salvation. He also notes the

slaves’ disappointment that he was unable to speak to them on 14 February.

Huntley, Elizabeth Gray Valentine Thomas (1902–1947), commonplace books, ca.

1930–1934. 3 v. Mss5:5H9265:1–3.

Kept in Richmond by Elizabeth Huntley. Volume III comprises biographical notes

concerning African Americans, including Edward Coleman, Phylis (Terry) Coleman,

Daniel Stewart, and Mrs. Lavinia Stewart.

Hutchison family papers, 1807–1918. 1,408 items. Mss1H9754a.

In the papers of this Craig County family is a letter to George W. Hutchison from Charles

S. Scheaffer, a representative of the Bureau of Freedmen, Refugees, and Abandoned

Lands (section 1). It states that Milton Green Burks, an African American, has

complained of Hutchison for payment of wages from 9 April to 25 December 1865 and

itemizes what he has received in compensation to date (clothing). Schaeffer requires

Hutchison to settle the balance of the debt. In section 17, accounts concerning the

administration of Martin Hutchison’s estate include a hiring bond for Ed, dated

December 1864. Section 19 includes two printed tax receipts, 1861 and 1862, for the

estate of William Taylor; the forms differ in that the 1861 form includes a tax rate for

slaves over age twelve and the 1862 form includes a tax rate for free male blacks over

age twenty-one.

Independent Order of St. Luke. Antioch Council No. 506, Powhatan County,

records, 1923–1932. 3 items. Mss4In254b.

Papers concerning the payment of a death benefit to the estate of Mrs. Josephine Harrison

Taylor (1875–1931) of Clayville, Powhatan County. Include benefit certificate; proof of

death certificate; and letter (copy) of Maggie Lena (Mitchell) Walker to Mrs. Martha

Woodfin.

Ingle, Edward (1861–1924), papers, 1858–1961. 352 items. Mss1In45a.

Personal and professional papers of a newspaper editor of Baltimore, Md.

(Manufacturers’ Record), and Richmond, Va. Section 1 contains Ingle’s correspondence

on political and social issues at the turn of the century, especially concerning education in

the South. Among his correspondents were Edward Atkinson (concerning racial tensions

and the education of African Americans), Frederic Bancroft (concerning the nature of

antebellum slavery and his book, The Domestic Slave-Trade), William A. Courtney

(concerning African American support of Robert C. Ogden’s ambitious public campaign

in support of educational reform and universal education), and F. B. Weathersbee

(concerning property holding by African Americans).

Irving family papers, 1833–1931. 55 items. Mss1Ir85a.

A commonplace book, 1833–1861, of Jane Rebecca (Eggleston) Irving Masters (1805–

102

1884), includes a list of names, mothers, and birthdates (some incomplete) of slaves, kept

in Amelia County (section 2).

Jameson, John Franklin (1859–1937), letter, 1909. 2 pp. Mss2J2387a1. Typescript.

Letter, 10 March 1909, written in Washington, D.C., to Morgan P. Robinson, Richmond,

Va., primarily about Robinson’s research on attitudes toward slavery. Jameson believes

that the political history of slavery has been well covered but that a good economic

history needs to be written.

Jefferson, Thomas, papers, 1780–1826. 52 items. Mss2J3595a. Microfilm reel C49.

This particular group of papers consists of individually cataloged items by or concerning

Thomas Jefferson. Of particular note are references to Jefferson’s hiring of slaves in 1807

(item a11) and a deed of gift of four slaves to his grandson, Thomas Jefferson Randolph,

in 1813 (item a48).

Jefferson family papers, 1828–1968. 105 items. Mss1J3596a.

Primarily concern members of the Jefferson family in Amelia County. Section 3 contains

a list, 1856, of slaves at Clay Hill, Fairy Wood, and Haw Branch in Amelia County.

Jenings family papers, 1737–1837. 21 items. Mss1J4105a. Microfilm reel C225.

The collection includes a letterbook maintained in England by Edmund Jenings (1703–

1756) and his son, Edmund (1731–1819). It has been indexed by VHS staff. References

to slaves include comments on the taxation of slaves in the colony of Maryland, sale of

slaves in Maryland following the death of the elder Jenings, and an agreement with a

correspondent about abhorrence of slavery as an institution.

Jeter, Jarratt Allen (b. 1797?), papers, 1754–1864. 24 items. Mss2J5103b.

Photocopies.

Resident of Amelia County. Papers include an 1832 opinion of Samuel Taylor

concerning a deed of trust, 1812, of Ann Wood and ownership of the slaves Sena and

Harriet and accounts, 1825 and 1849, for hiring and medical care for slaves, kept by Jeter

as administrator of Daniel Worsham’s estate. A memo, 1842, of Dandridge Hudgings

concerns a promissory note payable to Miles, property of Jarratt A. Jeter.

Johnson, Roger Horace (1891–1978), papers, 1910–1978. 46 items. Mss1J6325a.

Baptist minister and schoolteacher Roger H. Johnson attended the Lincoln Institute in

Simpsonville, Ky., before attending Virginia Union University in Richmond. He was

awarded a bachelor of divinity degree from Union in 1919, a masters in 1923, and an

honorary doctorate in 1938. From 1920 to 1938 he taught at Armstrong High School in

Richmond. He later taught at Maggie Walker High School, also in Richmond, where he

was a member of the original faculty in 1938 and sponsor of the first graduating class in

1942. He also served as pastor of Sharon Baptist Church in Richmond from 1923 to

1946.

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The collection chiefly consists of sermons, both in notebooks and on loose sheets. The

bulk of the writings in the notebooks dates to the early 1930s, while the unbound sermons

were written mostly in the mid-1940s. The subjects of the sermons include ideal Christian

values; the dangers of sin and intemperance; the problems of race and divorce as related

to Baptist beliefs; the seven seals referred to in The Book of Revelation; and the role of

parents in society. Also included is a commencement speech given at Armstrong High

School, 12 June 1930. Miscellaneous items include printed and school-related items.

Johnson family papers, 1826–1850. 47 items. Mss1J6398a.

Primarily the papers of William Ransom Johnson (1782–1849) of Petersburg and

Oakland, Chesterfield County; William Ransom Johnson (1822–1884) of Petersburg; and

James West Pegram of Richmond. Much of the material concerns horses and horseracing.

African American records include accounts covering the sale of slaves, 1844–1845

(section 2), and list of slaves from Oakland (section 4).

Johnston, James Ambler (1885–1974), papers, 1941–1970. 4 items. Mss1J6445d.

A scrapbook, 1968, commemorates Fannie Anderson Turner’s fiftieth anniversary as

cook for the Johnston family. The book includes newspaper clippings about her

association with the family, a recipe, letters and cards of congratulations (many with

personal notes), and photographs.

Johnston family papers, 1830–1938. 234 items. Mss1J6496c.

Concerns the Johnston family of Richmond and Rutherfoord familiy of Goochland

County. Section 1 includes correspondence, 1879–1891, of Joseph Eggleston Johnston

(of New York, N.Y., and Washington, D.C.), including a communication with Richard

Irvine Manning concerning freedmen. Section 8, which consists of materials, 1830–1834,

pertaining to Ann (Seddon) Roy of Green Plains, Mathews County, includes a

commonplace book that contains a list of slaves.

Jones, Flora, petition, [1852]. 1 p. Mss2J7155a1.

This petition, written circa December 1852 for presentation to the Virginia General

Assembly, then in session, concerns Jones’s emancipation by the will of John James

Henry Gunnell of Jefferson County (now W.Va.), and announces her willingness to

accept, with her child, voluntary enslavement to Mrs. Annie E. Wager, a niece of

Gunnell.

Jones, Lucy (d. 1788), will, 1788. 3 pp. Mss2J7207a1. Copy.

Written in Middlesex County, this will provides for the distribution among Jones’s

relatives of twelve slaves. Among the slaves listed are several mother-child pairs.

Jones, Mrs. Roy, research essay, 1932. 13 pp. Mss7:1Y345:1. Typescript copy.

Essay, "John Yeats and the Yeats free schools," concerning the 1731 will of John Yeats

of Nansemond County providing for the establishment and maintenance of several local

free schools with funds derived from renting out the land belonging to his estate and the

income received from the annual hiring out of the slaves of his estate. Includes notes on

hiring fees up to 1861.

104

Jones, Walter (1745–1816), papers, 1793–1815. 4 items. Mss2J7283c.

Physician of Hayfield, Northumberland County. A letter, 1815, concerns the treaty of

Ghent and the return of slaves held in British territory to their owners. Both this letter and

the letters to Graham in the following entry detail arrangements made by American

agents for the recovery of said slaves.

Jones, Walter (1745–1816), papers, 1809–1815. 5 items. Mss2J7283b.

In the second folder of this collection are several letters, 1815, from George Graham,

Washington, D.C., in which he discusses returning slaves captured by the British and

held in Bermuda, Halifax (Canada), and Tangiers.

Jones family papers, 1769–1846. 72 items. Mss1J735e.

Concerns members of the Jones family of Cedar Grove, Dinwiddie County, Bellvue,

Chesterfield County, and Petersburg. Section 1 contains correspondence, 1788–1822, of

Joseph Jones (1749–1824) of Cedar Grove and Petersburg. This section includes

correspondence with Jane (Atkinson) Jones concerning an accident and medical care of a

female slave, Jemmy.

Jones family papers, 1808–1942. 69 items. Mss1J735b.

In section 6 of this collection is an unusual hiring bond, dated 1859, to Mary H. Byrd

Claiborne, owner of Henry. The bond is very specific about the clothes to be provided,

shoes (two pairs), and the kind of work he is to be restricted from doing (brickwork) and

includes a requirement to keep him in or near Williamsburg.

Jones family papers, 1819–1964. 101 items. Mss1J735c.

This collection, related to the papers immediately preceding, contains two items in

section 1 about African Americans. An 1819 account of William Mills of Alexandria

records that the slave Thadeas was a teamster entrusted with the buying and selling of

flour. There is also a list recording the slaves of Philip Catesby Jones of Berkeley County

(now W.Va.) who were removed from Virginia by the U.S. Army between 1861 and

1863, which includes names, ages, circumstances, and some occupations.

Jones family papers, 1844–1869. 16 items. Mss2J7304c.

Most of the items in this collection that pertain to African American subjects concern

Ann Singleton. The papers include a document testifying to Singleton’s emancipated

status and requesting a temporary waiver to her application to remain in the

commonwealth, because Samuel Jones of Richmond, her former owner, was serving in

the Confederate Army and therefore unable to present her application to the court. A

January 1855 item concerns Samuel Jones’s hiring Nancy, mother of Ann Singleton, for a

six-month period, because Nancy is willing to stay with Jones. Several passes, 1853 and

1858, for errands about town are also included.

The collection also contains an 1863 bill of sale for Amanda, whose soundness of mind is

not guaranteed, and several hiring bonds, ca. 1853 (items c5–8).

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Jones & Matthews, Richmond, Va., receipt, 1850. 1 p. Mss4J7306a1. Printed, with

handwritten completions. Copy.

Receipt issued to J. C. Sproull for Nate, warranted to be sound and healthy. (Original in

the William Armour Collection, Princeton, N.J.).

Jordan, Robert (1731–1810), commonplace book, 1736–1958. 122 pp.

Mss5:5J7664:1.

Mostly comprising genealogical notes on the Jordan family of Nansemond County. This

book’s last page records several slaves by owner (Robert Jordan and Edmund Jordan),

including each slave’s name and date of birth only. Birth dates range from 1736 to 1799.

Joyce, John, letter, 1785. 7 pp. Mss2J8533a1.

Letter, 24 March 1785, written at Portabago Bay, Caroline County, to Robert Dickson, in

Ireland. Published in the Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, 23 (1915): 40714.

Joyce describes Virginia for a prospective immigrant. Included are several paragraphs

explaining taxation, especially with respect to taxing slaves.

Joynes family papers, 1776–1898. 312 items. Mss1J8586b.

Papers of Levin Joynes (1753–1794), revolutionary officer and state legislator; Thomas

Robinson Joynes, Accomack County court clerk; Dr. Levin Smith Joynes of Richmond;

and Levin Joynes (1862–1946) of Richmond.

Section 18 contains insurance policies, 1855–1859, issued to Dr. Joynes by the American

Life Insurance and Trust Company on slaves Abel, George, and Ned. The policies

include statements of terms and conditions. A proposal, 1867, drafted by Dr. David

Shelton Watson (section 34) concerns the formation of a voluntary organization for

providing medical care to members of the laboring classes. Although African Amercians

are not mentioned specifically, the plan appears to be designed for comprehensive

coverage.

Justice family papers, 1842–1917. 77 items. Mss2J9848b.

William T. Justis’s papers (section 1) include correspondence and financial records. Tax

receipts from the 1840s and 1850s indicate slaveholding in Brunswick, Lunenburg, and

Nottoway counties. Additional financial receipts, 1856–1858, include hiring out papers.

In these papers slaves are referred to by name only; occupations are not indicated.

Keith family papers, 1710–1865. 193 items. Mss1K2694a. Microfilm reels B19 and

C599.

The papers of this Fauquier County family contain several references to slaves; one item

concerns a carpenter, George, employed by the Fauquier White Sulphur Springs

Company (section 22). An 1861 memorandum describes Isham Keith’s dispute with an

African American family concerning his fence rails being used as firewood (section 14).

Another item in section 14 is a document of several pages in which Isham Keith records

his opinions of free African Americans and their negative effect on slaves as a result of

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envy, which he believes leads to crime, especially theft. He outlines a plan for the state

legislature to impose on the counties for removing all the free African Americans in the

state by giving free African Americans a choice of enslavement or emigration to Africa.

In the same section is a summary of Keith’s losses during the 1862 Federal occupation of

Fauquier County.

Keith family papers, 1830–1979. ca. 1,025 items. Mss1K2694cFA2. Microfilm reels

C432–433 and C599–601.

Additional papers of the same Keith family as above; several items are notable. In the

correspondence of Isham Keith (1801–1863) with his brother John Marshall Keith

(1788–1841), living in Georgia, John acknowledges receipt of a bill of sale for slaves

(mentioned by name) and will be sending a check (1836; box 1). Boxes 3, 4, and 5

contain the correspondence of Robert Taylor Scott with his wife, Fanny Scott (Carter)

Scott. Three letters are of particular interest. Robert’s letter to Fanny, dated 31 December

1856, describes preparations in homes in Prince William and Fauquier counties for an

anticipated slave insurrection. An 1860 letter to Fanny (12 July) describes briefly an

escape of slaves Shadrack and Dick; Shadrack could read, so they were making their way

by the North Star and an almanac. They were captured within three miles of the

Pennsylvania border. Another letter to Fanny (1 January 1861) describes Robert’s

activities as a hiring agent, indicating slaves he has difficulty hiring out, hiring a nurse for

his own family, and collecting on hiring bonds.

Kennedy, William, papers, 1853–1870. 33 items. Mss1K3884a.

As a free African American residing in Henrico County before the Civil War, William

Kennedy played an unusual role in the history of his community. He worked as a

mechanic and carpenter; after the war he was active in the Mount Olive Baptist Church,

the Sons of Jacob mutual aid society, and the Republican party.

Correspondence (section 1) includes a letter from Elizabeth Carr relating family news and

plans for her marriage to Kennedy, a letter from James Jefferson regarding a call to serve

a local church, and another from William Fanning Wickham, 1867, discussing elections

for the state legislature and the character of the candidates sought. Accounts are in

section 2 and include tax receipts for 1853 and 1863 (both printed forms altered to

accommodate race), construction work done for Caroline County, and a petition for

financial assistance for replacing tools stolen while working for the Republican party

(1868). In section 3 are letters of recommendation concerning Kennedy’s excellent

character, his early enlistment in the Union army, and his skill as a mechanic.

Materials pertaining to the Mount Olive Baptist Church constitute section 4. They include

a recommendation of transfer of membership for Miles Mosby and a petition for

assistance in building a place of worship. Section 5 contains notes on civic organizations,

in particular the Sons of Jacob mutual aid society. Section 6 includes a bank imprinted

bond, 1860; military pass, 1862; some Republican tickets with William Kennedy listed as

a delegate for Henrico County; and an 1869 certificate of the Grand State Council of the

Union League of America, issued to Kennedy and Lewis Lindsey. Section 7 contains

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blank voter forms, 1869; documents of the United States First Military District, 1870; and

a roster of freedmen, with information on ages (no date).

Kent, Joseph (1765–1843), papers, 1760–1805. 5 items. Mss2K4165b. Photocopies.

Resident of Wythe County. Two documents, an 1805 deed of trust of Jane Quirk of

Montgomery County and an 1800 will of James McGavock of Wythe County, refer to

slaves by name and identify owners. The deed records three names—Dick, Charlotte, and

her child Tom.

Kent, Robert Meredith (1815–1901), list, 1858. 1 p. Mss2H2442a1.

List, dated 30 December 1858, of slaves belonging to the estate of Uriah Harris of Louisa

County.

King, Clinton M. (1834–1862), papers, 1861–1862. 2 items. Mss2K5810b.

Materials concerning King’s service in the 32nd Regiment of Virginia Militia and the

52nd Virginia Infantry Regiment of the Confederate States Army include a letter written

by King about March 1862 to his wife in which, in part, he discusses his concern over his

wife’s ability to maintain their farm in his absence and his suggestion that she hire a slave

to assist her.

King & Queen County, Sheriff, papers, 1766–1767, and 1818–1823. 7 items.

Mss3K5892a.

Includes account books, 1819–1821, kept by Benjamin Pollard, deputy sheriff,

concerning the assessment and collection of taxes on land, personal property, and slaves.

King & Queen County Historical Society, papers, 1822–1955. 67 v. Mss10: no. 244.

Microfilm.

Among a large group of financial record books preserved by this local historical society

is an account book, 1852–1858, of William Martin concerning mercantile operations and

slaves in King & Queen County (item 63).

Kings County, N.Y., tax list, [1790?]. 1 p. Mss4K6113a1.

Records number of slaves owned by thirty-four residents of this New York county.

Kingston Parish, Mathews County, register, 1755–1775. 248 pp.

Mss5:8BX5917K6195:1.

This register records births, baptisms, deaths, and burials of slaves in a section separate

from white vital statistics. Some baptisms are noted as adult baptisms; births are recorded

with name, date, and owner’s name. Mothers’ names are not recorded.

Lafayette, Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, marquis de (1757–

1834), letter, 1830. 3 pp. Mss2L1314a3. Microfilm reel C50.

This letter in French to Peter Stephen duPonceau has an English translation available in

typescript. In his postscript Lafayette expresses his concern that an article in the Gazette

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de France reported on Richmonders’ complaints that African Americans working in

printing establishments are using the work as a way to obtain literacy and education. He

is concerned how Frenchmen will perceive Richmond.

Lane, Jane Collins, papers, 1861–1865. 15 items. Mss2L2422b.

Collection consists of letters written to Jane Lane by members of her family serving in

Confederate military units. Include letters from her husband, Edward V. Lane, of the 56th

Virginia Infantry, in part providing financial advice, with the suggestion that she hire out

their slave Emeline to raise money.

Lancaster family papers, 1784–1872. 166 items. Mss1L2215a.

Papers of a prominent family of Richmond bankers and investors. Section 2 contains the

correspondence of Robert Alexander Lancaster (1829–1902), including an 1859 letter

written to James Burr Ely from Richmond concerning a vaccination for slave children,

presumably against smallpox.

Large, Maurice Robeson (1908–1992), scrapbook, 1952–1955. 82 pp.

Mss5:7L3239:1.

Kept in Farmville by the chairman of the Prince Edward County school board from 1950

to 1954, this volume contains newspaper clippings concerning public school segregation

and the case of Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward.

Larue family papers, 1846–1889. 41 items. Mss1L3295a.

This collection consists primarily of the papers of John Billups Larue (1792–1875) of

Bloomfield, Clarke County, and Summit Point, Jefferson County (now W.Va.). In

Larue’s correspondence, 1849–1861, is an exchange with his nephew James William

Shirley concerning a request that he approve a marriage between Shirley’s slave Harrison

and Larue’s slave Mary (section 1).

Bennie Layton and the Rhythm Kings Orchestra, account book, 1937–1939. 126 pp.

Mss5:3L4553:1.

The book is blank except for pages 51–89, on which are recorded the names of

organizations, places, times, and dates for whom the Rhythm Kings played. Julian’s

Ballroom in the Harlem Center, Richmond, was one of the locations frequented most

often. Other places include Petersburg, Lawrenceville, Hanover, Charlottesville, Millers

Tavern, Smithfield, Emporia, Peak, Winchester, Farmville, Ashland, and the Robert E.

Lee, as well as a number of other Richmond locations.

Layton, William Brown (1888–1975), papers, 1907–1978. 59 items. Mss1L4554a.

William Brown Layton was a graduate of St. Paul Normal and Industrial School and went

on to become a blacksmith instructor and then superintendent of the Virginia Manual

Labor School for Colored Boys. Today this institution is the Hanover Learning Center.

Section 1 contains correspondence, much of it from former students writing to Layton

about his influence and the school’s influence on their lives. Other letters express thanks

for gifts of the school farm’s produce. One such letter, 1947, is from Governor William

109

M. Tuck on receiving a gift of food especially favored by the governor. Others include a

request from J. Baskett, 1944, about returning to Richmond to work. He has been laying

brick in Roanoke but is not being paid the same as white men that are doing the same job.

Thomas J. Edwards inquires about the job of managing the farm, which he has just heard

is vacant. Private Samuel Curtis’s letter, 1943, from Camp Lee tells about being in the

band at the Manual Labor School and then in the army. An unidentified student writes

from Massachusetts as he embarks on his education. C. Sutton, 1946, writes from the

Norfolk jail asking Layton to intervene on his behalf to prevent his assignment to the

state penitentiary. In January 1943, William Stauffer, the commissioner of the public

welfare, inquires about the farm’s ability to help with the current emergency in food

production.

In a speech entitled "Straightening Bent Saplings" (section 2), the speaker directs his

remarks to the correction of the attitude of boys who lean toward criminal behavior. In

section 3 is a copy of the 1924–1926 budget that provides financial information about

each department’s resources: the farm, the trades, the free school, and the clinic. In the

same section are two 1948 copies of the Hanover Special, a newsletter published by the Y

Teen Club of the Hanover Industrial School. A fact sheet provides a brief summary of the

school’s history, purpose, and facilities. A visitor list for 16 March 1975 shows a number

of people interested in the institution’s history—friends and relatives of the Laytons,

former students and staff, and others affiliated with it in various ways.

Section 4 contains a letter of Marguerite C. Layton describing how her mother-in-law,

Mary Amanda (Sully) Layton, contributed to the positive atmosphere at the Hanover

School. In section 5 are genealogical notes about the Quivers family, comments about

interracial marriages, and previously published information about slave employment at

the Tredegar Iron Works.

LeConte, T., letter, 1868. 4 pp. Mss2L4968a1.

Written 16 January 1868 from Columbia, S.C., to Emily Virginia Mason concerning a

second edition of Mason’s book, The Southern Poems of the War (Baltimore, 1867), to

be produced soon. LeConte worries about the poor prospects of South Carolina’s cotton

future, idleness and lack of employment among African Americans, and a number of

other postwar economic concerns.

Lee, Fitzhugh (1835–1905), letter, [1885]. 1 p. Mss2L5113a4. Photocopy.

Written from Evergreen in Fairfax County on 12 December 1885 to Magnus Lewis

Robinson of Staunton, an African American journalist and newspaper editor, this letter

concerns equal rights for African Americans. The original letter was in private hands in

1951.

Lee, George Bolling (1872–1948), papers, 18411868. 78 items. Mss1L5114c.

Microfilm reels C27 and C278.

Primarily consists of letters written by Robert E. Lee of Arlington, Alexandria County

(now Arlington County), while serving in the U.S. Army in New York, Texas, and during

110

the Mexican War, while commanding the Confederate States Army of Northern Virginia,

and while president of Washington College (now Washington and Lee University).

An 1844 letter of Lee (item c6), written to his mother-in-law, Mary (Fitzhugh) Custis,

from Fort Hamilton, N.Y., mentions copies of newspapers he is sending her concerning

resolutions passed by the New York Anti-Slavery Society, with particular notice of the

issue of religion and slavery. The remaining letters are written to Lee’s son William

Henry Fitzhugh Lee. An 1858 letter (item c26) concerns resistance by some slaves to

Lee’s authority and their punishment. Two 1860 letters from San Antonio, Tex. (items

c36 and c38), make brief mention of the slave community at Arlington and at the White

House in New Kent County and concern recordkeeping of slave births and deaths, hiring

versus the purchase of a personal slave for R. E. Lee, the accidental loss of fingers by a

slave working with agricultural machinery, the treatment of elderly slaves, and the

instruction of younger men in various tasks. An 1862 letter written from Savannah, Ga.

(item c46), concerns the emancipation of slaves belonging to the estate of George W. P.

Custis of Arlington.

Lee, Henry (1787–1837), letter, 1827. 5 pp. Mss2L5124a4.

Letter, 17 July 1827, written near Nashville, Tenn., to Richard T. Brown of

Westmoreland Court House, concerning a plan to send slaves to work at the Soldier’s

Rest plantation in Rapides Parish, La., owned by Walter Hampden Overton. Includes

instructions for Richard Omohundro, who was to conduct the slaves to Louisiana.

Annexed: letter, 27 June 1827, of Overton to Lee outlining the plan.

Lee, Mary Custis, papers, 1694–1917. 6,495 items. Mss1L5144a.

This collection consists of papers compiled by Mary Custis Lee (1835–1918), who was

the eldest daughter of General Robert E. Lee (1807–1870) and Mary Anna Randolph

(Custis) Lee (1807–1873) of Arlington House in what is now the City of Arlington.

Letters, 180[?]–1852, of Mary Lee (Fitzhugh) Custis (1788–1853), an early antislavery

advocate and active member of the American Colonization Society, include

correspondence with Episcopal bishop William Meade (sections 9, 10, and 11) and with

Society secretary Ralph Randolph Gurley (sections 10 and 11). Letters of her daughter,

Mary Anna Randolph (Custis) Lee, include correspondence, 1867, with William C.

Burke, a former Custis family slave, concerning family life and farming in Liberia

(section 25) and correspondence, 1872–1873, with Selina Gray, a former servant at

Arlington, concerning items taken during the Civil War from the house, bearing news of

other former servants and her own family, and offering a description of Arlington in

1872, including the settlement of freedmen and women on the grounds (section 26).

Letters, 1890–1907, of Mary Custis Lee include correspondence, 1902, concerning her

brush with police for taking a seat in the African American section of a segregated

streetcar in Alexandria [part of a full folder on this incident] (section 37). Among

miscellaneous items is a letter, 1867, written by William C. Burke, a former slave at

Arlington now in Clay Ashland, [Liberia], to Ralph Randolph Gurley discussing his

111

health, family life, lack of missionary aid during the American Civil War, a description of

a trip to Cape Palmas, Liberia, and questions about Arlington (section 63).

Lee, Newton M., list, ca. 1865. 1 p. Mss2L5144a1.

Names slaves belonging to Andrew E. Ellett of Richmond.

Lee, Robert Edward (1807–1870), letters, 1858. 8 items. Mss2W7336c.

Lee writes to William Overton Winston to make arrangements for hiring out three men

and three women. The women, ages thirty-five, twenty-two, and seventeen, are

accustomed to housework; he recommends them for washing and ironing but not for

honesty. The men can be housed at the jail if Winston prefers.

Lee, Robert Edward (1843–1914), letter, 1908. 1 p. Mss2L5151a1.

Letter, 14 December 1908, written from Ravensworth, Fairfax County, to Thomas Nelson

Page concerning the emancipation of slaves belonging to the estate of George

Washington Parke Custis and to Robert E. Lee (1807–1870).

Lee family papers, 1638–1867. 684 items. Mss1L51f. Microfilm reels C22–23 and

C225–229.

Many of the papers of this prominent Virginia family concern property in James City

County, where much of the land belonging to this branch of the family was located.

Family members significant to this collection are William Lee (1739–1795), who spent a

considerable amount of time in England and invested in transatlantic ventures, and his

brother, Richard Henry Lee (1732–1794), a planter and delegate to the Continental

Congress.

In section 76 is a 1718 letter of Governor Alexander Spotswood to Charles Eden

concerning the capture of a pirate’s ship. It had taken an English ship’s cargo of slaves

from Guinea, and the slaves were thought to be in Eden’s vicinity. A copy of some 1715

resolutions of the House of Burgesses includes a resolution concerning duties and tax on

slaves.

Sections 81, 82, and 86 contain copies of acts and bills of the Virginia General Assembly.

A colonial bill for raising money for the militia and an additional tax on slaves is in

section 81; an act concerning runaway slaves (section 82) deals in particular with

captured slaves whose owners cannot be determined, fees to be paid by owners, and

confinement of slaves in the public jail. Section 86 contains an amendment, ca. 1705, to

the fugitive slave act mentioned above. It provides exemption from taxes and free

ferriage for constables who must transport slaves.

Several slave lists, 1769, for James City County plantations are in section 97. Estate

papers for Philip Ludwell (1716–1767) dominate; a 1775 appraisal is included. The lists

are divided by general categories—men, women, boys, girls—for the plantations Hot

Water, Scotland, Claverton, Pinewood Meadow, Mill Quarter, Archershope, Rich Neck,

New Quarter, and Green Spring. The lists are by name only, but the 1775 appraisal

contains ages for the determination of tithes.

112

William Lee’s letterbooks, 1769–1793, appear in sections 113–122. The books are well

indexed and contain numerous brief passages of African American content. Among them

are an admonition to Mr. Ellis to treat slaves as human beings, keep them well fed and

clothed, and restrict pregnant women from hard work (June 1778, section 115);

arrangements for sale of the slave Juba in Jamaica (November 1783, section 120);

arrangements for delivery of the female slave Mourning (October 1783, section 121); and

arrangements for sale of several unnamed male slaves (section 122, pages. 15–16).

A 1770 deed to Hannah Phillippa (Ludwell) Lee (section 126) covers land and slaves in

James City County, in particular the plantations of Green Spring, Rich Neck, and Hot

Water. Slaves are individually named. Section 108 contains an extensive series of

correspondence of Richard Henry Lee. Correspondence with his brother William Lee, at

that time in England, is also well indexed. In 1770, Richard describes the distribution of

trades among the slaves at Green Spring (164 total, fifty-nine field slaves, twelve house

servants, four carpenters, one wheelwright, two shoemakers, and three gardeners and

ostlers). In 1771 and 1772, Richard comments on the increased value of slaves on the

plantations. A poor crop in 1772 must be the fault of the overseer because the land is

good and is tended by seventy-four "crop Negroes." In 1773, William Lee buys and sells

slaves on consignment; he chides his brother Richard for petitioning the king for the

nonimportation of slaves.

Section 133 contains a letter, 1779, of Henry Lee at Dumfries to Charles Lee in

Philadelphia in which arrangements are made for keeping Henry’s slaves in jail and irons

until James Whaley can retrieve them.

Lee family papers, 1732–1892. 71 items. Mss1L51b. Microfilm reel B21.

Lists, 1815–1818, compiled by William Claiborne and Thomas E. Stuart concern slaves

in King William and New Kent counties belonging to George Washington Parke Custis.

The slaves are listed by name, occupation, and family relationship and are grouped by

specific plantation. Another list, 1829, compiled by William Brumley, concerns 27 slaves

sold at Hanover Court House and provides names, ages, and costs of the sale (section 26).

Lee family papers, 1824–1918. 742 items. Mss1L51c. Microfilm reels A2 and C279–

282.

Much of this particular collection focuses on Confederate general Robert E. Lee (1807–

1870) and his wife, Mary Anna Randolph (Custis) Lee (1808–1873), and their

correspondence.

In an undated letter (item c3) to Mary Lee (Fitzhugh) Custis, Mrs. Lee makes a brief

statement of concern for the spirituality of slaves and the African race. In an 1860(?)

letter (item c728), she writes to Anne Carter Lee about fugitive slaves in general. Her

husband, Robert, is currently on duty in New York, and she has been visiting Canada.

She remarks that there are many fugitive slaves in Canada and that soon Canada will

have no choice but to send them away, leaving Africa their only refuge. The schools are

segregated, and rarely does a white woman marry a black man. Her 1862 correspondence

with Charlotte Georgiana (Wickham) Lee (items c366 and c369) provides news of the

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slaves at Romancoke—some have left, and one is serving his master in the army—and

also the slave losses of friends and neighbors.

Lee wrote several times to Hill Carter concerning the hiring of Gardner and Daedalus

(item c734, letterbook covering 1838–1860, in particular the letters of 22 January 1842

and 21 January and 14 February 1843); Judy and Philip Meriday were also hired out (1

and 21 February 1842 and 1 August 1852). Also in the same letterbook is an 8 February

1855 letter concerning the membership of his wife in the American Colonization Society.

In 1849, while in Baltimore, Lee wrote his wife about the registration and fees for

bringing slaves into the state (item c102, poor condition and partly illegible). In 1856 he

writes her from Texas of his views on abolition and slavery in a moral and religious

context (item c181, folios 344–345).

From 1862 to 1864 Lee wrote numerous letters to arrange for the emancipation of slaves

from George W. P. Custis’s estates in Arlington, King William, and New Kent counties

(plantations of Arlington, Romancoke, and the White House, respectively) according to

the provisions in his father-in-law’s will (see items c412, folio 771; item c415, folio 774;

item c419, folio 780; item c427, folios 789 and 792; item c487, folio 859; and item c500,

folio 873). Item c412 also comments on the ability of certain slaves to adapt to army life.

In item c500, he writes of his concern that the community near Romancoke is resisting

his efforts to emancipate the slaves there; he suggests they should take their papers and

leave. Item c626, an 1866 letter, concerns engaging a maid from Lynchburg; item c671,

an 1869 letter, concerns hiring Jimmy, because he is a good gardener; and in item c703,

an 1870 letter, Lee advises his wife to hire more servants, because additional guests will

require more household help.

In a 9 March 1866 letter to Amanda Parks, Lee summarizes his efforts to emancipate the

slaves at all three plantations (item c737, also on microfilm reel A2). Items c473 and

c474 are letters to his wife relating that one of the freed slaves, Catharine Burke, has

reached Washington, D.C., and has been quoted in the newspapers concerning Lee’s

opinions about the capture of his son, William Henry Fitzhugh Lee. Item c738, also a

letterbook, contains postwar letters in which Lee writes in general about freedom, states’

rights, and secession (15 December 1866; 26 and 29 August and 18 September 1868).

Many of the letters of Robert E. Lee in this collection are available in published sources

(such as The Wartime Papers of R. E. Lee, edited by Clifford Dowdey and Louis Manarin

[1961]).

Leigh, Benjamin Watkins (1781–1849), letter, 1829. 2 pp. Mss2L5332a5.

Letter, 10 September 1829, Richmond, to William Branch Giles concerning the Virginia

constitutional convention of 1829–1830, Leigh’s published notes on population and

taxation by districts in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and Giles’s thoughts on the issue

of slavery.

Leigh, Elizabeth Edmunds Monroe (b. 1893), "Ridgeway, Charlotte County,

Virginia," ca. 1975. 12 pp. Mss5:1L5334:1. Photocopy.

114

Elizabeth Leighs memoirs are subtitled "Memories of Bessie Leighs Childhood Home

Where She Was Born in 1893." They concern her childhood activities in Charlotte

County at Ridgeway, a working farm. She remembers a black nurse as her "mammy" and

discusses the construction of a church organized by whites for African Americans in

Charlotte County.

Leigh family of King William County, papers, 1794–1893. 348 items. Mss1L5337a.

Microfilm reel C265.

Correspondence and financial records of a planter family. Accounts of Richeson Leigh

(section 4) in part concern the costs of taxation on slaves and the medical care of

bondspeople. An agreement between James Meaux and Mary Richeson (section 8) covers

the sale of Sukey "and her increase" in 1808.

Letcher, John (1813–1884), papers, 1770–1970. ca. 16,785 items. Mss1L5684aFA2.

John Letcher of Lexington was a lawyer and newspaper editor who served as a

congressman, governor of Virginia during the first years of the Civil War, and a postwar

state legislator. These papers cover all aspects of his personal life and legal and political

career. This very large collection is divided into eleven series. The first series contains

Letcher’s personal and family papers, including materials concerning his prewar

residence in Lexington (accounts with builders include those with James Harper, a free

African American, folder 63). Some items concern the hiring of slaves and the purchase

of a slave woman (folder 71). The largest series of papers in this collection covers

Letcher’s extensive antebellum legal practice in and around Lexington (series 2). Client

files cover representation of Colonel John Jordan, a major figure in the iron industry in

the Shenandoah Valley who also supplied laborers for work on a canal on the north fork

of the James River (folders 81–82), and of William Weaver, owner of the Buffalo Iron

Forge (folders 116–116a). Case files include S. Sherrard v. R. Tuck (folder 189)

concerning arbitration over the hiring of slaves at the Bath Iron Works; Nelson Hicks v.

George W. Taylor (folder 194), regarding the hiring of the slave Julia; William B.

Roach’s trust file (folder 220), involving a case of slave stealing; and Letcher’s agency

file for John Warren Grigsby (folder 244), which concerns the care and sale of slave

children.

Letcher’s political files include a series of papers covering his campaign as a reform

candidate for and service as a delegate in the 1850–1851 Virginia Constitutional

Convention. Among the materials (series 4) are a pamphlet issued by the American

Colonization Society concerning a March 1850 act of the Virginia General Assembly that

funded the transportation of freed African Americans out of the state (folder 319) and

printed memorials of the convention and state legislature to the United State Congress

regarding the establishment of a mail steamer line between the U.S. and the western coast

of Africa to encourage emigration to Liberia (folder 320). Letcher’s congressional files

(series 5), covering his service between 1851 and 1859, include speeches on the territorial

policy of the United States (folder 356). His papers concerning his service as governor

(series 6) include campaign files, 1858–1859, in which items discuss the so-called

Ruffner pamphlet controversy (regarding Letcher’s brief interest in a broad emancipation

of Virginia slaves in the late 1840s). Correspondence as governor includes letters of

115

Edmund Ruffin (January 1860), presenting a pike carried by one of John Brown’s

Harpers Ferry raiders; J. R. Anderson & Co. of Richmond (August 1862) concerning the

hiring of African American inmates at the state penitentiary to work at Tredegar Iron

Works and at blast furnaces in Botetourt and Alleghany counties; Mrs. Let Page

(November 1862) concerning a colony of fugitive slaves in Gloucester County

threatening the local community; and Charles Blue (January 1863) regarding use of

inmates from the state penitentiary to work on the public square in Richmond. Lastly, a

series of materials concerning the death of John Letcher and attempts to gather records

for a biography (series 9) includes a file compiled by Letcher’s son Greenlee Davidson

Letcher (1867–1954) that also concern the Ruffner pamphlet controversy (folder 656).

A supplementary guide to this collection, including a complete folder list, is filed in hard

copy with the papers or may be accessed electronically through the VHS online catalog.

Lewis family papers, 1749–1920. 44 items. Mss1L5896b. Microfilm reel C433.

The Lewis family members were landowners in Rockingham County. Among their

papers is an estate inventory, ca. 1790, of Thomas Lewis (1718–1790) of Rockingham

County. Located in section 5, the inventory records names and values (in pounds); only a

few mother-child relationships are indicated.

Lewis family papers, 1804–1884. 72 items. Mss2L585c. Microfilm reel B52.

The collection includes an 1847 deed to William Lewis of Spotsylvania County for the

slave Caroline and her three children, Morton, Martha, and Richmond. There is also an

1850 hiring bond for Willis, property of Patsey Dillard, to the White Hall Mining

Company, at a cost of $65, with usual clothing furnished, providing for the employer to

pay the tax and allowing for a $2 deduction in physician’s fees. Both items are located in

section 5.

Link family papers, 1815–1830. 6 items. Mss2L6485b.

An eight-page document of affidavits, 1824, pertains to the lawsuit John Link v. Peter

Link in the Virginia Superior Court of Chancery, Staunton District, and in part concerns

the inheritance and ownership of a slave girl.

Litchfield family papers, 1837–1992. 1,598 items. Mss1L7115a.

Papers of members of the Bolling, Litchfield, Peirce, and Stuart families, primarily in

Abingdon and Wytheville. Include an 1892 letter of Barton Haxall Wise to Wytheville

attorney David Stuart Peirce (section 14) concerning an address by Peirce at Emory and

Henry College and the negative effects of slavery on antebellum southern thought.

Llangollen School for Boys, Spotsylvania County, records, 1806–1849. 12 items.

Mss3L7702a. Microfilm reels C358–359.

Concern the school started at Belle Aire, Spotsylvania County, in 1811 by John Lewis

and later moved to Llangollen, also in Spotsylvania, in 1814. Records were kept by John

Lewis. Sections 1, 2, and 4 contain account books, 1811–1818, 1819–1849, and 1825–

1835, respectively, which contain information on the hiring of slaves.

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Lockridge, Robert (b. 1809), papers, 1847–1866. 6 items. Mss2L8134b.

Among the papers of this Highland County resident is a letter, July 1847, from Isaac

Gwin, slave of Shanklin McClintick of Rockbridge County, in which Gwin asks

Lockridge to see about the purchase of Isaac and his wife so that they will not be

separated; he anticipates his wife will be sold in the fall. An 1860 tax document indicates

that Lockridge was taxed for four unnamed slaves.

Lupton family papers, 1745–1895. ca. 1,400 items. Mss1L9747aFA2. Microfilm reels

C116–118.

David Lupton (1786–1814) was a Quaker lawyer of Frederick County and Winchester.

He provided legal counsel and estate management for local residents, among them Henry

Wells (d. 1815), also known as Black Harry or Free Harry. Box 1 contains appraisals and

other records of Henry Wells’s estate. Most of the items listed are agricultural in nature—

tools, animals, and supplies. Also included are receipts covering business with local

merchants. His papers include bonds for hire of slaves as well.

McCalla, John Moore (1793–1873), papers, 1831–1887. 688 items. Mss1M1248a.

Microfilm reel C119.

Resident of Lexington, Ky., and Washington, D.C., military officer and civil servant.

Correspondence, 1841–1850 (section 1), concerns the American Colonization Society, in

particular arrangements for emigrants to sail to Liberia. In section 7, a letter, 1855, from

Kendrick Dickerson of Bristol, N.H., refers to difficulties collecting money from local

members of the American party for the Washington Monument Fund because so many

members are secret abolitionists.

McCalley, Jonathan W. (b. 1806?), letter, 1849. 3 pp. Mss2M1245a1.

Letter, 7 January 1849, written from Homeland Cottage, Spotsylvania County, to William

J. McCalley in Huntsville, Ala., concerning the possible sale of slaves, including two

young women who are willing to be separated from their mother; a slave injured while

working for hire; and the current rates for hiring out slaves to public works projects and

iron mines.

McCarthy family papers, 1839–1865. 40 items. Mss1M1275a. Microfilm reel C301.

Contains the correspondence of several members of the McCarthy family of Richmond.

Section 2 includes the correspondence of Florence McCarthy (1798?–1864) with his

brother, John McCarthy, concerning the health of John’s slaves and family news.

McCarty family papers, 1859–1898. 19 items. Mss2M1278b.

Primarily correspondence of Richmond family members with relations in West Virginia.

Include letters, 1861–1870, of Mary Blair (Burwell) McCarty (b. 1811) to Harriette

Boswell (Alexander) Caperton discussing wartime prices and social conditions in

Richmond, the loss of labor with the devaluation of Confederate money and later with the

emancipation of slaves, and Mrs. McCarty’s political opinions.

117

McClintic family papers, 1850–1905. 65 items. Mss1M1328a.

Primarily financial records of family members who operated a store and farm at

Williamsville, Bath County. An account book, 1867–1871 (item a3), kept by William

Stephen McClintic (1840–1892) includes numerous accounts with freedmen and women,

primarily covering pay for labor and other services provided on the farm.

McCoull, John (b. 1770), slave records, 1837–1850. [4] pp. Mss6:1 M1368:1.

Slave birth and death records kept, presumably, in Spotsylvania County.

McCraw, William, inventory, 1783. 1 p. Mss2L1197a1. Typescript copy.

Inventory, 15 April 1783, of slaves belonging to the estate of Theophilus Lacy of

Pittsylvania County.

McDonald, Angus (1769–1814), agreement, 1806. 1 p. Mss2M1457a1.

Printed form, 1 January 1806, signed in Frederick County with Nathaniel Burwell

concerning the hire of the slave Betty, with conditions of employment.

McDowell, George Marshall (1838–1863), letter, 1862. 4 pp. Mss2 M1481a1.

Microfilm reel C606.

Written from camp near Fredericksburg on 27 November 1862 to the author’s father, this

letter from a member of Company F of the 2nd South Carolina Infantry Regiment,

C.S.A., in part concerns earnings off of an investment and his plans to purchase a young

male slave.

McGuire, James Clark, papers, 1819–1863. 32 items. Mss1M17934a. Microfilm reel

C32.

Includes a newspaper clipping from the National Intelligencer (Washington, D.C.), 30

December 1856, featuring Henry Clay’s 16 July 1835 letter to William S. Wood

concerning the Missouri Compromise and views on slavery (item a2). Item a1 is an 1853

publication, Selections from the Private Correspondence of James Madison from 1813 to

1836, published by J. C. McGuire, Washington, D.C., containing, among other issues,

Madison’s views on slavery.

McIntosh, David Gregg (1836–1916), papers, 1862–1916. 98 items. Mss1M1895a.

Papers primarily concern McIntosh’s service as a Confederate artillery officer and his

postwar career as a lawyer in Baltimore. Section 5 contains a letter to James McIntosh

regarding the fate of a slave left in Winchester by a member of the McIntosh family

during the Confederate retreat from Pennsylvania in 1863.

McKenny family papers, 1814–1864. 11 items. Mss2M1997b.

Peter McKenny (d. 1859) of Chesterfield County bought several slaves between 1844 and

1848, and the collection includes bills of sale. In 1848 William Gregory sold Charlotte,

age six, to McKenny, and in 1844 he bought Polly, age seven, from the same trader. After

Peter’s death his widow Catherine moved to Richmond. In 1860 she hired Alice to D. S.

Wooldridge for $35. The printed form included "usual clothing" and "blanket"; a pillow

was added.

118

MacLeod family papers, 1791–1977. 48 items. Mss1M2252a.

Primarily the records of merchant John MacLeod of Alexandria and Virginia native

Donald MacLeod, newspaperman and federal officeholder in Washington, D.C. A diary

kept in Washington by Donald MacLeod from 14 October to 1 November 1862 includes

substantial references to his opinions on slavery, the Emancipation Proclamation, and his

conversations with Abraham Lincoln concerning the colonization of free blacks in Africa

(section 2). Many of his comments indicate an awareness of the British perspective on

these issues.

MacLeod family papers, 1824–1868. 4 items. Mss2M2252b.

An 1826 letter of Helen MacLeod of Washington, D.C., to her brother Donald in part

concerns the religious education of African American and poor white children and the

death of Ferdinand, a trusted family slave.

McRae, Sherwin (1805–1889), papers, 1826–1890. 39 items. Mss1M2447a.

Papers of a Richmond attorney. Accounts in section 2 include information on the hiring

out of slaves by McRae (with listings by name of slave, name of employer, and amounts

of contract) and the sale of one slave. An undated commissioner’s report (ca. 1840s) in

the case of Roy et al. v. Temple in the King William County court (section 4) includes a

listing of slaves by name, by purchaser, and by amount. A deed, 1826, in section 6 covers

the sale of a young male slave, Reubin, by Thomas T. Allen to Christopher Johnson.

Madison, Lettie Marie Coleman (b. 1909), papers, 1925–1995. 161 items.

Mss1M2656a.

Collection includes correspondence, school materials, writings, research on African

American families and children, newspaper clippings, biographical materials, and

miscellaneous papers of Lettie Marie (Coleman) Madison (of Montclair, N.J., and

Richmond, Va.). Concerns her education at Dana College (now Rutgers University),

Newark, N.J., and at Forham University, New York City; her career as a psychiatric

social worker at Essex County Overbrook Hospital, Cedar Grove, N.J., and as faculty

member of the Department of Social Work at Virginia Union University, Richmond; and

her life in retirement in Richmond, with reminiscences of that city and of Hampton

Institute (now Hampton University), Hampton, Va.

Majette family papers, 1812–1908. 999 items. Mss1M2886a. Microfilm reels C283–

286.

Among the papers of this Southampton County family is a letter to Penelope Ann

(Darden) Majette written by George W. Vick of the 3d Virginia Infantry Regiment. Since

joining the army, Vick has had difficulty arranging for the hire of Majette’s slaves. For

1864 and 1865 he arranged the hire of Henry to Mr. Parker and hired out Mills and Jerry

for $900. Arrangements were made with the help of R. J. Rick and E. C. Waddell (section

12).

Mallory, William F., receipt, 1865. 1 p. Mss2B5317a1. Photocopy.

Receipt, dated 6 January 1865, [Prince George County], to Peter Birchett for the purchase

of a slave.

119

Manly, Mary Patterson (b. 1853?), letter, 1933. 8 pp. Mss2M3153a. Photocopy.

Letter, 12 May 1933, from Claremont, Calif., to Virginius Douglass Johnston concerning

his father, James Johnston, and the establishment of the Richmond Colored Normal

School and the Manlys’ teaching career. The period discussed covers the 1890s.

Mansfield family papers, 1852–1933. 186 items. Mss1M3178a.

Collection consists of papers of three generations of the Mansfield and related families in

Spotsylvania County. Include an account book, 1875–1877, of Jno. C. Mansfield & Co.,

of Holladay Mills, kept by John Christian Mansfield (1826–1906), which contains

records of general store accounts with African Americans (section 1).

Manson family papers, 1849–1893. 35 items. Mss2M3183b. Photocopies.

A portion of this collection includes the personal papers of Joseph Richard Manson

([1831–1918] of Brunswick County) while in Confederate service. Included among his

papers are a list of corn owned by freedmen and an agreement with Robert Davis and

three of his sons concerning tenant farming and service in the Manson household.

Marmion family papers, 1822–1928. 84 items. Mss1M3455a. Microfilm reel C120.

Papers of Dr. Nicholas Marmion of Harpers Ferry, Jefferson County (now W.Va.),

include an 1851 agreement with Elizabeth Aldstaat concerning the hiring of Ann, with

extensive conditions covering Ann’s services (section 4).

Marrow family papers, 1859–1873. 58 items. Mss1M3495a.

Papers of a Hampton family. Correspondence in section 2 includes letters, 18601873, to

Daniel Garrow Marrow from Maria Smith (Peek) Garrow, some describing events of

their courtship during the Civil War. Several concern lack of servants to tend to

household duties (23 July 1864, 18 August 1864, and 21 May 1865), and one mentions a

specific incident in which Jimmy Causey was arrested by African Americans.

Marshall, S. W., account book, 1855–1857. 104 pp. Mss5:3M358:1. Microfilm reel

C414.

A record of farm work, inventory of slaves, and business accounts kept while overseer for

Alexander Moseley at Sycamore Island plantation in Buckingham County.

Marshall family papers, 1742–1951. 493 items. Mss1M3587a.

Records of Edward Digges, deputy sheriff of Fauquier County; Nathaniel Tyler,

Washington, D.C., attorney; Sarah Robb Tyler Marshall; and William Churchill

Marshall, newspaperman of Fauquier County.

Section 10 contains an 1845 affidavit of Jacob Hume concerning the sale of slaves, a list,

ca. 1799–1816, of slaves belonging to members of the Cowles family, and a list, 1758–

1857, of slave births and deaths, some individuals belonging to Digges family members

and some carrying the family surname "Shepherd." In November 1860, Nathaniel Tyler

wrote a lengthy letter to T. B. Myers from the office of the Richmond Enquirer

concerning northern and southern views of government, slavery, the fugitive slave acts,

and secession (section 30).

120

Martin, Humphrey H., receipt, 1845. 1 p. Mss2G9896a1.

Receipt, dated 14 March 1845, [Louisa County], to Samuel Atwell Guy for the purchase

of a slave.

Mason, Charles Tayloe (1831–1918), papers, 1854–1906. 450 items. Mss3M3814a.

This collection contains materials documenting the service of Charles Tayloe Mason in

the Confederate Army Corps of Engineers. His correspondence during the Civil War with

other military officials concerns, in part, the use of slaves as laborers on the construction

of fortifications and bridges on the James River.

Mason, John Tilman (1791–1849), papers, 18111857. 7 items. Mss2M381372b.

Includes bills of sale, 1828–1853, of John T. Mason of Lynchburg to Eli Burch of Bullard

County, Ky., for the slave Ester and to Abraham Wimbish for Edmund, age twenty-five.

Mason, John Young (1799–1859), papers, 1855. 3 items. Mss2M3814c.

Include a list of subscribers and letters concerning a marble bust of John Young Mason,

minister to France, sculpted by Eugene Warburg, a freedman originally from Louisiana.

Mason, Thomson (1730–1785), opinion, 1782. 4 pp. Mss2M3817a2. Photocopy.

Concerns the division of slaves belonging to the estate of John Ford, Richmond County.

Only one slave, Lewy, is mentioned by name. (Original document in the Gunston Hall

Library and Archives, Lorton)

Mason family papers, 1789–1965. 158 items. Mss1M3816b. Microfilm reel C415.

An account book, 1796–1831, kept by Lewis Fort in Southampton County includes

several lists of slaves, one of which indicates slaves who were to "stay at home" on

various Sundays each month, and another of which lists young male slaves by name and

birthdate (section 2). A bill of complaint and answer, drafted in 1855 for submission to

the Southampton County court in the case of Frances Ann (Mason) Cook et al. v. John

Young Mason, concerns slaves belonging to the estates of Lewis Fort and Richard Mason

(section 14). Materials, 1849, filed with the court of Greensville County concerning

slaves of the estate of Edmunds Mason include a petition to the court, a court order, and a

report (listing forty-five slaves by name and value) (photocopies, section 15).

The account book, 1846–1864, kept by Lewis Edmunds Mason at Fortsville,

Southampton County, includes diary entries for 1860–1864 concerning agricultural

operations, as well as yearly lists of allowances to slaves (including the distribution of

clothing and other supplies) (section 18). A second account book of Mason, 1851–1857,

concerns the operation of an unnamed cotton plantation in Mississippi and primarily

consists of records of the amount of cotton picked by each slave (section 19).

Mason family papers, 1805–1886. 4,175 items. Mss1M3816a. Microfilm reels B22–

23.

Much of the material in this collection pertains to the Fortsville plantation in

Southampton County, which came into the Mason family through Mary Anne (Fort)

Mason upon her marriage to Edmunds Mason. Edmunds Mason was frequently called on

121

to manage sizable estates on behalf of several family members, a circumstance that

involved him in the affairs of plantation and slave management for places in Greensville

and Brunswick counties. As a result, much of the information concerning African

Americans is in accounts and inventories for estates.

An undated inventory of slaves of the estate of Lewis Fort (d. 1826) lists names of only

about fifty slaves (section 3). Materials pertaining to the estate of William Maclin (d.

1831) are in sections 10 (inventories and affidavit), 13 (an account book), and 15 (an

1825 bond for unnamed slaves at $180). The inventories, 1831–1834, record names,

values, some physical features (George is deaf and dumb) and mental health conditions,

and some occupations (Charles is a blacksmith) for slaves on the Greensville and

Brunswick properties. Family groups are implied, and an 1833 affidavit states that Dr.

Merritt attended several slaves during the winter. The account book, 1832–1846, records

the slaves hired out, to whom they were hired, and for how much and groups mothers

with children. Section 35 contains correspondence between Mary Anne (Fort) Mason and

Lewis Edmunds Mason (her son) concerning the conditions of slaves in Southampton

County. He expresses his views on the population’s predisposition to cholera and the

wetness of the region; he is determined to protect the slaves from the weather by issuing

overcoats to the men and providing extra money to all the slaves for more clothing in

addition to the standard allowance. Later slave lists for the property in Greensville

County are in section 21, estate papers of Edmunds Mason; one document records the

fact that his will provided for an elderly slave to choose his master and for the estate to

provide an annuity for the slave’s keep. A similar arrangement was made for another

elderly slave, although not provided for in Mason’s will. In the division of slaves, one-

fourth of the smithy’s tools were added to the value of each of the four smiths.

Several other lists are in section 34 (slaves of John Young Mason by name, age, value,

physical and mental condition, and some by occupation, for approximately sixty slaves in

1859), section 39 (an 1855 list of Lewis Edmunds Mason’s fifty-four slaves in Coahoma

County, Miss., by names and implied family groups), and section 61 (undated list of

approximately thirty slaves by name and age category, no place indicated).

A letter from John Townes Leigh to John Young Mason (section 24) contains advice on

preparing to go into cotton growing—not to buy a farm outright but to hire out his slaves

to cotton plantations for several years so that they will learn from the experience—and an

invitation for Mason to learn the business while staying at the Leigh plantation. Leigh

details average rates for baling cotton by experienced and inexperienced slaves and also

by gender and age.

In section 52 are papers, 1837–1844, relating to a lawsuit of James Madison, a slave,

against George F. Alberti of Hartford County, Md., in the Court of Common Pleas,

Philadelphia, Pa., over Madison’s liberty and the ownership of a horse. Section 56

contains 1854 London imprints in English, Italian, French, German, and Spanish of

letters of George Nicholas Sanders and Louis Kossuth concerning the history of the slave

trade, the European view of slavery, references to the Liberian colony, and slavery in the

southern states.

122

Mason family papers, 1813–1943. 5,634 items. Mss1M3816c. Microfilm reels C415–

424.

Key figures in this collection are John Young Mason (1799–1859), a minister to France

in the 1850s, and John Young Mason (1823–1863), who served in the U.S. and C.S.A.

Navy.

Some 1853–1855 deeds (section 29) and an 1858 deed of trust (section 91) signed at the

American consulate in Paris concern unidentified slaves in Southampton County. In

section 96 a power of attorney, 1863, from Susan Mason to Lewis Edmunds Mason

concerns the slave Bridget and her unidentified children. In an 1863 letter in section 52,

William Urquhart asks about buying Bridget and her family.

A number of lists are included in the collection, involving values (sections 32 and 57),

tallies for clothes and shoes (sections 8 and 74 [including shoe sizes]), estate divisions

(sections 4, 29, and 58), birth lists (sections 32, 57, and 74), and records of occupations

(sections 4 and 74). Account books of Lewis Edmunds Mason, dated from 1849 to 1890,

are in sections 5564 and contain a wide variety of information about family groups,

appraisals (often describing general health and state of mind), food and supplies,

occupations and daily assignments, and accounts with sharecroppers. The lists in section

74, also compiled by Lewis Edmunds Mason, contain information pertaining to estate

management, from which cuts of meat are the most efficient at which times of the year to

individual clothing assignments and shoe sizes. The lists of Lewis Edmunds Mason have

been kept for plantations in Southampton County, Va., and Coahoma County, Miss.

Hiring lists and accounts are in sections 59, 62, and 74 and cover 1850–1864. An 1862

list of hirings (section 74) indicates a slave that ran to the Yankees, in addition to

classifying slaves by occupation and caliber ("First Rate," "Good," "Ordinary,"

"Tolerable"). Valuations and appraisals are in sections 29 (1857, for Jim) and 32

(18541856, for slaves in Southampton County). In section 84, correspondence of Joseph

Reid Anderson of Richmond with Nathaniel Boush Hill contains an undated list of

Southampton County slaves, including health of body and mind, value, age, and mother-

child relationships. Section 32 also contains information in the case Commonwealth v.

James Wolff for permitting Edward to go at large and trade as a free man (Prince George

County, 1840).

An 1851 letter from James Buchanan to John Young Mason concerns slavery in the

context of the Reading resolutions and the stands of the Democratic and Whig parties,

Free Soil, and abolition votes (section 6). Other correspondence series describe slave

auctions and the business of buying and selling slaves. Section 52 contains Lewis

Edmunds Mason’s correspondence. An 1863 letter from S. R. Fondren reports the current

rates for slaves in the "No. 1" category, by age and gender. Letters, 18551863, from

Roscoe Briggs Heath relate similar information, as well as general strategies of the most

profitable ways to trade in slaves. In November 1858, he discusses his views on the souls

of African Americans; and in August 1856, he refers to Bridget’s conduct and

punishment. Letters from James Edward Mason concern the auctions, current values, and

treatment of slaves. An 1864 letter also concerns sickness among the slaves.

123

Correspondence, 1856–1858, with John Young Mason indicates his concerns for keeping

families together, selling slaves only to good masters, buying the husband of one of his

slaves, and the undesirability of combining different groups of slaves to work one farm.

An 1855 affidavit in section 74 contains a report on the physical condition and auction of

a mother and child. Section 79 contains correspondence of Roscoe Briggs Heath with

Archer Anderson concerning selling a large block of slaves and comments on John

Brown’s raid at Harpers Ferry.

Sharecropper agreements are in sections 47 and 71. Agreements from Sussex and

Southampton counties, 1865–1868 (section 47), concern holidays, charges for days lost,

maintenance of fences, dates for the provision of firewood, cost of seed, conditions for

contract renewal, and penalties for violation of the contract. An 1865 contract is prepared

on a printed form. Section 71 contains agreements for 1868–1896, concerning division

ratios of the agricultural produce such as melons, cotton, corn (fodder and shucks), and

peanuts. One agreement provides for a house with a brick chimney for a sharecropper’s

relative and what tools are to be furnished. Accounts for agricultural laborers are in the

account books in sections 62 and 64.

Mason family papers, 1825–1902. 4,972 items. Mss1M3816d.

Primarily the papers of congressman, U.S. Navy secretary, and diplomat John Young

Mason (1799–1859) of Southampton County and his immediate family. In Section 2, a

letter, 1844 May 31, from Commodore Matthew C. Perry concerns suppression of the

African slave trade and the right of the British Navy to board American merchant ships

off the coast of Africa. A letter, 1844 December 19, from Joseph Reid Anderson concerns

the use of slave labor at the Tredegar Iron Works in Richmond.

Section 3 contains a letter, 1845 April 4, written by Simon Fraser Blunt (while in Sierra

Leone, Africa) to Secretary Mason concerning slave factories along the Pongo River and

his efforts as a naval officer in trying to suppress the slave trade. A letter, 1845 June 25,

from Commodore Charles William Skinner concerns, in part, his patrolling the African

coast in search of slave traders. Also in this section is a letter, 1846 September 22, written

by Howell Harris (in Southampton County) to Mason concerning the condemnation and

execution of Jack, a slave, for "being concerned" in the Southampton Insurrection, in

which Jack’s owner, Joseph Ruse, was killed. The same letter also concerns the suicide

by hanging of a “very valuable servant” of Joseph H. Prince.

Section 4 includes a letter, 1846 October 29, of Robert W. Young, of Portsmouth

concerning the use of slave labor at the Norfolk Navy Yard. Also of interest are letters

concerning plantation land in Mississippi and Louisiana, to which Mason considered

relocating a number of his slaves: 1846 December 12 and 1847 April 7 (from James

Brown); 1846 December 25 (from George Eustis); 1847 June 5 (from Richard T. Archer);

and 1847 September 22 (from Henry Davis, concerning the outfitting of Mason’s slaves

for the transfer to his new Mississippi plantation). There are also letters regarding the

health of Henry, one of Mason’s slaves who was treated for epilepsy by Dr. Edward H.

Carmichael (1847 February 13 and March 30).

124

Section 6 contains letters concerning the hiring out of slaves, 1849 December 22 (from

Mary Eliza Peete); the sale of slaves (from Daniel Dodson), 1849 December 24 and

December 29; and a deed of trust, 1850 July 1, of Sterling Neblett involving 80 to 100

slaves. Letters, 1849 September 22 and 1850 October 19, written by John J. Crump

concern a law case John Y. Mason was handling for him involving land titles and the sale

and hiring out of slaves. The 1850 letter provides the genealogy of some slaves, concerns

the splitting up of some families, and offers information concerning their relocations.

Other letters, 1847 January 8 and 1850 February 12, written by Elizabeth Harwood

Margaret (Romaine) Mason of Petersburg, concern selling a slave named Anna to

separate her from her children; an 1850 February 16 letter of Samuel Cochran also

concerns this subject. An 1852 May 29 letter of David Augustine Claiborne of Hicksford

discusses, in part, his and his mother’s slaves, including three "breeding" women, his

father’s slaves numbering over 100, and other assets.

Section 9 contains letters between Mason and his overseers at Day’s Neck Farm, Isle of

Wight County. Included is correspondence concerning supplies for slaves (hats, blankets,

etc.), along with births and total number of slaves on the farm; a letter of 1850 January 5

mentions the high cost of hiring slaves.

Section 10 concerns establishing a plantation in Mississippi. A letter, 1847 October 6,

includes a discussion of which slaves to take, including Bob, a carpenter, who could be

hired out after he has built slave quarters, corn cribs, and other buildings needed on the

plantation. A later letter, 1851 January 6, concerns the sale of Bob and his family. The

loose accounts in section 13 include payments for blankets, clothing, shoes, cups, and

spoons for Mason’s slaves.

The 1837–1850 commonplace book kept by Mason as guardian of the orphans of Thomas

Applewhite includes an inventory and valuation of their slaves, as well as a record of the

hiring out of those slaves (d3,248). Also included in section 22 is the correspondence of

three of John Young Mason’s slaves or former slaves: Critty, n.d., to her husband,

Armistead Tutt; Becky, 1847 September 4, to her daughter; and Pleasant Cooper, 1877

September 11, to the Mason "children."

Among the accounts of Mason’s son Lewis (section 25) can be found the meal and meat

allowances for each of the Mason slaves at Fortsville in Southampton County.

The letters of Susan Harriet Barksdale Mason, daughter of John Young Mason, include

several letters written in the spring and early summer of 1872 concerning unrest and

domestic violence among the African American population in Sussex County. There is

also discussion of an incident in which a young black girl named Rosa (who was related

to one of the Masons’ servants) allegedly threw her baby into a fire and "burned it up."

Susan reported that the African American women in the neighborhood wanted to punish

Rosa by burning her alive, but she was to be hung instead. A later, undated letter reported

that she had been freed because no one could prove the newborn had ever been alive

(section 50).

125

There are several letters in Sarah Olivia Mason’s correspondence, 1877, concerning a

school for African American males started by her brother Lewis Edmunds Mason in

Southampton County (section 38).

Massie, Thomas Eugene (1822–1863), commonplace book, 1854. 136 pp.

Mss2M3857c5.

Physician of Nelson County and U.S. Army doctor during the Mexican War. Includes

numerous anecdotes of life in and around Virginia, especially the mountainous areas.

Several concern African Americans, in particular, the legality of white women marrying

African American men in Massachusetts and the ensuing outcry among African

American women; a slave’s dream about Heaven and Hell, and honesty and dishonesty

among various slaves.

Massie family papers, 1722–1893. 463 items. Mss1M3855c. Photocopies.

Thomas Massie (1747–1834) owned Level Green plantation in Amherst and Nelson

counties, and Henry Massie (1784–1841) owned Falling Spring plantation in Bath and

Alleghany counties. A diary containing lists of births ranges from 1803 to 1813 for six

slaves (section 8); in section 9 an account book, 1809–1864, used by Henry Massie

(1784–1841) and Henry Massie (1816–1878) contains several lists of slave births ranging

from 1762 to 1838 and 1841 to 1864 (section 9). Some of the lists provide names of both

parents and physical characteristics. Also in the account book is an 1831 shoe distribution

list and 1817 hiring and work records. A short list, 1835–1841, pertaining to the elder

Henry Massie’s guardianship of minors provides only a few names and values of slaves

(section 10).

Massie family papers, 1767–1993. 877 items. Mss1M3855g.

Primarily the papers of Major Thomas Massie (1747–1834) of Level Green, Nelson

County, and some of his descendants, and largely concern management of extensive land

holdings and an enslaved workforce. Correspondence, 1812–1828, of Major Massie

includes letters written to his son William while the youngster attended school in

Staunton, which in part make reference to a heat wave and its effect on African American

field hands in July 1824 (section 1). Records concerning the settlement of Massie’s estate

include a will recorded in 1834, and an inventory and appraisal of personal property and

slaves (which includes birth dates) (section 5). Papers of Doctor Thomas Massie (1782–

1864), justice of the peace of Nelson County, include an 1821 affidavit that Nelson

Bethel has captured a runaway slave, Isobel, the property of William Ryan (section 6).

Correspondence of William Massie (1795–1862), of Pharsalia, Nelson County, include

communications with his son Hope W. Massie (serving in the Confederate Army in

Hanover County in 1862, concerning his father’s plan to send his slaves south), Doctor

Thomas Massie (regarding the medical treatment of William’s slaves), J. C. Steptoe (of

Liberty, Bedford County, agreeing to sell a slave for Massie), and Harry Tompkins (of

Richmond, advising Massie that few female slaves are available for auction and that few

would be willing to be hired out to someone living so far out in the countryside) (section

7). Records, 1836–1863, concerning slaves owned by William Massie include a register

kept at Pharsalia (containing ages, birth and death dates, names of parents or previous

owners, and tax status) and two items concerning slaves at Level Green (with names and

126

ages of individuals and notations of family groups) (section 11). Correspondence of

Maria Catherine (Effinger) Massie (1814–1889), fourth wife of William Massie, include

communications with Henry C. Boyd, of Blue Rock, Nelson County, concerning the

hiring of Massie slaves, and with her stepson Thomas C. Massie, concerning the

conscription of family slaves by the Confederate government (section 14).

Maupin, Logan J., bond, 1856. 1 p. Mss2M4455a1. Printed form with handwritten

completions.

Bond, 29 December 1856, to Jane Yancey for hire of Jeff, Bill, and Frank, providing for

"customary clothing . . . and Blanket" and "to be returned at Christmas next." Also

provides for quarterly payments.

Maury, Richard Launcelot (1840–1907), diary, 1865. [48] pp. Mss5:1M4486:1.

Kept from 5 February to 11 March 1865 in Richmond, this diary concerns, in part, the

on-going debate over the enlistment of African Americans into the Confederate Army.

Maury, Richard Launcelot (1840–1907), diary, 1865. [48] pp. Mss5:1M4486:2.

Kept from 12 to 30 March 1865 in Richmond, the entries in this diary concern, in part,

the recruitment of African American soldiers for the Confederate Army.

Mayo, William (1684–1744), letter, 1731. 2 pp. Mss2M4547a1.

Letter, 27 August 1731, written from Goochland County to [John Perratt of Barbados], in

part concerning the suicide of the slave Quaccoo and the purchase of two young male

slaves. Published in the Virginia Historical Register, 4 (1851): 8486.

Meade family papers, 1837–1981. 153 items. Mss1M4618d. Microfilm reel C609.

Chiefly the correspondence and financial records of Richard Hardaway Meade ([1831–

1880] of Richmond). Included are three letters, 1870–1872, from an African American

servant, Bettie Heath, to various family members (sections 10, 12, 13) announcing her

departure from service to marry and her later return.

Meade family papers, 1854–1913. 118 items. Mss1M4618a. Microfilm reel C608.

Consists of the correspondence of several members of the Meade family of Amelia

County and Richmond. Section 3 contains a letter, 1863, from Hodijah Lincoln Meade

(1842–1902) to Everard Benjamin Meade concerning African American soldiers in the

U.S. Army.

Meek, Joseph (d. 1840), papers, 1835–1836. 7 items. Mss2M4713b. Photocopies.

Include letters written by Meek of Nashville, Tenn., to Samuel Logan, of Abingdon, Va.,

concerning their slave-trading partnership. Subjects covered include physical

specifications of slaves, the numbers of slaves needed by market time, how to price

slaves, and strategies for selling slaves.

Mercer family papers, 1656–1869. 569 items. Mss1M5345a. Microfilm reels C33 and

C229–231.

Political and business records of members of the Caile family of Dorchester County, Md.,

127

the Mercer family of Anne Arundel County, Md., and Loudoun and Stafford counties,

Va., and the Sprigg family of Anne Arundel County, Md.

A copy of the 1774 will of Thomas Sprigg in part concerns the disposition of slaves and

is accompanied by an undated list of seventy-seven slaves, along with values (section 7).

Richard Sprigg’s letter of 3 May 1798 to his uncle makes brief mention of Congress’s

consideration of the taxation of slaves in the South (section 10). A receipt issued to

Richard Sprigg (1739–1798) in 1791 concerns nine slaves belonging to the estate of

Elizabeth Sprigg (section 11). The 1798 will of Sprigg contains extensive provisions for

the emancipation of slaves and is accompanied by an account of estate expenses (section

16); the brief 1796 will of his wife, Margaret (Caile) Sprigg, contains similar provisions.

A handwritten copy of George Mercer’s 1768 letter to his brother James, written from

London, in part concerns the slaves on the former’s Virginia plantations (section 28).

Section 29 contains letters of James Mercer of Fredericksburg and Richmond to his

brother, John Francis Mercer, U.S. congressman, in the mid-1780s. He discusses the

quarters for slaves and the overseers on John’s Virginia estates (23 September 1783),

infectious diseases among the slave population (18 February 1785), the purchase of

slaves (21 February 1786), and the possible sale of the slave Christmas (3 March 1787).

In the same section, a copy of a letter of James Mercer to Lund Washington in 1783

contains a list of slaves at the Retreat Quarter, presumably belonging to the estate of

George Mercer.

Letters written by John Fenton Mercer to his uncle John Francis Mercer (section 31)

include a number of references to the employment and distribution of the large number of

slaves belonging to the estate of James Mercer (1794, 15 January 1801, 10 July 1801).

Section 33 contains the general correspondence of John Francis Mercer. Letters of

Solomon Betton as overseer at Marlborough in Stafford County concern the discipline

and punishment of slaves by whipping, work routines of slave laborers, and Davey, a

runaway slave (6, 19 September, 12 October 1791). Benjamin Harrison writes from

Richmond on 4 July 1792 concerning his general guidelines for purchasing slaves but his

lack of capital to do so. Mercer himself writes from West River in Anne Arundel County,

Md., to his son John in 1819 with instructions concerning the purchase and manufacture

of clothes for his slave population. Cary Selden writes from Baltimore, Md., on 26 May

1820 concerning the purchase of a slave from King George County, Va. Mercer again

writes from Marlborough on 6 August 1794 to Richard Sprigg concerning the murder of

two men in Fredericksburg by Ben Grymes, who apparently had armed his slaves for the

confrontation. Finally, Dr. James Steuart of Baltimore wrote to Mercer on three occasions

(16 January, 2, 7 February 1799) concerning distribution of the slaves belonging to the

estate of Richard Sprigg (1739–1798).

An account book, 1804–1812, kept by John Francis Mercer includes lists of slaves at

West River and Westbury, Anne Arundel County, Md. (section 34), while another

eighteenth-century list of Mercer’s slaves appears in section 37.

128

Section 39 contains the correspondence of John Mercer of West River. James Maury

writes on 22 March 1830 from Liverpool, Eng., a long tale of Stephen and Willis,

runaway slaves from Caroline County who escaped on a ship chartered by Maury’s

mercantile firm. An 1829 letter from Matthew Maury concerns the same incident. Mercer

himself wrote to his son John Francis (1819–1840) on 12 August 1840 concerning an

outbreak of typhoid fever among the slave population of Anne Arundel County. Margaret

Mercer’s 1817 letter from Liverpool (incomplete) contains a lengthy discussion of the

early development of the colonization movement in the United States.

An undated memorandum by John Francis Mercer includes a list of slaves delivered to

John Mercer (section 41), while letters of Maria (Hunter) Garnett of Essex County and

Theodore S. Garnett of Hanover County to William Robert Mercer concern freedmen and

Reconstruction in Virginia (section 45).

Meredith family papers, 1852–1934. 194 items. Mss1M5415b.

The collection primarily concerns the Reverend Jaquelin Marshall Meredith (1826–

1859), attorney in Sacramento, Calif., and Steptoe Pickett Meredith, farmer in Missouri

and California.

Jaquelin Marshall Meredith’s correspondence (section 3) includes letters from Charles

Lewis Bankhead (concerning the division of an estate including property in slaves), Dr.

William Bankhead (concerning the sale of slaves), Emma G. Jones (concerning the

depiction of African Americans in literature), and Ellen Monroe (Bankhead) Meredith

(concerning African Americans as a group). An 1861 deed of Bickerton Lyle Winston to

Meredith covers the sale of a number of slaves (section 7).

Merritt, Daniel Tatum (1795–1866), diary, 1820–1866. [504] p. Mss5:1M5534:1.

Concerns agricultural operations, slavery, and weather conditions. Kept by Daniel Merritt

in Caswell and Person counties, N. C., and Halifax County, Va.

Mettauer, John Peter (1787–1875), papers, 1812–1858. 128 items. Mss1M5677a.

Microfilm reel C426.

Most of the papers of this Prince Edward County physician pertain to his medical

practice, especially his notable treatments of fistula. His correspondence in section 1,

1825–1853, comprises mostly requests for medical attention, frequently for slaves;

section 2 consists of an account book covering the years 1819–1847 and is predominantly

medical; and section 3 contains loose accounts, many of which are medical, but some of

which also pertain to household supplies such as meal and flour.

Many of the requests in section 1 are for the restoration of eyesight; several are for

scrofula, a tuberculosis of the lymph glands in the neck; others simply make a general

request for Mettauer to examine a slave. Granville Nunnally asks Mettauer about hiring

slaves, 1841; Mettauer makes an urgent request of Mr. Vernon for a wet nurse; in 1831,

Otis Williams asks Mettauer to see the little boy of Cloey, a free woman who lives with

Williams’s family (Williams vouches for payment of the fees).

129

The account book in section 2 contains mostly general records of visits and examinations,

dispensation of medicines, and costs of board for those patients staying at Mettauer’s

home while receiving treatment. Mettauer sometimes hired these slaves, too. Some of the

treatments were for cataracts (page 124), a tumor operation (page 296), a compound

fracture (page 291), syphilis (page 234), and scrofula (page 240). Hirings are accounted

for on pages 253, 282, 293, and 308. (This list is not exhaustive.)

The loose accounts in section 3 cover a wide variety of expenses, only a small percentage

being pertinent to African Americans. Of those accounts that are medical, the summaries

of ailments and treatments are slightly more descriptive.

Miller, Joseph Lyon (1875–1957), collector, papers, 1610–1964. 427 items.

Mss1M6154a.

Dr. Miller, an alumnus of the Medical College of Virginia and a practicing physician in

Thomas, W.Va., collected manuscripts concerning physicians and the history of medical

care in early Virginia, the South, the eastern United States generally, and Great Britain.

The collection includes records concerning the medical care of African American men,

women, and children (primarily slaves) in the Virginia counties of Brunswick,

Dinwiddie, King and Queen, and Middlesex. It also contains records of the hiring out and

purchase and sale of slaves, records of slave births in Charles County, Md. (section 46),

and accounts covering the service of a woman slave as midwife (section 5). A letter of

Dr. Samuel Griffin of Bedford County to Dr. Levi Bartlett of New Hampshire concerns

the institution of slavery in Virginia in the early nineteenth century (section 31).

Miller, Lewis (1796–1882), drawing book, 1856–1871. 114 pp. Mss5:10M6155:1.

Contains scenes drawn while traveling in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia (Giles,

Montgomery, Prince Edward, Pulaski, Roanoke, and Wythe counties), and West Virginia.

Includes some images of African Americans. One page also records a comparison of the

life of the southern slave with the life of a laborer in the North.

Miller family papers, 1825–1883. 161 items. Mss1M6196d.

Correspondence, financial records, and other papers of family members in Frederick

County and Winchester. Section 11 contains two bonds of John Godfrey Miller of

Winchester, dated Christmas Day 1853 and 1854, for the hire of Turner, with the

conditions of service.

Milroy, Margaret Fay Fields (b. 1937), collector, papers, 1772–1870. 22 items.

Mss1M6384a.

Section 1 includes lists of bonds, 1772–1774, for the purchase of slaves transported by

the ship Prince of Wales.

Minor family papers, 1657–1942. 813 items. Mss1M6663a. Microfilm reels B24 and

C609–610.

Include a 1784 agreement between Philip Lightfoot of Caroline County and Charles

Augustine Lewis concerning eight slaves, listed by name only, there being among them a

130

mother and two children (section 23). In the same section is a 1784 bill of sale for the

slave Bob.

Minor family papers, 1810–1932. 4,305 items. Mss1M6663c. Microfilm reels B25B30

and C610–618.

Much of this collection focuses on Robert Dabney Minor (1827–1871), an officer in the

U.S. Navy (in the West Indies, Japan, Annapolis, Md., and Washington, D.C.) and the

Confederate Navy, and an employee of the Tredegar Iron Works in Richmond and the

Dover Company Iron Mines in Chesterfield County.

An 1862 receipt issued by Minor in his capacity as commander of the Confederate Naval

Ordnance and Hydrography Bureau in Richmond contains ten male slaves’ names, with

owners’ names and county of residence. All the slaves are from Charles City County and

have been detailed to work in Richmond for the Ordnance Bureau (section 29).

Also in this collection is a commonplace book (section 69) kept by John Brown Patterson

in Richmond and Poplar Grove, Mathews County, between 1810 and 1847. Among his

school notes are memoranda concerning articles of clothing issued to slaves (socks, coats,

inside and outside clothes), kind of cloth used (cotton or wool, yarn or woven), and

whether the clothes were made in advance or not.

Monique Nursing Training Center, Richmond, records, 1968–1969. 8 items.

Mss4M7494b. Photocopies and printed materials.

Concern the operations of this school, located at 126 West Brookland Park Boulevard,

which trained practical nurses and served as a post-graduation employment agency for

private duty nurses. Included in the collection is a curriculum; advertisement (broadside);

receipts for the assessment of city license taxes; announcement by Mrs. Eleanor Forbes

Randolph, director; correspondence with members of the Virginia Department of

Vocational Rehabilitation; and photographs of Mrs. Randolph.

Monroe, James (1758–1831), papers, 17881828. 21 items. Mss2M7576a. Microfilm

Reel C54.

Some of the items in this collection of Monroe’s papers appear in the guide to the

microfilm edition of James Monroe Papers in Virginia Repositories, edited by C. W.

Garrison and D. L. Thomas (1969). A letter to Larkin Stanard, ca. 1788, concerns the sale

of slaves in order to pay debts (item a13). Item a16 is an 1819 letter concerning the slave

Daniel, seeking advice for appropriate discipline for Daniel and how to use the incident

as an example to other slaves.

Item a4 is an 1828 letter written by James Monroe to Joseph Carrington Cabell inquiring

about any information Cabell may have about correspondence between Monroe and

Thomas Jefferson concerning an 1800 attempted insurrection in Richmond, led by the

slave Gabriel.

In an 1815 letter to Walter Jones of Westmoreland County, Monroe discusses measures

for returning captured slaves taken by the British to the West Indies during the War of

131

1812. Monroe outlines procedures for collecting information to create a list of slaves

considered property of Virginia slaveowners (item a9).

Items a17, a19, and a21 are all concerned with Monroe’s views on the Missouri

Compromise. Items a19 and a21 are 1819 and 1820 items to George Hay; item a17 is a

later (1864) printing of a letter that appeared in the New York News.

Montague family papers, 1808–1939. 337 items. Mss1M7607a. Microfilm reel B31.

Papers of a family of planters, educators, and lawyers of Gloucester County, a number of

whom were active in the Baptist church. Section 5 contains a lengthy 1845 letter of

Charles W. Montague to his aunt Frances Thruston Hughes concerning the discipline and

moral conduct of slaves and the possible sale or hiring out of the slaves Phil and Anthony

in Richmond. Another letter to Hughes, this one undated from Martha P. Dabney in King

and Queen County, concerns the slave Levenia, who is "old and feeble" and whom

Dabney wants to purchase (section 7). Section 12 contains five bonds, 1819–1863,

covering the hire of slaves.

Moody family papers, 1725–1910. 204 items. Mss1M7765a.

Concern the Moody family of Hanover County. Section 25 contains a certificate of John

Poindexter (of Louisa County) concerning Edmund Anderson, Matthew Anderson,

Richard Anderson and the manumission of Jacob Going.

Monument Avenue Crest Garden Club, Richmond, records, 1946–1975. 72 items.

Mss3M7692a.

This organization, named for a residential subdivision in the Westhampton area of

Richmond, was involved with a number of urban antilitter and beautification projects in

the 1970s. One of these focused on the grounds of Center House, Inc., at 713 North First

Street in Richmond, which housed a number of social service agencies. Several

scrapbooks from 1970–1971 include information on this project. Center House had

formerly been St. Joseph’s Catholic Church and Convent and later became the United

Givers Fund Senior Center, primarily serving the local African American community.

The Senior Center was destroyed by fire in 1973, and that event, and its effects on the

local community, is extensively documented in the scrapbook dated 1973–1975.

Morris, Charles, papers, 1861–1928 (bulk 1863–1865). 121 items. Mss1M8315a.

Photocopies.

This collection consists of letters written by Charles Morris (1826–1893), a native of

Hanover County and quartermaster in the Confederate army, to his wife, Mary (Minor)

Morris. Section 1 contains letters concerning the family’s slaves (letter of 1862 October

20 discusses his wife’s worry about "Negroes"), the slave economy (letter of 1864

January 13 complains of a glut in the slave market), and the loss of slaves (letter of 1865

March 20 discusses Federal troops seizing his cousin’s servants).

Morrison family papers, 1836–1935. 39 items. Mss1M8347a.

Concern the Morrison family of Rockbridge County. Section 4 contains newspaper

132

clippings that concern, in part, the freeing of slaves by a member of Bethesda Church,

Rockbridge Baths, before the Civil War.

Mosby, Samuel (1766?–1829), account book, 1789–1791. ca. 350 pp.

Mss5:3M8552:1.

Kept as a deputy sheriff in Henrico County, this volume includes records of the

executions of writs and judgments and of fees collected. The volume was also used by

Mosby’s widow, Mary (Anderson) Mosby, in part to record the distribution of clothing

and other supplies to her slaves.

Moseley family papers, 1865–1936. 7 items. Mss2M8527b. Photocopies.

Include a Buckingham County list of former slaves of Grandison Moseley (item b5). The

list bears a total of fifty-three names, many including surnames. On it are recorded years

of birth beginning with 1805, family relationships, residence as of 9 August 1865

(Buckingham and Nelson counties, Richmond, and the U.S. Army), and compensation

received (barrels of corn, poultry, and pigs).

Mosher, Hugh E., papers, 1918–1948 (bulk 1918–1919). 237 items. Mss1M8533a.

Hugh E. Mosher (1890–1980) of Roanoke served in Company B, First Battalion, 602d

Engineers Regiment of the Allied Expeditionary Force during World War I. Section 6

contains a letter, June 1918, written to Mosher’s mother, Louisa "Lula" (Upshaw)

Mosher, by Anna P. Hiller Jones, from Camp Jackson, S.C., expressing Anna’s relief at

being around white rather than African American soldiers.

Mountcastle family papers, 1798–1881. 66 items. Mss1M8643a.

Section one contains a tax collection book, 1799–1849, compiled by Joseph Vaiden (d.

1808) as sheriff of Charles City County concerning the collection of county taxes on

land, livestock, and slaves from 1799 to 1803, including payment by cash and in-kind

work, such as repairs to county property. Enclosed in the volume is a tax receipt, 1798,

on land, livestock, and a slave.

Munford, Beverley Bland (1856–1910), papers, 1907–1908. 6 items. Mss2M9232b.

In doing research for publication, Munford wrote to the descendants and relatives of a

number of prominent Confederate leaders to inquire about their opinions on slavery and

whether or not the ancestor owned slaves. The responses to his inquiries constitute the

core of this collection. The letters are mostly dated 1907 and include responses from

descendants or relatives of Joseph E. Johnston, Fitzhugh Lee, William Henry Fitzhugh

Lee, A. P. Hill, and J. E. B. Stuart. In addition to providing opinions of prominent

southerners on the morality of owning slaves, several of the letters relate anecdotal

information about manumissions and phased emancipation plans of various individuals.

Munford family papers, 1799–1964. 351 items. Mss1M9235b.

This collection contains both Munford family papers and research notes of Beverley

Bland Munford for his book, Virginia’s Attitude toward Slavery and Secession (1909)

(see entry immediately above). Munford’s research notes are in section 16 and consist

primarily of abstracts from court records of wills and emancipation documents. The

133

abstracts trace the manumission of slaves, sometimes unconditionally, sometimes

requiring emigration to Liberia, sometimes providing for job skills and training with an

indenture, and sometimes through a detailed plan of phased emancipation. Most of the

abstracts refer to transactions recorded in the late eighteenth to mid-nineteenth century.

Murray, J. Odgen (1840–1921), papers, 1872–1915. 416 items. Mss1M9645a.

Microfilm reel C121.

John Ogden Murray was a newspaper editor, historian, and Confederate veteran of

Goshen and later Winchester. Included in section 1 of the collection is a letter to Murray

from Thomas C. Chandler (of Washington, D.C.) concerning the presidential election of

1908 and the influence of the African American vote.

Mutter, Mary, papers, 1846–1902. 16 items. Mss2M9848b.

Most of this collection consists of letters, predominantly of a genealogical nature. One

item is an 1849 deed of gift from Mary Smith Nelson of New Kent County to Edward P.

Chamberlayne for seven slaves, Mary and her six children, all identified by name. Also

included is an undated letter from Edward P. Chamberlayne in which he explains that he

is returning the deed as a result of considering his obligations to his management of

hiring out slaves. He specifically refers to the slaves Peggy and Mary and her family.

Myers family papers, 1763–1923. 202 items. Mss1M9924a. Microfilm reels C301–

302.

Catharine Hays Myers and her sisters, Julia and Harriet, issued a pass to their slaves

Richard and Narcissa to reside in a tenement on College Street in Richmond in 1855

(section 14).

Myers family papers, 1843–1929. 81 items. Mss1M9924b. Microfilm reel C302.

This collection primarily concerns Gustavus Adolphus Myers (1801–1869), Richmond

lawyer and municipal officer, and his son, artist William Barksdale Myers. An 1845

affidavit of Thomas Peyton Gwynn of Amelia County concerns the slave Sally, formerly

the property of Ann Graham (section 8). The same section includes a bond, ca. 1843, of

William Branch Giles to Eliza G. Lambert of Richmond for the hire of John, and

accounts, 1847, of the sale of slaves at auction for the benefit of Gallegher & Oldner of

Richmond.

Nalle family papers, 1800–1862. 79 items. Mss1N1495a.

Correspondence, financial papers, and other records of a farming family in Culpeper and

Orange counties. A number of deeds, 1809–1819 (section 3), cover the purchase by Jesse

Nalle of several male and female slaves, most teenagers. Additional materials, 1819–

1825 (section 4), include a letter of Blackford, Arthur and Co. of Isabella Furnace,

concerning clothing for Nalle’s slave Edmund, bonds for the hiring of women slaves

(including conditions of service), and a bill of complaint concerning slaves belonging to

the estate of Joshua Botts.

134

The correspondence of Ann Botts Nalle (section 5) includes letters written by Alberta and

Edward Day in 1860 concerning the death of the slave French in a railroad accident and a

letter by Dr. Thomas T. Slaughter concerning an operation on the slave Jack. Mrs. Nalle’s

accounts (section 7) include payments for a blanket supplied to one bondsman and the

apprehension of a fugitive slave. Two bonds cover the hire of several slaves, including a

blacksmith, and an affidavit issued in 1856 concerns the deaths of two female slave

children belonging to Mrs. Nalle (section 8).

Two letters, 1849–1861 (section 9), concern the hiring of Daniell and the capture of

several young fugitive slaves belonging to Mary Lawson Nalle of Orange County, as do

her accounts (section 10), including the medical costs of removing a bullet from the thigh

of one of the runaways.

Albert Gallatin Nalle’s correspondence, 1856–1862 (section 11), includes letters written

by James R. Field, Orange O. Peterson, and Montgomery Slaughter concerning the

capture of runaway slaves. A letter of O. P. Smith to B. F. Nalle in 1851 (section 12)

discusses the slave Charles, who hired himself out without permission. A letter of

Montgomery Slaughter concerns the apprehension of fugitive slave Dick in 1861, while a

related account records Dick’s subsequent sale a year later (section 13).

Nash family papers, 1734–1889. 8,438 items. Mss1N1786a.

Much of this collection is focused on John White Nash (1792–1859), a lawyer practicing

primarily in and around the counties of Powhatan, Amelia, Cumberland, and Goochland.

He also served in the Virginia House of Delegates, in the Virginia Senate, and later as a

circuit court judge. In addition to his own personal papers, the collection also includes

copies of documents drawn up for his clients.

Deeds and deeds of trusts are included in section 1 (1815; Fauquier County), sections 41

and 42 (1817–1845; counties of Campbell, Cumberland, Fauquier, Powhatan, and Prince

William; some ages and mother-child relationships provided), section 52 (1829;

concerning a Dinwiddie County mill and the slaves working at the mill), section 93 (an

1841 affidavit concerns the transfer of a family of slaves from St. Louis, Mo., to

Powhatan County, Va.), section 135 (1810; Powhatan County for a dozen slaves with one

mother-child pair), section 160 (1824–1839; sales records in Cumberland and Fauquier

County), section 164 (an 1831 deed of trust concerning Harriet P. (Giles) Nash and

ownership of slaves of the estate of William Branch Giles), section 175 (1818–1841;

Virginia counties of Amelia, Franklin, Goochland, and Powhatan and the city of New

Orleans, La.; an 1836 sales record has an added note that the slave Elsey was hired by the

sheriff of Franklin County while she was suing for her freedom [physical description

included]), and section 176 (1810–1826; Amelia County; includes some occupations). An

1821 agreement records a trade of two slave girls for one adult male slave (section 194).

Wills with attached inventories and records of the distribution of slaves by lots constitute

a substantial portion of the collection. Most of these documents also record the appraised

value of the slaves distributed by lot. John White Nash kept copies of many of his clients’

wills. These can be found in section 1 (an 1816 inventory for about thirty slaves), section

135

2 (1855 correspondence with Joseph Virginius Hobson of Powhatan, and 1839

correspondence with David May of Missouri), section 13 (1816 inventory of slaves of

Ludwell Brackett of Amelia County), section 73 (1812 inventory of approximately one

hundred slaves belonging to the estate of Francis Muir of Amelia and Powhatan counties;

the will designates some of the blacksmiths, carpenters, millers, and wagoners by name),

section 115 (1835–1836; estate of William Hickman of Powhatan County; includes some

family relationships), section 140 (1825–1828 material concerning the slaves freed by the

will of George Radford of Powhatan County; an agreement with the former slaves is

included), and section 193 (wills, 1800–1850; Archard Walthal’s includes notes on slave

family relationships; William Branch Giles’s includes careful notations of family groups

and some occupations; James Hansbrough’s estate; and will of Ann Murray specifying

the three generations of the slaves for her daughter).

Notes concerning supplies of clothing for slaves can be found in section 2 (1825

correspondence with Samuel Hatcher includes an itemized list of costs for keeping slaves

for hire) and in section 178 (1851 affidavit concerning the hire of a slave boy James for

$5, summer clothes, winter clothes, hat, and blanket). Many of the hiring papers record

specific clothing to be provided as well as the conditions of work (see section 2, 1832

correspondence with William Howard concerning the hire of Rosa after the birth of her

child and providing for the infant; 1822 correspondence with Joseph Hobson). Additional

notes on hiring are in section 48 (1849 affidavit of John White Nash concerning

settlement of an account for hewing and sawing of wood done by Jupiter and Madison)

and section 164 (1828–1833 accounts for sales and hire of slaves from the estate of

William Branch Giles).

Information and opinions concerning the colonization of Liberia can be located in section

2 (1832 correspondence with William Segar Archer, mostly about congressional

proceedings and debates about secession; and an 1828 letter from John Tyler [then

senator from Virginia] stating that he cannot support the use of federal funds for

colonization—it being the responsibility of the individual states). In section 47 is an 1836

speech given by John White Nash (while in the state Senate) concerning his opinions on

slavery.

Correspondence of William Howard, in Missouri in 1849, concerns the general

devaluation of slave property and an occurrence of cholera in a slave trader’s stock

(section 2). Section 3 consists of an 1804–1827 account book that contains the fee

records for defense of two slaves accused of poisoning their master (page 86A). In

section 178, an 1822 affidavit of Charles Womack of Cumberland County concerns the

capture of Dick as a fugitive seven miles from Powhatan County.

Neblett family papers, 1819–1891. 673 items. Mss1N2795a.

Primarily the papers of Dr. Sterling Neblett of Lunenburg County, Va., and Bolivar

County, Miss., his wife, and his sons and daughters. Charles J. Meriwether writes two

letters in 1860 from Westwood plantation near Richmond concerning the sale of family

servants to Neblett (section 1), while Meriwether’s lists of the slaves, with annotations

concerning their general health and physical condition and proposed sale prices, appear in

136

section 7. Another undated list of slaves belonging to Colin, James, and Robert Neblett

may be found in section 13.

Nelson, Daniel Thurber (b. 1839), papers, 1862–1910. 5 items. Mss2N3322b.

Photocopies.

This collection includes a diary, 17 March - 2 August 1862, kept by Daniel Thurber

Nelson (of Boston, Mass.) while training at Harvard Medical School, as a medical cadet

at Mason General Hospital in Boston, and while serving on a hospital ship between

Boston and Virginia and following the U.S. Army of the Potomac during the Peninsula

Campaign. The diary includes references to the lives and conditions of slaves. Also

included in the collection are descriptions written March-June 1865 by Nelson while

serving as an assistant surgeon with the U.S. Army of the James during the siege of

Petersburg and during the occupation of Richmond. These accounts include musings on

the future of freed slaves.

Nelson, George William, papers, 1850–1900. 14 items. Mss2N331b. Photocopies.

The collection contains an 1860 letter from Marcus, a slave at Gloucester Court House

belonging George William Nelson of Middlesex County, inquiring what hiring

arrangements have been made for him for the year. Letters from William Field and

William Fleet of King and Queen County concern hiring Marcus as a mechanic. An 1854

letter from George Nelson at the University of Virginia comments on John Brown’s raid

at Harpers Ferry.

Nelson, William T., papers, 1857–1864 (bulk 1862). 36 items. Mss1N3381a. William

T. Nelson (b. 1832?) served in Company D of the 57th North Carolina Infantry Regiment

during the Civil War. His letters contain details of daily life in the Confederate army but

also concern care for Nelson’s farm and slaves back home. One letter, 1862 October 15,

mentions the price of slaves in Richmond. Several letters of November 1862 discuss

slave discipline and inoculating servants against smallpox.

Nelson County, superintendent of schools, records, 1872–1880. 967 items.

Mss3N3386a.

The collection contains letters written to Patrick Henry Cabell and other materials

compiled by Cabell while Nelson County superintendent of schools. Materials include

census records, 1872, of whites and blacks aged five to twenty-one years in the county

(section 3) and reports, 1876–1877, of Caroline Anthony Cabell concerning a black

school at Union Hill (section 4).

New family papers, 1792–1840. 1,026 items. Mss1N4205a.

Collection includes business papers and correspondence of the New and related families

of Middlesex and Gloucester counties. Section 1 includes materials concerning the

settlement of the estate of David Ball, which includes the purchase of slaves. Section 2

contains a bond and deeds concerning the hiring out and purchase of slaves. Section 3

contains materials relating to the estate of Anthony New (d. 1819) of Middlesex County,

kept by Emanuel Jones Thruston (1796–1843) of Gloucester Court House. Included in

these materials are documents concerning the medical care of slaves, the hiring out of

137

slaves, and clothing and other care for slaves. Also included are materials concerning the

division of estate property, particularly slaves. Accounts concerning the medical care of

slaves, an agreement concerning the hiring out of Nelly and her children, and a list of

slaves belonging to Anthony New are located in section 4. Section 5 contains a letter

from Leonard Henley ([1778–1831] of Williamsburg) to Emanuel Jones Thruston

concerning sale of the slave Sye. Section 7 contains a list of slaves to be hired out from

the estate of Thomas Robins (1746–1808) of Gloucester County, and an agreement and

affidavit of William and Elizabeth Bentley concerning the sale of slaves.

New Salem Baptist Church, Madisonville, record book, 1830–1856. [109] pp.

Mss4N4207a1.

General record book of church meetings, finances, and membership kept for this

Charlotte County church. Includes listings of male and female members, including free

African American and enslaved members.

Newton, Thomas (1742–1807), letter, 1771. 2 pp. Mss2N4882a1.

Letter, 20 December 1771, written from Norfolk to Robert Bolling of Petersburg, in part

concerning the possible purchase of an African American baker.

Nicholson family papers, 1711–1877. 26 items. Mss1N5287a.

The papers of this Norfolk family include documents from both the eighteenth and the

nineteenth centuries. In section 1 is a 1763 deed from George Coates to Dr. Charles

Mayle conveying the slave boy Stephen for 20 (section 1). Section 2 includes an 1818

deed of trust of Thomas Nicholson to John Hodges for the benefit of John Leslie for the

fifteen-year-old slave girl Matilday. In section 7 are a number of lists of slave births from

1759 to 1852. They record about eighty-five names and years of births; mothers’ names

are rarely mentioned. The oldest list of the four records the births of Matt Matthias’s

slaves.

Noel, Robert S., receipt, 1848. 1 p. Mss2G2239a1.

Receipt, February 1848, issued to L. C. Gatewood for the sale of a slave, Randale.

Nolting, Emil Otto (1824–1893), receipts, 1852–1863. 2 items. Mss2N7255b.

Two receipts, issued in Richmond from Edward McConnell and Henry Moncure (by

Adolph Dill Williams) for the purchase of slaves.

Norris family papers, 1868–1887. 12 items. Mss2N7997b.

Papers of a Culpeper County family. Include a piece of stationery from a Culpeper

jeweler, H. C. Burrows, ca. 1880s, on which are written several incomplete verses of a

song providing a white perspective of African Americans during Reconstruction.

North family papers, 1830–1936. 372 items. Mss1N8117a.

The correspondence of Emily Jane (Klein) North of Culpeper County (section 7) includes

a letter written from Charleston, S.C., in 1863 by a slave, Ben Drayton, who wishes to

return to Norfolk to rejoin his mistress’s family and who reports, "I have been a prisoner

with the Yankees and made my escape."

138

Nottoway County, records, 1790–1817. 15 items. Mss4N8493b.

This collection contains an assortment of bonds and oaths, among which are coroner’s

reports concerning the deaths of two slaves. An 1802 inquisition finds the death of

Charles, property of Major William Cabaniss, as suicidal hanging by a grapevine. Fanny,

property of William Worsham, died in 1810 of an unknown cause.

Nottoway County, Court, papers, 1790–1817. 15 items. Mss4N8493b.

Include inquisitions, 1802–1810, concerning the death of Charles, a slave of William

Cabaniss, and the death of Fanny, a slave of William Worsham. Also includes a writ,

dated 17 November 1808, issued by Francis Fitzgerald, clerk of court, to the sheriff of

Nottoway County to seize property of Jordan Jackson to satisfy a judgment in favor of

Pleasant Akin. The verso bears an affidavit of William Perry concerning the sale of

Rachell, a slave, to satisfy the judgment.

Nowlin, David (d. 1819), will, 1819. 1 p. Mss2N8675a1.

Will, dated 30 March 1819 and probated in Buckingham County concerning the

disposition of land and thirty-six named slaves to the heirs of David Nowlin.

Nowlin, Matthew Bates (1792–1856), papers, 1796–1886 (bulk 1837–1856). 322

items. Mss1N8675a.

Chiefly letters written to Matthew Bates Nowlin of Brookneal, Campbell County, by his

brother, Hopkins Nowlin (1795?–1857) of Franklin County, while the latter was traveling

in South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama buying and selling slaves. The letters (section

1) discuss travel arrangements, sales made, and methods of payment. Also included are

receipts and accounts related to the buying, selling, and provisioning of slaves, as well as

purchases at a general store owned by Matthew Bates Nowlin (section 2). Legal papers

(section 3) include scattered deeds and bonds, and estate papers for Patterson Jennings (d.

1854?) and Matthew Bates Nowlin. Transcriptions of letters by two independent

researchers are filed with the collection.

O’Connor, Arthur Emmet, letters, 1861 October 4–1862 February 24. 4 items.

Mss2Oc55b.

This collection consists of letters written by Arthur Emmett O’Connor while he served

with the 99th New York Infantry Regiment (also known as the Naval Brigade and the

Virginia Coast Guard) as a steward in the United States General Hospital at Camp

Hamilton near Fort Monroe. Among numerous other subjects he includes a lengthy

description of a wedding between former African American slaves in early 1862.

Omohundro, Silas (1807–1864), receipt, 1856. 1 p. Mss2OM653a1. Photocopy.

Printed form with handwritten completions.

Receipt, 28 February 1856, Richmond, to R. J. Young for purchase of a male slave,

Meredith, for $1,175.

139

Osburn, Franklin (b. 1821?), papers, 1849–1875. 17 items. Mss1Os15a. Microfilm

reel C127.

Primarily records covering the operations of a general store and farm at Kabletown,

Jefferson County (now W. Va.). Included are daybooks and account books containing

records for hogs killed, crops sown, payments to laborers (including freedmen), and the

rental of property.

Otey family papers, 1848–1961. 240 items. Mss1Ot28a.

Include commonplace books, correspondence, and genealogical notes of three

generations of the Otey family of Columbus, Tenn., and Washington, D.C. Section 3

contains a partial typescript of a letter, dated 9 September 1865, from Mary Buckner

Thruston (Magill) Randolph of Eastern View, Fauquier County, Va., to Eliza Ripley

(Otey) Compton of Washington, D.C., discussing her return to her home after the Civil

War where her freed slaves have taken over her property.

Overby, Ethel Thompson (1892–1997), autobiographical notes. [3], 138 pp.

Mss5:1Ov25:1.

Concern the life and career of Mrs. Ethel Thompson Overby, the first African American

woman principal in the Richmond public schools.

Owen family papers, 1837–ca. 1935. 213 items. Mss1Ow26a.

Chiefly consist of records kept by Maria B. Owen (1808?–1879) as executor of her

husband, Robertson’s, estate, and by her son, Rufus H. Owen (1830–1892), as manager

of a tobacco plantation in Halifax County. Section one contains a letter, 1859, from Philip

Howerton (1793–1879) giving instructions for the hiring of an overseer for his plantation

and slaves. Section two includes detailed accounts, 1851–1857, of Rufus H. Owen’s

management of his mother’s plantation that list medical and other expenses incurred to

provide for her slaves, as well as records of income from hiring out slaves.

Page, Carolyn N., papers, 1960–1997. 4 items. Mss2P14123b.

A scrapbook and some loose items document the career of Carolyn B. Page of Richmond

as an employee of A. H. Robins Company, a pharmaceuticals manufacturer. Page worked

as a file clerk, computer operator, accounting clerk, and eventually senior secretary at

Robins and its successor companies. The scrapbook contains labeled photographs of co-

workers, most as they performed their jobs. The collection also includes a photocopy of

photograph of the senior class of 1960 of Southside High School in Dinwiddie County

and a humorous narrative called "The Train."

Page, Gabriella (1874–1949), collector, papers, 1786–1891. 37 items. Mss2P1424b.

Collected papers of historical Virginia figures. Include an 1802 receipt issued to Peter

Carr by James Lyons of Richmond for the sale of the slave James; an 1820 letter of John

Randolph of Roanoke to W. J. Barksdale in part concerning the debate over the Missouri

Compromise in the U.S. Senate; and an undated list of slaves belonging to the estate of

140

Obadiah Winfree of Chesterfield County, with an agreement covering their distribution

among Winfree’s heirs.

Page, Jane Frances (Walker), commonplace book, 1802–1845. 92 pp.

Mss5:5P1432:1. Microfilm reel C473.

This volume was kept in Albemarle County by Jane Frances (Walker) Page and Jane

Byrd (Nelson) Walker for the plantations Castle Hill, Cobham, and Turkey Hill. It

contains a considerable amount of detail on the distribution of various kinds of clothing

and types of meat, food, and other supplies.

Page, John, commonplace book, 1795–1796. 226 pp. Mss5:5P1433:1.

John Page kept these notes in a copy of Benjamin Banneker’s Pennsylvania, Maryland,

and Virginia Almanac for 1795, printed in Philadelphia, with the image of Banneker, an

African American printer, on the frontispiece. Kept in Gloucester County, the book

contains lists of slaves with occupations and some family units designated. The entry for

14 June provides a theological hypothesis of the origins of the African race.

Page family papers, 1796–1952. 580 items. Mss1P1465c.

This collection contains materials from four generations of the Page family of Gloucester

County, Va. Section 2 consists of the papers of Elizabeth Nelson Page (1770–1854), wife

of Mann Page ([1766–1813] of Shelly, Gloucester County). Correspondents include

merchants in Baltimore, Md., and Norfolk, Va., concerning, in part, the hiring out of her

slaves. Section 4 consists of the correspondence, 1835–1870, of Lucy Anne (Jones) Page

(of Greenway, Gloucester County). Included in this section is an 1865 letter from her

daughter, Martha Throckmorton Page Vandegrift (of Alexandria, Va.), concerning

Martha’s resentment toward the freeing of her slaves and her former slaves’ attitude

toward work after the Civil War. An unnamed cousin of Martha gives an opinion of

freedmen in another 1865 letter, located in section 9.

Page family papers, 1797–1997. 730 items. Mss1P1465d.

This collection concerns the Page family of Gloucester County, Va., and related families,

including the Hardaways. Section 2 contains the papers of John (d. 1810) and Rebecca

(Hardaway) Murrell ([1776–1857] of Brunswick County, Va., Pensacola, Fla., and

Mobile, Ala.). Included in the section are legal documents, 1810–1811, concerning the

death of John Murrell, including verification of his marriage to Rebecca and their

property, which specifically names ten slaves. Section 8 contains an undated story written

in African American dialect by Lucy Nelson (Page) Hardaway (1853–1950) giving the

recollections of a slave in Lucy’s family, Mammy Clayton, concerning her migration to

Alabama before the Civil War. The papers of William Augustus Hardaway ([1850–1923]

of St. Louis, Mo., great-grandson of John Murrell and Rebecca Hardaway Murrell),

contain a memoir, 1902–1919, in part, discussing his childhood in Mobile, Ala., and the

rivalry between his mother’s French and Spanish slaves and his father’s Virginia slaves.

Paine, William G. (1816?–1880), papers, 1859–1863. 4 items. Mss2P1665b.

Paine’s papers include a bond executed in Richmond on 6 January 1859 with Robert C.

Morton concerning the hire of an African American slave named Fanny.

141

Palmer, William Price (1821–1891), scrapbook, 1890–1895. [144] pp.

Mss5:7P1828:5.

Compiled by William Price Palmer, a Richmond physician and local historian. Pages

100–105 concern Gabriel, a slave who attempted a large-scale revolt in the Richmond

area in 1800.

Palmer family papers, 1782–1894. 212 items. Mss1P1827b.

Papers of Richmond merchant Charles Palmer and Richmond physician and historian Dr.

William Price Palmer. An 1855 letter of William H. Douthat to Dr. Palmer (section 5)

concerns the preparation of freed slaves for embarkation to Liberia. In section 11, a

political cartoon ridicules the 1852 Virginia legislative session over the issue of removal

of the state capital to the western part of the commonwealth and the pardoning of a slave

named Jordan Hatcher.

Palmer family papers, 1831–1891. 69 items. Mss1P1827c.

Collection concerns members of the Palmer and Douthat families of Virginia, Louisiana,

and Tennessee. Section 4 includes a letter written to Charles Douthat (a commission

merchant in Memphis) by Henry C. Douthat (of Buchanan, Botetourt County, Va.)

concerning the emigration of African Americans to Liberia.

Pate, Edmund, letter, 1828. 3 pp. Mss2P2716a1.

Written 30 March 1828 from New Orleans, La., to Callohill Mennis of Bedford County,

Va., concerning the sale of slaves in the New Orleans market.

Patten, Louise (Anderson) (1880–1973), papers, 17291970. 891 items. Mss1P2775a.

Collector of material associated with Robert "King" Carter of Corotoman and Mann Page

of Mannsfield. Section 16 contains an 1808 deed of Robert Carter Page of Fredericksburg

to his mother, Mary Page, for the slave child Daniel Baudin.

Pattison, Anne Coke (d. 1755), account book, 1743/4–1749. 1 v. (180 pp.)

Mss5:3P2783:1. Microfilm reel B72.

Daily financial journal kept for the widow Anne Coke Pattison, in part, by James Lavie,

concerning the operation of a tavern in Williamsburg, 1744–1746 by John Burnett

(d.1746), and 1746–1749 by Anne Coke Pattison. The volume includes information on

slaves who frequented the tavern.

Paulett, Richard Singleton (1820?–1902), papers, 1849–1891. 68 items. Mss1P2822a.

Merchant in Prince Edward County. An 1857 tax bill issued to Richard Paulett in

Appomattox County covers 680 acres and eight slaves (section 3). Materials, 1849–1857,

concern a lawsuit in Appomattox County involving Paulett and the operations of a

blacksmith shop. Although not mentioned specifically, African American laborers seem

to have figured in the business (section 7).

Payne, Sarah P., letterbook, 1865–1872. 144 pp. Mss2P2936a1. Typescript copy.

Bound volume of typescripts of letters of Sarah Payne of Campbell County, Va., to her

Miller relatives in Maryland and Philadelphia, Pa. The letters begin just after the Civil

142

War and record her domestic situation for the next seven years. They describe changes in

the condition of life (especially farm and household management) in central Virginia

occasioned by the end of the war and the emancipation of slaves. The letters routinely

contain references to difficulties in hiring farm hands and domestic help. Payne

frequently states her perceptions of the difference in working habits of African

Americans before and after the war and the difficulties in finding laborers.

Payne refers to distributing winter clothes (30 September 1865); Horace Greeley, Henry

Ward Beecher, and other abolitionists (26 April 1866); death of a former slave who did

his blind master’s reading (20 June 1866); scarcity of freedmen in the country and the

preacher employed by the Baptist mission board to minister to freedmen (before the war

the minister was employed by a neighbor to preach to the slaves [20 July 1867]); fear of

insurrection and voting rights for African Americans (12 December 1867); fear for

Arkansas relatives surrounded by radicals, concerns about freedmen, and theft (1 June

1868); comparison of Christmas celebrations before and after the war for both white and

black populations (2 January 1871); establishment of schools for African Americans (5

April 1871); and typhoid fever among African Americans (16 July 1871).

Payne family papers, 1832–1892. 221 items. Mss1P2936c.

Records of a farming family in Culpeper County. A receipt issued in 1862 to Mary Emily

(Payne) Gee by the Confederate States Quartermaster’s Department covers the fee for

hiring the slave Charles (section 1). An agreement signed by Gee and other family

members in 1860 concerns the sale of Betty for the benefit of Fenton A. Payne (section

3). Section 6 contains six bonds, 18481863, covering the hiring of various slaves.

Edward A. Freeman’s affidavit, 1862, concerns the appraisal of nine slaves who were the

property of George Samuel Major Payne and other family members (section 9).

Accounts, 1843–1869, kept by Fenton A. Payne include two undated lists of slaves

(section 11), while an 1862 bond of Louis and Robert Yancey to Frances M. (Fant) Payne

concerns the hiring of Aggy (section 17).

Peake, Thomas (1767–1843), papers, 1624–1825. 27 items. Mss2P3133b.

The papers of Thomas Peake of Fairfax County include photocopies of records of his

ancestors from England. Later family members lived in Illinois.

A deed of Thomas and Sarah Peake (section 4) provides for the slaves Louisa, Nelly, and

Jenny to be transferred in trust to certain daughters. Section 7 contains an account,

18141819, of Mary Ann Adams and records the amount of hire for a slave woman.

Peck, Wellford and Co., Fredericksburg, papers, 1834–1844. 17 items. Mss3P3375a.

Microfilm reel C578.

Records of a Fredericksburg company operating stage lines and providing mail service.

Included is a letterbook and miscellaneous letters.

In section 5, two 1843 documents relate to a petition of the citizens of Fredericksburg to

the governor, James McDowell, on behalf of George Ware, a freedman. Two pages of

143

narrative offer the petitioners’ belief in Ware’s impeccable character and in the

inappropriate charge of manslaughter. They provide a description of the circumstances of

the charge and characterize the incident as accidental and unfortunate rather than

criminal. The petition for clemency is signed by several local attorneys, justices of the

peace, ministers (representing several denominations), and a Spotsylvania clerk of the

court.

Peckatone papers, 1713–1809. 79 items. Mss1P3374b. Microfilm reels C035 and

C233.

Scattered legal, financial and personal papers of members of the Corbin, Lee, and

Turberville families who lived at Peckatone plantation in Westmoreland County. Includes

correspondence, 1766–1792, of George Turberville (1742–1793) with John Peck

(concerning wages of a slave named Dick who was hired as a bricklayer), Dr. George

Steptoe (concerning medical advice for Turberville’s son and several of his young

slaves), and John Augustine Washington (concerning the cost of hiring Turberville’s

slave Adam) (section 8).

Pendleton family papers, 1836–1910. 10 items. Mss2P3748b.

This small collection includes the correspondence, 1836–1840, of Doctor Micajah

Pendleton (1796?–1861) of Buchanan, Botetourt County, in part with Louisa Jane

(Davis) Pendleton concerning his life in Buchanan and the purchase of a female slave.

Perry, Thornton Tayloe (1892–1981), collector, Berkeley County, W.Va.,

miscellaneous papers, 1735–1943. 83 items. Mss1P4299f. Microfilm reel C91.

Miscellaneous small collections, loose correspondence, accounts, legal and other papers

from Berkeley County, W.Va., collected by Thornton Tayloe Perry (of Charles Town,

W.Va.). Included in section 3 is a slave bill of sale, 1818, between John Huffman and

William Roach.

Perry, Thornton Tayloe (1892–1981), collector, Civil War miscellaneous papers,

1861–c. 1960s. 119 items. Mss1P4299i. Microfilm reels C94–96.

A letter from Samuel J. C. Moore, February 1865, concerns his views on arming slaves

for the Confederacy, the likelihood of emancipating slaves, and the abilities of slaves to

be soldiers (section 1).

Perry, Thornton Tayloe (1892–1981), collector, Jefferson County, W.Va.,

miscellaneous papers, 1785–1952. 278 items. Mss1P4299c. Microfilm reel C109.

Miscellaneous papers from Jefferson County, W.Va., collected by Thornton Tayloe Perry

(of Charles Town, W.Va.). Section 2 contains papers, 1865, of Charles E. Trail,

consisting of a lease and rental agreement for a lot and dwelling house in Harpers Ferry,

W.Va., under the control of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands.

Perry, Thornton Tayloe (1892–1981), collector, Virginia miscellaneous papers, (ca.)

1748–1942. 109 items. Mss1P4299h. Microfilm reels C140–142.

Miscellaneous papers from various Virginia counties collected by Thornton Tayloe Perry

(of Charles Town, W.Va.). Materials include correspondence, financial papers, legal

144

documents, scrapbooks and commonplace books. Section 6 contains a slave bill of sale,

1794, between William Bowden and Samuel Williams in Middlesex County, Va., and

school papers, 1913–1914, of Mabel Minor, a student at Hampton Institute (now

Hampton University), Hampton, Va.

Perry, Thornton Tayloe (1892–1981), collector, West Virginia miscellaneous papers,

1741–1967. 183 items. Mss1P4299g. Microfilm reels C143–145.

Miscellaneous papers from various West Virginia counties collected by Thornton Tayloe

Perry (of Charles Town, W.Va.). Section 5 contains a letter concerning the appraisal of a

slave in Greenbrier County, W.Va. Section 6 contains an account book, 1853–1863, kept

by Simon E. Taylor (of South Branch, W.Va.) containing a discussion of the slavery issue

in relation to the Methodist church.

Peters, Frederick Grandison, letter, 1848 May 15. 1 item. Mss2P4421a1.

Written from Tye River Warehouse in Nelson County to Seth Halsey in Lynchburg, this

letter concerns the possible sale of a male slave, Brister, who is described as a "good

dining room servant." It also bears a receipt, 1848 August 29, issued to John D. Murrell

for the purchase of Brister by Seth Halsey as agent for F. G. Peters, administrator of

Willis [H.] Wills, deceased.

Petty family papers, 1831–1890. 47 items. Mss2P4566b. Photocopies.

Papers of members of the Petty family of Clinton County, Ind., and Culpeper County, Va.

Among the "Bonds and Summonses" in this collection is an 1841 bond of Elizabeth

Petty, William Petty, Zachariah Petty, and George Thomas to John Thom (sheriff for

Culpeper County) concerning the hire of eighteen identified slaves, including two

mother-child pairs. Abstracts of wills indicate that Zachariah Petty of Culpeper County

left a slave to each of his three daughters (1799 probate) and that Marshall Petty also left

slave property to his children (1800). Neither abstract identifies the slaves.

Peyton family papers, 1731–1914. 76 items. Mss1P4686b. Microfilm reel B32.

Section 10 contains an 1847 deed of trust of John Rector to Henry Rector for unnamed

slaves, goods, and chattels.

Peyton family papers, 1760–1919. 1,286 items. Mss1P4686c.

Most of the documents of African American content in this collection are lists of estate

divisions and deeds. Section 7 includes 1831 lists of the division of the slaves of Dr.

Chandler Peyton’s estate (Fauquier County). Approximately forty-five slaves were

divided into six lots. Section 47 contains material, 1840–1856, pertaining to settlement of

Richard Henry Peyton’s estate. An 1840 inventory lists three slaves ages fifteen,

eighteen, and twenty-two, one being a blacksmith. An 1842 Mississippi affidavit

concerns hiring out four mothers with their children. Also in section 47 is a note of a sale

of a slave for the benefit of an institutionalized family member.

Among the papers of Elizabeth Brown (Scott) Peyton are an 1834 deed and an agreement

concerning four dower slaves (section 9). Deeds, 1811–1814, for slaves belonging to

Walter Jones of Washington, D.C., are in section 28; one has a note describing a purchase

145

agreement to keep a family together. An 1842 deed of John Scott Peyton to Margaret

Christian Peyton involves twenty-three slaves in Mississippi and Virginia and also

concerns her dower slaves. Section 44 contains an 1834 deed of Eliza Gordon (Peyton)

Smith to Richard Henry Peyton for the slave woman Elizabeth.

Section 29 contains an 1818 bond to Walter Jones for the hire of Aaron (for a half year

only), with the provision to keep Aaron in the district. In the same section is an 1837

agreement of Walter Jones with Tristram H. Garner, a mulatto, for renting a lot in

Alexandria to use as a garden. Of particular interest in the correspondence of Dr. Robert

Eden Peyton (section 35) is a letter, 1860, from Solomon Hudnall of Brandon, Miss., to

Peyton, his former master. He remarks on his house and accommodations, the crops, his

friends and family, and lack of illness among the eighty-four slaves on the plantation.

Another 1860 letter from John C. McNary of Lexington, Ky., expresses McNary’s

concern that Peyton might think all northerners to be "John Browns" after Peyton’s visit

the previous year. He reiterates his opinion that his opposition to slavery does not conflict

with the rights of southerners. Peyton and McNary corresponded and continued to

compare notes on raising sheep and the sheep business from before the Civil War until

well after the war in spite of their differences of opinion on the issue of slavery.

Peyton family papers, 1770–1913. 405 items. Mss1P4686a.

In this collection is a series of correspondence of Dr. Robert Eden Peyton of

Gordonsdale, Fauquier County. An 1840 letter to Joseph Hudnall addresses

inconsistencies in settling an account for medical services for hired slaves—Mary,

Phyllis, Milly, Sylvia, and Bob. (Bob died while serving under the hiring contract.) A

copy of an 1849 letter to Samuel McPherson Janney inquires of Janney what his opinions

are on the issue of prohibiting slavery in territory acquired from Mexico and whether

Congress may prohibit slavery in the District of Columbia without the consent of the

people (section 2).

Picot family papers, 1753–1907. 63 items. Mss1P5884a.

Collection primarily concerns Dr. Abel Francis Picot of Richmond; the education of John

Poe Harrison in Caroline County; and the estate of Robert Temple of Chesterfield

County. Accounts kept in 1863 by Benjamin Temple as executor of Robert Temple’s

estate include distributions from a so-called "Negro fund" (section 7). Lists of slaves held

by Elizabeth (Skyren) Temple in right of dower in the same estate also include

information on distribution (section 8).

Pitts family papers, 1848–1926. 346 items. Mss1P6875a. Microfilm reels C286–287.

Collection largely consists of the personal and legal records of three female members of

the Ellis and Pitts families of Linden, Essex County.

A January 1865 letter of B. A. Cocke to an unidentified woman concerns contracts for the

hiring out of two slaves as industrial workers in Richmond (section 12). An 1860 list kept

by an unidentified compiler includes records of work done by the slave Anthony (section

15).

146

Place, Thomas (b. 1839?), scrapbook, 1862–1899. 1 vol. Mss5:7P6902:1.

Scrapbook/memoir compiled by Thomas Place (of Hempstead, N.Y.) after the Civil War,

documenting, in drawings and photographs, his service in Virginia as a member of the 1st

New York Mounted Rifles, United States Army. The bulk of the pencil drawings by

Place depict activities and scenes around Suffolk, Va., in the winter of 1862 and during

the siege of April 1863. Included are sketches of military camps and fortifications, scenes

of camp life, and drawings of a variety of local structures and sites. Also included are

three drawings of African American life: "Tossing the Darkey" (p. 4); "Old Aunt Washer

Woman of Virginia" (p. 8); and "Slab RichmondNegro Settlement at Gloucester Point"

(p. 26).

Platt, Eleanor Beverly Meade (1834–1867), letter, 1864. [4] pp. Mss2P6977a1.

Letter, dated 31 December 1864, from Eleanor Platt (of Petersburg) to Rebecca

Wormeley Beverly Meade concerning, in part, the costliness of slaves as domestic

servants during the Petersburg siege.

Pollard family papers, 1723–1936. 539 items. Mss1P7637b.

Section 5 of this collection contains several lists, 1815–1820, recording taxable property

of William Pollard, with names, ages, and values for fifty-four slaves.

Pollard family papers, 1782–1907. 2,743 items. Mss1P7637a. Microfilm reels C287–

288.

This family of King and Queen County owned the Greenwood plantation. Sections 34

and 35 of the collection contain agreements for the sale of slaves. Section 34 includes

agreements, 1814–1840, made by Peter Thornton Pollard, several of them clearly

identifying mothers and children. A note attached to an 1829 agreement states that

Esther, slave of John Saunders of Kentucky, is allowed to seek a buyer for herself in King

and Queen County. One 1840 agreement concerns the purchase of Dianna and her child

Winny; another 1840 agreement concerns the sale of Dianna. Materials in section 35

concern the arrangements for sale of slave property of Samuel Griffin Fauntleroy for his

children, with the exception of three slaves assigned to specific children, one of the

children being Elizabeth Payne (Fauntleroy) Pollard.

In section 35 freedmen’s agreements, 1865–1870, with R. B. Roy of Greenwood ensure

cultivation of the land, primarily in corn, and provide for some freedmen to work one

Sunday a month at feeding the cattle. Some agreements designate when firewood is to be

cut and when the icehouse is to be filled and likewise mandate the repair of fences.

Pollard family papers, 1799–1905. 23 items. Mss2P7637b.

Consists primarily of the papers of the Pollard family of King William County. Included

in the collection are an agreement, 1821, between D. P. Courtney and Thomas Delaware

Chamberlayne for hiring out a slave, and a tax receipt, 1860, issued on land and slaves in

King William County.

Pollard family papers, 1805–1964 (bulk 1833–1906). 277 items. Mss1P7637c.

Primarily the papers of family members at Zoar plantation in King William County.

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Included in this collection is a letter, 1833 September 25, written by Evelyn Byrd

(Chamberlayne) Pollard to her husband, Robert Pollard (1783–1856), who is seeking an

improvement to his health by visiting the Virginia springs while Evelyn takes care of

matters at home (section 1, folder 2). In the letter, Evelyn describes the medical care she

gave to one of their slaves’ children, who had been bitten by a snake.

Pollard family papers, 1880–1961 (bulk 1920–1961). 485 items. Mss1P7637d.

Papers of this Richmond-based family, arranged chronologically, chiefly consist of

"round robin" letters kept in 91 volumes beginning in 1920 between eight siblings in the

Pollard family of Virginia, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, New York, and

Pennsylvania. The volumes include correspondence of Virginia governor John Garland

Pollard. Letters from the 1920s contain recurring discussions of the "Negro question," a

description of Tuskegee Institute (1921 May 22), and mention of the Ku Klux Klan’s

influence in Georgia (1925 February 20). Letters from the 1930s discuss the Pollard

family’s African American nanny, Isabella Brockenbrough (see especially 1934 August

27). 1940s correspondence concerns black workers moving from rural to urban areas to

obtain industrial jobs, a speech, August 1945, by civil rights advocate Mary Jane McLeod

Bethune, and African American authors. Postwar letters discuss the desegregation of

schools and public spaces following the Brown v. Board of Education decision.

Miscellaneous items include "On the Way to Brotherhood," a 1947 pamphlet concerning

interracial cooperation in Richmond (section 8).

Pope, Harrison Peterson (1817–1877), papers, 1813–1939. 4,654 items. Mss1P8105a.

The papers of this Southampton County constable and justice of the peace include

personal papers as well as copies of legal records. Section 17 contains copies of lists,

1850–1851, of taxable property and delinquent taxpayers for Nottoway and St. Luke’s

parishes in Southampton County. The taxable property lists contain columns for white

males over sixteen, African Americans between twenty-one and fifty-five, slaves over

sixteen, and slaves over twelve. The lists provide taxpayers’ names, instead of just total

number. Folder 6 also contains a February 1853 letter from Richard Morton of the

Auditor’s Office in Richmond to A. Myrick, sheriff of Southampton County, in which

Morton refers to section 15, chapter 107 of the Code of 1849, requiring delinquent

African Americans to be hired out for taxes if unable to pay.

Porter, Eppy, deed, 1789. 1 p. Mss2P8336a1.

This deed, dated 1 January 1789, was executed in Fauquier County to Peter Heiskell of

Augusta County for the slave Venus.

Powhatan County, sheriff, tax book, 1824–1825. 226 pp. Mss5:3P8758:1.

A volume presumably kept by Richard Watkins as sheriff of Powhatan County, listing

taxpayers and amounts owed based on land, slaves, and other property, county levies and

poor rates, and fees due to the sheriff or county clerk.

Preston family papers, 1727–1896. 3,540 items. Mss1P9267fFA2. Microfilm reels

C518–529.

Papers of the family from Augusta and Washington counties. The papers have been

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calendared and indexed; some copies included. Family members represented include

William Preston (1729–1783), a Botetourt County surveyor and justice of the peace; John

Preston (1764–1827), state legislator; Francis Preston (1765–1835), lawyer, militia

officer, justice of the peace, and U.S. congressman; and James Patton Preston (1774–

1843), Montgomery County surveyor, militia officer, state legislator, and governor. John

and Francis Preston were both involved with coal and salt mines in southwestern Virginia

(Montgomery County) in which African Americans made up a significant portion of their

labor force. Some were owned and some were hired slaves. Occasional references to

personal and household slaves also occur in the correspondence. The collection includes

bills of sale and hiring agreements, references to runaway slaves, insurrections, and the

institution of slavery in general. Because of the size of the collection and the existence of

a well-indexed finding aid, researchers are encouraged to check the finding aid’s index

for subject access to the collection.

Preston family papers, 1746–1938. 162 items. Mss1P9267a. Microfilm reel B33.

In this collection is an 1852 receipt of John C. Carter of Elmwood in Albemarle County

for ten slaves listed by name, age, and value. An 1859 letter of Carter is also in section 19

and lists twelve slaves with the same information.

Preston family papers, 1755–1961. 1,110 items. Mss1P9267b. Microfilm reel B34.

In section 26 of the collection are several bills of sale to Robert Preston (1750–1833) of

Washington County. A 1786 record pertains to an unnamed slave bought at public

auction; a 1790 record is for a boy aged twelve or thirteen. In 1794 Preston bought a boy

named Jack and a girl named Polly, and in 1806 he warranted Polly, age twelve, to be

sound at the time of sale.

Preston family papers, 1769–1864. 2,305 items. Mss1P9267e. Microfilm reels C38–

39.

Deeds, 1779–1792, to Robert Preston for slaves include a 1783 deed for Jack from

Sullivan County, N.C.; for twenty-two-year-old Nell and her two-year-old daughter of

York, Pa.; for Potter, 1779, of Camden, S.C.; and for Abram, age fourteen in 1792,

healthy and from Middlesex County (section 8).

Much of the remaining material of African American content in this collection is found in

the papers of John Preston (1781–1864), primarily his correspondence in section 43.

From his daughter Jane (Preston) Craighead Marshall of Dayton, Ala., he learns of an

1847 incident in which Jane’s slave Ellen was accused of stealing a pocketbook while

traveling with her mistress in Knoxville; Ellen was taken to jail and whipped before

revealing where the money was kept. Jane tells her father that she has threatened to make

Ellen a field hand. In a later letter, 1860, Jane states that the health of the slaves is good

in spite of the heat and miserable water.

Preston’s letters from his son, John Preston (1811–1882), tell much of plantation life near

Helena, Ark., where John had a plantation and legal practice. John relates hiring out

arrangements for Henry and Washington (1836). In July 1837, he describes to his father

the defense in a jury trial for a slave accused and convicted of arson, a capital offense.

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The case was being appealed because it was brought out that the master commanded the

slave to perpetrate the act. In July 1839, wood buildings were constructed on the

Arkansas plantation, and the slaves were healthy and had limited exposure to the sun.

John perceives himself as a protector and not an owner. In March 1840, he reports that

the slaves are well and clearing land to plant, but later in July the slaves have become ill,

and young Phoebe had died. In August he reports that Washington is better although still

quite lean, and by October all are well except Jack (who often tends not to be well). In

January 1843, John tells his father that the slaves have been more agreeable since

dismissing the overseer, who "obeyed the precept of Solomon" too closely. In March

1846 he tells his father that it would be a hardship to hire out Lottie, London, Jack, and

Maria (who legally belong to his father), because it would require him to stop farming

operations. London and Maria have two children, and Lottie is married to John’s slave

Henry and they have two children as well. In December 1847 he tells his father he plans

to sell land in order to buy slaves to increase his labor force.

Section 45 contains an 1825 deed to John Preston, Jr., from his former business partner,

Abraham Fickle of Sullivan County, Tenn., for Ann. An attached note records that in

1834 Ann has four children, Sarah, Eliza, Marylou, and Maria, who by the will of Robert

Preston are to be released to Margaret (Preston) Rhea.

Preston family papers, 1773–1862. 806 items. Mss1P9267d. Microfilm reel C37.

The earliest African American record in this collection is an 1802 deed for the slave

Amos, belonging to James Patton Preston (section 10). Section 14 holds correspondence

of William Ballard Preston (1805–1862). Of particular note is a letter from William

Watson Boyd of Buchanan, dated January 1849, in which Boyd expresses his opinions on

the issue of slavery in the newly acquired territory formerly belonging to Mexico and

slavery in the District of Columbia. His feelings are that the Union is more important than

the issue of slavery and that abolition of slavery in these areas will not infringe on the

rights of southern states. Also in 1849, Preston received a printed document authorized

by Governor John Buchanan Floyd conveying a resolution of the Virginia legislature

concerning the assembly’s stands on the Missouri Compromise, the Wilmot Proviso, and

slavery in the District of Columbia.

Section 16 contains two items—notes for an 1848 speech made by William Ballard

Preston in the House of Representatives concerning slavery in the U.S. territories and an

address to an agricultural society, which compares free labor and slave labor for both

North and South, as well as statistical ratios for natural population increases and

decreases through via immigration and emigration for black and white populations in

both areas, and addresses what Preston considers misconceptions of slavery.

In 1862, J. R. Anderson & Co. of Richmond petitioned the Confederate Congress to

impress slaves for the manufacture of iron, because the usual method of hiring slaves had

become financially difficult (section 30). Because slaves were running away to the enemy

whenever troops came close enough, owners were requiring additional bonds to secure

slave property against loss.

150

Priam, Middlesex County, muniments, 1693–1812. 9 items. Mss2P9305b.

Include a deed of trust, 1801, of Thomas E. Churchill for Bushy Park and Wilton, two

plantations in Middlesex County, thirty slaves (listed by name), and other personal

property.

Prince, George W. (b. 1840), legal papers, 1855–1857. 8 p. Mss2P9357a1.

Photocopies.

Materials in this document concern the lawsuit of David Prince v. John Jones Prince

(guardian ad litem of George W. Prince) in the Court of Sussex County and involve the

sale by the trading firm of Dickinson, Hill & Co. of Richmond of the slave Henry,

belonging to George Prince. Photocopies of records in the office of the clerk of the

Circuit Court of Sussex County. A typescript copy of the bill of complaint, answer, and

order of the court is filed with these materials.

Provine, William A. (d. 1935), compiler, genealogical notes concerning the Maclin

family. 20 pp. Mss6:1M2255:1.

Some slave birth and death records are included in the notes.

Quesenberry family papers, 1827–1913. 209 items. Mss1Q375a. Microfilm reel

C578.

These papers mainly consist of financial and legal records of the business firm of W. L.

and J. S. Quesenberry of King George County and of William L. Quesenberry and James

S. Quesenberry as individuals. The papers concern their assumption of outstanding debts,

settlement of accounts, and James S. Quesenberry’s role as a guardian, trustee, and

executor for numerous estates. Other financial and legal papers relate to several Stiff

family drygoods merchants in King George County and possibly Westmoreland County.

Two bonds (an 1830 bond in section 2 and an 1826 bond in section 4) concern the hire of

slaves. The bond in section 4 specifies that a deduction will be made if the hired slave’s

expected infant nurses (instead of requiring food from the kitchen).

Quioccasin School, Henrico County, roll book and attendance register, 1937–1938.

[34] pp. Mss4Q467a1.

Includes records of African American children in the third grade class at Quioccasin

School, taught by Mrs. Mamie M. Brown.

Ragland, William, inventory, 1851. 5 pp. Mss2R1277a1.

Inventory, 1851, of the estate of William Ragland of Louisa County records slaves

according to which farm the slaves worked and to whom the slaves were sold. Also

includes an 1858 inventory of Uriah Harris of Louisa County.

Randolph, John (1773–1833), diary, 1819. 48 pp. Mss5:1R1554:2. Microfilm reel

C72.

151

Contains a list of slave births; on the verso of the list is a note on a slave’s case of

frostbite. For a related item, see the typescript copy of the 1797 will of Richard Randolph

(1770–1796), probated in Prince Edward County, in which John Randolph’s brother

emancipates his slaves and discusses the matter of slavery generally (Mss2R1572a1).

Randolph, John (1773–1833), note, 1832. 1 p. Mss2R1554a28.

Extract from a letter, 1832, concerning a mulatto woman’s attempt to influence

Randolph.

Randolph, John (1773–1833), papers, 1806–1819. 23 items. Mss1R1554a.

U. S. congressman and horseman of Roanoke, Charlotte County, Va., and Washington,

D.C. Two letters briefly mention slaves: one, written in 1806 from Washington, concerns

Randolph’s desire to return home as soon as possible so that the slaves would behave

better, and the other written 1815 to Edward Cunningham in Richmond arranges for

clothing for several slaves (item a14).

Randolph, Martha (Jefferson) (1772–1836), letter, [1826?]. 6 pp. Mss2R1562a1.

Written from Monticello, Albemarle County, to Ellen Wayles (Randolph) Coolidge, in

part concerning Thomas Jefferson’s ownership of slaves and his attitude toward their

treatment and work regimens.

Randolph, Richard (1757?–1799), deed, 1790. 1 p. Mss2R15715a1.

Deed executed in Henrico County on 17 July 1790 to David Buchanan for an African

American slave named Jenny.

Randolph, Thomas Jefferson (1792–1875), papers, 1819–1939. 15 items.

Mss2R1574b.

Thomas Jefferson Randolph of Albemarle County served in the Virginia House of

Delegates. In settling the estate of his grandfather, Thomas Jefferson, he arranged

payment of a debt to the Bank of the United States. Several slaves were part of the debt

settlement proposed in 1838—Billy, Rob, and Biddy and her daughter (see folder marked

"Accounts, 1838–1839").

Randolph, Thomas Mann (1768–1828), papers, 1815–1819. 9 items. Mss2R15745b.

Among the papers are letters written by Randolph from Monticello, Albemarle County, to

Thomas Taylor concerning the sale of Varina, Henrico County, and slaves on that and

other plantations.

Raper, Arthur Jarrell (1934–1984), papers, 1940–1976. 437 items. Mss1R181a.

Correspondence, writings, newspaper and journal articles, and papers of the Citizens for

Excellent Public Schools (CEPS) written and collected by Doctor A. Jarrell Raper, a

Richmond, Va., cardiologist. The materials concern Dr. Raper’s interest in school

integration and busing in Richmond in the 1970s. Section 1 in particular contains

correspondence, 1960–1976, of Dr. Raper with journalists, political figures, friends and

others sharing his concerns about school integration and busing at both the local and

national levels. Included are letters written to Raper and drafts of letters written by him,

152

many to the editors of local and New York newspapers. Correspondents of note include

John Kifner (of the New York Times), U.S. Senator Edward M. Kennedy, and Doctor

Thomas Pettigrew (of Harvard University). The records of CEPS, a local organization

aiming to raise public awareness about school integration (section 4) consist of

correspondence, by-laws, reports, and newsletters, 1971–1973.

Rawlings family papers, 1856–1987. 192 items. Mss1R1988a.

This collection contains the correspondence and accounts for three generations of the

Rawlings and related families of Orange and Culpeper counties. Section 3 contains legal

papers, 1858–1861, of Thomas E. McVeigh (of Culpeper County), brother to Martha Ann

(McVeigh) Rawlings. Included in this section are legal papers concerning the hiring of

slaves.

Rector, Alfred (d. 1868?), account book, 1857–1861. [57] leaves. Mss5:3R2457:1.

This volume, kept near Rectortown in Fauquier County, contains records of funds

distributed to Rector’s children prior to his death, as well as statements regarding his

intentions concerning the distribution of his personal estate. It also includes accounts,

1832–1834, of William Rector (1769–1834) covering transactions at a mill operated by

Alfred Rector and slave hiring.

Redwell Furnace, Shenandoah County, account books, 1791–1816. 2 vols.

Mss5:3R2495:1–2. Microfilm reels C529–530.

Accounts concerning iron smelting operations; some concern the African American

Moses and hired slaves.

Rennolds, Elizabeth Gordon, recollections, ca. 1860–1863. 4 pp. Mss5:1R2955:1.

Concern the activities of Elizabeth Gordon Rennolds in Spotsylvania County and

Fredericksburg. Included are recollections of Yankee occupation, the end of slavery, and

her father’s imprisonment.

Republican Party of Virginia, records, 1896–1926. 852 items. Mss3R2997a.

The records, which largely consist of the correspondence of party officers, concern party

operations, leadership, political conventions, and elections in Virginia. Included in the

collection are scattered broadsides and pamphlets that reflect African American

participation in the voting process.

Reynolds, Willis M., account, 1835–1837. 2 pp. Mss2H9705a2.

Contemporary copy of a report to the Amherst County court concerning the hiring out of

male and female slaves belonging to the heirs of the estate of John Hutcherson.

Rice, Marie, reminiscences, 1855–1885. 24 pp. Mss5:1R3652:1. Typescript.

Anecdotes of antebellum and wartime Southside Virginia plantation life, in particular at

South Isle in Charlotte County, along with a description of the Reconstruction period.

The narrative includes descriptions of individual slaves and freedmen associated with

South Isle. These are the weaver, the laundress, the major domo, the gardener, the

shoemaker, and several sharecroppers. Rice recounts daily living and seasonal work

153

routines both before and after the Civil War. The account also concerns music, singing

hymns, and the tradition of serenading the "big house"; language and dialect; how the

announcement of emancipation was received by the new freedmen; communities of

freedmen and relations with whites who had not been slaveowners; Christmas

celebrations, toys for the children, and the practice of "keeping" (not working between

Christmas and New Year’s); the education of a slave of mixed blood; morality, religious

practice, remarriage, weddings and revivals, church politics, the building of a

Presbyterian church for the freedmen after the war, and religious education; secular

politics, voting, and elections; and the migration of African Americans to northern states

and the West Virginia coal mines.

Richmond, City Sergeant, register, 1841–1846. 2 vols. Mss3R4156b. Microfilm reels

A12 (incomplete) and C365–366.

These records were kept by John M. Fergusson in his capacity as the city sergeant and by

various deputies. The first volume primarily contains entries for fugitive slaves and free

blacks who were unable to present their freedom papers. Each entry contains information

on date committed, date discharged, number of days maintained in the jail and the charge

for maintenance, charges for "turning the key," apprehending fee, total charge to the

prisoner or slaveowner, and arrangements (usually by public auction in the old market)

for hiring out discharged inmates to pay jail charges. (When a free black was discharged

after proving his freedom, he was sometimes unable to pay his maintenance fee at the

jail. In such cases he would be sold at public auction for such time as it would take to pay

off the charges. The time period ranged from several months to fifty-nine years.)

The second volume contains entries covering commitments for inability to provide

security or bail, in particular for breach of the peace and "going at large contrary to an act

of the General Assembly." Entries are itemized according to maintenance fees (at thirty

cents a day), charges for clothing, shoes, and other articles furnished to the inmate while

in jail, and charges for whipping (thirty-nine lashes at fifty cents). The back page contains

notes concerning physical maintenance for the building (water in the pipes and furnace).

Several loose items are appended to the collection—accounts for beef, affidavits, and

charges for putting on and taking off irons.

Richmond, District Superior Court of Chancery, papers, 1817–1820. 12 pp.

Mss4V8a15. Typescript copies.

Concern the emancipation of slaves by the will of Izard Bacon of Henrico County and

include petition of the slaves, answer of the estate executor, court decree, accounts, and a

list of the slaves.

Roach, Mahala Perkins Harding Eggleston (1825–1905), diaries, 1851–1852 and

1864–1865. 3 v. Mss5:1R5306:1–3. Microfilm reel C507.

The parents of Mahala Eggleston Roach emigrated from Virginia to Mississippi about

1821. Entries for the 1850s contain information on the acquisition of slaves by Roach’s

husband.

154

Roberts, George J., account book, 1835–1850. 50 pp. Mss5:3R5423:1. Microfilm

reels C427 and C578.

In part, concerns the hiring of slaves from the estate of James Hamblett of Charlotte

County by George J. Roberts and Thomas P. Richardson.

Roberts family papers, 1832–1919. 146 items. Mss1R5446a. Microfilm reel C476.

Collection contains correspondence, accounts, and other records of members of the

Burwell and Roberts families of Charlotte, Mecklenburg, and Powhatan counties. Lewis

S. Burwell writes to his mother in Virginia in 1855 about the work and health of slaves

on his plantation, Makeshift, in Marengo County, Ala. (section 2). Section 9 contains

unexecuted bonds, 1847, to Ann Eliza (Burwell) Roberts for the hire of Adelaide and

Guy.

Robertson, Archibald Gerard (1889–1985), papers, 1787–1986. 3,134 items.

Mss1R5453a.

Includes a fourteen-page speech delivered by Samuel Joseph May (1797–1871) of

Syracuse, N.Y., entitled "The Rescue of Jerry." The speech provides a synopsis of the

events and reactions of the population of Syracuse from the passage of the Compromise

of 1850 until their staunch antislavery stand was put to the test in October 1852, when a

fugitive slave was arrested. A large group of citizens demanded the slave’s release, a

street chase ensued, and Jerry was unshackled, treated, and guided to Canada, where he

continued to make his living as a cooper until his death a year later (item a2).

Robertson, Doris Virginia Parker (b. 1916), memoirs, 1916–1925. 10 pp.

Mss5:1R5454:1.

Robertson mentions an African American who operated her father’s farm in Cumberland

County and describes the relationship that she and her siblings had with him.

Robertson, Littleton Tazewell (1825?–1862), papers, 1846–1869. 95 items.

Mss2R5474b.

Collection includes correspondence, 1860–1862, of Littleton Robertson (of Nottoway

County and as a member of C Company, 18th Virginia Infantry Regiment, Confederate

States Army), primarily with his wife and an unidentified brother concerning camp life,

farming and local politics, and a murder committed by slaves. Also included are financial

records, some of which concern the hiring out of slaves.

Robertson family papers, 1786–1930. 1,051 items. Mss1R5498b.

Collection consists primarily of the professional papers of attorneys and the educational

records of female members of the Cochran, Robertson, and Stuart families of Staunton. It

includes a deed, 1860, of Joseph S. Deputy of Phillips County, Ark., to Asa Pool for a

slave named George (section 38).

Robey family papers, 1820–1893. 59 items. Mss1R5497a.

Concerns members of the Brownlow and Robey families of Fredericksburg and

Spotsylvania County. Section 3 contains a letter written to Susan Frances (Brownlow)

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Robey ([1823–1865] of Hopewell Nursery, Spotsylvania County) from Sarah H. Jenkins

Purcell, concerning a slave insurrection near Pembroke, Ky., in December 1856.

Robins family papers, 1784–1939. 4,290 items. Mss1R5595a.

Members of the Robins family of Gloucester County were planters of cotton and tobacco,

as well as grains and other traditional agricultural products. The collection contains a

number of deeds and notes pertaining to estate divisions, in addition to accounts and

correspondence.

Deeds to slaves appear in section 3 (1802, John Robins to Jesse White), section 14

(1808–1810, mostly to or from Thomas Robins), and section 67 (1830–1840, to Thomas

Robins). Lists and estate division notes are in section 6 (1808–1817, estate of Thomas

Robins [1746–1808], including names, values, and hiring out information for thirty-two

slaves and recording several births and deaths during that period) and section 17 (estate

of Thomas Robins [1771–1821]).

In section 15, an 1804 agreement of William Vaughan employs Thomas Robins as

overseer and lists responsibilities, one being to find ten "working hands." In the same

section are instructions indicating which laborers are to work timber and make shoes and

distribution lists for corn. Section 16 contains affidavits attesting to standard hiring prices

for harvest work, specifying cutting, pitching, stacking, raking, and carting.

Section 35 contains correspondence of Thomas Coleman Robins (1804–1888) of Point

Lookout and The Glebe, both in Gloucester County. Of particular note is a letter from

Thomas Henry Bayly with an enclosure of Philip Richard Fendall of Washington,

concerning slaves (Mary Bell and her six children) for whom Robert Armistead made

provisions to emancipate. After Armistead’s death, Mary Bell petitioned for her freedom

in court; some of the children were carried off to Baltimore by a schooner and brought

back; Mary Bell’s husband bought Mary’s freedom.

Sections 58 and 59 consist of loose accounts and an account book kept from 1836 to 1849

by Thomas Robins as guardian for the children of John Ransome. John Ransome’s estate

contained a number of slaves who were hired out. Notes appended to the accounts reveal

that Nancy was given care for Roseann’s three young children on Roseann’s death. The

accounts also note the death of several children of Roseann and Nancy; midwife’s fees

for Roseann, Nancy, and Judy; other medical fees; clothing; and the cost of coffins.

Freedmen’s agreements are in sections 67 and 108. Two nearly identical 1866

agreements call for arbitration by respected white men in the event of a contract dispute.

The work agreement in section 108 was never executed.

Robinson, Bill (1878–1949), letter, 1937. 1 p. Mss2R5607a1.

Letter, dated 15 January 1937, New York City, to William B. Layton, superintendent of

the Virginia Manual Labor School for Colored Boys, Hanover. The letter concerns a

potential visit with the young men at the school, which later became the Hanover

Learning Center.

156

Robinson family papers, 1732–1921. 317 items. Mss1R5685d.

Personal, business, and legal records of members of the Powell, Robinson, and Russell

families of Richmond and Williamsburg. Section 4 includes the will of Thomas Russell

of Williamsburg, in part concerning the distribution of slaves, accompanied by receipts

for money derived from the sale of slaves. A 1790 deed of trust of Henry Tazewell for the

benefit of Benjamin Powell covers eight slaves in Williamsburg (section 7). Materials

concerning the estate of Jane Hunter Charlton of Williamsburg include an 1801 will

providing for the emancipation of four female slaves and accounts kept by the estate

executor (section 20).

An 1827 deed of Philip Smith of Surry County to Anthony Robinson of Richmond

concerns the sale of Olivia (section 21). Thomas L. Hundley’s 1853 affidavit concerns

the sale of Charlton to William Armistead Robinson (section 27). Materials, 1842–1845,

concerning the estate of Eliza S. Robinson of Richmond include a will concerning the

distribution of slaves and executor’s accounts concerning their care (section 28). An 1855

deed of trust of J. W. Harrison of Caroline County for the benefit of Edwin H. Clarke

concerns the sale of five slaves hired out to employers in Chesterfield County (section

34). Finally, a deed of John Burwell of Dinwiddie County, executed in 1787, concerns

the sale of eighteen slaves to Lewis Burwell of Mecklenburg County (section 40).

Robinson family papers, 1740–1887. 1,642 items. Mss1R5685b.

Primarily the papers of Richmond court clerk John Robinson and his son Conway

Robinson, Richmond and Washington, D.C., lawyer and author. Among Conway

Robinson’s correspondence (section 17) are a number of letters concerning slavery and

African Americans in general. Charles Campbell writes in 1849 from Petersburg

enclosing an undated draft resolution in the hand of Dr. Theodorick Bland while a

member of the Continental Congress concerning the return of fugitive slaves to their

rightful owners as recovered property. Lawyer Robert Thruston Hubard of Buckingham

County sought Robinson’s views in 1870 on the legal right of Congress to abolish slavery

without compensation to slaveholders. Robinson himself writes to his friend and former

governor of Virginia Wyndham Robertson in 1860 concerning the election of Abraham

Lincoln and encloses extracts from a number of Lincoln’s speeches concerning the

institution of slavery and the requirement that free states return runaways to their owners.

Several letters written to Robinson in 1840–1841 concern his "Essay on the

Constitutional Rights as to Slave Property" that appeared in the Southern Literary

Messenger and then in pamphlet form. Chancellor James Kent gave Robinson a positive

review and lauded his candid approach to the issue. Clergyman Thomas C. Thornton of

Washington, D.C., wrote two letters about the essay and also discussed the African

colonization movement, abolition, and the slave trade. Richard Cox McMurtrie of

Philadelphia sent a letter to Robinson in 1860 following publication of another essay on

slave property and discussed the laws covering the recapture of fugitive slaves in

Pennsylvania and the case of Prigg v. Pennsylvania (1842) in the U.S. Supreme Court.

Judge J. Tremper of New York addressed an undated [1841?] letter to Thomas W. White,

publisher of the Southern Literary Messenger, concerning Robinson’s "Essay" and the

right to slave property (section 44).

157

Roller family papers, 1837–1917. ca. 850 items. Mss1R6498FA2. Microfilm reels

C131–133.

Include papers of members of three generations of the Roller family of Rockingham

County. Box 10 contains papers of John Edwin Roller (1844–1918), a Harrisonburg

attorney. The folder of "Civil War Recollections" contains a volume that makes

occasional references to slaves and in particular African American soldiers in the Union

army (pages 27–28). The "Miscellany" section consists of three folders, the first of which

includes a rosy reminiscence of antebellum slavery and concern for the future of African

Americans.

Roots, Samantha Hukeless, papers, 1932–2004. 57 items. Mss1R6797a.

This collection consists of scattered correspondence and other materials of Richmond

native Samantha (Hukeless) Roots (1917–2004), reflecting her education, her

relationships with extended family in New York State and New Jersey, her work with the

Juvenile Circle, Independent Order of St. Luke, and her work in the public schools of

Richmond. Section 1 contains correspondence with, among others, her aunt Cora

(Huckless) Footman (of Flushing, N.Y.; letter of 1932 June 24 recommends that

Samantha finish school so that she will have a trade and not have to support herself as her

mother does, by taking in laundry), her aunt Jennie Harris Huckless (of Long Branch,

N.J.; letter of 1941 July 1 refers to having moved to a new government funded

apartment), her brother Robert Hukeless (while at the U.S. Naval Training Station, Great

Lakes, Ill.; letter of 1944 April 7 tells of a trip to Chicago); Hazel Hunt (of Los Angeles,

Calif.; letter of 1948 August 22 gives reasons why she and her husband do not intend to

return home to Virginia), and George W. Witt (of Richmond; letter of 1938 October 31

congratulates Samantha on her marriage and refers to sending a gift of money so that she

and her husband may attend the movie Alexander’s Ragtime Band). Section 2 contains

materials concerning Mrs. Roots’s attendance at Van De Vyver Institute, Richmond, a

private Catholic high school for African Americans. These include a program and partial

script for the annual; a diploma; and a program for a class reunion. Lastly, section 3

contains materials concerning Mrs. Roots’s membership in the "Paynes Volunteers"

Juvenile Circle, Independent Order of St. Luke, an African American fraternal

organization. These include a copy of the Ritual (annotated with "Samantha Hukeless,

pres."); passwords for 1932 June–December 1 and 1932 December 1–1933 June 1; and a

printed letter, 1940 March 20, concerning a "Rainbow Wedding."

Rose family papers, 1850–1992. 142 items. Mss1R7208a.

Consists of the correspondence of three generations of the Rose and Rutherfoord families

of Amelia County and Richmond. Section 2 contains the correspondence of Charles

Alexander Rose (of Richmond) and Mary Eliza (Rutherfoord) Rose, in part, concerning

the sale of slaves and Charles’s need for a servant during his service in the Confederate

States Army.

Ross, David (1740?–1817), letterbook, 1812–1813. 256 pp. Mss5:2R7338:1.

Microfilm reels A20 and C530.

Includes information pertaining to the operation of the Oxford Iron Works in Campbell

County, which employed slave labor. One letter, April 1812, concerns Fanny, accused of

158

neglect and exposure of her infant child. Letters of January 1813 refer to Peter’s

character; July and August 1813 correspondence provides information about the

treatment of Pattsey, a slave woman who stopped a fight; and August 1813 letters

concern the boatman Anthony. The letters in general concern the slaves’ treatment with

respect to diet, clothing, provisions, and work duties.

Round family papers, 1828–1876. 128 items. Mss1R7607a.

Personal and business papers of family members in New York, North Carolina,

Pennsylvania, and Manassas, Va., including Methodist minister William Round. A. H.

Schoonmaker addresses Round in July 1860 concerning antislavery sentiments in the

Methodist Episcopal church and the duties of ministers (section 2). Susan H. Benham, a

missionary in Monrovia, Liberia, writes two lengthy letters, 1846–1847, to Sarah Ann

Round of Montrose, Pa., in part concerning African American immigrants to the colony

(section 3).

Rousseau, B. C., account book, 1855–1857. 116 pp. Mss5:3R7628:1. Microfilm reel

C578.

This account book was kept for a Fairfax County general store. Several accounts with

slaves are indicated by name of the slave and the plantation with which he is associated.

Of particular interest are accounts of James King of Loudoun County (page 101) and Jane

Lewis for a servant’s pay (on a supplemental leaf attached to page 5).

Rowe, William H. (b. 1818?), account book, 1853. 26 pp. Mss5:3R7944:1.

Photocopy.

Kept as administrator of the estate of Wade Ellis Stubblefield of Gloucester County and

includes an appraisal of slaves belonging to the estate and records of the hiring out of

selected slaves.

Ruffin, Edmund (1794–1865), papers, 1818–1865. 826 items. Mss1R8385a.

Microfilm reels C40 and C366–369.

Primarily the correspondence, diaries, and other writings of the famous agricultural

reformer, journalist, and states’ rights advocate of Petersburg and Prince George County.

Because of the nature of Ruffin’s career and political activism, much of this collection

holds potential for researchers in African American history. Of particular note are an

1843 diary kept as agricultural surveyor for the state of South Carolina, including notes

on the feeding of African American children (item a1), printed as Agriculture, Geology,

and Society in Antebellum South Carolina: The Private Diary of Edmund Ruffin, 1843,

edited by William M. Mathew (1992); Ruffin’s "Incidents of My Life" covering the

period of 1845–1855, concerning agricultural operations, slavery, and speeches (a3),

printed as Incidents of My Life: Edmund Ruffin’s Autobiographical Essays, edited by

David F. Allmendinger, Jr. (1990); and essays and speeches on such topics as domestic

slavery (1853), opposition to African colonization (1859), the political economy of

slavery (1860), and southern rights and secession politics (section 4).

159

The collection also includes Ruffin’s correspondence in 1859 (60 items) concerning his

African Colonization Unveiled (section 18) and a group of letters written to Ruffin in

1860–1861 (35 items) concerning agriculture, slavery, and secession (section 20).

Russell, Olga Moore (1904–1993), papers, 1924–1941. 4 items. Mss2R9155b oversize.

Born in Tuskegee, Alabama, Olga Moore Russell obtained a certificate in piano from

Hartshorn Memorial College, School of Music, in Richmond in 1924; a Bachelor of Arts

degree in Education from Virginia Union University in 1927; a Master of Science in

Education degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1941; and a masters from

Howard University in 1931. Her father was Charles T. Russell (1875–1952), the first

Richmond-based African American architect.

Rutherfoord, Samuel Jordan (1806–1880), papers, 1833–1872. 36 items.

Mss1R9337a.

Contain materials concerning the leasing and repair of houses in Richmond and Henrico

County; mercantile operations in Richmond, and farming in Amelia County. Include an

1863 affidavit of George Perkins concerning the gift of a slave, Ned, from Rutherfoord,

for whom Perkins promises to care for the rest of his natural life (section 6).

Rutherfoord family papers, 1811–1946. 200 items. Mss1R9337b. Microfilm reel B36.

Primarily consists of the papers of John Coles Rutherfoord, attorney of Rock Castle,

Goochland County, and member of the Virginia House of Delegates. Rutherfoord’s

commonplace book, 1844–1849, includes a negative essay on the free black population in

Virginia, ca. 1847, containing comments on character, habits, and living conditions (b14).

A second commonplace book, 18521856, carries this theme further with a handwritten

copy of Rutherfoord’s 1853 speech in the House of Delegates concerning the "Removal

from the Commonwealth of the Free Colored Population" (b17).

Robert S. Saunders’s 1854 diary, kept in a copy of the Plantation and Farm Instruction,

Regulation, Records, Inventory and Account Book (Richmond, 1852), not only covers

agricultural operations at Rock Castle on behalf of Rutherfoord but also includes lists of

slaves during the years 1854–1863 (b18). Rutherfoord’s diary, 1859–1861, includes

copies of his speeches in Goochland County and the Virginia House of Delegates

concerning secession and notes on a speech of James Henry Hammond of South Carolina

concerning slavery (b21).

Section 14 contains extensive, undated notes, ca. 1861, concerning secession and slavery.

An undated draft set of rules prepared for Andrew K. Smith concerns the management of

slaves at Rock Castle (section 17), while notes concerning the plantation include lists of

children of slaves Rachel and Fanny, with birthdates (section 20).

St. Luke’s Church, Powhatan County, records, 18421936. 45 items. Mss3Sa242a.

Among the records of this Protestant Episcopal church in Powhatan County is a vestry

book that records baptisms (infant and adult), burials, and marriages (item 22). The

160

church had white and African American members; notations indicate that both slave and

free African Americans were included. Some of the accounts also involve African

Americans.

Sanders, William H., account book, 1840–1876. [118]pp. Mss5:3Sa566:1.

This account book was kept at Lower Byrd, Goochland County, where William Sanders

apparently served as overseer for Mrs. Louise G. Allen. Accounts concern slaves

(including birth and death records), livestock, purchases for the plantation, and produce

sold, chiefly tobacco and grains. Postwar entries include payments made to hired

laborers.

Sartain, James Auxford (1922–1986), papers, 1967–1968. 138 items. Mss1Sa772a.

The collection includes minutes of meetings, progress reports, project records, conference

materials, and public relations materials compiled by James Auxford Sartain, University

of Richmond sociology professor, as chair of the Urban Team, a group of university

professors studying desegregation of the Richmond public schools. Section 1 contains

minutes of meetings, notes, and progress reports concerning the Urban Team. Materials

concern integration and desegregation at Albert H. Hill Middle School, Thomas Jefferson

High School, J. A. Chandler Middle School, and John Marshall and Maggie Walker high

schools and the issue of the racial composition of the North Side of Richmond.

Saturday Afternoon Club, Richmond, records, 1894–1907. 9 items. Mss3Sa845a.

Collection includes two minute books and several program yearbooks of the Saturday

Afternoon Club, a literary society of educated single and married women organized by

Mary Cooke (Branch) Munford for the purpose of self-culture and study. Members

presented book reviews and papers covering topics such as education, religion, world

history, and the status of African Americans.

Saunders, Edward Sydnor (b. 1810), bonds, 18351836. 2 items. Mss2Sa873b.

Issued to Jeremiah Webb in Richmond County for the hire of a slave child, Ben.

Saunders family papers, 17981903. 3,571 items. Mss1Sa878a. Microfilm reels C476–

486.

Papers of this Franklin County family include a significant number of legal papers

because of the legal background of the family members, including Fleming Saunders

(17781858), a lawyer and judge in Virginia’s circuit courts, and Peter Saunders

(18231904), lawyer, planter, justice of the peace, and member of the Virginia House of

Delegates. Papers of Elizabeth Lewis (Dabney) Saunders (18301904) and other members

of the Dabney family are also included in the collection.

A deed in section 12 (dated 1825) of John Ward to John Ferguson of Montgomery

County, Tenn., is for Lewis, age twenty-two; the deed was later assigned to Fleming

Saunders. Hiring bonds are in section 8 (Fleming Saunders’s correspondence with L. R.

Marshall includes an 1834 bond for hire of Delily and Olly) and section 33 (1854 bond of

Owen Price of Price & Saunders, Rocky Mount, Franklin County, to Thomas Helm for

two slaves, Jacob and George).

161

A number of lists of estate sales and divisions survive in the collection. In section 11,

lists, 1853, record slaves sold in Franklin County by Fleming Saunders as surviving

partner of Samuel and Fleming Saunders, including approximately fifty slaves, with

names, ages, values, and several brief notationsa sore hand, a "hogback," and a carpenter.

Section 33 contains lists, 18371854, of slaves of Martha Watts, including family groups,

ages, values, notes on disease, illness, and death for approximately seventy-two slaves.

Section 39 includes undated lists of slaves of Peter Saunders, including families, ages,

values, and notations on cases of albinism, paralysis, idiocy, and scrofula. The section

also includes an 1853 proposal of Peter Saunders for terms of credit to be extended for

the sale of slaves. Section 44 contains an undated list of the slaves of Anna Maria

(Saunders) Preston and Thomas Lewis Preston, including names, ages, family groups,

values, and at least one occupation (a blacksmith).

Correspondence of Peter Saunders (section 34) includes an 1863 letter from Peter

Holland enclosing a power of attorney to collect hiring fees for slaves conscripted by the

government to work on fortifications near Richmond. Several letters, 18621863, from

Robert C. Henderson, overseer at Bleak Hill in Franklin County, describes the plantation

routine. In 1862, he particularly complains that Bleak Hill is being required to send many

laborers to work on the turnpike; he believes that he is asked to send more laborers and at

a greater distance than is fair. He relates cases of foot injuries, mumps, and pneumonia.

Saunders family papers, 18291908. 125 items. Mss1Sa878b.

Primarily papers of members of the Eppes and Saunders families of Suffolk and

Nansemond County. An account book, 18571867, kept by James Riddick Saunders in

Nansemond County includes entries covering the hire of slaves and freedmen for

agricultural and milling operations (section 4). A second volume, 18681873, primarily

concerns agricultural labor (section 5).

Savedge, Acrell (b. 1799), financial records, 1835–1860. 14 items. Mss2Sa935b.

Kept in Surry County, these records include accounts for the hiring of slaves.

Schwarz, Philip J. (b. 1940), compiler, Manuscripts and Primary Sources on

Thomas Jefferson and Slavery, 1992. 31 pp. Mss7:1J3595:6.

Includes bibliographic references with textual excerpts from primary materials

concerning Thomas Jefferson and his slaves located in various libraries and repositories.

Scott, Mary Wingfield (1895–1983), papers, 1977–1982. 7 items. Mss2Sco851b.

This collection of papers, compiled by a Richmond architectural historian, includes a

literary manuscript, originally written ca. 1950 by Virginia Reese Withers, entitled Son of

the Black Belt. The story is a fictionalized account of the Reese and Wither families in

Virginia and Alabama, in part, concerning their relationships with slaves and with free

African Americans after the Civil War.

Scott, Thomas Branch (1865–1945), collector, papers, 1740–1892. 111 items.

Mss1Sco857a.

Include miscellaneous patents, grants, deeds, correspondence, wills, and other legal

162

documents collected by Thomas Branch Scott (of Richmond). Section 4 contains a deed

of release, 1820, of Benjamin Mosby to Thomas Keesee for a slave.

Scott family papers, 17831881. 6 items. Mss1Sco866d.

Include an account book, 18311863, kept by Garrett Scott (b. 1808) concerning

agricultural operations in Orange County and containing lists of slaves with dates of birth

and death.

Scott family papers, 18191906. 295 items. Mss1Sco866c.

Primarily the papers of a farming family in Richmond County. An 1866 agreement

(executed on a printed form) between Thomas Barnes and James Scott, signed at Warsaw

in Richmond County and endorsed by a local official of the Freedmen’s Bureau, concerns

Barnes’s service as a farm hand for the coming year (section 13).

Seddon family papers, 18311882. 308 items. Mss1Se275a. Photocopies.

Include papers of James Alexander Seddon (18151880), lawyer, U.S. congressman, and

Confederate secretary of war, and Sarah (Bruce) Seddon (18221882). Section 13 contains

an incomplete answer in the case of Mary A. Scott v. Thomas C. Scott’s executors in

Stafford County court, concerning Mary Scott’s title to unnamed slaves (ca. 1858). In the

same section is an undated list of slaves from Cobham plantation, providing names, ages,

and family groups for forty-three slaves. It also includes notes for calculating passage and

tickets for the slaves to various destinations, including Nelson County, Lynchburg, and

Memphis, Tenn.

Selden, Miles Cary (1805–1880), receipt, 1863. 1 p. Mss2Se484a1.

Receipt, dated 29 November 1863, issued to C. S. Maurice for $2500 for the purchase of

Thomas, a slave in Richmond.

Selden, Richard (17581823), bill of sale, 1794. 1 p. Mss2Se485a1.

Issued 1 May 1794 to Hancock Lee of Fairfax County for the sale of a slave child,

Pyrimus.

Selden family papers, 18111868. 19 items. Mss1Se487a. Microfilm reel C266.

This family of planters owned property in Amelia and Charles City counties. Section 1

contains the diary of John Armistead Selden (b. 1805), owner of Westover plantation in

Charles City County. It has been published in Smith College Studies 6 (July 1921):

251330. The diary is filled with scattered references to the routine work and travel of

slaves; no attempt will be made here to mention all the references. Some items of note are

on page 10 (1858), canal fare for slaves; page 48 (August 1859), payment of an account

with the free boy George; page 64 (November 1859), reading abolitionist accounts of the

John Brown incident; page 130 (February 1861), whipping the slave Pompey and hiring a

carpenter to work on slave houses; page 213 (September 1862), a record of receipt of

$50.98 from the government for hire of slaves in April; page 217, a list of ten slaves

indicating name, age, and value; page 221, the capture of three slaves; page 222 (August

1862), list of thirty-four Westover slaves that left with the Yankees, including names,

occupations, ages, mothers of young children, and a note of three deaths (one being

163

Austen, who died of neglect while working on the Jamestown fortifications); page 226, a

record of payment for shoes for slaves; and page 278 (January 1864), an account with a

free African American woman for rent of house.

Selden family papers, 1841–1879. 10 items. Mss2Se4885b.

This collection includes accounts of Ann (Hare) Seth with Charles Selden and Miles Cary

Selden, including amounts for the purchase and hiring out of slaves.

Semmes, Raphael (1809–1877), papers, 1818–1908. 167 items. Mss1Se535a.

Microfilm reel C620.

This collection contains materials relating to the Confederate naval service in England of

Raphael Semmes. Section 1 contains a letter from Semmes to Louisa Tremlett

concerning, among other things, the surrender of the Confederate States, conditions in the

South, and freed African Americans. Section 6 contains newspaper clippings, 1864–1908,

which, in part, concern freed African Americans.

Sheltering Arms Rehabilitation Hospital, Richmond, records, 1889–1989. 139 items.

Mss3Sh445d.

Includes minutes, annual reports, donation day direct mail solicitations, surveys,

committee reports, correspondence, pamphlets, books, scrapbook pages, photographs,

and newspaper clippings concerning this Richmond facility. Section 4 contains a survey,

1958, which concerns, in part, the admission of African Americans into the hospital.

Shepherd family papers, 17321907. 87 items. Mss1Sh485a.

Primarily the papers of planters in Princess Anne County and Norfolk. A 1737 deed of

James Condon and Matthew Pallet to Smith Shepherd concerns the sale of the slave

Rachell (section 1). The 1769 will of Sarah Weblin of Princess Anne County specifically

bequeaths a young slave named Tom, while the 1795 will of Smith Shepherd includes the

disposition of twelve slaves (section 4). The 1804 will of Lemuel Shepherd also includes

the disposition of slaves (section 5).

Twenty-three bonds covering the period 18421862 concern the hiring out of slaves

belonging to Sarah M. Camp Shepherd of Norfolk and include the terms and conditions

of service (section 9). Lists of slaves maintained for Shepherd for the years 18561862

include the names of parties to whom slaves were hired and the amount of the bond in

each case; and a bond, 1858, of Edie Doran to Mary V. Haynes concerns the hire of

Matilda (section 10). Finally, Solomon S. Keeling issued a receipt to an unnamed party in

1836 for the hire of Mary (section 15).

Shore family papers, 1770–ca. 1980. ca. 1,679 items. Mss1Sh785a.

This collection documents the everyday life of the Shore and related Epes, Fitzgerald,

and Ward families of Nottoway County. Includes correspondence between family

members, accounts, legal documents, and extensive genealogical notes. Of particular

interest is a six-page register listing the births of slaves owned by Benjamin Ward, Jr.

(1778–1840) of Bellefield (section 4). While the register begins by listing individual

164

entries, the majority of the register lists mothers with their children. The register includes

births from 1770 to 1864.

Correspondence (section one) is arranged chronologically and contains scattered

references to African Americans. Items of special interest include an undated letter of

Louisa Fitzgerald (Shore) Ward (1820–1881) to her daughter, Louisa Jones Shore Ward

(1853–1930), mentioning the great revival at the local "negro church"; letter, 1837, of Dr.

[P. C.] Spencer regarding treatment for a slave’s blister; letters, 1870–1871, of [W. M.]

Osborne of the Southside Railroad Company, Lynchburg, to Ann Catherine (Epes) Scott

Shore (1824–1893) concerning money owed to her husband’s estate for the hire of slaves

(information on wages is provided); letter, 1867, of Thomas F. Ward (b. 1837?) of

Alabama to his uncle Robert Fitzgerald Ward (1811–1881) mentioning racial tensions;

and letter, 1942, of Louisa Ward (Shore) Brooks (1880–1944) to her sister, Sallie Ward

Shore (1890–1953), mentioning an African American named James Langston, who ran

for political office.

The financial papers (section two) include a list, 1794, of slaves belonging to the estate of

Benjamin Ward, Sr. (1747–1783); receipt, 1836, to Thomas Freeman Ward (1806–1836)

for a slave woman named Caroline; receipt, 1845, to Robert Fitzgerald Ward for a young

slave Jim; receipt, 1855, to Robert Fitzgerald Ward for "woman Becky"; receipt, 1864, to

Henry Edwin Shore (1800–1867) for sending a slave named Tom to Captain W. H. Fry at

Camp Lee; receipt, 1865, to Mary Fitzgerald (b. 1811) from P. A. Foulks, the sheriff of

Nottoway County, for allowing a slave named Anderson to work on fortifications; and a

list, 1865, of Robert Fitzgerald Ward’s property lost after the Civil War, including a list

of emancipated slaves and their qualifications. The legal papers (section three) include a

document, ca. 1849, relating to a title dispute over slaves obtained by Henry Edwin Shore

when he married Ann Catherine (Epes) Scott, widow of Alexander Scott.

Shuman, J. E., letter, 1865. 1 p. Mss2Sh926a1.

Letter, dated 20 March 1865, Petersburg, to Thomas S. Hayward concerning the raising

of a company of African American troops in Louisiana or Virginia by the Confederate

States Army. Shuman wrote the letter while serving in Company I of the 15th Louisiana

Infantry Regiment, Confederate States Army of Northern Virginia.

Skipwith family papers, 1780–1942. 151 items. Mss1Sk366a.

Correspondence and financial records of three generations of Skipwith family members

of Prestwould, Mecklenburg County. The correspondence, 1810–1822, of Lady Jean

(Miller) Skipwith (1743–1826) includes a letter from Elizabeth Beverley (Munford)

Kennon written from Richmond on the night of 9 June 1810 while awaiting word of a

rumored slave insurrection (section 3). Also, includes letters, 1828–1833, written to

Humberston Skipwith (1791–1863), including one from Alonzo Murphy regarding a

lawsuit over the recovery of slaves sold in the New Orleans market (section 5);

agreements, 1864–1865, of Grey Skipwith (1839–1895) concerning Upper Quarter Island

at Prestwould with John Harris as overseer and with freedmen (section 9); and letters,

1829–1831, written to Elizabeth (Bolling) Skipwith of Louisiana by Thomas Wither

165

Chinn (concerning the estate of Judge Thomas Bolling Robertson and the employment of

African American slaves) (section 10).

Slaughter, Philip (1808–1890), letter, [1850]. [4] pp. Mss2SL157a2.

In this letter, Slaughter seeks the opinion of Henry Alexander Wise (1806–1876), lawyer

and politician of Virginia’s Eastern Shore, concerning relations between the United States

and Liberia, and expresses his opinions on social conditions and the improvement of

freed blacks in the United States, the arguments of abolitionists, and the nature of

American slavery.

Sloan, Harry (b. 1805), commonplace book, 1848–1887. 1 vol. (21 pp.).

Mss5:5SL525:1.

Contains accounts kept largely in Tazewell County, including payment of taxes and

school expenses, as well as accounts concerning the estate of James Sloan kept by Harry

Sloan as executor, and of the estate of William Owens kept by an unidentified individual.

The book also contains records concerning the hiring of slaves in Virginia and Tennessee,

as well as slave birth records from an unidentified location.

Slocum family papers, 1766–1831. 3 items. Mss2SL539b.

Include an affidavit of Nathaniel Starke of Harrison County (now W.Va.) concerning the

sale of Mary, a slave, and her two children, Dorcas and John William, to John Slocum.

Smith, Francis Williamson (18381865), papers, 18101947. 191 items. Mss1Sm565a.

Include a bond, 1810 (section 1), of Miles King (17471814) to Josiah Lilly Deans for

slaves or the equivalent value, including Joe, his wife Dolly, and their son Tom, the value

of James and Jack who have been hanged, two additional slaves who had been sold, and

the value of one boy to be delivered.

Smith, John Adams Washington (1781–1832), account book, 1808–1817. [224] pp.

Mss5:3Sm614:1.

Ledger kept as an attorney in Warrenton and while practicing law in local county courts.

Also, includes scattered accounts concerning the purchase, sale, and exchange of horses

and slaves.

Smith family papers, 1788–1890. 48 items. Mss2Sm686b.

Among the papers of this Henrico County family is an elaborate printed indenture, 1797,

of William Booker of Goochland County with Jesse Smith of Henrico County to

Alexander Buchanan and William Mitchell of Richmond for four female slaves, namely,

Dorcas, age forty, Bett, age thirty, Beckey, age sixteen, and Nell, age three, in the

possession of Booker in Goochland County. The prices for the slaves written on the verso

indicate that two children were included with Beckey.

Smith family papers, 1815–1928. 313 items. Mss1Sm686b.

Consist primarily of the papers of Francis Williamson Smith (1838–1865) of Norfolk.

Correspondence with his father-in-law, Josiah Lilly Deans (b. 1811), who lived at

166

Rosewell in Gloucester County, includes letters written during the Civil War offering

advice on the financial benefits of investing in slaves (section 2).

Smith family papers, 1821–1918. 81 items. Mss2Sm686c.

Papers of the Smith and related Davis families, primarily of Prince Edward County. The

correspondence, 1871–1894, of Sarah Woods (Davis) Smith (d. 1894) of Prospect

includes an exchange of letters with Edwin Bedford Jeffress concerning a lawsuit over

the prewar hiring of African American slaves to build a section of the South Side

Railroad. Accounts, 1821–1884, of various family members primarily focus on slave

hiring, while an 1847 appraisal of the estate of Robert A. Smith lists slaves by name and

provides evaluations.

Smith family papers, 1847–1889. 17 items. Mss2Sm686d.

This small collection consists primarily of the papers of George S. Smith, a Unionist and

Republican Party member in Marion. A letter, 1871, written to Smith by D. S. Lewis (of

the U.S. Internal Revenue Bureau) concerns the possible move of the assessor’s office of

the 5th Collection District of Virginia from Lynchburg to Danville, the loss of property

suffered by Willis Madden (a free African American of Culpeper County) during the

Union Army’s occupation of the county, and the reputation of [John P.] Wright, a

Republican newspaper publisher in Marion and Lynchburg.

Snead, Robert Winn (18221903), papers, 18601862. 75 items. Mss1Sn215a.

Microfilm reels C620–621.

Snead lived at Woodlawn in Amherst County and served in the 50th Virginia Infantry

Regiment of the Confederate States Army. In the summer of 1861 he wrote to "Aunt

Peggy and all of my Dear Servants" (verifax copy), entrusting the care of his wife and

children to the family slaves as he marched off with the army to Sweet Springs. Later in

the letter he lists the slaves by name and sends a photograph of himself to Aunt Peggy

(a72).

Snell, James A. (1820?–1887), bond, 1857. 1 p. Mss2Sn274a1.

This bond, executed in 1 January 1857, concerns the hiring of an African American slave

and bears an endorsement by the firm of Kent, Paine & Kent of Richmond.

Society for the Prevention of the Absconding and Abduction of Slaves, Richmond,

Va., minutes of directors’ meetings, 18331849. 16 pp. Mss4So135a1. Photocopy.

Minutes of a society formed for counteracting the increased activity of assisting fugitive

slaves to escape to free territories. Some of the organization’s resolutions include raising

funds for the society, providing expenses and rewards for the recovery of lost slave

property of the society’s members (including hired slaves), providing rewards for

convictions of those persons who assisted slave escapes, providing rewards for

convictions of free blacks coming into the state without permission, determining how

slave property is lost without detection, and devising measures for counteracting escapes.

(The original volume is in the collection of the New-York Historical Society.)

167

Southall, Philip Turner (17911857), account books, 18151846. 2 vols.

Mss5:3So875:12. Microfilm reel C427.

Account books kept by a physician of Amelia County; many of the accounts concern

medical care for residents of Amelia, Prince Edward, and surrounding counties. Medical

attention to slaves is noted, along with an occasional hiring entry.

Southall, Philip Turner (17911857), letter, 1850. 2 pp. Mss2So875a1. Photocopy.

Written 11 November 1850 from Amelia County to Stephen Osborne Southall

concerning the hiring out and proposed sale of the slave Nelson in Richmond.

Sparrow, Caroline T., "Notes concerning the case of the slave girl Virginia . . . ." 40

pp. Mss7:3E443Sp272:1.

Virginia, a slave of Archibald Govan of Hanover County, was tried before the Richmond

Hustings Court in February and March 1843 for setting fire to the dwelling of William B.

Rushmer.

Spight, Anderson, certificate, 1865. 1 p. Mss2Sp444a.

Certificate for honorable discharge, 1865, for Anderson Spight of the 55th Regiment of

the U.S. Colored Infantry Volunteers, providing a physical description. Certificate issued

in Louisiana.

Spong, John Shelby (b. 1931), speech, 1969. 7 leaves. Mss2Sp665a1.

This address, delivered on 25 September 1969 by Bishop Spong at St. Paul’s Episcopal

Church in Richmond, concerns the Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in

South Bend, Indiana, African Americans, and civil disobedience.

Spotswood, John A., papers, 18031810. 3 items. Mss2Sp686a.

In September 1803, John A. Spotswood provided for the sale of the slave Arthur to

Bushrod Washington and Lawrence Lewis to serve a six-year apprenticeship beginning in

January 1804. Arthur’s occupation is not specified. Also included is a certificate of

freedom for Arthur Bradley, dated January 1810.

Spotswood family papers, 1760–1900. 56 items. Mss1Sp687c.

Concern members of the Dunlop, Mackenzie, and Spotswood families in Petersburg. The

collection contains a receipt of Catharine Brooke (Francisco) Spotswood to Mary E.

Brown for the gift of a slave, Collier (section 5).

Spragins family papers, 17531881. 4,971 items. Mss1Sp716a.

Planter family of Cherry Hill, Halifax County. Family members represented include

Melchizedek Spragins (17631810), planter and militia officer; Thomas Lanier Spragins

(17981863), lawyer, planter, ferry owner, and militia officer; and Thomas Melchizedek

Spragins (b. 1819), lawyer. Also include papers of Philip King (d. 1804) and Brooks

Baker (d. 1826), both of Charlotte County.

Many of the documents are deeds and notes of a legal nature, in particular concerning

disputes over ownership of slaves. Sections 12 and 17 contain several documents,

168

17981809, of Philip King conveying slaves to his children, including his sons Philip King

and Edmund King, both of Kentucky, and daughter Elizabeth (King) Baker and her

husband, Brooks Baker. An undated notice of the younger Philip King appears in section

17, issued to Brooks Baker to prohibit sale of the dower slaves. Section 20 includes a

1796 document of Tabitha White conveying six slaves, one each to her six children.

Appraisals and hiring records, 1817, of forty slaves of Melchizedek Spragins’s estate note

six male slaves hired by Robert Harvey of Botetourt County for Harvey’s ironworks.

Included in section 39 is a deed, 1774, of John Booth of Amelia County to Elizabeth

Booth of Edgecombe County, N.C., concerning two slaves; and an 1807 memorandum of

Samuel McCraw of Richmond, questioning Hector McNeil’s ownership and right to sell

a slave woman. Deeds, 17741826, are included in sections 40, 60, and 61. An elaborate

1774 printed deed appears in section 40. Section 61 contains deeds and affidavits

pertaining to a 1788 transaction of Brooks Baker in a trade of four slaves (Tom, Dinah,

Suckey, and Cuffey) for a horse. Cuffey was a cooper. An 1823 certificate issued for

bringing in the fugitive Tom, slave of Brooks Baker, appears in section 63. Section 85

includes additional deeds, 18241859, of Thomas Spragins.

Section 79 contains material, 18051812, challenging the validity of the will of Reuben

Abney. It calls for the emancipation of Hercules and Betty, with Betty to receive thirty

acres and her daughter Betty for the duration of the mother’s life. It also permits

Melchizedek Spragins to choose a slave as compensation for serving as executor of

Abney’s estate. In 1812, Spragins chose Viney, thought to be pregnant.

Several passes, 18211841, appear in section 86 issued for travel between Halifax and

Charlotte counties and for Lewis Sampson to take tobacco to a Richmond merchant for

sale, because Lewis is trustworthy with money. An 1837 pass declares that Sirous has run

away to Person County, N.C., but his mental faculties are such that he is likely to return

home, because he has been told to do so. A notice, 1814, forbids the sale of the slave

Boson, a blacksmith, pending resolution of a dispute between Thomas Spragins and C.

Johnston concerning ownership of the slave (section 84). Thomas Lanier Spragins issued

an appointment to five local citizens as slave patrolers for Halifax County in 1828

(section 88).

Spragins family papers, 18091967. 2,601 items. Mss1Sp716b.

This collection is an addition to the one cited above. Miscellaneous notes, 18451857, of

Thomas L. Spragins appear in section 5. These include a note, 1856, that Adam has

permission to carry a parcel of tobacco to a Richmond merchant to be sold for the benefit

of one of Spragins’s slaves and that Adam can be trusted to handle money. Another note,

December 1855, concerns a dispute over damage caused by a broken fence; Spragins

believes that the slaves of a neighbor, A. M. Poindexter, have abused Spragins’s hogs.

Another memorandum concerns the preparation of Sarah Shipp’s will, including her

intended slave distributions. Other notes list errands to be done by Adam and Viney, such

as the purchase of clothing and household items.

A summons, 1852, in section 6 pertains to the petition of Fortune Thomas, a free black, to

be allowed to stay in Virginia, specifically Halifax County. A power of attorney, 1844,

169

authorizes Thomas West, Spragins’s overseer, to sell slaves for Thomas Spragins and

others. A pass, 1843, issued by Thomas West (section 42) grants permission for the slave

Charles to travel between Lynchburg and Halifax; in the same section, an 1845 affidavit

of John Blair McPhail concerns the fugitive slave Charles, property of Thomas Spragins.

Section 39 contains correspondence, 18091865. A letter, 1853, of Granville White

Spragins, a former Spragins slave, to Ritta Boscoe of Halifax, his mother, asks after

Granville’s family and friends and describes how he enjoys his freedom since his escape

to Canada. Granville had heard of Leon Spragins’s inquiries about trying to retrieve him.

Spratley, Peter Thomas, receipt, 1833. 1 p. Mss2Sp765a1.

The receipt, issued by Spratley and Joseph Bailey to Wilie T. Savedge on 7 January 1833

in Surry County, concerns the purchase of an African American slave, Davy, a

blacksmith.

Stagg, Paul Leonard, papers, 1958–1959. 7 items. Mss2St136b. Photocopies.

Concern the opposition of the Reverend Doctor Stagg, pastor of First Baptist Church in

Front Royal, and other clergy to massive resistance and the opening of local churches to

private schools for white students in order to circumvent public school desegregation.

Documents reflect activities in Front Royal and Warren County and include Dr. Staggs

resignation announcement following threats to himself and his family.

Stanard, James, papers, 18331874. 6 items. Mss2St2423b.

Papers of the Spencer and Stanard families, freed slaves from Maryland and Virginia,

who settled in Philadelphia, Pa. Included is Maria Spencer’s manumission certificate

(1833, Anne Arundel County, Md.); an 1847 letter written by George Fisher of Richmond

(James Stanard’s former master) to the captain of the schooner Lightfoot, inquiring about

the cost of passage to New Bedford, Mass., for James, Maria, Dennis, Hannah, and her

son Tom; an 1848 marriage certificate for Anna (Spencer) Stanard and James Stanard,

both of Philadelphia; an 1857 letter of recommendation for James Stanard, written by A.

J. White; an 1857 letter to James Stanard from George Fisher concerning family news of

both white and African American members of James Stanard’s former household and

comparison of northern cities and the South with respect to the economy and

unemployment; and an 1874 marriage certificate of George Sharper and Maria (Stanard)

Sharper, both of Philadelphia.

Stanard family papers, 1707–1950. 894 items. Mss1St242a.

This collection concerns the Stanard, Fleming, and Woolridge families of Chesterfield,

Goochland, and Powhatan counties, and Richmond. Section 3 contains correspondence

between Charles Fleming (d. 1793) and Mary Fleming Bernard concerning slaves

belonging to the estate of Caroline Fleming Deans Fyrie and Mary Deans Yates. Section

5 contains the papers of Judge William Fleming (1736–1824), including legal notes on

the case of Thomas Adkins v. Lucy Harrison Adkins, concerning the ownership of slaves

Fanny, Ephraim, and Anachy. Section 6 contains a deed of trust, 1810, of John Markham

to William Fleming and George Markham for land and slaves in Goochland County.

Materials concerning Susan Carter Jackson, an African American woman of Chesterfield

170

County, are located in Section 13 and are related to the settlement of the estate of Thomas

Carter of Mobile, Ala. Section 14 includes the personal accounts of Doctor Archibald

Logwood Wooldridge ([1792?–1867] of Chesterfield County), including payments

received for the medical care of slaves and a bond, 1822, of Dr. Wooldridge and William

B. Wooldridge (1827–1881) to Edward Hack Moseley concerning William, a slave, as

security for the payment of a debt.

Stanton, James (1779–1852), memoir, c. 1800–1847. [23] pp. Mss5:1St267:1.

Photocopy.

A Quaker born in Dinwiddie County, James Stanton spent a number of years working to

free slaves with Native American ancestry from bondage through court actions in

Virginia, primarily in Prince George County. Stanton later moved to Ohio and was a

member of the Underground Railroad. The original memoir is in private hands.

Stanwood, Joseph, deed, 1773. 1 p. Mss2St266a1.

This indenture, dated 12 May 1773 by Stanwood, a mariner of Newberry, New

Hampshire, conveys to Thomas Adams of New Kent County an African American slave

woman, Diana.

Stewart, Annie Carter (1853–1957), materials, 1893–1937. 4 items. Mss7:1D2944:3.

Information concerning Jefferson Davis and his personal servant Benjamin T.

Montgomery (an African American of Warren County, Miss.).

Stickley family papers, 17951912. 416 items. Mss1St515a.

Shenandoah County family of farmers and local government officials. An 1844 list of

slaves belonging to the estate of Philip Stickley indicates distribution to legatees and

values (section 10). An interesting group of materials compiled by David Stickley as

deputy sheriff of the county concerns a free black barber named Prince Henry in the town

of Woodstock. Materials, covering the period 18261845, include promissory bonds

executed by Prince Henry, an account book covering work completed and purchases

made, loose accounts, a notice of the sale of personal effects, and an estate inventory

listing names of purchasers (section 21).

Stone, Edmund Fitzgerald (b. 1836), letter, 1864. 4 pp. Mss2St714a1. Photocopy.

Written 7 December 1864 from Chester Station while serving with the 57th Virginia

Infantry Regiment to Samuel Marion Stone concerning the reaction of Confederate

soldiers to the use of African American troops by the U.S. Army and the conscription of

Patrick and other slaves from Pittsylvania County to construct defenses for the

Confederate army.

Stover, Nathan, commonplace book, ca. 1858–1863. [104] pp. Mss5:5St767:1.

Stover’s volume, kept in Winchester and Moorefield, Hardy County (now W. Va.),

includes a “List of Prices of the House-Joiners and Carpenters” of Winchester (pp. 1–36)

with detailed information on various services and their costs. Also, includes lines of verse

and songs, some composed by Stover himself, one of which is titled, “Poor Old Slave”

(pp. 47–48).

171

Stringfellow, Charles Simeon (1837–1912), papers, 1855–1962. 29 items.

Mss1St863a.

The papers of Charles Simeon Stringfellow, a Petersburg lawyer who served in Company

E of the 12th Virginia Infantry Regiment and later practiced in Richmond, include copies

of "Some Rough Memoranda Concerning My Life and Family," written in 1908. The

memoranda contain observations about slavery and the slave trade just prior to the Civil

War.

Stringfellow, Charles S., papers, 1855–1962. 29 items. Mss1St863a.

Charles Simeon Stringfellow (1837–1912), a lawyer, enlisted in 1861 in Company E of

the 12th Virginia Infantry Regiment. Included in his papers are two typescript copies of

"Some Rough Memoranda Concerning My Life and Family,” written in 1908. His

memoranda include family history, reflections on his marriage to Margaret Burwell

Stringfellow (b. 1837), and his thoughts on slavery and the slave trade.

Stuart, Alice Jackson Houston (1913–2001), papers, 1933–2001. 417 items.

Mss1St91015a.

Alice (Jackson) Houston Stuart is known for being the first African American to apply to

graduate school at the University of Virginia, in 1935. After being turned down, the

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) supported her

case and Thurgood Marshall became one of her lawyers in a case against the university.

Although the suit was unsuccessful, it prompted the Virginia General Assembly to

provide tuition supplements for African Americans to attend out-of-state schools. Alice,

who obtained her bachelors degree from Virginia Union University in 1934, went on to

get her masters degree from Columbia in 1939. A divorced single parent, she worked as a

high school and college teacher while raising her son, Julian Towns Houston, Jr. (b.

1944). She later married James Earle Stuart. Julian obtained a law degree from Boston

University and became a Massachusetts Superior Court justice. While a student, he

participated in the Civil Rights Movement by attending peaceful sit-ins.

The collection consists mostly of school-related items collected during Julians secondary

education at Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, Conn. Items include report cards, school

correspondence, publications, receipts, and programs (sections 1, 7). Also in the

collection are slides from the 1963 march on Washington, D.C., and a tennis match

featuring Arthur Ashe (section 4). The rest of the items include newspaper clippings from

1933–2001, essays, personal correspondence of Alice and Julian, Julians baby book, and

an autograph album (sections 13, 6, 8). One of Alices essays focuses on Julians birth and

provides a commentary on segregated hospitals and unequal medical treatment (section

2).

Stuart family papers, 17851881. 164 items. Mss1St9102d.

Include the personal and legal papers of Archibald Stuart, Staunton attorney, state

legislator, and judge. A 1787 agreement of Stuart with John Patterson of Augusta County

concerns three slaves bought at public auction from William Allen; a 1791 agreement

with William Wallace concerns Dinah, who is living with Stuart’s slaves as collateral

until Wallace repays a debt (section 4).

172

Stuart-Mosby Historical Society, papers, 1858–1929. 471 items. Mss3St935a.

Records of and materials collected by this organization that honors the memory of J. E.

B. Stuart and John Singleton Mosby. Section 14 contains newspaper articles concerning

the slave Aaron Burton.

Sublett, Peter (17471812), deed of emancipation, 1788. 1 p. Mss2Su162a1.

Issued in Powhatan County to fifteen slaves who were to be freed over the period from

1788 to 1807.

Summary of a letter from Portsmouth, Va., concerning a slave insurrection in the

eastern part of the state, 1792. 1 p. Mss9:2P8388:1. Photocopy.

Written in French, this article appeared in the Gazette Nationale, ou Le Moniteur

Universel of Paris, France, on 18 July 1792. The manuscripts department has cataloged a

photocopy of the original in the rare books collection, and has included an English

translation with the copy.

Surry County, Clerk, records, 1775–1868. 349 items. Mss3Su788a.

These records primarily concern free African Americans in Surry and nearby counties.

Include deeds of manumission (copies and some originals), 1782–1795, issued by a

variety of male and female slaveholders; letters and certificates addressed to the clerk

attesting to the free-born status or emancipation of specific African Americans or

verifying completion of apprenticeships by free-born or emancipated minors; and

certificates (freedom papers) issued by the clerk. Most of the documents concern

members of the local Bailey, Blizzard, Bowman, Charity, George, Gilchrist, Green,

Roberts, and Spratley families. Also, include certificates concerning Captain William

Gilchrist (also known as Billy Buck, 23 January 1809), Jesse Kelly (a Revolutionary War

soldier, 31 March 1799), and James (whose freedom papers had been stolen on board a

ship at City Point, 2 July 1798). Also, include a certificate, 1824 November 12, issued by

Bartholomew Dandridge, clerk of New Kent County, concerning Arrena Pickett,

emancipated by the will of George Washington; and a certificate, 1832 August 13,

concerning Jane Tabb of Claremont, emancipated by the will of Colonel William Allen.

Surry County, Clerk, records, 1782–1856. 38 items. Mss3Su788b.

This second, smaller collection of records concerning free African Americans in the

county includes about a dozen deeds of manumission, 1782–1792, along with letters and

certificates addressed to the clerk attesting to the free-born status or emancipation of

specific African Americans or verifying completion of apprenticeships by free-born or

emancipated minors, and certificates (freedom papers) issued by the clerk. Some records

concern African Americans living in nearby Isle of Wight and Southampton counties.

Sydnor, William Barrett (b. 1806), letter, 1862. 4 pp. Mss2Sy256a1. Incomplete.

Written 2 July 1862 from [Meadow Farm, Hanover County] to Thomas White Sydnor

concerning the Seven Days’ battles and slaves from the neighborhood who had run off to

the Union army.

173

Talbott & Brother, Richmond, papers, 1831–1880. 86 items. Mss3T1425a. Microfilm

reel C530.

Records of a Richmond iron manufacturing firm, specializing in the production of steam

engines and sawmill apparatus, including records of services performed for the

Confederate States Navy. Include deeds of trust, 1861, of Miles Ambler (concerning the

slave Martha) and Jane M. Bowler (concerning the slave Cornelius) to Marcellus Smith

to secure payments to Talbott & Brother (section 15).

Talcott family papers, 1816–1915. 932 items. Mss1T1434b. Microfilm reels C45–47

and C551–558.

Much of the collection focuses on Andrew Talcott (1797–1883) of the U.S. Military

Academy, U.S. Army, Richmond & Danville Railroad, Ohio & Mississippi Railroad, and

Imperial Mexican Railway, and superintendent of Mississippi River improvements.

With respect to materials that deal with African Americans, Thomas Mann Randolph

Talcott (1838–1920) is more prominent. His service in the Confederate army’s 1st

Regiment, Engineer Corps, involved the assignment of free African Americans to work

on defenses and fortifications, mostly near Richmond and at Day’s Neck Battery. His

correspondence appears in section 76. Letters, 1862, to H. M. Graves, Headquarters,

Department of Norfolk, concern the status of and rations for free African Americans in

the army. A letter, 1861, to John C. Pemberton requests a cavalry detachment to search

for free African American deserters and a request for additional labor to work on

defenses at Day’s Neck. A letter, 1861, of Talcott to Roger Atkinson Pryor of the 3rd

Regiment, Virginia Volunteers, also requests a free African American labor force to work

on defenses. Correspondence with Dr. William D. Southall and Dr. John R. Purdie

pertains to a bid for medical services for the African Americans in the army’s labor force.

Both bids were rejected.

George W. Robertson of the 1st Regiment, Engineer Corps, Army of Northern Virginia,

received a letter in 1865 from B. F. Vaughan (section 84) asking for a reference

concerning Vaughan’s abilities with respect to the office of Superintendent for Negro

Labor in the Engineer Corps. Section 89 contains a telegraph message, 1862, from Alfred

Landon Rives, acting chief engineer at Richmond, requiring the War Department’s

African Americans at Petersburg to report to Rives. A letter from Walter Gwynn Turpin

of Fort Boykin concerns three free African Americans of Nansemond County who

absented themselves without leave.

Taliaferro, Philip Alexander (1827–1901), letter, 1863. [4] pp. Mss2T14365a1.

Letter written from Burgh Westra in Gloucester County on 21 April 1863 to Confederate

General William Booth Taliaferro that discusses, among other things, the conditions of

slaves living on plantations in Gloucester County. The original letter is incomplete

(signature page missing).

Taliaferro, William Booth (1822–1898), papers, 1847–1864. 6 items. Mss2T1438c.

The papers of this high-ranking Confederate Army officer include an 1856 appointment

of Taliaferro as captain of a slave patrol in his home county of Gloucester.

174

Taliaferro family papers, 1820–1920. 42 items. Mss1T1438a.

Papers of Montague and Taliaferro family members of Belleville, Gloucester County, and

Richmond. Section 2 contains an extensive account, 1845–1846, covering the hiring out

of more than thirty slaves on behalf of William Throckmorton Taliaferro by the firm of

Philip M. Tabb & Son, along with an 1859 account of the sale of slave women by auction

and notes concerning the hiring out of Amanda, who later ran away. Another 1845

account concerns the hiring out of slaves by Philip M. Tabb & Son on behalf of William

Booth Taliaferro and includes expenses for the maintenance of the slaves (section 8).

Tanner, Evans (b. 1796?), papers, 1816–1887. 50 items. Mss2T1577b.

Include an 1864 receipt issued to Edward Walker by the enrolling office of Mecklenburg

County for the impressment of the slave David for thirty days.

Tarry family papers, 1765–1915. 134 items. Mss1T1777a.

Papers of members of the farming families of Tarry and Watson of Mecklenburg and

Prince Edward counties. Collection includes an undated deed of Abner Nash for slaves in

Prince Edward County (section 21) and a 1786 deed of John Potter of Granville County,

N.C., to William Taylor of Mecklenburg County, Va., for slaves (section 26).

Tayloe family of Richmond County, Va., papers, 1650–1970. 27,925 items.

Mss1T2118d. Microfilm reels C163–213.

Papers of a prominent family of Richmond County, with plantations in Prince William,

King George, Essex, and Richmond counties and including the papers of Henry

Augustine Tayloe, who moved to Alabama and owned plantations there from the 1840s

until after the Civil War.

In this collection much of the pertinent information about African Americans is contained

in inventories. Although some of the inventories relate to estate settlements (sections 113

and 251, for Adventure, Marengo County, Ala.) and suits in court (section 254, Essex

County, Va.), most were compiled as a matter of routine plantation business and record

such data as name, age, mother’s name, trade or occupation, tax status, shoe, clothing,

and blanket distributions, and (in some cases) designation as invalids. Most of these lists

are found in inventory books and plantation books for specific plantations. An account

book, 1808–1827 (section 49) records inventories of slaves at Gwinfield in Essex County,

Deogge, Hopyard, and Oaken Brow in King George County, Deep Hole, Neabsco, and

Wellington in Prince William County, Doctor’s Hall, Forkland, Marske, Menokin, Mount

Airy, and Old House in Richmond County, and Nanjemoy in Charles County, Md.

Additional account books also contain inventories and some individual accounts for the

aforementioned Virginia plantations, along with plantations in Alabama (sections 185,

188, 189, 192, 195, 199, 200, 202, 204, and 205; for years 1829–1854). Loose inventories

are in section 113 and are organized by Virginia counties, with the last folder containing

records of the Alabama plantations—Windsor in Hale County, Larkin in Perry County,

and Oakland, Walnut Grove, and Adventure in Marengo County. A second edition of the

popular Plantation and Farm Instruction, Regulation, Record, Inventory and Account

Book, by J. W. Randolph (Richmond, 1852) differs from the first in that it includes a

section entitled "Marriages of Negroes" with instructions to record births, deaths,

175

mothers, and diseases (section 287, for Mount Airy in Richmond County, 1861–1866;

also includes freedmen’s wages).

Deeds to slaves are represented in great quantity throughout the collection. Among them

are an 1824 Mount Airy deed in section 35; several more, 1815–1827, in section 39; an

1825 deed, St. Mary’s County, Md., in section 41; an 1810 deed in section 68; 1828

Richmond County deeds in section 89; 1832–1844 deeds in sections 94, 247, and 251;

1828–1829 deeds for two millers sold with a mill property in section 60; several deeds,

1810–1840, for slaves of Benjamin Boughten, several guaranteed to be sound in mind

and body; an 1825 deed of release for a mortgage in section 313; and an 1824 deed of

trust, St. Mary’s County, Md., in section 241.

A tithable document, 1827, contains names in addition to totals for the various tax

categories (section 35). Documentation, 1855, for William Henry Tayloe’s importation of

slaves into the state is included in section 96. The Mount Airy, Richmond County, folder

of section 113 contains notes describing the schedule for the weekly and monthly

distribution of food, garden allowances, permission for raising and selling fowl,

attendants for invalids, and a month-by-month routine of plantation work by season. Also

in section 113 (Alabama folder) are several entries for hiring out. Receipts and tax lists,

1861–1865, concern the Confederate impressment of slaves for labor (section 104),

including a pass for a slave impressed for railroad work and tax forms with inclusion of

slaves’ weights, heights, degree of color, and rations. Freedmen’s agreements for

Richmond County plantations are in sections 85, 275, and 289; for the Alabama

properties, see sections 113 and 253. At least two documents relate to fugitive slaves;

these cover an 1828 occurrence (section 138) and an 1858 occurrence (section 96).

Tayloe family papers, 1762–1842. 58 items. Mss1T2118g.

This collection mainly concerns Mount Airy, Richmond County, but also relates to

family estates in Essex and King George counties and elsewhere in Richmond County.

Included are account books of John Tayloe, and William Henry Tayloe (1721–1779).

Section 2 contains account books, 1788–1819, of John Tayloe (1771–1828) concerning,

in part, cotton and wool spinning and weaving by female slaves (1806, 29 January 1816

to 16 February 1817, and 1817–1819), and containing a list of slaves at Doctors Hall,

Forkland, and Old House, Richmond County (1 January 1810 to 1812).

Tayloe family papers, 1814–1850. 7 items. Mss2T2118b.

Include lists, ca. 1820, of slaves at Corbin Hall in Middlesex County, Laneville in King

and Queen County, Moss Neck in Caroline County, and White Hall in Gloucester County

(some lists include valuations).

Taylor, George (1800–1872), deed of trust, 1837. [10] pp. Mss11:2T2153:1.

This deed of trust, executed on 7 June 1837 for the benefit of Charles Carter Lee and

Lucy Penn (Taylor) Lee by George Taylor and his wife, Catharine (Randolph) Taylor,

concerns the plantation Brookfield in Henrico County, land in Richmond, and a number

of African American slaves.

176

Taylor, James, deed, 1716. 1 sheet. Mss11:2L9836:1.

Deed executed by Taylor and John Baylor to John Lyde (alias John Loyde), Mary Lyde

(or Loyde) and Cornelius Lyde (or Loyde) for land, slaves, and cattle in King and Queen

County.

Taylor, Robert Barraud (1774–1834), papers, 1822–1831. 3 items. Mss2T2178b.

Include a letter, 21 August 1826, of the Marquis de Lafayette to Taylor concerning the

recent death of Thomas Jefferson and Lafayette’s beliefs concerning Jefferson’s

intentions about the abolition of slavery.

Taylor, Sallie Elizabeth Winston (b. 1831?), memoirs, 1861–1865. [4] pp.

Mss5:1T2182:1.

Concern Mrs. Taylor’s relationship with slaves and freed persons at her home in Hanover

County during and just after the Civil War.

Taylor, William (d. 1848), deed of emancipation, 1848. 1 p. Mss2T2195a1.

A deed executed in Rockingham County, 1848 January 11, concerning an African

American slave, Bob. The instrument obligates Taylor’s estate to provide Bob with a

saddle, bridle, horse, and one hundred dollars upon his emancipation at Taylor’s death.

Taylor family papers, 1844–1912. 1,683 items. Mss1T2197b.

This collection consists primarily of the family and personal correspondence of Lucy

Parke (Chamberlayne) Bagby, of Richmond, and of her daughter Virginia (Bagby)

Taylor. It also includes letters, 1846–1860, written to David Watson, of Bracketts, Louisa

County, in part by his uncle George M. Watson (at his father-in-law’s plantation, Eudora,

Shelby County, Tenn., concerning borrowing money to purchase slaves to sell in

Richmond) (section 2).

Temple family papers, 1675–1901. 175 items. Mss1T2478b.

Papers of members of the Robinson family of Middlesex County and the Temple family

of Chesterfield and King William counties. An 1834 affidavit of Sarah Iverson Lewis

concerns a trusteeship covering property of Dr. Zachary Lewis involving money and

slaves (section 16). Section 18 contains a list of slaves, ca. 1865, belonging to Benjamin

Temple in Middlesex County, while a 1772 deed of Augustine Smith concerns thirty-six

slaves and personal property in the same county (section 26). Finally, a lengthy 1831

letter of the Reverend Charles Thompson of Northumberland, Eng., addressed to the

slave Judith in Urbanna, Va., concerns her daughter Mary Ann Markham’s escape and

subsequent life in England (section 27).

Temple family papers, 1836–1852. 47 items. Mss1T2478a.

Primarily the papers of Benjamin Temple (1801–1872) of Ampthill in Chesterfield

County and Locust Grove in Middlesex County, the collection also includes the account

books, 1837–1850, of his wife, Lucy Lilly (Robinson) Temple (1807–1884), kept in

Spotsylvania and Middlesex counties. These volumes include records of the distribution

of clothing to African American slaves.

177

Tennant family papers, 1794–1956. 426 items. Mss1T2556a. Microfilm reel C309.

Include an account book, 1826–1841 (section 1), with recollections by Dr. Charles

Colville Tennant concerning the fall of Petersburg and the slave Charlotte (page 43) and

slave purchases and sales (pages 2425).

Terrell, Fleming (1778–1853), papers, 1831–1855. 9 items. Mss2T2775b.

Include a letter of Terrell of Randolph County, Mo., to Judge Gabriel Slaughter, in part

concerning a pamphlet on abolitionism (bearing a postscript by Matilda Terrell

concerning the rights of slaveholders) and a letter of Mrs. Terrell in Ballard County, Ky.,

to Abiel Leonard concerning a history of the slaves belonging to the estate of Fleming

Terrell. See Frederic A. Culmer, "Fleming Terrell of Virginia and Missouri and the

Curious Case of His Slaves," Virginia Magazine of History and Biography 58 (1950):

194208.

Terry, William Parker (1813–1885), papers, 1852–1853. 3 items. Mss2T2796b.

These records include a certificate issued to Terry, of Pittsylvania County, by William

Thomas Sutherlin concerning the purchase of Coleman, an African American slave; a

receipt for clothing for Coleman; and a bond of Terry and Greenberry Thornton to

William Carter and E. S. Morris for the purchase of an African American slave named

George.

Thom family papers, 1670–1924. 343 items. Mss1T3602a.

Include papers relating to members of the Thom family of Berry Hill, Culpeper County

and the Ball family of Lancaster County. A number of deeds and wills (many eighteenth

century) include slaves. Among them are a deed, 1723/4, of William Ball of Lancaster

County and a 1744 inventory including thirty slaves (section 9); a 1735/6 memorandum

of John Woodbridge concerning a division of slaves of the estate of Rawleigh Downman

(d. 1719) (section 22); a 1747 deed of Margaret (Ball) Ball to William Ball for eighteen

slaves, a 1751 deed of William Ball to Margaret (Ball) Ball (this one indicating dower

slaves), and a 1777 will of Margaret Ball, with several family relationships identified

(section 18); a 1753/4 will of James Wallace of Elizabeth City County, including hiring

out instructions for the executor of the estate, a 1784 advertisement of John McTyre for

hiring out a shoemaker, housewench, and blacksmith tools, a 1795 deed of Margaret

(Webb) Tyler of Prince William County for three slaves, a 1779 deed for fourteen slaves

in Lancaster County, and a 1789 inventory of nine slaves, with values (section 19); an

1843 deed of John Bartholomew Downman for Shadrack and Sarah Anne (section 33);

and an undated list (section 54) providing names and ages for approximately twenty

slaves (values are given in pounds).

A letter, 1783, of Mary Graham of Dumfries to her brother describes hiring out specific

slaves and woodcutting jobs (section 19). Sections 44, 45, and 46 include accounts and

account books, 1855–1878, kept by John Catesby Thom (18091881) as executor of John

Triplett Thom of Berry Hill, Culpeper County. The accounts include "Emancipation

Funds" for specific individuals and families and provide information concerning hiring

out, tickets for passage (to remove to Bedford County, Pa.), and a reference to recovering

John, a fugitive (section 45, pages 7 and 11).

178

Thom family papers, 1784–1953. 86 items. Mss2T3607b.

In a folder of papers of Dr. Joseph Pembroke Thom of Baltimore, Md., is a receipt, 1839,

of George Fitzhugh to Thom for the slave Phil Robert.

Thom family papers, 1834–1867. 152 items. Mss1T3602c.

Largely consist of the papers of Doctor Joseph Pembroke Thom ([1828–1899] of

Culpeper County). Section one contains the correspondence, 1862–1864, of William

Henry DeCourcy Wright of Maryland including a communication from Ann Burell, a

freed slave living in Troy, N.Y., requesting clothes from her former owner and recalling

her relationships with Wright family members. Section three consists of Dr. Thom’s

extensive correspondence while in Europe recovering from wounds suffered while

serving in the 1st Virginia Infantry Battalion, C.S.A., at the battle of Kernstown, Va. This

series includes letters from Mary Jane Fulton (concerning wartime conditions in

Richmond and family slaves) and T. E. Skinner (of New York City concerning the end of

the Civil War and speculation about the fate of freedmen in the South).

Thomas, Joel K., papers, 1834–1860. 11 items. Mss2T3641b.

These papers include letters written to Joel Thomas, of Louisburg, N.C., and Petersburg,

Va., by Doctor John Herbert Claiborne, in part concerning the hiring out of slaves in

Petersburg.

Thomas family papers, 1838–1971. 99 items. Mss1T3685d.

This collection primarily consists of the personal papers of John William Thomas (1809–

1889) as a farmer in Southampton County and a merchant in Norfolk, in part, concerning

the distillation of liquor in Southampton County. Section 3 contains correspondence

between John William Thomas and Nelson Thomas, a freedman.

Thompson, Nathaniel, bill of sale, 1825 February 26. 1 item. Mss2T3755a1.

This bill of sale, 1825 February 26, records Nathaniel Thompson’s (of Louisa County)

sale of a slave woman, Viney, and her two children to James Fontaine (of Hanover

County) for the sum of $575. The bill is witnessed by George S. Netherland and Garland

L. Sims.

Thornhill family papers, 1748–1955. 1,306 items. Mss1T3937a.

This collection contains the correspondence, financial and miscellaneous papers, and

photographs of the Thornhill family of Lynchburg. Section 11 consists of materials

related to the settlement of the estate of Thomas Maupin (1771–1834) of Albemarle

County by lawyer William Asbury Bibb (1790–1865) of Charlottesville. Included are

accounts, 1823–1838, concerning the hiring out of slaves, the sale of tobacco, and the

settlement of a suit against Reuben Clarkson brought by Maupin as executor of James

Clarkson. Also included are slave bills of sale, 1822 and 1832–1833.

Thornton, Lucy (Battaile) (1767–1840), papers. 1798–1862. 14 items. Mss2T3959b.

Typescript copies.

Papers of a Fredericksburg slaveholder. A letter, 1799, to Mary Robinson relates her

distress that the overseer has beaten one of the slaves too severely.

179

Thornton family papers, 1744–1945. 1,248 items. Mss1T3977b. Microfilm reels

C508–513.

Papers of the Thornton family of Lauderdale County, Shelby County, and Memphis,

Tenn. Section 16 contains an 1844 agreement concerning thirty slaves including dower

slaves. Also in the same section, a hiring agreement, 1855, specifies clothes to be

provided, and an 1855 notice concerns acceptable terms of credit for an auction to hire

out slaves. A letter, 1866, from John Zachariah of Memphis, Tenn., requests his former

mistress, Agatha Bush of Nashville, Tenn., to send a letter of character reference to the

employer for whom he works tending cows (section 61).

Thornton family papers, 1773–1909. 57 items. Mss1T3977c.

This collection consists of widely scattered personal and family correspondence, financial

accounts, and legal records concerning the purchase or sale of land in Stafford County,

and of slaves, kept by members of the Forbes, Taylor, and Thornton families of Virginia.

Section 4 contains a deed, 1799, of Benjamin Alsop to Robert Dunbar concerning a slave.

Section 5 contains deeds, 1814–1824, of John Browne Cutting and John Moncure to

Murray Forbes (1782–1863) concerning slaves. Section 9 contains an undated inventory

of slaves, corn, livestock, and tools rented at Mount Poney, Culpeper County(?), by John

Thompson to Samuel Haning. Section 10 contains a deed, 1811, of William Brooke to

Lewis Alexander concerning slaves.

Tiedeken, Donald, collector, papers, 1861–1865. 46 items. Mss1T4407a. Photocopies

and typed transcriptions.

This collection of materials includes correspondence of one Confederate War Department

employee and 25 Confederate soldiers in Virginia concerning personal and family

matters, camp life, and military operations. Section 7 contains letters, 1863–1864,

originating from Petersburg, written by L. W. Griffin, T. E. Harris, R. P. Page, and

Thomas C. Sutton concerning local African Americans, military life and operations, and

family life.

Tilson, Stephen, essay, "The Role of the Virginia Militia in 1800–1801." 18 pp.

Mss7:3F221T469:1. Photocopy.

Written at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, in 1974,

concerning Gabriel’s Insurrection.

Times-Dispatch, Richmond, “Jefferson Davis’ Bodyguard Dies in Capital,” 1921. 1

p. Mss9:1J7183:1. Photocopy (negative).

Obituary notice printed in the 9 April 1921 issue of the Times-Dispatch concerning the

death of James E. Jones, an African American bodyguard to Confederate President

Jefferson Davis, with Davis at the time of his capture by Federal troops in 1865. Includes

a copy of the article, “Myth of the Confederate Seal,” from the News Leader of

Richmond of the same date. Jones claimed Davis commanded him to hide the seal and

never reveal its location, but the original was located about 1916 and proved to have been

taken from Richmond by a Federal officer overseeing removal of the Confederate States

archives.

180

Todd family papers, 1709–1951. 95 items. Mss1T5662c.

The papers of the Todd family cover several generations of Baptist ministers from King

and Queen County. William Todd (1778–1855) of Mattaponi Baptist Church, King and

Queen County, his son, William Bernard Todd (1809–1855), and Joseph Robert Garlick,

who was also an educator at Bruington Female Institute, King and Queen County, are all

represented.

Scattered correspondence, accounts, and legal and other papers chiefly concern church

matters, family and social life, slaves, and the settlement of estates. Specifically, there are

accounts of William Todd concerning the hiring out of slaves and the death of William (a

slave) in section 8. Section 10 contains legal papers, 1856–1863, concerning the estates

of William Todd and William Bernard Todd discussing slaves, listing some by name and

indicating their monetary values.

Toler, Benjamin (d. 1808), list, 1783. 3 pp. Mss2T5757a1.

List, 12 November 1783, concerns slaves, livestock, and other possessions of Samuel

Gist in Goochland, Hanover, and Louisa counties.

Tompkins family papers, 1792–1869. 2,930 items. Mss1T5996a. Microfilm reels

C530–537.

Primarily consist of the records of ship captain Christopher Tompkins of Mathews

County and his son, Christopher Quarles Tompkins of Richmond. An 1834 letter of Colin

Clarke of Richmond to the elder Tompkins concerns Clarke’s purchase of slaves from the

estate of a Colonel Bassett, including two sawyers and a young woman and her two

children, and discusses the differences between the slave markets in Richmond and in

Gloucester County (section 7). Among the accounts kept by Christopher Tompkins are

records, 1818–1822, of the hiring out of slaves belonging to the orphans of William Lane

(for whom Tompkins served as guardian), including names, ages, and contract prices

(section 13) [folder 1].

The commonplace book, 1863–1867, kept by Christopher Quarles Tompkins at the Dover

Coal Mines in Goochland County includes diary entries for 1864–1865, a record of

supplies issued to slaves in 1863 (with slaves, owners, and occupations identified), a list

of slave and free black laborers in 1863, records of slaves hired to work at Dover and the

adjacent Trent’s Tuckahoe Pits, 1864–1865, and a list of free black laborers hired in 1865

(section 35). A sheet entitled "Cash and Clothing issued to Pit Hands," dated 24

December 1864, lists white and black laborers and indicates that some are farm hands

(section 40).

Tompkins family papers, 1800–1871. 107 items. Mss1T5996d. Microfilm reel C539.

An 1809 letter from Miles King of Centre Ville, Mathews County, to Christopher

Tompkins provides considerable detail about the murder of an overseer named Mathews

by a group of field slaves, their attempt to hide the deed, and the discovery, confession,

and punishment of the conspirators; an 1832 letter by the slave Jack Lewis to Tompkins

concerns his hiring out to work in the Norfolk Navy Yard and his request for aid in

securing his pay and a pass (section 1). Jack Foster, a slave of Christopher Quarles

181

Tompkins, wrote to his master in 1862 from Camp Success, a Confederate military

outpost in Giles County, concerning the location of his future service and his need for

fishing hooks; Samuel Thomas, also a slave, wrote to Tompkins from Mathews County in

1862 concerning his health and personal needs during wartime; and a third slave, Sam

Tompkins, wrote an undated letter of thanks for supplies he had recently received from

his master (section 7).

In 1855, Richmond slave dealer Peyton Johnston issued a printed receipt to Christopher

Quarles Tompkins for the purchase of Julia and her two children for $510 (section 8).

Jack Foster wrote additional letters, 1864–1865, to Christopher Tompkins (1848–1918),

the son of his master, whom he addressed as "Dear Friend and Young Master." The

letters primarily concern his activities as servant to the officers of the 36th Virginia

Infantry Regiment, stationed at Princeton, Mercer County (now W.Va.) (section 11).

Tompkins family papers, 1800–1877. 366 items. Mss1T5996c. Microfilm reels C537–

538.

Primarily the papers of John Patterson and of merchant and shipbuilder Christopher

Tompkins of Mathews County and military officer Christopher Quarles Tompkins of

Richmond. Patterson’s papers include an 1804 deed of trust involving land in Mathews

County and seven male and female slaves in order to cover the loan of money and

materials for the construction of a ship (section 4) and an inventory, ca. 1824, of

Patterson’s estate in Mathews County listing fifty-six slaves by name and value and

indicating the occupations of some (section 7).

An 1829 letter from Governor William Branch Giles to Christopher Tompkins, as colonel

of the 61st Virginia Militia Regiment, praises Tompkins’s promptness in calling out

citizen-soldiers to "suppress the insubordinate spirit" among slaves in his county (section

10). Materials concerning the 1804 voyage of the merchant ship Thomas Wilson from

Norfolk to London, Eng., under Tompkins’s command include several crew lists noting

the presence of slaves (section 13).

The remaining materials of note in this collection derive from the guardianship of the

heirs of Walter Lane of Mathews County by Christopher Tompkins. These documents

include accounts on behalf of Louisa Lane, in part consisting of records concerning the

hiring out of slaves from 1818 to 1822 and the medical care of a slave in 1823 (section

17), and on behalf of John Lane, consisting of additional hiring out records for the same

period (section 18). An 1820 list of slaves at North End in Mathews County includes

monetary valuations (section 20).

Tompkins family papers, 1801–1862. 12 items. Mss1T5996b.

Includes an undated inventory and appraisal of the estate of John Patterson in Mathews

County, listing slaves by name, age, and value; and an account of sales from the estate,

1824, including slaves and listing purchaser, name, and amount of purchase (section 5).

Tragle, Henry Irving (1914–1991), papers, 1967–1978. ca. 500 items. Mss1T6785a.

Consist largely of materials compiled by Henry Tragle for his doctoral dissertation at the

182

University of Massachusetts, Amherst, on Nat Turner, and for his subsequent book, The

Southampton Slave Revolt of 1831, published in 1971. Includes research materials; book

illustrations; a notebook/scrapbook concerning William Styron and his book The

Confessions of Nat Turner; and audio-taped interviews of local Southampton County

residents. A set of maps indicates locations in Southampton associated with the

insurrection.

Traylor, Robert Lee (1864–1907), collector, papers, 1752–1920. 352 items.

Mss1T6995a. Microfilm reel B46.

Private collector and antiquarian. Section 1 contains two receipts (imprints), 1857, issued

to Albert Washington Traylor by Thomas James Deane at Goochland Court House for

Lavinia, age twelve, and Winney, age five. Section 29 includes an affidavit, 1832, for the

appraisal of six slaves (one being a mother) and a bond (imprint), 1821, of Jemima

Holladay Rawlings of Spotsylvania County to six members of the Rawlings family for

the slave Susan.

Tredegar Company, Richmond, bond, 1864. 1 p. Mss4T7138a1. Microfilm reel

C539.

Issued 1 January 1864 to J. M. Burton for $300 for the hire of a slave as an iron worker.

Additional information concerning the Tredegar Iron Works may be found in the papers

of Richard Edward Archer (1834–1918), in particular his account book, 1861–1863,

which records hirings for 1863 (Mss5:3Ar234) and his diary, 1864–1865, which also

refers to hirings (Mss5:1Ar234).

Turner, Lewis, will, 1818. 5 pp. Mss2T8552b.

Lewis Turner, a free African American farmer of Sussex County, made provisions in his

will for his wife, Aggai, to be emancipated at his death if the state legislature would allow

her to remain in the state, otherwise she would pass to his nephew Wylie Turner, also a

free African American, with her legacy in a trust. Turner also made provisions for his

brother, Scisms Turner, his sister, Sally James, his seven children, and grandson. Turner

made arrangements for sale of land to Harrison Jenkins, a free African American, and

provided land for James Wright, an African American to be freed at age twenty-one.

Turner, Robert H., recollections, ca. 1897. 2 vols. Mss7:3E458:12.

Personal recollections of the Virginia convention of 1861, one volume being handwritten

in a notebook, the other a bound typescript. The narrative covers the development of the

conflict between the northern and southern sections, beginning with the colonial period to

the point of Virginia’s secession, and discusses such issues as protective tariffs,

restrictions on the slave trade, states’ rights and the Constitution, the Missouri

Compromise, and John Brown’s raid.

Turner, Thomas (d. 1787), account book, 1782–1808. [260] leaves. Mss5:3T8581:1.

Ledger containing records kept, presumably, in Westmoreland and King George counties

concerning mercantile operations and trade in slaves. Additional accounts of estate sales

just after Turner’s death at Nanzatico, King George County, include sales of slaves (l.

87), while the sale of dower slaves is also recorded in 1795 (l. 91).

183

Turner family papers, 1740–1927. 3,904 items. Mss1T8596a. Microfilm reels C436–

443.

Primarily the records of a farming family of Kinloch and Montrose in Fauquier County.

The collection includes two account books, 1807–1824 and 1825–1838, kept by Thomas

Turner at Kinloch, primarily concerning agricultural and blacksmith operations. The

earlier volume also includes a diary, 1839–1841 and 1850, and accounts, 1851–1853, of

Edward Carter Turner concerning agricultural operations (sections 2–3). Another diary

(section 8), 1839, and an account book (section 11), 1839–1868, also concern farming

operations. Edward C. Turner’s 1863 diary (section 9) details farming activities at

Kinloch but also concerns his servants’ lack of cooperation with raiding Federal troops

(page 19) and a lengthy recounting (pages 23–26) of the slave Staunton’s successful

attempt to have his wife Eliza and her children released from slavery with the aid of

Federal troops.

Turpin, Philip, papers, 1749–1823 (bulk 1771–1790). 96 items. Mss1T8633a.

Philip Turpin (1749–1828) went to England to train as a physician before the American

Revolution and served with British forces in order to return to Virginia. Section 1

includes a letter from Turpin’s friend Thomas G. Tarpley that mentions a runaway slave

and asks for Turpin’s help in recapturing him. It also contains a letter, 1785, written by

Turpin’s brother Horatio concerning the sale of land and slaves. The papers also include

an account book, 1759–1772, of James and Robert Donald & Co. (of Glasgow, Scotland)

containing "Negro" accounts, which may refer to the hiring out of or trade in slaves.

Tyler, Julia (Gardiner) (1820–1889), papers, 1844–1946. 297 items. Mss1T9715b.

Microfilm reel C290.

Wife of John Tyler, tenth president of the United States. Section 6 contains a letter, 1867,

from Samuel Chapman Armstrong of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned

Lands, concerning backrents for Villa Marguerite, near Hampton.

Tyree, Richard, certificate of manumission, 1808. 1 p. Mss2T9817a1.

Certificate of manumission, dated 8 June 1807, concerning Dolly Bird, a slave of

Campbell County.

Unidentified author, "Journal of Tens Days Travel on Board [the] Steamer

Frances," 1875. 120 pp. Mss5:1Un3:15.

Concerns a voyage from Bridgeport, Conn., to Virginia and up the James River made by

an unidentified Union army veteran. The journal entries comment on stops at Fort

Monroe, Norfolk, Petersburg, and Richmond, and the local African American populations

found there.

Unidentified author, letter, 1765. 1 p. Mss2Un3a17.

Written in New York City to Paul Miller of Pensacola and Mobile concerning a bill of

lading and arrangements for sale of the slave Sarah.

184

Unidentified author, letter, 1775. 2 pp. Mss2Ad1836a1. Photocopy.

Written 9 June 1775 from Fredericksburg to John Adams in Philadelphia concerning the

issuance of paper money and the freeing of slaves. (Original in the collections of the

Massachusetts Historical Society.)

Unidentified author, letter, 1850. [6] pp. Mss2Un3a44.

Written on 26 March 1850 to Daniel Webster, this letter refers to a speech made by the

senator on the slavery question and tries to provide a scriptural basis for the holding of

slaves. It is signed "Several ‘Conscientious’ Virginians."

Unidentified author, letter, 1862. 3 pp. Mss2R3913a1. Photocopy.

Written 8 September 1862 from Bossier Parish, La., to Horace Addison Richards,

Mangohick, King William County, concerning the death of Pollie (Richard) Skinner and

the distribution of slaves belonging to her estate.

Unidentified author, poem, "The Old Slave’s Lament," undated. 3 pp. Mss2Un3a29.

Typescript.

Written in dialect, ostensively from the perspective of a former slave who had been the

nurse for her master’s children.

Unidentified author, William Ransom Johnson. 2 pp. Mss7:1J6397:1. Photocopy of

a typescript.

Consists of notes concerning William Ransom Johnson ([1782–1849] of Oakland,

Chesterfield County). Includes information concerning numbers of slaves owned by

Johnson and his breeding and racing of horses.

Unidentified compiler, account book, 1769–1772. [6] pp. Mss5:3Un3:48.

The scattered surviving pages of this financial volume concern mercantile operations in

Dinwiddie and King and Queen counties and in Williamsburg, and include records of

general supplies and dry-goods purchases, along with the sale of slaves.

Unidentified compiler, account book, 1837–1866. 120 pp. Mss5:3Un3:41.

Records medical fees charged to patients in Charles City, Henrico, and New Kent

counties and includes lists of slaves.

Unidentified compiler, extracts from various Virginia and Maryland newspapers,

1785–1800. 159 pp. Mss7:3Z691Un3:1.

Contain articles and extracts from various Virginia and Maryland newspapers

concerning, in part, the formation of societies to aid indentured servants and slaves in

Richmond, Va., and Baltimore, Md.

Unidentified compiler, genealogical notes. [3] pp. Mss6:1M3233:1. Photocopies.

Notes concerning the Dunlap, Marable, Moyer, and Oliver families, including a list of

slaves belonging to Benjamin Marable.

185

Unidentified compiler, inventory, 1860. 1 p. Mss2Un3a24.

An inventory of the dower slaves of the estate of Dabney Minor (1774–1824),

presumably in Albemarle County, compiled in October 1860 following the death that

year of Minor’s widow, Martha Jefferson (Terrell) Minor of Mechunk Plantation. The

inventory indicates to whom slaves are currently hired out, as well as providing

assessments of the character and skills of each.

Unidentified compiler, leaf from an unidentified account book, 1847–1849. 1 p.

Mss2Un3a41.

Includes accounts for the hiring of Sam, Washington, and Robin, slaves.

Unidentified compiler, list, undated. 1 p. Mss2G7606a1. Copy.

Concerns slaves belonging to the estate of James Graham of Greenbrier County (now

W.Va.).

United Order of True Reformers, Grand Fountain of Virginia, charter, 1904. 1 p.

Mss4Un3035a1.

The United Order of True Reformers, founded in Richmond by William Washington

Browne (1849–1897), was initially an African American temperance society. The

organization grew to include ownership of a bank, insurance company, and a hotel in

Richmond. The charter is dated 25 August 1904, issued to Red House Fountain No. 2239,

Red House, Charlotte County, of the United Order of True Reformers.

United States Army, 2nd Colored Cavalry Regiment, records, 1864. 37 items.

Mss12: 1864:2.

Records of the 2nd U.S. Colored Cavalry Regiment, including reports and requisitions for

clothing, camp and garrison equipment.

United States Army, 38th Colored Infantry Regiment, muster roll, 1865. [2] pp.

Mss12: 1865 Feb 28:1.

Muster roll, 28 February-30 April 1865, of Company G of the 38th Colored Infantry

Regiment, United States Army in Virginia.

United States Army, Dept. of Virginia, general order no. 77, 1865. 1 p. Mss12:1865

June 23:1.

Issued by order of General Edgar M. Gregory and bearing the stamped endorsement of

General Oliver Otis Howard, this printed order grants "People of color . . . the same

personal liberty that other citizens and inhabitants enjoy."

United States Army, Pay Department, voucher, 1857. 1 p. Mss12: 1857 Feb20:1.

Photocopy.

Voucher, dated 20 February 1857, issued by the U.S. Army Paymaster to George

Washington Custis Lee of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the service of Lee and

an African American servant.

186

United States Treasury Department, Customs Bureau, Virginia. Bermuda Hundred

and City Point accounts, 1791–1793. 29 items. Mss4UN3763c.

Kept by William Heth, agent. Include a receipt, 1792, of Christopher Roane for the hire

of two African American boatmen.

United States Treasury Department, Customs Bureau, Virginia. Bermuda Hundred

and City Point accounts, 1791–1793. 43 items. Mss4UN3763d.

Kept by William Heth, agent. Include a receipt, 30 June 1792, of Christopher Roane for

hire and maintenance of boatmen.

United States Work Projects Administration, Virginia papers, 1937. 3 items.

Mss4Un384b.

Include a memorandum concerning the new method of keeping statistics of full-time and

part-time employees and recording the two sets of statistics by race.

Upper Goose Creek Baptist Church, Fauquier County, records, 1801–1859. 42

items. Mss4Up653b.

A mixed congregation throughout most of the early years covered by this collection,

Goose Creek Church was headed by the Reverend John Ogilvie as pastor. A portion of

this collection includes authorizations issued to Ogilvie by masters to permit particular

slaves to be baptized and to join the church. Also, includes an 1829 letter of Nimrod

Farrow to several church trustees concerning his gift of land to the church for a union

meeting house for black and white congregations (bears sketch of the proposed building

and grounds).

Upper Appomattox Company records, 1796–1935. 22 items. Mss3UP65a. Microfilm

reel B64 (incomplete) and C578–581.

Incorporated in Petersburg to provide for improvements and maintenance of the

Appomattox River in Virginia. An account book, 1796–1820 (item a5), includes

information concerning the purchase of slaves (pages 14, 21–22, 35, 47), purchase of

meals for laborers (page 14 and following), clothes for slaves (pages 14–17, 68, 86, 93,

113, 126, 141, 118), medical services (sometimes disease is specified; pages 17, 49, 75–

76, 93–94, 102–3, 141, 150, 155, 157, 176, 181), hiring accounts (pages 21–24, 39, 46,

191), prison fees (page 49), and constable’s fees for administering discipline to slaves

(pages 157–68, 176). This list of subjects is not exhaustive; the book contains many more

references to slaves and African American laborers.

A minute book, 1842–1872, provides information concerning laborers to be hired for

specific repairs and general maintenance (pages 41–42, 58–59, 61). An item in the

collection’s last folder contains an 1809 list of approximately thirty male slaves

belonging to the company.

Van Lew, Elizabeth Louisa (1818–1900), album, 1845–1897. 74 pp. Mss5:5V3257:1.

Microfilm reel C309.

187

Contains correspondence and other records of this Union spy in Civil War Richmond and

city postmistress. Includes a bond, 1852, with Richard H. Lorton for the hire of Caroline;

a receipt, 1863, issued by Edwin A. Smith for the purchase of Louisa; and a printed pass,

1864, issued to Bob and Oliver by the Confederate War Department to visit Chaffin’s

Farm, Henrico County.

Vaughan, Archibald, account book, 1835–1866. 164 pp. Mss5:3V4654:1

Includes accounts, 1850–1866, of Henry Carrington of Ingleside, Charlotte County,

concerning a mill and the hire of slaves.

Venable, George Henry (1828–1869), papers, 1862–1868. 7 items. Mss2V5516b.

Included in this collection of papers of a teacher and newspaper editor of Petersburg, Va.,

are letters written to Mrs. Elizabeth Venable of Oxford, N.C., by Sallie, a slave in

Henrico County, Va., concerning members of the Landis and Venable families.

Via, Vera V., essay, "He Hated Slavery," 1950. 1 p. Mss9:1C6795:1.

Concerns Edward Coles of Enniscorthy, Albemarle County, and the emancipation of his

slaves. Printed in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Virginia Central Railroad Company, bond, 1853. 1 p. Mss4V81925a1.

Bond, 1853, with Dr. William Hackett for the hire of two slaves, Jack and Joe.

Virginia Collector of Customs, Upper James River District, account book, 1731–

1743. 102 pp. Mss4V819a5. Microfilm reels A16–17.

This volume records ships, captains, fees, customs duties and cargo for the Upper James

River District. Much of the cargo listed is agricultural produce, tobacco and alcohol;

occasional entries indicate importation of slaves.

Virginia Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers. Scrapbook, 1927–1965 (bulk

1951–1961). 125 pp. Mss5:7V8192:1.

Scrapbook kept by the president, Thelma S. Pegram (1905–1988), of Covington chiefly

consisting of group photographs, newspaper clippings, and programs from conferences,

conventions, and workshops. Also, contains information about the organization, such as

by-laws, certificates, newsletters, roster, and statistics. The newspaper clippings mostly

highlight the meetings and activities of the congress, but also provide an overview of

education during the years before and after desegregation.

Items of particular interest include a newspaper article, 1951, concerning the appointment

of Deborah (Cannon) Partridge Wolfe as the first African American faculty member of

Queens College, Flushing, N.Y. (p. 89); newspaper article, 1951, about black community

leaders asking Virginia Governor John S. Battle to appoint more African Americans to

state commissions and boards (p. 85); newspaper article, 1951, about a five-member

delegation from the congress meeting with Governor Battle to discuss improvements in

education and health standards (p. 29); newspaper article, 1955, expressing the thoughts

of African American teachers at the prospect of a change in status after integration (p.

48); newspaper articles, ca. 1960, discussing the closure of Prince Edward County

188

schools in response to integration and the disappointment of African American parents

and children regarding lack of access to education (pp. 20, 25, 30, 57); newspaper

articles, 1960, announcing the Virginia branch’s split with the National Congress of

Colored Parents and Teachers over lack of support for desegregation (in loose items, pp.

3–4, 27); and newspaper article, 1961, announcing the intention of the Virginia

Federation of Parents and Teachers to hold future conferences only in racially integrated

hotels (in loose items).

The Virginia branch of the National Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers (later

renamed the Virginia Federation of Parents and Teachers) was founded by John Manuel

Gandy (1870–1947) and Clara L. K. Bailey (d. 1953) in 1927, one year after the

formation of the national body. The goal was to unite parents and teachers in states with

legal segregation, creating an African American counterpart to the all-white National

Congress of Parents and Teachers. The organization hoped to bridge the gap between

home and school life in a planned effort to improve the welfare of students. The National

Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers combined with the National Parent Teacher

Association (PTA) in 1970.

Note: For preservation purposes the contents of this volume have been removed,

rehoused, and retained in folders designated by page number of the original scrapbook.

Virginia Council, commission, 1771. 1 p. Mss4V8193a5.

Issued 11 May 1771 to the justices of the peace of Louisa County to form a court of oyer

and terminer to try slaves, free blacks, and Native Americans accused of felonies.

Virginia General Assembly, resolution, 1865. 1 p. Mss4V8a30.

This draft resolution, ca. 14 February 1865, concerns the employment of slaves in all

work other than as soldiers to release Confederate army troops for active military service.

Virginia governor (Alexander Spotswood), commission, 1720. 1 p. Mss4V819a8

(oversize).

Commission, 9 February 1720, issued to the justices of the peace for Norfolk County to

try Luke, a slave of Mrs. Thruston, for breaking and entering the storehouse of Samuel

Smith.

Virginia governor (Hugh Drysdale), proclamation, 1724. 1 p. Mss13:1724 January

18:1.

Issued to the sheriff of Northampton County concerning repeal of the act of assembly of

7 June 1722 concerning servants and slaves and the better government of imported

convicts.

Virginia governor (Hugh Drysdale), proclamation, 1724. 1 p. Mss13:1724 October

27:1.

Announces the repeal of an act of assembly of 20 June 1724 for laying a duty on liquor

and slaves. Bears an endorsement of the sheriff of Northampton County.

189

Virginia governor (Sir William Gooch), commission, 1748. 1 p. Mss4V819a7.

Issued to the justices of the peace of Norfolk County to try Mingo (belonging to the estate

of Henry Miller) for breaking and entering the house of Thomas Cooper.

Virginia governor (Francis Fauquier), commission, 1764. 1 p. Mss4C4265a1.

Printed form with handwritten completions, 26 March 1764, authorizing a number of

Chesterfield County justices of the peace to try the slave Cheshire, property of John

Hylton, for burglary.

Virginia governor (Francis Fauquier), commission, 1765. 1 p. Mss1D2856b7.

Printed form issued to the justices of Northampton County to try Peter Hill, slave of

William Christian, for a felony.

Virginia governor (Francis Fauquier), commission, 1765. 1 p. Mss4N7674a2.

Issued to the justices of the peace for Norfolk County to try the slave Pomp (belonging to

Richard Silvester) for stealing from Rothery & Routh of Norfolk.

Virginia governor (Benjamin Harrison), commission, 1784. 1 p. Mss4N1584a1.

Issued to the justices of the peace in Nansemond County for the trial of slaves.

Virginia governor (Benjamin Harrison), pardon, 1783. 1 p. Mss2J5901a1.

Issued to Joe, a slave in Frederick County owned by William Hickman, releasing him

from a death sentence.

Virginia governor (William Smith), letter, 1847. 1 p. Mss4V8a38.

Letter issued by the Virginia executive department and signed by Governor Smith on 10

March 1847 is addressed to the governor of Florida (William Dunn Moseley). It concerns

resolutions of the Virginia General Assembly adopted 7 March 1847 regarding the

extension of slavery into any territory acquired through war or treaty negotiations with

the nation of Mexico. A printed copy of the resolutions is enclosed.

Virginia House of Burgesses, petition, 1772. 1 p. Mss4V81934a4 (oversize).

This petition is directed to King George III of England and requests a ban on the further

importation of slaves from Africa for humanitarian, economic, and safety reasons. Signed

by Peyton Randolph as president and bears an endorsement noting is was vetoed by the

Privy Council. Printed in the Journals of the House of Burgesses of Virginia, 1770–1772,

edited by H. R. McIlwaine, pp. 283–284.

Virginia House of Burgesses, resolution, 1775. 1 p. Mss4V81934a3.

Resolution, 12 August 1775, concerning the importation of slaves from South Carolina.

Virginia House of Burgesses, Committee of Propositions and Grievances, papers,

1711–1730. 157 items. Mss3V8b.

Much of the text of these documents has been printed in William Waller Hening’s The

Statutes at Large of Virginia (Richmond, 1814), vol. 4, and in The Laws of Virginia, . . .

1700–1750 (Richmond, 1971), compiled by Waverly K. Winfree.

190

The documents in this collection are chiefly legislative; several are judicial in nature,

pertaining to specific cases before the courts. Among the legislative documents are

petitions, such as the 1718 memorial of John Brodnax in section 5 that concerns the

hiring out of African Americans kept in the public jail for the purpose of discharging

their debts for maintenance and release. It also concerns the use of an iron collar stamped

"P.G." (public gaol) on slaves and runaways of unknown ownership. Bills and

amendments in section 10 concern the procedures, 1723, for trials of African Americans

accused of felonies, the 1726 text of the act concerning slaves kept in the public jail (see

also John Brodnax’s petition above), the 1728 act for duties on slave importation, and the

1730 act concerning the administrators and executors of estates and the sale of slaves,

goods, and chattels taken in execution.

Several items in sections 8, 10, and 14 pertain to the assemblage of slaves suspected of

planning an insurrection. In section 10, a 1723 bill presented to the Committee of

Propositions and Grievances concerns Dick and several other slaves suspected of

planning violence in Middlesex County and their transportation to Jamaica or some other

island in the West Indies. An appraisal for the same slaves can be found in section 8 (item

b57 [see also the entry for Bland family papers, 1713–1825, for related material]). In

section 14, an order, 1723, of the Virginia General Court concerns the evidence against

the slaves. Section 14 also contains a 1722 judgment in the case of King v. Sam, Will, and

Sam, slaves, and the three-year prison sentence for planning violence against the king’s

subjects. Lists of tithables (section 15) contain only county totals; they are not broken

down into categories by white and African American.

Virginia House of Delegates, resolution, [1852]. 1 p. Mss13:1852 June 1:1.

Draft by a member of the Committee on Courts of Justice concerning a pardon for the

slave Jordan Hatcher.

Virginia Land Office, patent, 1730. 1 p. Mss11:1R5445:1.

Land grant dated 28 September 1730 and signed by Sir William Gooch as lieutenant

governor of Virginia that was issued to Thomas Roberts for 400 acres in Prince George

County. The verso bears a record of births of members of the Thomas Branch Wilson

family and births, 1752–1788, of slaves.

Virginia Life Insurance Company, policies, 1864. 3 items. Mss4V81945b.

Policies, dated 19 January 1864, issued on the lives of slaves Alfred, Charles, and

Stephen. These slaves were employed in the Beaver and Racoon pits of the Clover Hill

Coal Company in Chesterfield County.

Virginia Life Insurance Company, policy, 1865. 1 p. Mss4V81945a1.

Policy, dated 27 February 1865, issued to John W. Ferguson on the life of Jerry, a slave

employed as a laborer at the Confederate Navy Yard in Richmond.

Virginia Militia, 6th Infantry Regiment, Thomas Reekes’s Company, order book,

1813–1814. 144 pp. Mss12:1813 Sept. 23:1.

Kept while the unit was stationed at Norfolk; volume subsequently used by Reekes to

191

record lists of slaves and horses and farming accounts from 1814 to 1864 at Corn Hill,

Mecklenburg County.

Virginia Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery, constitution, 1790. 1 p.

Mss9:4V8198:1.

As published in William Prentis’s Virginia Gazette and Petersburg Intelligencer, no. 201

(8 July 1790). Full title of the society proclaimed to be "The Virginia Society for

Promoting the Abolition of Slavery, and the Relief of Free Negroes or Others Unlawfully

Held in Bondage, and Other Humane Purposes." The newspaper also contains an article

relating an incident in Nottoway County, providing information on suspicious claims of

ownership of a slave, and an advertisement of a sale of estate slaves from Dinwiddie

County.

Wade family papers, 1841–1951. 38 items. Mss2W119c.

This collection includes letters, 1841–1846, written by John Ingles (of Montgomery

County) to Dr. John Peter Hale ([1824–1902] of Charleston, Kanawha County [now

W.Va.]), concerning, in part, a runaway slave named Bob.

Walker, John, papers, 1831–1847. 25 items. Mss2W1525b.

Correspondence of a merchant of Richmond with family members who were also

business associates in Richmond and Lynchburg. Include a 16 April 1833 letter from

David Walker to John Walker concerning the tobacco market; another letter, 2 April

1833, by David Walker from Lynchburg concerning the outcome of a capital trial of one

of his slaves; and accounts of John Walker for the purchase of clothing for a slave. Also,

include a hiring agreement of John and Norman Walker with Mrs. Paulina Richardson for

the services of Jupiter.

Walker, John (1744–1809), papers, 1801–1807. 2 items. Mss2W1523b. Photocopies.

Include a letter written from Belvoir, Albemarle County, to Francis Walker concerning

the purchase of slaves in King William County in 1764 and the dispersal of slaves

belonging to Joseph Hale, Walker’s overseer.

Waller, Nelson Samuel (1817–1868), papers, 1857–1860. 2 items. Mss2W1565b.

This small collection includes letters written to Dr. Waller, of Spotsylvania County, by

Alfred L. Holladay of Richmond (concerning the hiring out of slaves Peter and Lewis)

and P. H. Jackson of Farmville (concerning the sale of a women slave named Sarah and

bearing a letter written for Sarah’s husband, Peter Shelton, a slave of Dr. Waller).

Waller, William Macon (1789–1849), papers, 1843–1850. 27 items. Mss2W1567b.

Chiefly correspondence, 1843–1848, of an Amherst County planter with his wife and

children concerning the trial of a slave girl, Virginia, including the girl’s hiring out, her

imprisonment, and her epilepsy, and Waller’s trip, 1847–1848, through Tennessee,

Mississippi, and Louisiana to sell slaves in order to settle pressing debts. Some of his

192

letters include references to religious services for slaves, the slave trade in general,

strategies for selling slaves, and auction practices, especially in Natchez, Miss.

Walne, Peter (b. 1925), collector, Materials concerning Ann (Tuke) Alexander and

William Alexander. 5 items. Mss6:1AL275:2. Photocopies.

Include a poem of Ann Alexander, dated 27 October 1804, concerning slavery.

Walters, James Booth (1846–1884), papers, 1854–1881. 112 items. Mss1W1714a.

The collection includes correspondence, 1854–1867, of James Booth Walters (of

Richmond) and a scrapbook, 1870–1881, consisting of newspaper clippings of Walter’s

articles as a correspondent for the Richmond Whig and as editor of the Norfolk Journal.

The articles primarily concern visits to local communities throughout Virginia and local

politics, including the participation of African Americans.

Wandering Boys Club, Berryville, minute book, 1933–1937. 1 vol. Mss4W1825a1.

These minutes, 1933–1937, reveal the structure, agenda, and purpose of the Wandering

Boys Club of Berryville, an African American traveling choral group. The book, which

belonged to the secretary, Wesley R. Nickens (b. 1906?), tracked expenses, the

disbursement of funds, and upcoming events. The minutes also recorded the engagement

and amount paid for singing in churches in Virginia and West Virginia. The last few

pages of the book contain song lyrics and a list of the club officers.

Ware, Thomas Cattel (1827–1909), letter, 1858. 4 pp. Mss2W2276a1.

Written 16 September 1858 from Clarksville to his grandmother, Ware’s letter provides

impressions of life in Virginia, including the religious life of slaves and their family

relationships, and indicates his dislike of northern abolitionists.

Ware family papers, 1761–1917. 360 items. Mss1W2296a.

This collection includes records of members of the Ware, Clopton, Ritchie, related

families of Essex County. Section 1 contains the papers of Archibald Ritchie (d. 1844),

which include an account covering the imprisonment and sale at auction of Archy, a

slave. Section 2 contains the correspondence, 1829–1861, of Edward Macon Ware

(1800–1863), including a letter to Robert Baylor Lyne concerning the hiring out of a

slave to learn a trade. Section 5 contains records, 1857–1862, compiled by Edward Ware

as treasurer of the Board of Trustees of the Essex County Poor House. Included in these

records are accounts for payments made for midwife services to Matilda, a slave. A letter,

1857, to the Richmond Enquirer by Richard Rouzie concerning the re-enslavement or

removal from Virginia of the free African American population, is located in section 6.

Section 8 contains materials, 1839–1848, compiled by Richard Rouzie concerning the

estate of Elizabeth B. Allen of Essex County. This section includes a receipt of Dr.

Thomas Christian Gordon for the care of a slave woman, and records of the hiring out of

slaves. Deeds for the purchase and sale of slaves from the estate of Ellis Armstrong of

Essex County are located in the papers of Dr. Jones C. Clopton (section 9), as is an

undated list of slaves (with values) at Bloomsbury, Essex County. Section 12 includes a

letter of Henry Waring Latané concerning the slave James.

193

Warwick, John (1775–1848), will, 1848. 1 p. Mss2W2687a1 (oversize).

Probated in Amherst County and includes a list of slaves to be emancipated and an 1849

affidavit concerning the emancipation of Martha.

Washington, John Augustine (1820–1861), letter, 1861. 6 pp. Mss2W2774a1.

Written 31 August 1861, presumably to Louisa (Clemson) Washington, concerning in

part farming operations at Waveland, Fauquier County, the health of house servants, and

the possible hiring out of slaves who feigned illness.

Washington, Lawrence (1791–1875), papers, 1836–1850. 4 items. Mss2W2776b.

Collection includes letters written to Washington, of Oak Grove, Westmoreland County,

by Doctor William Wirt (1815–1899) concerning agricultural operations and repairs to

Bleak Hall, Westmoreland County, the hiring out of a slave named Ross, hiring day itself

(January 1), and the occupations of some of the slaves he wished to hire out in 1851

(which includes a list of slaves hired out in 1850 and to whom).

Washington, Walker (1824–1911), papers, 1856–1897. 250 items. Mss1W2796a.

Collection concerns the family, financial, and professional life of Doctor Walker

Washington of Caroline County and Oak Grove, Westmoreland County. Includes letters

written to Washington by his wife, Mary West (Washington) Washington, in 1863

concerning slaves on plantations in both Caroline and Westmoreland counties while the

doctor was away serving as a Confederate States Army staff officer (section 1).

Watkins, Richard Henry (1825–1905), account books, 1847–1896. 2 vols.

Mss5:3W3275:1–2.

Kept at Linden, Prince Edward County, and primarily concern Watkins’s law practice.

Slave lists on front and back pages of the first volume record births, deaths, sales, and

some appraisals for approximately forty slaves. An accompanying list records their shoe

sizes. A random sampling of the accounts indicates that they contain information

pertaining to hiring, sales, and clothing of slaves. The second volume includes accounts

for work and services performed by freedmen, such as building a house and kitchen (page

88), building cabins (page 102), and digging a well (page 92), and other accounts (mostly

pages 88–98).

Watkins family papers, 1801–1960. 640 items. Mss1W3286a.

Section 5 includes a copy of a "Law relating to Free negroes becoming slaves"; section

11 contains an undated bill of sale for Tom for $1,450.

Watson, David Harris (1830–1894), papers, 1846–1893. 181 items. Mss1W3324a.

The collection includes personal and business accounts and bonds of David Harris

Watson (bricklayer and shoemaker of Chatham). An inventory of his personal property,

including slaves, is included in the collection, along with a record of participants in the

Pittsylvania County patrol of December 1862.

Watson family papers, 1771–1934. 932 items. Mss1W3395a. Microfilm reels C370–

371.

194

Primarily the papers of Doctor George Watson ([1784–1853] of Richmond). Section 1

contains correspondence, 1802–1830, of Dr. George Watson with his brother, David

Watson (of Brackett’s, Louisa County), concerning, in part, a slave insurrection and

slaves in general. Section 2 contains the correspondence, 1816–1851, of Dr. Watson with

his wife, Anne Riddle Watson (1791–1882), concerning, in part, slavery. Section 4

consists of the business papers of Dr. Watson, including invoices for the hiring out of

slaves. Section 5 contains the correspondence of Anne Watson, including

communications with her brother-in-law, David Watson, concerning slaves and their

health, family, and finances.

Watson family papers, 1866–1900. 31 items. Mss2W3397c.

Primarily the correspondence of Mary A. Robertson Horner of Powhatan Court House

and Hixville, Appomattox County, and her female descendants. Letters written to Horner

by Judie Cardozo of Powhatan Court House and Richmond include comments concerning

the influx of northerners following the Civil War taking over as county clerk, assessor,

and school teachers, and comments on the behavior of former slaves, many of whom

remained in the area and maintained close ties to their former owners. Also mentioned is

the arrest for forgery, trial, escape, and suicide of Freelin Ned and its effect on his family.

A letter from Horner’s daughter Josephine Lenora (Robertson) Watson (b. 1848?) of

Woodlawn in Nottoway County mentions her husband’s postwar farming activities,

including problems he had with the hiring of African American laborers.

Weaver, William (1780–1863), papers, 1786–1980. 220 items. Mss1W3798a.

Microfilm reel C539.

Entrepreneur and ironmaster, originally from Pennsylvania, later removed to Rockbridge

County. He owned the Bath Iron Works and Buffalo Forge, originally in Botetourt

County, and also farmland. Also represented is his nephew, Daniel Charles Elliott Brady,

who assisted Weaver from the late 1850s until Weaver’s death and inherited much of the

iron business at that time.

Section 1 contains correspondence of William Weaver, in particular with the slave trader

James E. Carson, 1859, who asked Weaver to lower the price of a female slave, basing

his request on a later physical examination of the slave, and from Charles Hess Locher,

1859, giving permission for a male slave belonging to Locher to marry a female slave

belonging to Weaver. Section 12 includes two receipts, 1863, of Brady for the purchase

of slaves.

Webb, John Greene (1824–1908), papers, 1858–1867. 12 items. Mss2W3826b.

Primarily letters written to or about John G. Webb, of Utica, N.Y., by Virginia

correspondents regarding agriculture and pre-Civil War politics. Among the letters to

Webb written between 1858 and 1861 are those by Dr. Arthur Lee Brent of Bremo

Recess, Fluvanna County (concerning the John Brown raid on Harpers Ferry and

secession), and Philip Barraud Cabell of Liberty Hill, Nelson County (enclosing an

African American song).

195

Wellford, Beverley Randolph (1893–1963), collector, papers, 1773–1907. 137 items.

Mss1W4597e. Microfilm reel C48.

Historical documents collected by a Richmond physician and Virginia Historical Society

officer, with special concentration on the period of the American Civil War.

A 1773 deed of John Hazeltine of Sutton, Mass., covers the sale of a slave to Timothy

Younglove (a28). James C. Howlett issued a receipt in 1864 (by his agent, S. N. Davis &

Co. of Richmond) concerning the payment for a slave purchase (a29). Undated notes by

former president James Madison briefly treat the doctrine of separation of powers and of

the rights and protection of slaves (a59). A handwritten circular letter issued by the

Confederate States Surgeon-General’s Office (signed by Samuel Preston Moore) to

Richard Kidder Meade of Lynchburg on 31 July 1863 concerns official policy regarding

the filling out of forms containing the names of persons employed by the Confederate

Medical Department, including slaves (e75). Finally, an 1846 letter of P. M. Tabb & Son

of Richmond to Robert Wormeley Carter of Warsaw concerns the prospects for sale of a

male and two female slaves in the Richmond market, as well as the alternative possibility

of hiring these people out (a92).

Wellford, Robert (1753–1823), letter, 1794. 3 pp. Mss2W4595a2.

Written 24 December 1794 from Fredericksburg to John Spotswood of Orange County,

in part concerning hiring contracts for Jack and Bob and the need for Isaac’s services on

Wellford’s plantation.

West, Georgia Callis (1867–1953), compiler, papers, 1851–1865. 25 items.

Mss2W5205b.

Originals or copies of letters and battle reports concerning various actions in the Civil

War. Also, include correspondence and accounts of William Callis of Norfolk, with a

Union Army search warrant, 1864, and a list of slaves who left his plantation during the

war.

West family papers, 1843–1976. 2,005 items. Mss1W5207b.

Primarily the personal and business papers of John S. West of Buckingham County,

largely concerning the operations of a store and several merchant firms in the county.

Accounts maintained by John S. West include amounts owed for the purchase of goods

for or by slaves (section 10). An 1845 bond covers the hiring of a young male slave by

Elizabeth Saunders from Thomas M. Smith (section 23).

Westmoreland County Militia, commission, 1777. 1 p. Mss4W52835a1.

A blank, handwritten form, dated 9 August 1777, for issuance to the "chief of the

patrollers" for a district in Westmoreland County. Signed by John Augustine Washington

as colonel of the county militia, the form authorizes the slave patrol and defines its duties,

especially in regard to the regulation of unlawful assemblies and unauthorized travel.

Whatley, Ray E., "A Review of Personal Experiences in Racial Issues," 1994. 22 pp.

Mss2W5585a1.

Concerns the effects Whatley’s efforts at improving race relations with African

196

Americans had on his career as a Methodist minister in Alabama in the 1940s through the

early sixties.

White, Jesse, deed of trust, 1806. 2 pp. Mss2W58406a1.

Conveys to Julius Clarkson and others slaves, horses, cattle, and furniture in Albemarle

County for the benefit of William Clarkson and Dabney Minor.

Wickham family papers, 1754–1977. ca. 11,500 items. Mss1W6326cFA2. Microfilm

reels C375–379.

This collection includes materials of attorney John Wickham (1763–1839) of Richmond

and his descendants who lived primarily at Hickory Hill, Hanover County. Among the

papers of John Wickham are extensive records concerning the purchase of Middle

Quarter Plantation, Henrico County, and its enslaved work force in 1800, followed in

1838 by a deed of trust covering the estate and its movable property conveyed for the

benefit of Wickham’s children (box 1). Among a huge number of records concerning

Wickham’s estate are several items, dating from 1858, concerning the care of the slave

Amy at Eastern Lunatic Asylum (now Eastern State Hospital) in Williamsburg (estate

materials–miscellaneous folder, box 2). Commissioner’s reports arising from litigation

over settlement of the estate concern the sale of slaves from Ellerslie, Henrico County

(report #1–1848), and a list of slaves belonging to the estate of Dr. James McClurg

(Wickham’s father-in-law) at a farm in Hanover County (report #9–1855), all in box 3.

Wickham’s son William Fanning Wickham built the home Hickory Hill. His extensive

run of diaries, seventeen volumes from 1828 to his death in 1880, include references to

agricultural operations and plantation life generally, and many provide lists of slaves

grouped by family and indicating ages. Volume 8 covers the Hanover County home front

during the Civil War, describes the treatment of slaves, and notes runaways to the Union

army (box 5). Wickham also maintained records concerning the purchase of slaves for the

Hickory Hill work force for the period 1842–1857 (land records—folder 1, box 7).

One of the most interesting matters William Fanning Wickham handled in his capacity as

an attorney concerned the settlement of the estate of Samuel Gist (d. 1815), a London

merchant whose will provided for the emancipation of his slaves in Virginia and the sale

of estate assets to provide for their welfare. Wickham acted as a officer of the trust

created by the state legislature to handle this matter. Materials concern the settlement of

freed slaves on land in Ohio, correspondence with Quakers there who engaged to assist

the transplanted African Virginians, records concerning supervision of the trust, and

materials regarding an effort on the part of the former Gist slaves and their descendants to

re-establish claims on the estate, 1870–1880 (box 8).

Miscellaneous records of William Fanning Wickham include an undated essay on slavery

in the United States and an undated speech, probably given at Hanover Court House, on

Reconstruction in Virginia (box 10). His son, Williams Carter Wickham, Confederate

cavalry general and postwar official of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad, maintained

letterbooks, 1877–1880. Among the subjects covered are activities of the Republican

party in Virginia and nationally (box 10). The younger Wickham’s correspondence in

197

part covers the same subject (box 11). Wickham’s records of the management of the

estate at Hickory Hill include farm books and accounts with individual laborers, some of

whom were African American (boxes 13–15).

The general’s son Henry Taylor Wickham continued farming operations at Hickory Hill

and maintained farm books, 1893–1913, accounts, payrolls, time sheets, and farm

manager’s records (boxes 27–30). His wife, Elise Warwick (Barksdale) Wickham, kept

similar records until her death in 1952 (boxes 43–45).

Wickham family papers, 1766–1945. ca. 5,500 items. Mss1W6326a FA2. Microfilm

reels C371–375.

This collection contains materials of Richmond attorney John Wickham (1763–1839) and

his descendants who lived primarily at Woodside, Henrico County. Among John

Wickham’s materials are slave lists, 1821–1837, from the middle and lower quarters of

East Tuckahoe, Henrico County (which became Woodside in later years). One list, 1825,

contains Wickham’s own notes on various workers. An undated essay, probably written

by Wickham in the 1830s, concerns slavery and abolition, while Wickham’s estate

materials in part concern the division of the property at East Tuckahoe. All these items

appear in box 3.

Maclurg Wickham, one of John Wickham’s sons, kept a diary, 1851–1882, at East

Tuckahoe. The journal primarily concerns plantation operations and the management of

slaves, including a list of slaves with records of the distribution of clothing and supplies

(box 5). Correspondence of another son, Littleton Waller Tazewell Wickham, includes

letters of Thomas Ashby (box 5) and William W. Harlee (box 6) in the late 1850s

concerning the Bunker Hill plantation in Darlington County, S.C., and the sale of slaves

living and working there and four letters (box 6), 1848–1849, between Wickham and

Judge John Scott of Fauquier County concerning Wickham’s plan for the gradual

abolition of slavery. Additional materials include an undated speech given at the

University of Virginia on slavery (box 10), a list of slaves at Woodside in the late 1850s

and agreements with overseers (box 10), lists of slaves at and other materials concerning

the Bunker Hill plantation (box 11), and a copy of Wickham’s 1847 plan for the gradual

abolition of slavery (box 11).

Finally, Alexander Mazyck Porcher’s post-Civil War essays on freedmen in South

Carolina survive in the collection (box 15), along with an undated letter of John

Randolph of Roanoke to Ryland Randolph concerning clothing and other supplies for the

slave Johnny, who is bringing Randolph’s horses from Stafford Court House to

Richmond. The letter, which is contained in Julia Wickham (Porcher) Wickham’s

autograph collection (box 34), also doubled as a slave pass.

Wight, Hezekiah Lord (1765–1837), papers, 1794–1854. 82 items. Mss1W6396b.

The collection contains records primarily relating to Wight’s ownership of real property

in Hanover and Henrico counties and the city of Richmond. Includes a deed, 1817, of

Samuel Paine to Wight for the purchase of African American slaves (section 9); and a

198

deed, 1821, of Walter Dun (executor of the estate of John Graham) to Edwin Lord Wight

(1799–1852) for a slave (section 13).

Wight, Hezekiah Lord (1765–1837), papers, 1799–1840. 10 items. Mss1W6393a.

Wight’s account books concern farming operations at Tuckahoe in Goochland County, as

well as mercantile operations in nearby Richmond. One of those volumes, continued after

Wight’s death in 1837, includes a section recording the distribution of provisions to

slaves at Tuckahoe in 1840.

Wilkins, Benjamin Harrison (b. 1856), memoir, 1857–1876. 101 pp. Mss5:1W6544:1.

Written in 1937, this memoir covers Wilkins’s activities in Alabama, Louisiana, and

Virginia (Charles City County and Richmond) and in part concerns Libby Prison in

Richmond and his relationship with slaves. Published in War Boy: A True Story of the

Civil War and Re-Construction Days (Tullahoma, Tenn., 1938), by Benjamin Harrison

Wilkins.

Wilkins, Roy (1901–1981), speech, 1958. 11 leaves. Mss2W6583a1.

Delivered 27 February 1958 to the Richmond Chapter of the National Association for the

Advancement of Colored People, Wilkins’s speech concerns school desegregation in

Virginia, massive resistance, the favoritism shown by the Virginia General Assembly to

segregationists, and the role of the NAACP in seeking full constitutional rights for

African Americans.

Williams, Augustine Boyer (1796–1871), commonplace book, 1817–1870. 458 pp.

Mss5:5W6702:1.

Kept by a merchant and schoolteacher in Fairfax County. Includes notes on a

congressional plan to give increased rights to free and enslaved blacks in Washington,

D.C. (pages 29–31), drafts of addresses to voters in Fairfax County concerning the

election of Martin Van Buren, the abolishment of slavery in the District of Columbia, and

slavery in the American territories (pages 243–51), and a draft of a letter to a local

newspaper editor concerning the power of Congress to admit slave states into the Union

(pages 260–61).

Williams, John A. (b. 1843), papers, 1861–1865. 41 items. Mss2W67334b.

Contain letters written by John A. Williams (of Prince George County) while serving in

Company D of the 10th Virginia Heavy Artillery Battalion, Confederate States Army, to

his sisters Mary R. Williams and Lucy J. Williams. Topics in the letters include economic

conditions in Richmond and news of runaway and confiscated slaves from Prince George

County.

Williams, Rebecca Yancey (1899–1976), papers, 1940–1960. 804 items.

Mss1W6767d.

Predominantly letters, 1940–1942, written to Rebecca Yancey Williams concerning her

book, The Vanishing Virginian (1940), a semi-biographical story about her father,

Lynchburg lawyer Robert Davis Yancey (1855–1931). The collection includes essays

concerning African Americans.

199

Williams, Samuel Greenhill (1835?–1864), papers, 1858–1865. 10 items.

Mss2W67515b. Photocopies.

Chiefly letters of a Nottoway County resident to his sister, Mary Catherine (Williams)

Jeter. A miscellaneous item of correspondence is a letter, 14 January 1866, of Jeter to

Martha Williams, primarily about family matters but in which she states her fears of

living in the country where there are so many African Americans, whose behavior is of

great concern to her.

Williams, William H. (1907–2002), papers, 1929–1995. 218 items. Mss1W6765a.

William H. Williams, Jr., was born in Tarboro, N.C., and raised in Richmond. He earned

a bachelor’s degree from Virginia Union University. He was ordained at Fifth Street

Baptist Church in the 1930s and founded St. Stephens Baptist Church in Richmond in

1949. As the congregation grew, Williams also worked as a woodworking teacher in

Richmond city schools and was later employed by Richmond’s animal-control office. He

was married to Margaret H. Williams and had with her four children. His collection

chiefly consists of correspondence, sermons, church programs, booklets, and published

materials. The collection also includes information from Prince Hall Grand Lodge of

Virginia and flyers from Christian Charities, Inc., which was founded by Williams’s

friend and colleague Horace Gillison (1914–1992).

Williams family papers, 1805–1925. 416 items. Mss1W6767l.

The collection is composed chiefly of the financial papers of Fielding Lewis Williams

([1832–1898] of Clarksville, Tenn.) concerning the tobacco trade and prices. The

collection also includes the papers of various members of the Williams family of

Albemarle and Halifax counties, Danville and Lynchburg, Va. Section 1 is comprised of

the financial papers, 1805–1821, of Fielding Lewis Williams, including general accounts

of the estate of William Williams concerning the sale of slaves, medical care, supplies for

slaves, and general purchases. Section 2 contains general accounts, 1813–1826, of Robert

Coleman Williams (of Lynchburg, Va.), including records of payments for supplies for

slaves, including coffins. Section 4 contains the financial papers, 1821–1824, of Charles

L. Williams (of Milton, N.C., and Albemarle County, Va.). Included among these papers

are receipts for the exchange of funds for the slave Daniel, who was buying his freedom.

Section 6 contains the papers, 1844–1851, of Howell Lewis Williams (of New Orleans,

La., and New York, N.Y.). Included in these papers is a letter to Howell Williams from

Henry Williams (of Lafayette, Ky.) concerning his purchase of freedom from Coleman

Williams.

Williams family papers, 1811–1945. 29 items. Mss1W6767b. Microfilm reel C315.

Concern the Williams family of Richmond and the related Skelton family of Powhatan

County. Section 6 contains a deed, 1811, of Robert F. Branch, Chesterfield County, to

Dr. Eliott Skelton for the slave Agness and her daughter Sally. Section 10 consists of an

account, 1842–1844, of Edmund Randolph with H. W. Wall for the purchase of clothing

for slaves.

Willis, Francis, letter, 1746. 2 pp. Mss2W6794a1. Photographic copy.

Written 3 February 1746 to Charles Carter of King George County concerning the slave

200

Beck and her children and a proposal to hire Beck’s husband in order to keep the family

together.

Williston, Elizabeth Coalter (Bryan) (1871–1957), "Old Bryan Family Homes: A

Collection of Short Sketches," compiled in 1939–1940. 85 pp. Mss6:1B8407:3.

Concerns members of the Bryan family of Georgia and Virginia and includes information

on the slave Juba.

Willson family papers, 1781–1838. 210 items. Mss1W6867a. Microfilm reels C428–

429.

Primarily agricultural papers of Daniel Willson and George C. Willson (d. 1838) of

Amelia County. Include an affidavit, 1826, concerning Matt, a runaway slave belonging

to Elizabeth Willson, taken up by Lucy Webster (section 9).

Wilson, George (b. 1852), papers, 1878–1903. 7 items. Mss2W6934b.

These materials concern the career of George Wilson, a native of Chesterfield County, in

the 9th United States Cavalry, a unit of African American troops, from his enlistment in

1873 through his retirement in 1903. The unit served primarily in the western United

States, but also briefly in the Philippine Islands and in Cuba during the Spanish-American

War. Include commissions, discharge papers, and special orders (printed). Wilson retired

to and was living in Crawford, Nebraska, as late as 1920.

Wilson family papers, 1790–1944. ca. 3,050 items. Mss1W6997aFA2. Microfilm reels

C146–152.

Papers of the Chamberlin, McPherson, and Wilson families of Jefferson County, W.Va.

Many of the family members were Quakers, although several were Presbyterians. Among

the papers of Lewis Feuilleteau Wilson (1804–1873), a Presbyterian minister, are

marriage certificates, 1833–1859, from Jefferson and nearby counties (box 5). The

certificates are in two folders, the second of which contains slave marriage papers. In

addition, the Berkeley County section in the first folder contains an 1839 certificate for

James Washington and Mary Jones, "persons of colour."

Wimbish family papers, 1839–1911. 86 items. Mss1W7153b. Microfilm reel C429.

Section 7 includes three letters, 1906–1911, one being to the Reverend Mr. Harris from

Fadie, an African American, in which Fadie compares his new school with another

school, Hartshorn. Fadie expresses his concern about financial difficulties hindering his

education.

Winfree, Judith Gates (1856–1939), "A Little Southern Girl’s Memories Without

Her Mother," 1856–1871. 27 pp. Mss5:1W7265:1.

An autobiography written by Judith Winfree in 1930 concerning her childhood

experiences following the death of her mother. Included in her reminiscence of life at

Seguine in Chesterfield County is information on specific slaves, cotton and tobacco

cultivation, and life during and after the Civil War.

201

Wingo family papers, 1833–1982. 395 items. Mss1W7277c.

Correspondence and genealogical notes concerning the Knight and Wingo families of

Amelia County and Richmond. Section 4 contains a receipt, 1864, of Charles Evans

Wingo ([1843–1911] of Amelia Court House) to Mrs. Page Bragg Dunn concerning a

slave named Jordan (including a physical description) impressed into service as teamster

for the Confederate States Army Corps of Engineers.

Winn, Minor (1747?–1813), account book, 1797–1815. [138] leaves. Mss5:3W7306:1.

Ledger, kept in part by James Sanford Pickett as executor of the estate of Minor Winn,

concerns the operations of a mill and distillery in Fauquier County. Includes accounts

with customers and with women spinners, weavers, tailors and midwives, some of whom

are identified as free African Americans. Also, concerns the use of hired slave labor.

Winston, Bickerton Lyle (1816–1902), ledger, 1846–1859. 244 pp. Mss5:3W7334:1.

Microfilm reel C539.

Kept in Hanover County, this ledger includes business transactions with slaves and free

African Americans, in particular involving hiring and purchases. Occasional deaths are

noted, including that of Garland, who died 30 June 1851 in an explosion while tending a

furnace.

Winston, Lelia Saunders (1829–1910), papers, 1870–1879. 4 items. Mss2W7336d.

Collection includes letters written to Lelia (Saunders) Winston of Richmond by Benjamin

A. Donald and his wife, Sally (Camm) Donald of Bedford County, in part concerning the

hiring of African American agricultural workers after the Civil War.

Winston and Clark family papers, 1823–1907. 155 items. Mss1W7337a. Microfilm

reels C495–496.

Primarily Civil War soldiers’ correspondence of several Winston family members with

their Winston and Clark family relatives in Campbell County. Section 2 contains

correspondence of Bowling Henry Clark (c. 1823–1892) with Elizabeth (Clark) Winston,

which in part discusses her stand as a Quaker against slavery.

Wise, Henry Alexander (1806–1876), letter, 1856. 4 pp. Mss2W7544a5.

Written 5 June 1856 from Richmond to Bishop William Meade, in part concerning

agitation over the issue of slavery.

Wise, Henry Alexander (1806–1876), papers, 1842–1870. 8 items. Mss2W7544b.

Photocopies.

Governor of Virginia, U.S. minister to Brazil, and Confederate general. Includes an

October 1844 letter of Wise to John C. Calhoun concerning the capture of the American

brigs Cyrus (off the coast of Africa) and Sooy (off the coast of Brazil), both for allegedly

engaging in the slave trade.

Wise, Henry Alexander (1806–1876), papers, 1858–1874. 4 items. Mss2W7544c.

Includes letters written by Wise to Robert Tyler (concerning Kansas and the Lecompton

Constitution), Henry Wilson (concerning Wilson’s History of the Rise and Fall of the

202

Slave Power in America), and Fernando Wood (concerning John Brown’s raid on

Harpers Ferry [now W.Va.]).

Wise family papers, 1816–1898. 149 items. Mss1W7547d.

This collection consists primarily of correspondence, 1829–1876, Henry Alexander Wise

(1806–1876) as a United States congressman in Washington, D.C., governor of Virginia,

attorney in Accomack County and Richmond, and United States minister to Brazil at Rio

de Janeiro. Section 1 includes correspondence with G. W. A. Raine concerning the

hanging of John Brown, leader of the Harper’s Ferry attack in 1859); with his son, Henry

Alexander Wise ([1834–1869], concerning abolition, public schools, and African

American Republicans in Maine); and with John Cropper Wise (1808–1866) concerning

crop rotation. Section 5 contains correspondence, 1845–1847, of Wise with Hamilton

Hamilton, the U.S. Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, concerning the slave trade.

Withers, Guy (1873–1964), papers, 1699–1967. 107 items. Mss1W7764b.

Section one contains a copy of an 1812 deed of James Withers of Fauquier County to

James Spilman and others for slaves.

Witherspoon, Susan Lillard, papers, 1880–1957. 219 folders. Mss1W7765a.

This collection contains the papers of genealogist Susan Lillard Witherspoon (1874–

1960) of Lexington, Ky. Section 1 consists of correspondence with Ellen Viley "Ella"

(Witherspoon) Shipman, including a letter of July 1882 that discusses the family servant,

America, leaving her employer’s service. Section 2 contains a letter from Ephraim Stout

Lillard, in which he mentions his views on the Civil Rights Movement and left-wing

activist Paul Robeson.

Woodfin, Maude Howlett (1891–1948), papers, 1915–1948. 21,021 items.

MssW8555a.

Professor of history and dean at Westhampton College (part of the University of

Richmond). Include student essays, 1926–1945, submitted to Woodfin by Vivian Borton

("The Effects of Slavery on Richmond, 1742–1860"), Annabel Lumpkin Hessel ("Slavery

in Chesterfield County, 1749–1776"), and Anne Byrd Tucker ("The Industrialization of

Richmond from 1830 to 1860"), all in section 7.

Woodson, Leander (b. 1808), bond, 1852. 1 p. Mss2G9896a4.

Bond, dated 9 January 1852, Louisa County, between Leander Woodson and Samuel

Atwell Guy for the sum of $17.00 covering the hiring of a slave.

Woolfolk family papers, 1780–1936. 579 items. Mss1W8844a. Microfilm reels C267–

269.

Primarily the papers of family members at Mulberry Place and Shepherd’s Hill, Caroline

County, in part concerning stagecoach and mail routes between Fredericksburg and

Richmond.

An account book kept by John G. Woolfolk includes entries covering the hiring of slaves

by various Woolfolk family members, lists of blankets distributed in 1817 and 1818, and

203

work done at harvest by a number of slaves (section 4). John G. Woolfolk’s estate

materials include an 1818 will that provides for the distribution of numerous slaves, a

memorandum and legal opinions of Benjamin Watkins Leigh and John Taylor, in part

concerning the mortgaging of slave property, and a decree of the Fredericksburg Superior

Court of Chancery (section 14).

Jourdan Woolfolk’s correspondence includes an 1867 letter from Richard Edmond of

Richmond concerning African Americans in politics and Reconstruction in Virginia,

while an 1866 letter from Samuel Jackson, formerly the slave of Arthur Clayton,

concerns his life in Longwood, La., and his activities as a Baptist minister and makes

inquiries about his surviving relatives (section 15). Woolfolk’s account book, 1854–1865,

includes entries covering services of African American laborers (section 21). Alice B.

Winston of Hanover County sold Woolfolk a slave named Sary in 1833, for which the

deed survives, as does a list of slave births (section 26). Affidavits of John William

Woolfolk and others contain extensive testimony offered in certification to the

Confederate government of the loss of slaves by Jourdan Woolfolk in 1862 (section 27).

A similar set of affidavits concerns the loss of slaves at Shepherd’s Hill belonging to

Mary Elizabeth Woolfolk (section 32).

Wormeley, Eleanor (Tayloe) (1756–1815), letters, 1814. 2 items. Mss2W8942b.

Photocopies.

Written from Rosegill, Middlesex County, in part concerning the capture of slaves by

British raiders in eastern Virginia and runaways to the British forces.

Wortham family papers, 1811–1863. 14 items. Mss2W8995b.

Primarily correspondence and related records of Richmond merchant Richard Chandler

Wortham, but include an 1863 letter of Gabriel Wortham of Richmond to an unidentified

addressee concerning Charles Wortham’s plan to take slaves from Caroline County to

Alabama to settle a new plantation (section 4).

Wyatt, Richard W., Receipt, 1851. 1 p. Mss2G9896a3.

Receipt, dated 1 February 1851, Louisa County, issued to Samuel Atwell Guy for the

sum of $500 covering the purchase of a slave.

Wyllie family papers, 1810–1962. 651 items. Mss1W9801a.

Papers largely focus on Wyllie and related family members in Danville and Lynchburg.

Section two consists of a daybook of Captain John Noble (1785–1855), a shoemaker and

investor of Danville, which includes accounts of the purchase and sale of slaves. Section

four contains correspondence of Allen Love Wyllie (1800–1876) including

communications with William L. Graham (of Campbell County concerning two enslaved

carpenters) and George A. Wyllie (of Gallatin, Tenn., providing details of the slave trade

between Virginia and Tennessee: prices for males, females, and children; slave auctions;

and a desire to sell particular individuals). General papers of Allen L. Wyllie comprise

section five, which include an opinion of attorney Chapman Johnson and notes

concerning the estate of Colonel John Holcombe (ca. 1844), including information on one

person identified as a "slave doctor." Section six holds records, 1823–1837, compiled by

204

Wyllie as an officer of the 53rd Regiment of Virginia Militia in Campbell County and

includes an order concerning the patrolling of streets in Lynchburg. Materials compiled

between 1825 and 1855 by Allen Wyllie comprise section eight. They all concern slaves:

receipt for the purchase of a slave girl named Fanney; bond and receipt for the hiring out

and sale of Jesse by William Y. Minton; and a tax receipt issued to the estate of John

Noble.

Wynne family papers, 1809–1967. 102 items. Mss1W9927a. Microfilm reels C496–

497.

Papers of several generations of the Wynne family of Spotsylvania County, heaviest in

the mid to late nineteenth century. Section one contains correspondence of Sarah Ann

(French) Alsop of Fredericksburg with her husband, Joseph Alsop, concerning his

antebellum journey down the Mississippi River and procuring food for the family’s

slaves in Virginia.

Yielding Zion Baptist Church, Burkeville, letters, 1923. 2 items. Mss4Y525a1–2.

Letters from members of the board of deacons of this African American church in

Burkeville, Nottoway County, to the Reverend A. B. Bland asking for his resignation as a

result of remarks made from the pulpit.

Young, James, papers, 1783–1840. 38 items. Mss1Y854a.

Concern the mercantile career of James Young of Petersburg, Portsmouth, and Norfolk

Section 4 contains a deed of sale for Rose, Sukey, and Vincent, slaves purchased by Mrs.

Elizabeth Crommeline of New York, N. Y., and Norfolk, Va. Section 6 contains a deed to

the slave Frances and her child, Jenny, and a letter of James Nimmo to James Young

concerning the slave Sam, property of Phineas Dana (1763?–1808) of Norfolk. Section 7

contains materials, 1809–1814, concerning the schooner Wilhelmina, including a letter

(copy) of F. R. Lushington to A. Dolmage concerning five slaves taken from the ship.

Young, William Proby (b. 1834), diary, 1860. 160 pp. Mss5:1Y4876:1.

Kept by a ship’s doctor employed by the American Colonization Society to tend Africans

captured from illegal slave-trading ships and being returned to Liberia. This log, kept

from June to September 1860, records events of Young’s passage from New York, N.Y.,

to Monrovia, Liberia, with points of call at Key West, Fla. (to pick up the captured

African slaves), and Robertsport, Grand Bassa, and Cape Mount, Liberia. The charge of

treating Africans who did not understand English, with the assistance of an African

American nursing attendant who did not understand any African languages, created

intense communication difficulties. The captain’s methods of routine discipline were

observed and commented on by Young. He also recorded mortality rates and noted

recurring medical problems, especially apparently healthy Africans who fell ill and died

in a short period of time. He recorded the method of rationing water and usual diet for the

Africans, as well as his own. Beginning with the ship’s arrival in Liberia on 28 August

1860, Young describes Liberian life—housing, food, economy, politics, and ownership of

slaves.

205

Zirkle, John D., account book, 1847–1848. 326 pp. Mss5:3Z686:1.

Contains the accounts of a New Market merchant. The volume was later used as a

scrapbook for news clippings, many of which generally describe southern life. Of

particular note is a pamphlet about the pianist Tom, a Georgia-born slave who possessed

unusual musical abilities and achieved success in spite of his blindness.