A Guide to the Microfilm Edition of
BLACK STUDIES RESEARCH SOURCES
Microfilms from Major Archival and Manuscript Collections
General Editors:
John H. Bracey, Jr., Sharon Harley, and August Meier
RACE, SLAVERY, AND
FREE BLACKS:
Series I,
Petitions to Southern Legislatures,
1777–1867
Edited by
Loren Schweninger
Assistant Editor
Robert Shelton
Guide Compiled by
Charles E. Smith
A microfilm project of
UNIVERSITY PUBLICATIONS OF AMERICA
An Imprint of CIS
4520 East-West Highway • Bethesda, MD 20814-3389
i
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Race, slavery, and free Blacks [microform] : series I, petitions to southern
legislatures, 1777–1867 / edited by Loren Schweninger ; assistant
editor Robert Shelton.
microfilm reels ; 35 mm.—(Black studies research sources)
Summary: Reproduces a collection of nearly 3,000 petitions
assembled over a period of ten years by the Race and Slavery
Petitions Project, University of North Carolina at Greensboro from
state archives in Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Mississippi, Missouri,
North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
Accompanied by a printed guide compiled by Charles E. Smith,
entitled: A guide to the microfilm edition of Race, slavery, and
free Blacks.
ISBN 1-55655-732-9
1. Slavery—Southern States—History Sources. 2. Afro-Americans—
History—To 1863 Sources. 3. Southern States—History—1775–1865
Sources. I. Schweninger, Loren. II. Shelton, Robert, 1957– .
III. Smith, Charles Edward, 1960– . IV. Race and Slavery
Petitions Project. V. Title: Guide to the microfilm edition of
Race, slavery, and free Blacks. VI. Series.
E441
306.3’62’0975—dc21
99-34547
CIP
Copyright © 1999 by University Publications of America.
All rights reserved.
ISBN 1-55655-732-9.
ii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction ............................................................................................................................ xi
Scope and Content Note ...................................................................................................... xix
Source Note ........................................................................................................................ xxiv
Reel Index
Reel 1
Delaware
1785–1786, 1788 ......................................................................................................... 1
1790–1791 .................................................................................................................. 2
1793–1794 .................................................................................................................. 3
1796–1797, 1799–1800 ............................................................................................... 4
1801–1803 .................................................................................................................. 5
1805, 1807–1809 ......................................................................................................... 6
1810–1814 .................................................................................................................. 7
1815 ............................................................................................................................ 8
1816 ............................................................................................................................ 9
1817 .......................................................................................................................... 10
1818 .......................................................................................................................... 11
1819 .......................................................................................................................... 13
1820 .......................................................................................................................... 14
1821 .......................................................................................................................... 15
1822 .......................................................................................................................... 16
1823 .......................................................................................................................... 17
1824 .......................................................................................................................... 18
Reel 2
Delaware (cont.)
1825 ..........................................................................................................................
1826 ..........................................................................................................................
1827 ..........................................................................................................................
1829 ..........................................................................................................................
1830–1832 ................................................................................................................
1833 ..........................................................................................................................
1837 ..........................................................................................................................
1839 ..........................................................................................................................
1840–1841, 1843 .......................................................................................................
1845 ..........................................................................................................................
1846–1847 ................................................................................................................
1849 ..........................................................................................................................
1852–1853 ................................................................................................................
iii
21
22
24
25
27
29
30
31
32
34
36
37
39
Reel 3
Mississippi
Undated .....................................................................................................................
1806, 1809, 1813 .......................................................................................................
1814–1816, 1819 .......................................................................................................
1820–1823 ................................................................................................................
1824 ..........................................................................................................................
1825–1827 ................................................................................................................
1828–1830 ................................................................................................................
1831 ..........................................................................................................................
1832–1833 ................................................................................................................
1834, 1852, 1854, 1857 .............................................................................................
1859 ..........................................................................................................................
1860 ..........................................................................................................................
1861 ..........................................................................................................................
1862–1865 ................................................................................................................
1866 ..........................................................................................................................
40
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
55
56
57
58
Reel 4
North Carolina
1777, 1779–1781 .......................................................................................................
1782, 1784–1785, 1787 .............................................................................................
1788–1789 ................................................................................................................
1790 ..........................................................................................................................
1791 ..........................................................................................................................
1792 ..........................................................................................................................
1793 ..........................................................................................................................
1794–1795 ................................................................................................................
1796 ..........................................................................................................................
1797–1798 ................................................................................................................
1799–1800 ................................................................................................................
1801 ..........................................................................................................................
1802 ..........................................................................................................................
1803 ..........................................................................................................................
58
59
60
61
62
63
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
Reel 5
North Carolina (cont.)
1804 ..........................................................................................................................
1805 ..........................................................................................................................
1806 ..........................................................................................................................
1807–1808 ................................................................................................................
1809 ..........................................................................................................................
1810 ..........................................................................................................................
1811–1812 ................................................................................................................
1813–1814 ................................................................................................................
1816 ..........................................................................................................................
1817 ..........................................................................................................................
1818–1819 ................................................................................................................
1820–1822 ................................................................................................................
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
iv
Reel 6
North Carolina (cont.)
1823–1824 ................................................................................................................
1825 ..........................................................................................................................
1827 ..........................................................................................................................
1828–1830 ................................................................................................................
1831 ..........................................................................................................................
1832–1833 ................................................................................................................
1834 ..........................................................................................................................
86
87
88
90
91
92
93
Reel 7
North Carolina (cont.)
1835–1836 ................................................................................................................ 94
1838 .......................................................................................................................... 95
1840 .......................................................................................................................... 96
1841–1842 ................................................................................................................ 97
1844, 1846 ................................................................................................................ 98
1848 .......................................................................................................................... 99
1850 ........................................................................................................................ 100
1851 ........................................................................................................................ 101
1852, 1854 .............................................................................................................. 102
1855 ........................................................................................................................ 103
1856 ........................................................................................................................ 104
1857–1858 .............................................................................................................. 105
1860–1861 .............................................................................................................. 106
1862–1864 .............................................................................................................. 107
1866 ........................................................................................................................ 108
Reel 8
South Carolina
Undated and 1783 ...................................................................................................
1784 ........................................................................................................................
1785–1787 ..............................................................................................................
1788–1790 ..............................................................................................................
1791 ........................................................................................................................
1792 ........................................................................................................................
1793 ........................................................................................................................
1794 ........................................................................................................................
1795 ........................................................................................................................
1796–1797 ..............................................................................................................
1798–1799 ..............................................................................................................
1800 ........................................................................................................................
1801 ........................................................................................................................
1802 ........................................................................................................................
108
109
110
111
112
113
115
117
118
119
121
122
123
125
Reel 9
South Carolina (cont.)
1803 ........................................................................................................................ 126
1804–1806 .............................................................................................................. 127
1807–1808 .............................................................................................................. 128
v
1809–1811 .............................................................................................................. 129
1812 ........................................................................................................................ 130
1813–1814 .............................................................................................................. 131
1815 ........................................................................................................................ 132
1816 ........................................................................................................................ 134
1817 ........................................................................................................................ 135
1818 ........................................................................................................................ 137
1819 ......................................................................................................................... 138
1820 ........................................................................................................................ 139
1821 ........................................................................................................................ 141
Reel 10
South Carolina (cont.)
1822 ........................................................................................................................
1823 ........................................................................................................................
1824 ........................................................................................................................
1825 ........................................................................................................................
1826 ........................................................................................................................
1827–1828 ..............................................................................................................
1829 ........................................................................................................................
1830 ........................................................................................................................
143
147
148
150
152
153
154
157
Reel 11
South Carolina (cont.)
1831 ........................................................................................................................
1832 ........................................................................................................................
1833–1835 ..............................................................................................................
1836–1838 ..............................................................................................................
1839 ........................................................................................................................
1840 ........................................................................................................................
1841–1842 ..............................................................................................................
1843–1845 ..............................................................................................................
1847 ........................................................................................................................
1848 ........................................................................................................................
1850–1851 ..............................................................................................................
1852–1853 ..............................................................................................................
1854–1856 ..............................................................................................................
1857–1858 ..............................................................................................................
1859 ........................................................................................................................
1860–1861, 1863 .....................................................................................................
1864–1866 ..............................................................................................................
158
159
160
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
175
176
Reel 12
Tennessee
1798–1799, 1801 .....................................................................................................
1803, 1806–1808 .....................................................................................................
1809, 1813 ..............................................................................................................
1815, 1817 ..............................................................................................................
1819 ........................................................................................................................
1820–1821 ..............................................................................................................
176
177
178
179
181
184
vi
1822 ........................................................................................................................ 185
1823–1825 .............................................................................................................. 186
1826 ........................................................................................................................ 188
Reel 13
Tennessee (cont.)
1827 ........................................................................................................................
1829 ........................................................................................................................
1831 ........................................................................................................................
1832 ........................................................................................................................
1833 ........................................................................................................................
1835 ........................................................................................................................
1837 ........................................................................................................................
1838 ........................................................................................................................
189
190
191
192
194
197
199
201
Reel 14
Tennessee (cont.)
1839 ........................................................................................................................
1841–1842 ..............................................................................................................
1843–1845 ..............................................................................................................
1846–1847 ..............................................................................................................
1848–1849 ..............................................................................................................
1851 ........................................................................................................................
1853–1855 ..............................................................................................................
1857 ........................................................................................................................
1858–1860 ..............................................................................................................
1861 ........................................................................................................................
201
202
203
204
205
208
210
211
212
213
Reel 15
Texas
1836 ........................................................................................................................
1837–1838 ..............................................................................................................
1839 ........................................................................................................................
1840 ........................................................................................................................
1841 ........................................................................................................................
1842 ........................................................................................................................
1844, 1846–1848 .....................................................................................................
1849–1851 ..............................................................................................................
1852 ........................................................................................................................
1853 ........................................................................................................................
1854 ........................................................................................................................
1855–1857, 1859 .....................................................................................................
1860–1861, 1863 .....................................................................................................
1865 ........................................................................................................................
213
214
215
216
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
vii
Reel 16
Virginia
1777–1778 ..............................................................................................................
1779 ........................................................................................................................
1780–1782 ..............................................................................................................
1784–1785 ..............................................................................................................
1786 ........................................................................................................................
1787, 1789–1792 .....................................................................................................
1793–1795 ..............................................................................................................
1796–1797, 1799 .....................................................................................................
1800–1801 ..............................................................................................................
1802 ........................................................................................................................
1803–1805 ..............................................................................................................
1806 ........................................................................................................................
1807–1808 ..............................................................................................................
1809 ........................................................................................................................
227
228
229
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
Reel 17
Virginia (cont.)
1810 ........................................................................................................................
1811 ........................................................................................................................
1812 ........................................................................................................................
1813 ........................................................................................................................
1814 ........................................................................................................................
1815 ........................................................................................................................
244
247
250
252
253
255
Reel 18
Virginia (cont.)
1816 ........................................................................................................................
1817 ........................................................................................................................
1818 ........................................................................................................................
1819 ........................................................................................................................
1820 ........................................................................................................................
1821 ........................................................................................................................
1822 ........................................................................................................................
1823 ........................................................................................................................
1824 ........................................................................................................................
1825 ........................................................................................................................
1826 ........................................................................................................................
258
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
Reel 19
Virginia (cont.)
1827 ........................................................................................................................
1828 ........................................................................................................................
1829 ........................................................................................................................
1830 ........................................................................................................................
1831 ........................................................................................................................
1832 ........................................................................................................................
270
272
273
274
275
279
viii
Reel 20
Virginia (cont.)
1833 ........................................................................................................................
1834 ........................................................................................................................
1835 ........................................................................................................................
1836 ........................................................................................................................
1837 ........................................................................................................................
281
283
284
286
289
Reel 21
Virginia (cont.)
1838 ........................................................................................................................
1839 ........................................................................................................................
1840 ........................................................................................................................
1841 ........................................................................................................................
1842 ........................................................................................................................
1843 ........................................................................................................................
1844–1845 ..............................................................................................................
1846 ........................................................................................................................
291
296
298
299
300
302
304
305
Reel 22
Virginia (cont.)
1847 ........................................................................................................................
1848 ........................................................................................................................
1849 ........................................................................................................................
1850 ........................................................................................................................
1851 ........................................................................................................................
1852 ........................................................................................................................
1853–1854, 1856 .....................................................................................................
1857–1860 ..............................................................................................................
1861–1863, 1865 .....................................................................................................
306
307
309
311
313
314
315
316
318
Reel 23
Alabama
1817–1818, 1823, 1826 ...........................................................................................
1839, 1851–1852, 1857, 1860 .................................................................................
Florida
1823, 1832–1833, 1837, 1839, 1843 .......................................................................
1855, 1861, 1863 .....................................................................................................
Georgia
1820 ........................................................................................................................
Louisiana
1820 ........................................................................................................................
Missouri
1846, 1867 ..............................................................................................................
319
320
321
322
322
323
323
Index of Subjects, Names, and Geographic Locations .................................................. 325
ix
INTRODUCTION
Between the American Revolution and the Civil War, tens of thousands of
southerners petitioned their legislatures for redress of grievances. Their
petitions concerned a broad range of topics—the creation of a new county;
the location of a new courthouse; the construction and maintenance of roads,
canals, bridges, and railroads; and the incorporation of savings institutions,
turnpike companies, and manufacturing enterprises as well as lyceums,
academies, schools, and towns. Southerners petitioned to eliminate poll
taxes, expand the suffrage, and protect their rights as citizens. In addition,
they asked for private acts of relief: payment for services rendered,
exemptions from court fines, and assistance during times of drought and
disaster.
A number of these petitions concerned race and slavery. Only
approximately three thousand slavery petitions have escaped the ravages of
time or the disinterest of contemporaries. The surviving documents, however,
provide a good representation from the Upper and Lower South, from eastern
and western states, and across the decades from the late eighteenth to the
mid-nineteenth centuries. They come mainly from Delaware, Virginia, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Texas. Only a
scattering have been preserved from Florida, Alabama, and Missouri, and
one each from Georgia and Louisiana. No legislative petitions, it appears,
have survived from Maryland, Kentucky, or Arkansas.
Written on a wide range of topics—manumission, colonization, religion,
laws governing slaves, racial mixing, black military service—by a wide range
of southerners—slaveholders and nonslaveholders, blacks and whites, men
and women, slaves and freemen—legislative petitions reveal the grim and
brutal nature of human bondage, the fears of whites who lived in areas of
large concentrations of blacks, and the workings of the complicated legal
system designed to control blacks. They tell about the yearning of
bondspeople to gain their freedom, the attitudes of freed blacks who were
forced to leave the South, and the efforts of African Americans to overcome
harsh and restrictive laws. They show slave women who lived with their
owners, mulatto children who were rejected by their white fathers, and black
men who had liaisons with white women. Indeed, they provide fascinating
portraits of virtually every aspect of life in the South—political, legal,
economic, social, and cultural.
xi
In some areas, legislative petitions flesh out, enrich, and supplement
material that is available from other sources. They analyze the social,
religious, and economic strivings of free people of color in different settings
during different time periods. They examine how free blacks coped with legal
restrictions, the hostility of whites, and racial violence. They illuminate the
changing status of free blacks over the years by documenting how they
achieved their freedom and how they sustained themselves and their families.
Free blacks entered a wide range of occupations, as blacksmiths, masons,
carpenters, shoemakers, barbers, draymen, tailors, seamstresses,
laundresses, and cooks, among others; and some, especially in the Lower
South, became farm owners, planters, and slaveholders. They also attempted
to form independent schools, churches, and mutual benefit societies; to
obtain equal treatment and citizenship rights; and to purchase family
members out of slavery.
The documents also complement the historical literature concerning white
racial attitudes and southern sectionalism. As early as 1804, a group of
Virginia slave owners called for new laws to punish northern boat captains
who violated the “Laws of Hospitality, of social Intercourse and moral
rectitude” of the slaveholding class. Other southerners discussed how
outsiders from the North were contaminating the minds of slaves. Nor were all
the “outsiders” white. No greater evil existed, a group of South Carolina
slaveholders asserted, than the “constant intercourse, which is maintained
between the blacks of the North and the South.” From black interlopers,
slaves learned “pernicious principles and opinions,” methods of resistance,
and ideas about rebellion. Another group of South Carolinians petitioned the
legislature to prohibit any person of color from entering the state or returning
to it after travelling above the Potomac River.
Some of these petitions lend support to what historians have called
“virtually-free” or “quasi-free” slaves, i.e., bondsmen and bondswomen who
hired their own time, earned their own livelihoods, and paid their owners for
the privilege of freedom. The most famous self-hired slave was Frederick
Douglass, who worked as a Baltimore ship’s caulker, but historians have
examined these privileged slaves in a variety of different settings and
occupations. Petitions not only add valuable details about individuals already
cited in the literature, but provide unique evidence about the lives of
previously unknown slaves who acted as free persons. Stephen Lytle, of
Nashville, for example, not only hired his own time, but purchased his own
freedom, purchased his wife’s freedom, and while still in bondage acquired
real estate. He was, according to whites who knew him, “an industrious,
punctual, truthful[,] honest man.” Such autonomy was greatly valued by
slaves. Other petitions reveal how previously nameless self-hired slaves
struggled, often for many years, to free themselves or members of their
families.
xii
Legislative petitions provide supplemental information in a number of
other areas as well, including colonization, divorce, miscegenation, plantation
management, politics, race relations, religion, and the domestic slave trade.
The documents are especially useful in revealing the ambiguous attitudes
of whites toward blacks. They show how slave owners sought to control their
human chattel; how they feared slave gatherings, conspiracies, and possible
slave revolts; and how they worried about the consequences of a literate
slave population, looked upon blacks as a “species of property,” and
castigated free Negroes as idle, thieving, and unmanageable.
“We of the South understand the Negro character,” a group of petitioners
asserted. “We know that naturally they are indolent, lazy, improvident,
destitute of forethought, and totally incapable of self government.”
At the same time, petitions tell how some whites supported gradual
emancipation, assisted slaves in gaining their freedom, and allowed their
bondsmen and women many privileges. They reveal how some slaveholders
expressed serious misgivings about the “peculiar institution,” argued that God
was no respecter of persons, and asserted that freedom was the “natural and
inalienable right of man.” As William Johnson, a white Mississippi planter,
said in a petition to free the son of his former slave, he was acting “consonant
to humanity” to extend liberty “to a rational Creature, in whom unfortunately
Complexion, Custom & even Law in this Land of freedom, has conspired to
fasten the fetters of slavery.”
The petitions not only tell us about the attitudes of whites, both
slaveholders and nonslaveholders, and how these attitudes changed during
various periods in different parts of the South; they also articulate the values
of different groups of blacks: talented slaves, quasi-free bondsmen, free
blacks, and affluent free persons of color. They indicate how these attitudes
differed in the Lower South and the Upper South, in rural and urban areas,
among blacks and mulattoes, and during different time periods. They also
indicate that, despite a diversity in values and attitudes, there were important
similarities, especially with regard to views about the South. When four
Virginia slaves petitioned the state legislature in 1815 to remain in the state
(emancipated slaves were required to leave the state within a year after
obtaining their freedom), they enunciated the views of most of their brethren:
“Your petitioners further represent that they have a peculiar attachment to
their native county,” they explained, “and that an emigration from this place is
very foreign to their wishes and [they] are therefore extremely anxious to be
permitted to spend the [remainder] of their lives as freemen within this
commonwealth.”
In several areas, legislative petitions offer some of the best information
available. They provide a penetrating view of the disparity between the
extensive legal codes—enacted and revised over several generations—and
the effectiveness of these laws in practice. When South Carolina whites
xiii
despaired in 1797 that the existing law prohibiting the importation of French
West Indian Negroes met with “continual infraction,” they were articulating
what future generations would say again and again about the codes designed
to control blacks. In the same state, a quarter-century later, a group calling
itself the South Carolina Association was formed with the single purpose of
requiring “OBEDIENCE TO THE LAWS.” The members were distressed by
the continued unlawful arrival of blacks from the North, as well as from
Barbados, Antigua, Jamaica, and other islands of the Caribbean. In Virginia,
North Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Texas, whites voiced similar
complaints about the inadequacy of the laws regulating blacks. In 1852,
slaveholders in Mississippi, for example, told of “riots, routs, and unlawful
assemblies,” “of crowds of negroes, drinking, fiddling, dancing, singing,
cursing, swearing, whooping and yelling,” and of “every violation of the penal
laws.”
Another area where the petitions offer an in-depth view of southern life
concerns the workings of what contemporaries called the “internal slave
economy.” In 1792, residents of New Bern, North Carolina, accused Justice
of the Peace John Webb of “trading with slaves privately” and encouraging
blacks “to plunder their masters and turning this to his own advantage.” In
other states, whites complained that the advantage went to the slaves. In the
Chesapeake region, a group of white fishermen protested against the
activities of unsupervised slaves who commanded oyster vessels during the
fishing season. Such independence, they claimed, encouraged a spirit of
enterprise; it also resulted in pilfering poultry, grain, and other commodities
for which they could always find a “ready market.” In Charleston, a group of
wharf owners requested that the General Assembly enact strict controls over
slaves and free blacks who used “tickets” to transport cotton from one area of
the city to another. The practice had resulted in the theft and illegal sale of
more than five hundred bales of cotton. In rural South Carolina, a group of
planters noted that in their district “negroes have every other Saturday [off],
keep horses, raise hogs, cultivate for themselves every thing for home
consumption & for market that their masters do.” And sixty years after New
Bern residents complained of the illegal activities of John Webb, a group of
Mississippi slave owners echoed the same accusation against “a group of
lawless and unprincipled [white] persons, whose chief occupation is an illegal
traffic with negroes, bartering whiskey for pigs, poultry, meal corn &c.”
These bondsmen were at least ostensibly under the control of their
masters, but the petitions also reveal how small groups of bondspeople
moved into the twilight zone between slavery and freedom. Despite laws to
the contrary, a memorial from the Incorporated Mechanical Society of
Wilmington, North Carolina, asserted, “many Owners of Slaves” allowed their
blacks to hire their own time. Most of these slaves were skilled artisans who
undertook “work on their own account at sometimes less than one half the
xiv
rate that a regular bred white Mechanic could offer to do it.” These slaves in
turn hired other slaves to work under them, “and take apprentices also.” The
laws governing these activities “lie neglected, and of no avail.” Whites in
Virginia, South Carolina, Mississippi, and Texas signed similar remonstrances. In South Carolina, a group of white artisans complained about slave
owners who permitted their house servants to let out repair and building
contracts during the summer months. These slaves, they said, refused to hire
white artisans, employing instead slave and free black carpenters, joiners,
and brick- and stonemasons, who in turn maintained work gangs of self-hired
slaves.
The ability of some slaves to acquire property can also be traced in
various petitions. Of course it was against the law for bondspeople to own
property—how could chattel property itself own property? But in many areas
of the South, growing numbers of slaves acquired property of one type or
another. In North Carolina, Martin County black Ned Hyman, a slave owned
by John and Samuel Hyman, accumulated an estate, “consisting of Lands
chiefly, Live Stock, Negroes and money,” worth between $5,000 and $6,000.
He did so by managing a prosperous farm on land held in his free Negro
wife’s name. According to a group of his neighbors, Hyman was a
“remarkably uncommon and extraordinary Negro,” who had acquired his
holdings because he was “remarkably industrious, frugal & prudent.” “In a
word, his character stands as fair and as good—for honesty, truth, industry,
humility, sobriety & fidelity[—]as any Negro they (your memorialists) have
ever seen or heard of.” While few slaves could match Hyman’s property
holdings, petitioners in other regions told how blacks in bondage possessed
horses, mules, cattle, poultry, fancy clothing, money, wagons, carriages,
firearms, and, in a few instances, real estate and slaves.
While Hyman and most other slave property owners remained legally in
bondage, the state petitions also capture, perhaps better than any other
primary source, the black quest for freedom. Slave mothers bought
themselves or their children; slave fathers purchased wives or family
members; and slave children, upon reaching adulthood, purchased parents,
relatives, and friends. Black women played a significant, perhaps dominant,
role in purchasing relatives and presenting emancipation petitions. A
Mississippi slave named Rachel, by “her good economy and industry,” one
petition read, raised “sufficient sum of Money to pay to your petitioner her
face value,” while another petition noted that two elderly slaves, Eve and
Charles, refunded to their owner their “purchase money” and wished to
acquire deeds of emancipation. The North Carolina slave Winney
accumulated a “small estate” sufficient “for her freedom.” Rachel Collins, a
cook and waitress, saved her money for many years before purchasing her
freedom.
xv
Petitions also provide excellent data about the attitudes of free persons
of color who achieved a measure of prosperity. A number of affluent free
people of color, usually persons of mixed racial ancestry, sought to distance
themselves from their black brethren. This was especially true in South
Carolina and the Gulf states, as free persons of color rejected their black
heritage and attempted to occupy a middle ground between slavery and
freedom. Free mulatto Samuel McCulloch Jr., of Jackson County, Texas,
claimed he should not be deprived of citizenship rights because of “an
unfortunate admixture of African blood,” which he had tragically inherited from
“a remote maternal ancestor.” Mississippi planter Andrew Barland went even
further: “Your petitioner further sheweth to your hono[ra]ble body that his
education, his habits, his principles and his society are all identified with your
views, that he holds slaves and can Know no other interest than that which is
common with the white population.”
In short, legislative petitions show the complex and ambiguous nature of
race and slavery in the South. They demonstrate how some blacks remained
loyal to the South, even to the institution of slavery, while some whites
criticized the South’s treatment of slaves and stood against the “peculiar
institution.” There are petitions from free persons of color who owned slaves,
controlled large tracts of land, and attempted to conceal their African
heritage; there are petitions from slaves who, in economic terms, were better
off than their white neighbors; there are even petitions from free blacks who
wished to return to slavery. In short, these documents portray, in vivid and
personal terms, the contrasts, ambivalences, contradictions, ironies, and
ambiguities that comprise southern history.
Loren Schweninger
The Race and Slavery Petitions Project
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
xvi
Acknowledgments
A number of archivists and librarians have assisted in locating and
photocopying relevant documents. They include Edwin Bridges and Norwood
A. Kerr at the Alabama Department of Archives and History; Joanne Mattern
and Randy Goss at the Delaware State Archives; Kenneth H. Winn and Patsy
Luebbert at the Missouri State Archives; Jeffrey Crow, Russell Koonts,
Dennis Daniels, and William Brown at the North Carolina Division of Archives
and History; Steven Tuttle, Robert MacIntosh, Caroline McDonnell, and
Marion Chandler at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History;
Ann Alley and Wayne Moore at the Tennessee State Library and Archives;
Carol Kaplan of the Public Library of Nashville and Davidson County; and
Conley Edwards, Minor Weisiger, Chris Kolbe, Gwynne Tayloe, and John
Hopewell at the Virginia State Archives. I am very grateful for their generous
and patient assistance. Graduate research assistants at the University of
North Carolina at Greensboro who have assisted in the Race and Slavery
Petitions Project Legislative Series include Duane Galloway, Doug Bristol,
Katie Knight, David Herr, Michael Huber, Denise Ettenger, Jim Giesen, and
Jeff Winstead. Staff assistant Adrienne Middlebrooks, and undergraduate
research assistants Jeanette Jennings and Tania Taylor, helped in various
ways, as did Charles Holden, Denise Kohn, and Robert Shelton. Members of
the project’s Advisory Board offered encouragement and helpful advice at
crucial junctures. The board includes the following historians: Ira Berlin,
Richard Blackett, Cullom Davis, Barbara J. Fields, Willard B. Gatewood,
Darlene Clark Hine, Leon Litwack, and Leslie Rowland. Funding for research
assistants, travel, staff, photocopying, release time, and computer hardware
has been provided by the National Historical Publications and Records
Commission, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Charles
Stewart Mott Foundation. Their generosity has made this project possible.
Technical assistance at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro has
been provided by James Clotfelter, Gary Grandon, Marlene Pratto, John
Major, Bruce Loving, and Leroy Bell. Special thanks go to Marguerite Ross
Howell who enthusiastically assisted in a variety of ways. August Meier
guided the Race and Slavery Petitions Project through several stages, and
the editor’s wife, Patricia, sustained the project during its first three years as
an unpaid assistant.
xvii
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE
Today the process of appeal by petition has largely fallen into disuse as a
means of communicating grievances to local, state, or national governments.
In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, however, the petitioning of a
legislative body was a common method of alerting members to the citizenry’s
grievances and concerns. While UPA’s Race, Slavery, and Free Blacks
microform collection features petitions to state legislatures, petitioning during
this era was a routine method of registering a formal request at all levels of
government, from county courthouses to the U.S. Congress.
Background
Founded in 1991, the Race and Slavery Petitions Project was designed to
collect and disseminate, in book and microfilm editions, approximately 18,500
petitions to state legislatures and county courts. Series 1, Legislative
Petitions, contains 2,971 petitions to state legislatures, primarily from seven
states. The microfilm edition includes all 2,971 extant legislative petitions on
the subject of race, slavery, and free blacks in the South, 1777–1867. These
petitions have been subdivided into the following states, with the number of
petitions in parentheses: Alabama (18); Delaware (418); Florida (11); Georgia
(1); Louisiana (1); Mississippi (151); Missouri (6); North Carolina (441); South
Carolina (614); Tennessee (415); Texas (113); and Virginia (782). Arkansas,
the District of Columbia, Kentucky, and Maryland are also included in the
project but have no extant legislative petitions.
The microfilm edition consists of two types of documentation, the Petition
Analysis Record and the individual petition.
Petition Analysis Record (PAR)
The Race and Slavery Petitions Project staff has created a “Petition
Analysis Record (PAR)” for each petition. The PAR precedes each petition in
the microfilm edition and provides a synopsis of information. This information
includes an accession number assigned by the project staff; “To Whom
Addressed”; location; date; petitioners and number; abstract; related
xix
documents; result of petition; number of pages in petition and related
documents; and petition location.
Accession Number consists of eight digits and is found at the top of the
PAR. It identifies the petition by series, state, year, and number within the
year.
The first digit, 11283003, indicates the series as “Legislative.”
The next two digits, 11283003, indicate the state of origin. The state
numbering system is as follows: 01–Alabama; 02–Arkansas; 03–Delaware;
04–District of Columbia; 05–Florida; 06–Georgia; 07–Kentucky; 08–
Louisiana; 09–Maryland; 10–Mississippi; 11–Missouri; 12–North Carolina;
13–South Carolina; 14–Tennessee; 15–Texas; and 16–Virginia.
The next three digits, 11283003, refer to the year a petition was filed. The last
three digits of the year are used; e.g., 830 refers to 1830.
The last two digits, 11283003, refer to the sequence of a petition within a
particular year; e.g., 03 is the third petition for the year 1830.
The PAR #11283003, the third legislative petition for 1830 from North
Carolina, translates as follows:
1
1st
Series
12
830
03
State
NC
Year
1830
Third
petition
in 1830
Gaps in the sequence of accession numbers appear occasionally. As data
from the petitions were entered into the project’s database, from which the
PARs in this collection are printed, the accession number assigned to a
particular petition was sometimes altered either because of data entry error or
because a petition was found to be a duplicate. Rather than reassign
accession numbers to maintain a proper sequence, the project’s editors
decided to tolerate occasional gaps since they do not interfere with the
identification of petitions.
Occasionally, there is a PAR without a petition. This occurs when a petition
was filed in the state archives with a closely related petition from a different
year. In this microfilm collection such petitions have been kept together as
they were found in the archives. PARs for these petitions appear twice in the
xx
collection: once in their proper sequence and again with the petitions. For
example, PAR Accession #11281002 and #11282204 are related petitions
filed together in the 1822 folder at the North Carolina Division of Archives and
History. Each is assigned an accession number to reflect its year and
number within the year. In the microfilm collection both petitions can be
found with the #11282204 Petition Analysis Record. A PAR for the earlier
petition, #11281002, also has been placed in its proper sequence (following
#11281001). The related documents field refers to PAR #11282204, where
the petition is located. In other words, if a PAR is unaccompanied by a
petition, the user should check PARs referred to in the related documents
field. When necessary, an editorial note directs the user to a related petition.
To Whom Addressed field contains the exact wording of the petition’s
salutation. In the few cases in which a petitioner did not use a salutation, the
To Whom Addressed field does not appear.
Location field contains the county, district, or parish in which the petitioner or
petitioners lived.
Date refers primarily to the date when the petition was filed. This date
usually can be found on the docket page. When the filing date is not
available, other dates are used: (1) dates used by the petitioner(s); (2) dates
inferred from the related document(s); (3) dates inferred from the contents of
the petition; or (4) dates assigned by the archives. Petitions for which a date
could not be determined are assigned accession numbers that contain “000”
in the date part of the accession number. For example, the third legislative
petition from the state of North Carolina for which the date is unknown bears
the accession number 11200003. These petitions have been placed at the
beginning of each state’s collection.
Petitioners field is used to record information about the petitioners. If a
petition was signed by more than five people, only the first five legible names
from the petition were entered. The petitioners’ color and gender are also
included. In addition, the total number of petitioners, those who signed the
petition, is listed.
Abstract field contains a brief summary of the main points of the petition and
may include background information or particularly illustrative quotations.
Related Documents field contains all documents relating to the petition,
including the name of the document, the county the document comes from if
xxi
different from the petition, the name of the most prominent person mentioned
in the document (not always the petitioner or author), and the date. For
example, Affidavit, Monroe County, James Croft, 11 May 1810. The letters
“n.d.” indicate an undated document. Petitions related to other PARs are
indicated by the following: See PAR #21280003. Or, for multiple PARs: See
PARs #21283003, #21283004, #21283005.
Result of Petition field contains information about the outcome of the
petition, if known (e.g., read, approved, bill drawn, granted, rejected, denied,
deemed unreasonable, etc.).
Number of Pages in Petition field consists of the docket page, the body of
the petition, and signature pages. Any related documents that appear on the
same page as part of the petition or docket page are not counted as related
documents pages. In other words, if the petition or docket pages have
related documents on them or parts of related documents on them, the pages
are counted as petition pages and not as related documents pages.
Number of Pages in Related Documents do not contain any parts of the
petition or docket page.
Petition Location cites information concerning the location of the original
petition, including record group, document number, and name of archives.
Individual Petitions
The legislative petitions that comprise the Race, Slavery, and Free Blacks
microform collection address a myriad of topics. These include individual
requests for emancipation, mass campaigns demanding the total abolition of
slavery, and complaints about the activities of free blacks. Most petitions
have a common format.
The first item of a petition is typically a salutation to the legislative body to
which it is addressed. In most cases petitions were handwritten, but
sometimes a printed petition form that left sufficient room for signatures was
used. In the case of handwritten petitions, the formality of language and
script can serve as an indicator of the petitioner’s level of literacy.
The body of the petition generally contains an explanation of the reasons
for its submission. Very often, petitioners had a grievance of some type that
they wanted to bring to the attention of their state legislators. On other
occasions, an individual sought an exemption from a particular state law.
Sometimes, a group of citizens submitted an accompanying petition to
support another petitioner’s request. In each of these instances petitioners
xxii
sought to convince the legislature of the justness of their cause and the
necessity for legislative action.
In addition to a statement of grievances, a petition often includes a
proposal for corrective action or remedy. Unlike today, it was common for an
individual petitioner to ask the legislature to enact a law that would solve a
personal dilemma; such a law is formally known as a “private” act or statute.
Some petitions were broader in scope, requesting that the legislature pass a
“public” statute affecting a state’s entire population, such as petitions for the
abolition of slavery. In many instances petitioners asked for direct
intervention by state legislatures into matters that today are considered
judicial responsibilities, such as the settlement of probate estates, marital
relations, business arrangements, or rights of citizenship.
The signatures of petitioners are found at the end of the petition. In some
cases literally hundreds of petitioners signed a single petition. In many
others, an individual or handful of people did so. In a few instances one or
two people signed on behalf of a large groups of petitioners. If a petitioner
was illiterate, someone else wrote the petition and signed for them.
Some petitions conclude with a “docket page,” indicating its official receipt
by the state legislature. The docket page identifies the date of submission,
the addressee, and the number of petitioners as recorded by a legislative
clerk.
xxiii
SOURCE NOTE
This collection, created by the Race and Slavery Petitions Project at the
University of North Carolina at Greensboro, was drawn from state archives in
Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South
Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
xxiv
REEL INDEX
Entries in this index are arranged chronologically under the name of the state in which a petition was
filed. An individual entry has several pieces of information. The first item is the frame number of the Petition
Analysis Record that precedes each petition in the microfilm collection. The frame number is followed by the
name of the county where the petition originated, if not mentioned elsewhere in the petition abstract.
Because county information was not available for a considerable number of petitions, many Reel Index
entries do not contain a county of origin. Next, each entry has an abstract that summarizes the nature and
purpose of the petition, often with quotations from the original document. The grammar and spelling of the
original have been retained. Names of petitioners are shown at the end of each abstract, if not mentioned
elsewhere in the petition abstract. The number of petitioners is indicated in parentheses, except in the case
of a single petitioner. When more than five persons have signed a petition, only the names of the first five
petitioners are listed. In a few cases, one or two petitioners have signed on behalf of a larger group.
A prominent feature of the collection is petition drives in which identical petitions were filed in
considerable numbers. When this type of series occurs, the Reel Index has published a single abstract for
each set of duplicate petitions and identified each group of petitioners at the end of the entry in the order that
they appear within the microfilm collection.
Reel 1
Delaware
0001. Descriptive material.
1785.
0008. The Quakers request the abolition of slavery in Delaware and call for the equal treatment of
freed people of color in the state. Petitioners {203}: Backhouse, John, Jr.; Gilpin, Joseph; Gregg,
Samuel; Gregg, Thomas; Trump, John.
1786.
0014. Sussex County. The petitioners ask the legislature to more rigorously regulate the
movements of people of color. They argue that “under the name and character of Free Negroes
many idle and evil-disposed slaves throughout this County” traveled from one location to another,
“some with and some without passes or Certificates.” There were also many black “Stragglers
and Vagabonds From the Neighbouring Counties” and free people of color from other states that
“are likely to become Chargeable.” They ask for a law to prohibit black people from travelling from
one county to another without a written or printed pass or certificate with the county seal “affixed
thereto.” The pass should include the bearer's name and place of abode. Petitioners {21}: Davis,
William, Jr.; Draper, Joseph; Smith, David; Townsend, Jacob; Watson, Joseph. Petitioners {39}:
Davis; Black, George; Davis, Nehemiah; Walton, Luke; Wattson, Bethuel.
1788.
0025. The Quakers request an end to the slave trade in Delaware on the grounds of Christian
and natural law. “We therefore earnestly request you will be pleased to make such provision as
may be effectual for suppressing the Slave Trade or the Equipment of Ships for that purpose
within this State, and also to make such supplementary additions and amendments to the late Act
of Assembly to put a Stop to the importation of Slaves.” Petitioners {73}: Bedford, Quinn;
Delaplain, James; Drinker, John; Gilpin, Vincent; Hendrickson, Isaac.
1
Reel 1
Delaware
0031. The Delaware Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery seeks enforcement of the law
prohibiting the slave trade. In addition, they ask that until slavery is abolished “measures be
adopted to restrain the punishment of Slaves, at the mere will and pleasure of their Master.”
Petitioners {8}: Brian, Thomas; Gregg, John; Johnson, Daniel; Kirk, Caleb; Walraven, Peter.
Petitioners {43}: Barrett, Charles; Buffington, Joseph; Jackson, Isaac; McKennon, William; Peirce,
Robert. Petitioners {43}: Byrnes, Caleb; Byrnes, Joshua; Maxwell, Solomon; Stapaler, Stephen;
Stroud, Joshua.
0042. Cecil County. Maryland resident Henry Ward Pearce was unaware of a Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves. Pearce owns land in Delaware and
had sent two male slaves to work the land. He asks for an exemption from the law.
0046. The Delaware Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery seeks enforcement of the law
prohibiting the slave trade. They also ask that until slavery is abolished “measures be adopted to
restrain the punishment of Slaves, at the mere will and pleasure of their Master.” Petitioners {58}:
Bayard, James A.; Gibbons, James; Keats, George; Seal, Caleb; Yarnall, John.
1790.
0050. Kent County. Owed a debt by a resident of Maryland and obliged to take three slaves as
payment—a man, a woman, and a girl—McKimmy Smack, a resident of Delaware, seeks
exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves.
0053. New Castle County. Sluyter Bouchell states that he was unaware of a Delaware law
“forbidding the bringing of slaves in the State under any circumstances.” The slaves that he
brought with him from Maryland—Abraham, Edward, William, and Rainy—petitioned for their
freedom. Bouchell asks the legislature to assist him in keeping the slaves.
1791.
0058. Warner Mifflin asks the legislature to end slavery on Christian and moral grounds, advising
the insertion of a “clause in the constitution declaring that no more slaves shall be born in this
state.” Mifflin also asks for enforcement of laws protecting slaves and free blacks from being
kidnapped and “carried off.” In some parts of the state the laws were “being trampled upon and
evaded."
0065. New Castle County. Petitioners seek the strengthening and enforcement of acts regulating
the transportation of slaves over state lines, the exportation of slaves to other parts of the South,
and the enslavement of free blacks. Petitioners {53}: Brynberg, Peter; Chandler, Thomas;
Robinson, Nicholas; Seal, Caleb; Warner, Joseph.
0069. New Castle County. James Hutchings seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves so that he may bring his slaves from Maryland
to work his land in Delaware.
0073. New Castle County. James Black seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove five slaves from
his land in Maryland to use on his land in Delaware.
0076. New Castle County. The petitioners seek the abolition of slavery. “Your petitioners
therefore pray that the General Assembly will take the premises into Consideration and in their
Wisdom pass a law for extending the Benefits of Freedom to the posterity of such Africans or
others who are now held in bondage in this state.” They want to free the posterity of the slaves
because slavery was “totally repugnant to the spirit of the American Revolution” and because it
was their duty as Christians to do so. Petitioners {14}: Appelton, Robert; Cummins, Daniel;
2
Reel 1
Delaware
Hopkins, Francis; Robinson, William. Petitioners {54}: Dawson, Benjamin; Dawson, Solomon;
Fisher, Fenwick; Lane, A. W.; Needham, E. Petitioners {59}: Baily, Joseph; Gilpin, Vincent;
Hemphill, William; Reynolds, Thomas; Way, Nicholas. Petitioners {31}: Henry, James; Morris,
James; Rasin, William; Severson, John.
1793.
0092. The petitioners, including Quakers, ask that laws prohibiting the “exportation of Slaves
under certain restrictions, and the illegal carrying off free Black or coloured people” be
strengthened and enforced. Petitioners {37}: Campbell, Robert P.; Frazer, John; Frazer, William;
Garnett, William; Mifflin, Warner.
0095. Kent County. John and Sarah Brown seek exemption from a Delaware law prohibiting the
importation and exportation of slaves and ask permission to bring their slave, Job, from Maryland
into Delaware.
0101. James Black seeks exemption from a Delaware law prohibiting the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring three “negroe children"—Bob, Jacob, and
Dinah—from his farm in Kent County, Maryland, to his property in New Castle County, Delaware,
to “employ them in his Family."
0105. Anna Adams seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring her slave, Monacha, who had been hired
out in Maryland, into Delaware.
1794.
0109. A convention of the Abolition Society, having met in Philadelphia on 1 January 1794,
petitions the Delaware legislature to abolish slavery and to expand the rights of the “African
Citizen.” Petitioners {2}: Bloomfield, Joseph; Cree, John M.
0114. Residents of New Castle County petition for stricter enforcement of the laws prohibiting the
enslavement of free people of color and for the gradual abolition of slavery. “We ask not of your
honorable body to put an end at once to slavery, but we desire that a method may be fallen upon
which shall make it gradually disappear.” Petitioners {57}: Comb, Eleazer; Creery, William;
Hendrickson, Isaac; Rodney, Cesar; Thomas, E.
0119. In 1780, Maryland resident Sarah Frisby hired five of her slaves—Ben, Cliff, Stephen,
Betty, and Kate—to Richard Lavin of Maryland. Frisby later moved to Delaware. She asks for an
exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves.
0123. Sussex County. William E. Hitch seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring five slaves—Will,
Rachel, Alice, Ben, and George—from Maryland into Delaware.
0126. Thomas Saulsbury seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring “two Negroe children a girl & a
boy,” that he inherited from a relative from Dorchester County, Maryland, into Kent County,
Delaware.
0129. New Castle County. Petitioners seek the strengthening and enforcement of laws prohibiting
the enslavement of free people of color and ask for a gradual end to slavery. “We ask not of your
honourable body to put an end at once to slavery, but we desire, that a method may be fallen
upon which shall make it gradually disappear.” Petitioners {33}: Canby, William; Holllingsworth,
Samuel; Newlin, Cyrus; Shipley, Joseph; Warner, Joseph.
3
Reel 1
Delaware
1796.
0134. Kent County. Ruben Anderson seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring four slaves—Daniel, Lear,
Minty, and Mingo—into Delaware from Maryland. The slaves were acquired when Anderson
married Ann Purnell of Worcester County, Maryland.
0137. New Castle County. In 1793, Charles Thomas moved from Maryland to Delaware. Thomas
seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of
slaves and asks permission to bring “one negro Man, named Sam, Two negro women, named
Fanny & Hannah, Three negro boys, named Jack, Reuben & Perry, and one negro girl named
Nanee” from Maryland into Delaware.
0140. Sussex County. David Richards seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring “a Negro Woman called
jenny & a Negro Boy called Levin” into Delaware from Maryland. Richards acquired the slaves
following the death of a relative.
0143. Sussex County. George Waller seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to carry two slaves—Phillis and
her son, Stephen—that he acquired by way of payment of debt from Maryland into Delaware.
1797.
0146. Kent County. Samuel Dredden seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring his slave, Levin, from
Maryland into Delaware. Dredden acquired the slave following the death of a relative.
0149. James Colliar inherited property that is partially in Delaware and partially in Maryland; “the
bildings and Improvements is on the part that lyes in Sussex” County, Delaware. He seeks
exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission for his “sundry” slaves to reside in Delaware and work the land on both
sides of the state line.
0152. Sussex County. George Waller seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring two slaves—Phillis and
her son, Stephen—that he acquired by way of payment of a debt from Maryland into Delaware.
0155. New Castle County. Cantwell Jones seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring a newly
purchased family of slaves from Maryland into Delaware. Jones was anxious to settle the six
slaves—Adam, Fran, and their four children, Susan, Rose, Sol, and Harry—"amongst their
relations who are also the property of your petitioner."
1799.
0158. Sussex County. William Slayton seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring his slaves, Harry, Esther,
Diana, and “an infant child of Said Esther, not yet named,” from Maryland into Delaware.
0161. Sussex County. Curtis Morris seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring Ibba, a slave given to his
daughter, from Maryland into Delaware.
1800.
0165. Sussex County. Roger Adams seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the slave Venus from
4
Reel 1
Delaware
Maryland into Delaware. Adams was fond of Venus and had given her to his daughter. He said he
had rescued the woman from “hands that might make an ungenerous trade of her."
0168. William B. Smith seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves and asks permission to transfer three slaves from Maryland into
Delaware. The three were “children, viz.: Stephen aged about thirteen, Nancy about eleven, and
a boy about six, or seven years old.” The three were acquired following his sister's death.
0171. William Hughtett seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves and asks permission to transfer four slaves from Maryland into
Delaware. Hughtett owned the four slaves—John, Peter, Thomas, and Dinah—for a number of
years.
0173. George and Rachel Wilson seek exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and ask that their slaves be permitted to pass between
Maryland and Delaware. The Wilsons state that they wish to reside in Maryland and work their
slaves in Delaware. The slaves—Jacob, Silva, Elias, Ben, Denis, and two others—belonged to
Rachel Wilson before the two were married.
1801.
0177. The three hundred and sixty-six petitioners demand the abolition of slavery in Delaware.
They argue that the state would benefit economically and morally from abolition. The end of
slavery in New York, they contend, brought improvements of every kind and a permanent rise in
the value of real property. Abolition would also end the “most detestable of all crimes, so common
among us, the crime of man-stealing.” Petitioners {366}: Eastburn, David; Evans, Eli; Evans,
Thomas; Kinsey, Nathaniel; Phillips, William D.
0183. The petitioners seek the gradual abolition of slavery on constitutional grounds. “We
approve the language held forth in the preamble to the constitution of this State that declares
That ‘Through divine goodness all men have by nature the rights of enjoying and defending life
and liberty.’” They request that the legislature pass a law for the gradual abolition of slavery.
Petitioners {80}: Brown, William; Elliot, John; Peirce, George; Rice, Washington; Seal, William.
Petitioners {5}: August, Joseph N.; Niles, Heg; Seal, Joshua; Sparkman, Samuel; Wilson, James.
1802.
0190. Sussex County. Jonathan Waller states that he resides in Delaware and owns lands and
mills in both Delaware and Maryland. Waller requests an exemption from a Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission “to work and
employ His Slaves on his farms and Mills in the State of Maryland."
0193. Sussex County. Maryland resident George Wilson Jr. asks for a law to permit him to take
his wife's slave out of Delaware into Maryland. Wilson married a widow and now must support her
children, having been appointed their guardian.
1803.
0197. Kent County. Walter Delaney resides in the state of Delaware. He contends that the recent
behavior of his two slaves, whose relatives mostly reside in Maryland, requires that he either sell
them or “use harsh and rigorous treatment towards them, for the purpose of preserving due order
and submission in his family.” Delaney states that he wishes to avoid such treatment “as it is the
most disagreeable of the two, and not so likely as the former to effect the desired object.” Thus he
seeks permission to “sell and dispose of the said Slaves to some citizen or citizens of the State of
Maryland, willing to buy them."
5
Reel 1
Delaware
0200. The petitioners seek laws leading to the gradual abolition of slavery and the strengthening
of laws protecting slaves and free people of color. Petitioners {14}: Coulter, Ian; Marshall, Aaron;
McIlvain, Mills; Row, Frederick; Shankland, Rhoad. Petitioners {66}: Cochran, James;
Lockerman, Mathew; Starr, Isaac; Whitelock, George; Woolston, Jeremiah.
1805.
0208. New Castle County. Thomas Forman owns land in both Maryland and Delaware. He asks
for permission to bring his slaves from Maryland into Delaware.
1807.
0212. Thomas Carey requests compensation for the expenses he incurred capturing and
imprisoning George Parker, a black man who was charged with the rape of Hannah Bramble.
Carey states that he searched in Philadelphia and throughout Pennsylvania and Delaware for the
accused and traded a horse worth $60 for information about Parker’s exact hiding place. He
captured Parker near Frederica, Delaware, in Kent County and lodged him in the local jail.
0215. James Morris of Maryland instructed in his will that his slaves be freed when they reached
the age of thirty. His son, William Morris, in the meantime moved to Delaware with one of the
slaves. The slave died. William Morris seeks permission to return to Maryland for the purpose of
obtaining another of the slaves mentioned in the will.
0218. Kent County. The petitioners urge the legislature to approve the plea of Thomas Carey for
compensation for the capture of George Parker, a black man charged with the rape of Hannah
Bramble. Petitioners {16}: Furbee, Jacob; Lockley, John; Pierce, Abraham; Ridgely, Abraham;
Ridgely, Henry M.
0221. The petitioners call for the gradual abolition of slavery and the strengthening of laws for the
protection of slaves and free people of color. Petitioners {19}: Eastburn, David; Evans, Eli; Evans,
Thomas; Kinsey, Nathaniel; Phillips, William.
0224. Kent County. Petitioners seek the gradual emancipation of Delaware slaves, asking that a
law be passed “fixing a period after which all children born of slave shall be free at the age of 21,
28, or whatever age you, in your wisdom may deem best.” Petitioners {106}: Chambers, Samuel;
Cullen, Jesse; Norris, John; Sullivan, James; Swiggett, Henry.
0228. New Castle County. The petitioners call for the gradual abolition of slavery and the
strengthening of laws for the protection of slaves and free people of color. “We ask not of your
honourable body to put an end at once to slavery, but we desire, that a method may be fallen
upon which shall make it gradually disappear.” Petitioners {33}: Hutton, John; Moody, M.; Nash,
John; Penington, H. B.; Wilson, David.
1808.
0233. John Carter of Caroline County, Maryland, requests exemption from the Delaware law
prohibiting the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring his wife's
slaves from Delaware into Maryland.
1809.
0236. Kent County. Zachariah Pritchett petitions for the freedom of George, a free man of color
whom Pritchett contends was illegally arrested by the constable of the county. Pritchett also asks
for the dismissal of Justice of the Peace Major Anderson. Anderson's son, Ezekiel Anderson,
claimed that George was his runaway slave. Major Anderson issued a warrant for George's
arrest. Zachariah Pritchett claims that George is a free person of color whose family Pritchett
hired. Pritchett states that Major Anderson should be removed from office on the grounds that he
had conducted himself in a “most arbitrary” and oppressive manner and that he had knowingly
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subverted law and justice. Moreover, “he is grossly ignorant of his office and of the powers vested
in him by the law."
1810.
0259. Kent County. A group of slave owners complain that slaves filing freedom petitions cost
masters money. The owners not only lost the labor of their bondsman or bondswoman but also
were forced to pay court expenses. They seek an amendment to the law to require “that in all
cases where petitions for freedom are filed in vacation, they shall be subscribed on behalf of the
Petitioner by some substantial person residing in the State.” Petitioners {13}: Furbee, Jacob;
Hamm, Charles; Lockwood, William K.; McDowell, Wesley; Wootten, J. B.
0263. Sussex County. Delaware resident James Owens requests permission to bring his slave,
Jack, from Maryland to Delaware. Owens acquired Jack upon his marriage to Mary Woolford of
Maryland.
0266. Sussex County. John Handy of Delaware married Rebecca Nicols of Maryland and was
presented with the gift of “the following Negroes, Rachel and her female child age ten months,
and Priscilla, aged eight or ten.” Handy seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove Rachel, her
baby, and Priscilla from Maryland into Delaware.
1811.
0269. William Pearce, a resident of Kent County in Maryland, owns woodlands in New Castle
County, Delaware. He seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves. He asks permission for his slaves to cut firewood, timber, and rails in
Delaware and transport the wood into Maryland.
0273. Kent County. Francis Hall married Sarah Tilghman of Maryland and acquired slaves in
Delaware. Hall seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove “said Negro Slaves, or a part of them” from
Delaware to Maryland. Petitioners {3}: Hall, Francis C.; Tilghman, Henry; Tilghman, Edward, 3rd.
1812.
0276. Quakers in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, and the eastern part of Maryland request
that special attention be given to laws restricting the freedom of free people of color. The laws are
“not only partial in their nature, but in their practical operation, calculated to produce in many
instances grievous suffering; and in some cases too, where the Individuals whom they affect,
have not been charged with the commission of any crime.” Petitioner: Evans, Jon.
1813.
0283. Parran Taylor moved from Kent County, Delaware, to Queen Anne County, Maryland. At
the time, his slave, Thomas, was hired out to John Niden of Kent County. Taylor seeks exemption
from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to remove Thomas into Maryland.
0286. Queen Anne County, Maryland. Following the death of his father-in-law, William Wingate
acquired the seventeen-year-old slave Rebecca. Wingate seeks exemption from a Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove
Rebecca from Delaware into Maryland.
1814.
0289. Sussex County. William Waples states that he purchased a slave in Maryland and inherited
several others following the death of a relative in Virginia. Waples seeks exemption from a
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Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission
to remove his slaves from Maryland and Virginia into Delaware.
0292. Maryland resident Thomas Forman states that he owns land in Maryland and Delaware. He
seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of
slaves and asks permission for his slaves to travel across the state line in order to work both
tracts of land.
0295. Isaac Cannon of Sussex County married the daughter of Elijah Fookis, a resident of
Worcester County in Maryland. Fookis expressed his wish to give his daughter “a Negro Boy by
the Name of Sampson.” Cannon seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove Sampson from Maryland
into Delaware.
0298. Gabriel Fountain states that he moved from Carolina County, Maryland, to Sussex County
in Delaware. He seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove his slave, Rachel, from Maryland to
Delaware. Rachel was a present from his grandfather about eight years before.
0301. Maria Townsend moved from Worcester County, Maryland, to Sussex County in Delaware.
She seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of
slaves and asks permission to remove a slave named Belinda and the slave's child from
Maryland into Delaware.
0304. Richard Lawrence states that he moved from Sussex County in Delaware to Baltimore,
Maryland, in 1809. When Lawrence left Delaware his slave, Joshua, was hired out and so could
not be brought to Maryland. Joshua's term of hire has expired, Lawrence states, and he now
seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of
slaves and asks permission to remove the slave from Delaware to Maryland.
1815.
0307. The African School Society asks the state to pass an act for the society's incorporation.
The petitioners state that the society had privately educated “the descendants of Africans” for
several years. The society received voluntary contributions and had established a seminary. The
society's purpose was to lessen the “deplorable ignorance, which characterises So great a
portion of their colour, and disqualifies them from the more useful employments of life."
Petitioners {29}: Brian, James; Ferris, Liba; Lewis, Evan; Reynolds, John; Starr, Isaac.
0312. Samuel Wright of Queen Anne's County, Maryland, owns land in Maryland and Delaware.
He seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of
slaves and asks permission to allow his slaves to travel between the two states in order to work
both tracts of land.
0315. Sussex County. In his will, John Dawson of Carolina County, Maryland, bequeathed two
slaves to his wife and specified that after her death the slaves would be divided between their two
daughters, Polly and Sally. When Dawson's wife died, only the slave Daniel was still living. For a
time Daniel was hired out; but then Dirickson purchased the slave. He seeks exemption from a
Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves. He asks permission
to remove Daniel from Maryland into Delaware.
0319. Jenifer Taylor of Caroline County, Maryland, states that she recently became “seized and
possessed” of Robert, “a negro lad” about nineteen or twenty years old. Taylor seeks exemption
from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to remove Robert from Delaware into Maryland.
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0322. In 1814, in “an Act to Authorize Thomas Marsh Forman to bring slaves into this State from
Maryland,” Forman was given permission to bring several slaves into Delaware provided he
register their names and ages at the Recording Office. Due to a mail problem, he was unable to
comply with these terms and “therefore prays the General Assembly to grant him leave to bring in
a bill to extend the time of recording the names and ages of said negroes."
0325. New Castle County. A group of sixty-seven women in Wilmington declare their opposition
to slavery. According to the principles set forth in the Declaration of Independence and the Bible,
slavery should be abolished. Petitioners {67}: Collyer, A. E.; Pusey, Edith; Pusey, Rachel; Webb,
Eliza; Webb, Mary.
0328. The residents in the village of Cantwells Bridge, New Castle County, seek a justice of the
peace “to prevent the disorderly conduct of people of colour and others who are in the habit of
disturbing the peace.” They ask for a bill to authorize the governor to establish “a commission for
a justice of the Peace.” Petitioners {35}: Corbit, William; Metts, John; Starr, Thomas; Wilson,
David; Wilson, D. W., Jr.
0332. Worcester County, Maryland. William Hudson of Maryland states that he purchased a slave
named Sam from George Aydelott of Delaware. Hudson seeks exemption from a Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove
Sam from Delaware into Maryland. Hudson made the purchase “not with a view to Sell or dispose
of the Said Slave."
1816.
0335. Kent County. A group of freemen protest the passage of an 1811 act permitting free people
of color convicted of theft to be “disposed of by the sheriff of the County as a servant” for a term
of two to seven years. This could easily result in free persons of color being sold to slave traders
or their agents and sent to the deep South, the petitioners argue. It would be impossible for free
blacks thus sold, the petitioners assert, “to procure or obtain any evidence that will free them.”
They would remain slaves for life and their children would be subject to “the most Cruel Slavery
for Many Generations.” This was cruel and unusual punishment. They ask for a repeal of the law.
Petitioners {7}: Catlin, Robert; Cullen, Gideon; Davenport, Joseph; Dickson, Sam; Smithers,
Nathaniel.
0339. The petitioners ask that “an Act Respecting free Negroes and free Mulattoes” be repealed.
The act was incompatible with the spirit of the Constitution. The law consigns free people of color
to “cruel servitude” under hard, greedy task masters “whose tenderest feelings towards them are
but cruelty,” the petitioners argue, and permits whites to carry on a “legalised traffick in human
beings.” Petitioners {26}: Dolly, William; Edmondson, Samuel; Hunn, Erik; Hunn, Jonathan;
Mifflin, Dan. Petitioners {23}: Couper, James, Jr.; Manlove, John; Mifflin, Warner; Paynter,
Samuel, Jr.; Van Dyke, Abraham.
0347. The petitioners seek the repeal of an 1811 law titled “An Act to prohibit the emigration of
free negroes or free mulattoes into this State.” The law, the petitioners argue, is “not only unjust,
oppressive and rigorous, but likewise highly impolitic.” The law subjects a “portion of the
Community equally entitled by nature and our free Constitution to the rights and privileges of their
Fellow Citizens…to grievous penalties and imprisonment, without the perpetration of any Crime,
or the breach of any moral Law.” Petitioners {60}: Canby, Samuel; Ferris, Benjamin; Hilles, Eli;
Lewis, Evan; Poole, William.
0353. Residents of Sussex County seek a “repeal of certain laws preventing them from procuring”
labor to drain large districts of land that are covered with water. Petitioners {43}: Messick,
George; Powell, Job; Powell, Joshua; Powell, William; West, Elias.
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0359. Kent County. Joseph Parsons states that he inherited three slaves from his mother, a
resident of Maryland. He set two of the slaves free and wishes to keep the third, a boy about ten
years of age, as a slave. Parsons seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the slave from Maryland into
Delaware.
0362. Sussex County. Sally Ellegood states that she inherited from her father, a resident of
Worcester County, Maryland, a slave named Rachel. Through marriage, William Ellegood
became the owner of Rachel. The Ellegoods now seek an exemption from a Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves. They ask permission to bring
Rachel from Maryland into Delaware.
0365. Sussex County. Delaware resident Ralph Robinson and his son, Lake, own land in
Maryland and Delaware. They seek exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and ask permission for several slaves to “pass and repass”
from a farm in Delaware to a farm in Maryland.
0369. Sussex County. William Nicols states he moved from Maryland to Delaware. He seeks
exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission to bring three slaves, inherited following the death of his father, from
Maryland to Delaware.
0372. The Orphans Court of Sussex County appointed Sally Adams guardian for Andrew Adams,
a minor and the son of John Adams, who died in Sussex County. Andrew inherited property in
Somerset County, Maryland, including the slave Henny and her three children. The slaves are
“under the care of” Andrew Adams, senior, of Somerset County. Sally Adams seeks exemption
from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to bring Henny and her three children from Maryland into Delaware.
0375. Thomas Handy moved from Maryland to Delaware, leaving behind several slaves whom he
had hired out. He seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring two of the slaves, Violet and Peter, from
Maryland into Delaware.
0378. The petitioners express concern about the increasing number of kidnappings of free people
of color who are being sold into slavery. They ask that the existing laws be amended to
incorporate a harsh penalty for those engaging in “this iniquitous traffic” of free people. In
Maryland, the petitioners report, the grand jury of Baltimore County also seeks a law to halt the
traffic. Petitioners {5}: Davis, Jesse; Hambly, Rick; Huston, William; Martin, William; Weise, John.
1817.
0382. The petitioners express concern about the increasing number of kidnappings of free people
of color who are being sold into slavery. They ask that the existing laws be amended to
incorporate a harsh penalty for those engaging in “this iniquitous traffic” of free people. In
Maryland, the petitioners report, the grand jury of Baltimore County also seeks a law to halt the
traffic. Petitioners {9}: Allen, Presley; Marry, John W.; Metz, George W.; Therlin, James; Yeats,
James.
0391. Ralph Robinson of Sussex County owns a plantation in Maryland. He seeks exemption
from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission for seven slaves to pass and repass across the state line in order to work the land in
Maryland.
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0394. Andrew Gray of New Castle County inherited the slave Samuel from a resident of
Maryland. He seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring Samuel from Maryland into Delaware.
0397. William Vaughan of Sussex County married Garner Giles, a resident of Maryland. Through
this marriage, Vaughan became owner of the slave Phoebe and her four children. He seeks
exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission to bring the slaves from Maryland into Delaware. The slaves include Phoebe
and her four children: Jack, Josiah, Arthur, and one other.
0400. Citizens of Delaware express concern about the increasing number of kidnappings of free
people of color who are then sold into slavery. They ask that the legislature enact laws “whose
penalty shall exceed the hope of advantage” from this “iniquitous traffic.” In Maryland, the
petitioners note, the grand jury of Baltimore County seeks a law to halt the traffic in that state.
Petitioners {105}: Rooney, Caleb; Thompson, Joseph H.; West, Jacob; West, John M.; Wilson,
James. Petitioners {24}: Dolly, William; Godwin, H. M.; Hall, William; Hayes, A. L.; Lockwood,
William K. Petitioners {91}: Bennett, Joseph; Bishop, William; Dein, William; Godwin, Daniel;
Little, Henry. Petitioners {73}: Combs, Lawrence M.; Harrington, Isaac; Jefferson, Ephraim;
Spruance, P.; Wood, Benjamin. Petitioners {17}: Babb, Homas; Beeson, Thomas; Derickson,
Jacob; Pyle, Joseph; Talley, Elihu, Jr. Petitioners {36}: Adkins, L.; Collins, H.; Collins, J. W.;
Shockley, Elias; Starr, James. Petitioners {26}: Blackiston, Benjamin; Blackiston, Ebenezer;
McDowell, James; Needham, E.; Wilson, Robert. Petitioners {40}: Baker, Elias; Baker, George;
Blackson, Aaron; Jeffries, James; Prettyman, Burton. Petitioners {2}: Hunn, Jonathan; Mifflin,
Warner. Petitioners {6}: Benton, Joshua; Dingle, Edward, Jr.; Dunning, William; Robinson,
Thomas; Waples, John S. Petitioners {11}: Hart, James; Martin, Martin; Parker, Andrew; Wallis,
Joshua; Webster, Dickinson. Petitioners {17}: Harrington, Richard; Jester, Stanford; Long,
Benjamin; North, Jeremiah; Price, Samuel. Petitioners {4}: Brook, Christopher; Burton, John;
Davis, Outlen; Ryland, Alrich.
1818.
0440. Noting the many acts “of pilfering & Stealing committed by the people of Colour both bound
and free,” residents of Dagsborough and Baltimore Hundreds, Sussex County, request the
establishment of a patrol. The petitioners claim that black people steal poultry, sheep, corn, and
smoked meat.
0442. Citizens of Delaware express concern about the increasing number of kidnappings of free
people of color who are then sold into slavery. They ask that the legislature enact laws “whose
penalty shall exceed the hope of advantage” from this “iniquitous traffic.” In Maryland, the
petitioners note, the grand jury of Baltimore County seeks a law to halt the traffic in that state.
Petitioners {349}: Collins, James; Gilpin, Edward; Pepper, Henry J.; Sellars, John; Taylor,
Samuel.
0450. New Castle County. In 1816, Thomas Handy was granted permission by the Delaware
legislature to transport the slave Violet, owned by Hugh Henry, from Maryland into Delaware.
Handy had hired his slave, Chloe, to Henry, a Maryland resident, in return for the use of Violet.
Before Handy moved to Delaware with Violet, Henry died, nullifying the arrangement. Handy now
seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of
slaves and asks permission to bring Chloe and her children into Delaware instead of Violet.
0456. Henry Casson of Talbot County in Maryland married Elizabeth Baynard of Kent County,
Delaware. Elizabeth Baynard inherited from her father two slaves, a mother and daughter.
Casson seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the slaves from Delaware into Maryland.
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0459. Elizabeth Johns seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring her slave, George, from Maryland into
Delaware.
0462. The Sussex County sheriff seeks reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses of $124 for the
apprehension of Eli Harris and Alexander Clarkson, two free men of color who escaped from jail.
The two were captured, indicted, tried, convicted, and, pursuant to act of the General Assembly,
sold for a term of years. Eli Harris sold for $301; Alexander Clarkson, for $315.50.
0466. Samuel Kinney of Sussex County married Barshaba Bevans of Worcester County,
Maryland, who had inherited seven slaves. By marriage Kinney became the rightful owner of the
slaves. He seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the said slaves from Maryland into Delaware.
0469. Caleb Davis of Caroline County, Maryland, states that he bought the slave Rachel from
Esther Cannon of Sussex County, Delaware. Davis seeks exemption from a Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove
Rachel from Delaware into Maryland.
0473. Citizens of Delaware express concern about the increasing number of kidnappings of free
people of color who are then sold into slavery. They ask that the legislature enact laws “whose
penalty shall exceed the hope of advantage” from this “iniquitous traffic.” In Maryland, the
petitioners note, the grand jury of Baltimore County seeks a law to halt the traffic in that state.
Petitioners {30}: Byrnes, Daniel; Leonard, Frederick; Robinson, Joseph; Shipley, Samuel; Torbert,
John. Petitioners {6}: Canby, James; Canby, Samuel; Poole, William; Shipley, Joseph; Tatem,
Charles. Petitioners {63}: Armstrong, Archibald; Armstrong, Nathaniel; Sharpless, Caleb; Wilson,
James; Wilson, Stephen. Petitioners {34}: Crosley, Robert; Hollingsworth, Joel; Hollingsworth,
Joseph; Wilson, Ezekiel; Woodward, Samuel. Petitioners {44}: Lister, James; Momson, George;
Tyson, Isaac; Whiteley, Alexander; Whiteley, H. Z. Petitioners {61}: Eybert, Abraham; Heisler,
Daniel; McCombes, George; Miller, Thomas; Sharpley, John. Petitioners {41}: Cranston, Simon;
Ferris, John; Ferris, William; Garretson, Gideon; Thompson, Eli. Petitioners {25}: Delany, P. B.;
Greenwood, James; Lockwood, Richard; McClary, Richard; Scott, Miche. Petitioners {74}:
Hewes, Edward; Lane, A. M.; Stuart, Joseph; Witherspoon, Thomas; Worrell, Edward. Petitioners
{55}: Bowers, William; Newcomb, James; Smyth, John; Spare, James; Thomas, Samuel.
0504. Roger Wright moved from Maryland into Delaware. He seeks exemption from a Delaware
law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring
his four slaves from Maryland into Delaware.
0510. John Smith of Delaware married Ann Hudson of Worcester County, Maryland. Before their
marriage, the wife was bequeathed nine slaves, who became the property of the husband. At the
time of their marriage the slaves were on a farm in Maryland. Smith seeks exemption from a
Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission
to bring the slaves from Maryland into Delaware. Smith states that the slaves are needed to
cultivate his land and that he fears that if he brings the slaves into Delaware without a legislative
act they might be considered entitled to their freedom.
0514. James Denny of Kent County, Delaware, states that he received two slaves as a present
from his father-in-law, John Marshall of Worcester County, Maryland. Denny seeks exemption
from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to bring the said slaves from Delaware into Maryland.
0518. Noting the many acts “of pilfering & Stealing committed by the people of Colour both bound
and free,” residents of Dagsborough and Baltimore Hundreds, Sussex County, request the
establishment of a patrol. The petitioners claim that black people steal poultry, sheep, corn, and
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smoked meat. Petitioners {40}: Benson, Major; Lockwood, Benjamin; Thomas, Uriah; Tingle,
Nathaniel; West, Kendle. Petitioners {41}: Bennett, James; Hickman, Caleb; Hickman, John;
Long, Jeremiah; Wood, William. Petitioners {105}: Aydelott, Zadock; Holland, Elihu; Holland,
William; Townsend, Zadock; Waples, John.
0534. New Castle County. Mary Reading purchased three slaves at a sale in Cecil County,
Maryland. Reading seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the slaves from Maryland into Delaware.
1819.
0537. A group of Delaware citizens seek the return of Benjamin Benson, a free man of color who
was taken to Guilford County, North Carolina, and sold. “By the laudable assistance of a friend to
Humanity in that State we have his case in a fair way to recover his freedom,” they state. “But it
appears to be absolutely necessary to effect an object so desirable that his person should be
Identified in a court of Justice qualified to hear said case.” They ask the governor to appoint a
person from Delaware who is acquainted with Benson to go to North Carolina and identify him as
a free man. Petitioners {26}: Blackiston, Ebenezer; Carse, James M.; Dunning, John; Patterson,
Robert; Shannon, A. P.
0540. New Castle County. James Lackey seeks relief from fines assessed after he and two other
men were convicted of assault and battery with intent to kidnap. The charges were brought by
Preston Moore, a free man of color. Lackey argues that the fines are excessive, that Moore's
character is questionable, and that the governor had already remitted the sentence of standing in
the pillory. Before the altercation Moore had been Lackey's indentured servant.
0545. Richard Lawrence moved to Baltimore, Maryland, from Delaware, but left behind the slave
Toby, who was “bound some time previous for a term of years to learn the art or Trade of a
Forgeman.” When his term ended Toby married another slave without his master's consent.
Lawrence permitted Toby to remain with his wife in Delaware. Toby's wife, however, eventually
was sold out of the state. Lawrence now seeks exemption from a Delaware law prohibiting the
transportation of slaves over state lines and asks permission to bring Toby from Delaware into
Maryland.
0549. Jesse Wright of Dorchester County, Maryland, married the daughter of the late W. Dawson
of Sussex County, Delaware. The wife inherited a slave named Washington. The husband seeks
exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission to remove Washington from Delaware into Maryland.
0554. Sussex County. In 1815, John Gibbons of Delaware married the daughter of Major Francis
Turpin of Dorchester County, Maryland. Turpin gave his daughter a female house servant and the
slave's child. Gibbons seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the said slaves from Maryland into
Delaware. He had never either directly or indirectly been involved in the domestic slave trade, “a
traffic to your Petitioner odious and abominable."
0557. Maryland resident Robert Wright owns considerable land in Delaware. He seeks exemption
from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to bring slaves from Maryland into Delaware to clear and cultivate his land.
Possessing a patent from the state of Delaware, he feared that if his land were not cleared and
cultivated he might lose his holdings to foreigners. He was against that in principle, he states. In
addition, the Constitution of the United States, Article Four, said that “The Citizens of each State
Shall be entitled to all privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the Several States.” He should
therefore be able to use his Maryland slaves in Delaware.
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1820.
0562. Kent County. A group of Delaware residents view the proposed expansion of slavery into
Missouri and the territory of Arkansas “with anxious foreboding.” The petitioners thus urge the
legislature to instruct the state's senators and representatives “to give their voice and influence to
restrict slavery in the territory of Arkansas, and proposed new State of Missouri.” The petitioners
cite the federal law of 1787 prohibiting slavery from “all territory then appertaining to the United
States” and the Delaware declaration of rights of 1776. Furthermore, they argue, the Constitution
authorizes the Congress to administer the territories and to review applications for statehood and
approve or reject them as it may deem “most conducive to the interests of the Union.” Finally, the
Constitution outlawed the importation of slaves after 1808. Thus, they argue, the Constitution
permits Congress, which has proved itself willing, to regulate slavery in the territories. Petitioners
{15}: Godwin, H. M.; Killingsworth, W.; Kimmy, Joseph; Lewis, Robert; Wilkeson, William.
0566. New Castle County. Brought as a slave from the island of “St. Domingo” in 1793, Andrew
Noel settled with his master in Wilmington, Delaware. In 1799 his master freed him. In 1816, he
purchased a house and lot for his family. Noel seeks a law naturalizing him as a citizen of the
United States so that he may bequeath his property to his wife and children.
0570. New Castle County. Through marriage Elijah Moore acquired property in Maryland,
including “a Negro Boy” by the name of David. Moore seeks exemption from a Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring David
into Delaware from Maryland.
0573. Following the death of his father-in-law, Arthur Willis of Delaware inherited land in
Dorchester County, Maryland. He seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove his three slaves—"A Negro
Man Named Dorsey, A Negro Woman Named Levisa & a Negro Boy Named Bayard"—from
Delaware and retain them on his lands in Maryland.
0576. Sussex County. Nathaniel Ross owns land in both Maryland and Delaware. His Maryland
land is two miles from the state line with Delaware along the Nauticoke River. The timber in this
area is ready to be harvested and carried to the ports of Baltimore, Washington, and Alexandria,
he states. He seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to work his slaves in Maryland and return them to
Delaware.
0579. Noah Ross of Caroline County, Maryland, inherited four slaves “in right of his wife,” the
daughter of Hester Cannon, who died in Sussex County, Delaware. Ross seeks exemption from a
Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission
to remove the slaves from Delaware into Maryland.
0584. Delaware resident Robert Boyce owns lands in Sussex County, Delaware, and mills and
lands in Caroline County, Maryland. He seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission for his slaves to work in
both states.
0588. Kent County. A group of Delaware residents view the proposed expansion of slavery into
Missouri and the territory of Arkansas “with anxious foreboding.” The petitioners thus urge the
legislature to instruct the state's senators and representatives “to give their voice and influence to
restrict slavery in the territory of Arkansas, and proposed new State of Missouri.” The petitioners
cite the federal law of 1787 prohibiting slavery from “all territory then appertaining to the United
States” and the Delaware declaration of rights of 1776. Furthermore, they argue, the Constitution
authorizes the Congress to administer the territories and to review applications for statehood and
approve or reject them as it may deem “most conducive to the interests of the Union.” Finally, the
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Constitution outlawed the importation of slaves after 1808. Thus, they argue, the Constitution
permits Congress, which has proved itself willing, to regulate slavery in the territories.
1821.
0597. James Brindley of New Castle County, Delaware, acquired several slaves from the estate
of Samuel C. Hall of Cecil County, Maryland, for the payment of debt. Brindley does not want to
sell the slaves to “those who have made it their trade and occupation to buy and sell persons of
colour.” It would “violate his feelings and principles.” The slaves include Jim, Hannah, and
Hannah’s children: Betty, Sam, Ann, and an infant. Brindley seeks exemption from a Delaware
law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring
the said slaves from Maryland into Delaware.
0602. Nathaniel Ross of Sussex County purchased timber land in Dorchester County, Maryland.
He has a number of slaves and wishes to work them on his Maryland land harvesting the timber.
He cannot do so because of the “existing Laws which would in such case entitle them to their
Freedom.” He seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission for slaves to work on the land in Maryland.
0605. Eleanor Waller of Sussex County bequeathed seven slaves to James, Richard, and
George Waller, residents of Somerset County, Maryland. The beneficiaries seek exemption from
a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and ask permission
to remove the said slaves from Delaware into Maryland.
0608. As payment for a debt, John Thompson of New Castle County, Delaware, acquired a slave
named Cyrus, a house servant. Thompson seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring Cyrus from
Maryland into Delaware.
0611. James Smith moved from Kent County, Delaware, to Kent County, Maryland. He seeks
exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission to bring three slaves, William, Abraham, and Susan, from Delaware to
Maryland.
0614. Kent County. Daniel Satterfield seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to move the slave James from
Maryland to Delaware.
0617. Sussex County. Four years previously, Joshua Freeny of Worcester County, Maryland,
gave his daughter the slave Eliza. Frederick Hasting, husband of Mary Freeny Hasting, seeks
exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission to bring his wife's slave from Maryland into Delaware.
0620. Isaac Davis states that he owns two slaves who will remain in bondage until they reach the
age of thirty. Davis seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the slaves from Kent County to his farm in
Cecil County, Maryland.
0623. Moses Meredith seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves so he can bring a slave woman into Delaware.
0626. Kent County. John Cooper seeks permission to bring the slave Aaron into Delaware from
Maryland. Aaron, the petitioner states, is the son of Phebe, who was Cooper's slave when Aaron
was born but has since been manumitted.
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1822.
0629. Caroline County, Maryland. John Reed of Kent County, Delaware, bequeathed to his sons,
George and William, a slave named Ruben who was to be freed at age twenty-eight. George and
William, residents of Maryland, seek exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and ask permission to bring Ruben from Delaware into
Maryland.
0632. Philip Reybold of New Castle County, Delaware, owns a slave woman and her child. The
woman's husband and father of the child—a slave named Dick—belongs to a resident of Cecil
County, Maryland. Reybold states that he wishes to purchase Dick to unite the family. He seeks
exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission to bring Dick from Maryland into Delaware.
0635. Sussex County. Joseph King of Kent County, Delaware, acquired several slaves in
Maryland through his marriage to Ann Maria Watson of Somerset County. One of the slaves, a
black woman named Leah, was his wife's house servant. He seeks exemption from a Delaware
law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring
Leah into Delaware.
0639. New Castle County. Joseph Chamberlain seeks exemption from a Delaware law to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring a six-year-old slave
named Amelia from Maryland into Delaware “as a house servant, & not for sale."
0642. The petitioner, Veasey, states that since 1798 he has owned a plantation and tracts of land
lying partly in New Castle County, Delaware, and partly in Cecil County, Maryland. Until recently
this land was rented out to people in Delaware. Veasey states that he now wishes to take
possession of the plantation “with a view of Stocking It & of setting thereon his Son.” He claims
that he does not want to hire slaves or free people of color to work the land and thus seeks
exemption from a Delaware law to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to transport his slaves into Delaware to work the land.
0646. Isaac Dale moved to Delaware from Maryland. He seeks exemption from a Delaware law to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to move a slave woman
and her three children into Delaware.
0650. Sussex County. James Miller seeks exemption from a Delaware law to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to transport a slave woman and her
child to Worcester County, Maryland. Miller intended to give the slaves—Sarah and her daughter
Rhoda—to Ellinor Ann Riley and Rachel Riley (also spelled Righley). A statement by George
Howard, a member of the legislature, states that Miller acquired the slaves through his marriage
to the sister of James Riley, father of Ellinor Ann and Rachel Riley. Howard noted that “the wife of
James Miller on her deathbed requested him to give those Negroes to her brothers and children,
& that Miller promised so to do—."
0653. Hessy Mitchell of Worcester County, Maryland, desires to move to Delaware to assist her
widowed daughter on her farm. Mitchell seeks exemption from a Delaware law to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring two slaves from Maryland into
Delaware.
0658. New Castle County. John Thompson acquired the slave Cyrus as payment for a debt. He
seeks exemption from a Delaware law to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and
asks permission to bring Cyrus from Maryland into Delaware for the purpose of maintaining him
as a house servant. Thompson states that he will free Cyrus when the slave reaches age thirty.
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0661. Kent County. Daniel Satterfield married Mary Turner of Talbot County, Maryland. Turner
owned a young slave named Jim. Satterfield seeks exemption from a Delaware law to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring Jim from Maryland into
Delaware. Satterfield states that he could have disposed of Jim in Maryland at a profit but did not
wish to do so.
0664. Citizens of Delaware seek the gradual abolition of slavery in the state. They cite moral,
political, social, and economic reasons. In the past thirty years, the petitioners state, the slave
population in the state had declined from one-seventh to less than one-thirtieth of the population.
Hence, “were we to descend even to the sordid calculation of loss and gain, the sacrifice required
by a gradual abolition, would be as nothing.” They ask the legislature to designate a day “after
which all coloured children born in our State shall be free.” Petitioners {6}: Benneson, Thomas;
Chamberlain, Joseph; Hindman, F.; Tyson, Isaac; Wattson, Benjamin. Petitioners {28}: Brinkle,
W. D.; Fleming, Joseph; King, Seth; Needham, E.; White, Charles. Petitioners {12}: Rodney,
John; Stanley, Samuel G.; West, B. A.; West, Jacob; West, John M. Petitioners {49}: Carnes,
John; Heald, Joseph; Hollingsworth, Jesse; Ween, Joseph; Wilson, Ezekiel. Petitioners {40}:
Adams, Thomas; Conwell, William, Sr.; Gray, Joseph; Little, Henry; Register, John. Petitioners
{40}: Ferris, Benjamin; Hilles, Eli; Hilles, Samuel; Lewis, Evan; Springer, B. H. Petitioners {11}:
Baldwin, William; Ball, James; Johnson, Joshua; Lindsey, Joseph; Robinson, John. Petitioners
{14}: Hand, Cansey; Layton, Lowder; Peter, T. C.; Ratcliff, Samuel; West, David. Petitioners {4}:
Canby, James; Ferris, John; Rodney, A.; Shalleross, John. Petitioners {26}: Dolly, Isaac; Jenkins,
H.; Kinney, Joseph; Lewis, David D.; Rowland, Joseph G. Petitioners {15}: Bacon, Henry; Bett,
Joseph; Hopkins, John; Littleton, Edmon; Wallis, J. Petitioners {12}: Baldwin, Thomas; Bradley,
Nesbitt; Kerns, Benjamin; Philips, Evan; Pusey, Jacob. Petitioners {32}: Adams, Peter; Jenkins,
George W.; Price, Samuel; Register, Elijah; Rusin, Philip.
0708. William West requests permission to bring a slave into Sussex County, Delaware, from
Worcester County, Maryland. West recently married Polly Gordy of Maryland. Her father, Nathan
Gordy, gave to them “a Negro girl by the name of Kesiah and your petitioner wishes to take the
said Negro home for his own use."
1823.
0711. The petitioners ask the legislature to pass an act incorporating the African Benevolent
Association. The association's goal, the petitioners state, is to provide “mutual relief and
improvement of each other” and to “purchase, receive, take and hold any lands, tenements, rents,
goods and chattels, which may be given, granted, devised or conveyed to them for the purpose
aforesaid and to sell, rent and dispose of the same in such manner as to them shall seem
beneficial.” Petitioners {25}: Burton, Joseph; Duncan, Peter; James, Benjamin; Jones, Daniel;
Thomas, William.
0715. Free man of color Martin Dehorty was convicted of a felony and sold by the sheriff of Kent
County for a term of three years. The money from the sale went to the state treasury. Before his
arrest and trial, Dehorty owed Thomas Simpson debts totaling $46. Simpson seeks repayment of
the debt.
0725. Ennols Breeding requests permission to bring the slave Hannah from Sussex County,
Delaware, into Caroline County, Maryland. Breeding married Elizabeth Stephens, daughter of the
late John Stephens of Sussex County. Elizabeth's mother, administrator of the estate, cannot pay
Elizabeth her share of the estate in cash and offers instead the services of the twenty-six-year-old
Hannah.
0728. S. H. Hodson moved from Maryland to Kent County, Delaware. Hodson inherited a number
of slaves, including “some children…the number, or names, not a[t] this time recollected.” He
seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of
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slaves and asks permission to remove twelve slaves and several of their children from Maryland
to Delaware.
0731. Thomas Bailey moved from Sussex County, Delaware, to Somerset County, Maryland. At
the time of the move and for two years before, Bailey’s slave, Alsey, served a white family as a
nurse. Bailey seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove Alsey from Delaware into Maryland.
0735. In December 1822, illiterate white bricklayer Richard Millington, “a citizen of Caroline
County,” Maryland, moved to Delaware searching for work. Shortly after his arrival he was “taken
at the Suit of Luke Bell a black man” for a debt of $1.75 and placed in the Kent County jail.
Unable to pay even this small amount, Millington seeks relief from his “helpless and wretched
condition."
0738. Ann Rothwell of New Castle County, Delaware, specified in her will that her male slaves
were to be freed when they reached age thirty and her female slaves when they reached age
twenty-eight. She bequeathed to her granddaughters one slave each: the slave Rachel to Martha
Eliza Pennington and the slave Susan to Phebe H. Pennington. Hyland Pennington of Maryland,
father of Martha and Susan, purchased the slave Jeremiah, who was also part of the estate of
Ann Rothwell. Pennington seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove the slaves from Delaware
into Maryland.
0742. Citizens seek an alternative to the law regarding masters and apprentices. All too often, the
petitioners contend, apprentices remained with their masters until they reached the age of
seventeen or eighteen years and then ran away. If the runaways returned or were caught the
masters were responsible for their illnesses and diseases. The citizens ask that the law be
amended to strengthen the position of masters. Petitioners {20}: Brown, James; Chandler,
William; Hayes, Joseph; Simpson, James; Watson, James.
1824.
0745. Sussex County. Citizens seek the repeal of an 1816 Delaware law regarding free people of
color, servants, and slaves. The law required free black people convicted of larceny to be sold,
but in practice only slight punishment was administered. Free people of color, the petitioners
claim, were sold for little or nothing, quickly released, and soon back thieving. Indeed, they stole
with impunity and “of late seem to glory in it,” the petitioners claim. Free people of color, the
petitioners argue, were more favored than whites. The legislature should find some remedy for
this problem. Petitioners {54}: Brown, Francis; Handy, John; Short, Phillip; Smith, D. R.; Stockley,
Jehu.
0749. New Castle County. A group of white men petition the legislature for an act of incorporation
in order to maintain a school for the children of people of color. Petitioners {26}: Alrichs, Jacob;
Bullock, John; Jones, John; Seal, William; Starr, Isaac H.
0753. A group of whites object to a law now under discussion by the legislature that would require
the transportation out of the state of free persons of color convicted more than once of larceny.
The proposed law would consign free people of color to “perpetual slavery,” attract those who
“traffic in men,” and, as in the past, cause great uneasiness within the “christian part of the
community.” They ask that the legislature “hear from their constituents, before they give their
consent to the reenactment of a law which the people but a short period since repealed.”
Petitioners {92}: Bates, Martin W.; Fisher, George; Ready, Phillip; Rowland, Joseph G.; Vaughan,
J. Franklin.
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0758. Sussex County. Curtis Jacob gave the slave Vicy to his daughter as a gift when she
married a man in Dorchester County, Maryland. Curtis’s daughter died, and he now asks
permission to bring Vicy back to Delaware. He states that he plans to emancipate Vicy and wants
her back “solely for the purpose of Retaining her in his Family.” He claims that he “has been in
the Habit of emancipating his slaves at certain ages” and that Vicy would be freed when she
reached age thirty-four.
0761. Free man of color Martin Dehorty was convicted of a felony and sold by the sheriff of Kent
County for a term of three years. The money from the sale went to the state treasury. Before his
arrest and trial, Dehorty owed Thomas Simpson debts totaling $46. Simpson seeks repayment of
the debt.
0768. The petitioners urge the legislature to review the laws protecting free people of color and
slaves and to initiate “such steps as may lead to a gradual Abolition of Slavery.” They argue that
the “recent calamities in the West-Indies,” the alarm that recently spread through the southern
states, and the “experience of all nations having proved the impolicy of thus degrading our fellow
men” are sufficient cause for ending slavery. Petitioners {29}: Blundell, James; Green, Charles;
Lowber, Daniel; Needham, E.; Pierce, Abraham.
0771. Ennols Breeding requests permission to bring the slave John from Sussex County,
Delaware, into Caroline County, Maryland. Breeding married Elizabeth Stephens, daughter of the
late John Stephens of Sussex County. Elizabeth's mother, administrator of the estate, cannot pay
Elizabeth her share of the estate in cash and offers instead the three-year-old slave John.
0774. Citizens seek the repeal of an 1816 Delaware law regarding free people of color, servants,
and slaves. The law required free black people convicted of larceny be sold, but in practice only
slight punishment was administered. Free people of color, the petitioners claim, were sold for little
or nothing, quickly released, and soon returned to thieving. Indeed, they stole with impunity and
“of late seem to glory in it,” the petitioners claim. Free people of color, the petitioners argue, were
more favored than whites. The legislature should find some remedy for this problem. Sussex
County Petitioners {26}: Burton, Robert; Joseph, William; Prettyman, Benjamin; Robinson,
Burton; Sharp, John. Kent County Petitioners {81}: Green, Henry; Harris, George; Layton,
William; Prettyman, Lewis; Scotten, James. Sussex County Petitioners {107}: Cullen, Jonathan;
Waples, Robert; Waples, Robinson C.; Waples, Joseph, Jr.; Wilson, L. K. Sussex County
Petitioners {50}: Burton, Coard; Hill, Levi; Mustard, John; Parker, Peter, Sr.; Stephenson, William.
0789. John Price bought three slaves at his mother-in-law's estate sale. He seeks exemption
from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to bring the slaves from Maryland into Delaware. The slaves belonged to his wife's
family for many years, he claims. If he had “consulted his own interest, he would never have
purchased negroes of their age and in the state of Maryland too where it is well Know[n] that price
of slav[e]s is much greater than it is in Delaware.” His purpose was to save the slaves from sale
to the “southern Market."
0792. Benjamin Read inherited a slave from his brother-in-law, who lived in Cecil County,
Maryland. Read seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the slave Charles from Maryland into
Delaware.
0795. Petitioner Joseph Simms states that he resides near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He further
states that he recently bought a farm in Cecil County, Maryland, and that he owns several slaves
in Delaware. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove his slaves from Delaware to Maryland to
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work on his farm. The older slaves he had received in the year 1812 “in right of his wife,” the
younger were born after that date.
0798. Ezekiel Richardson of Sussex County, Delaware, inherited the slave Martha from his wife's
grandfather, late of Somerset County, Maryland. Richardson seeks exemption from the Delaware
law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring
Martha from Maryland to Delaware. Martha wished to move, he states, so that she could “live in
the family of your petitioner."
0801. Ann Jones of New Castle County, Delaware, requests permission to bring four slaves from
Maryland to Delaware. Jones states that she acquired the slaves from the estate of Thomas
Jones of Cecil County, Maryland.
0804. John Cary of Sussex County, Delaware, acquired several slaves through his marriage to a
woman from Worcester County, Maryland. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed
to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the slaves from
Maryland into Delaware.
0807. New Castle County. Sophia Geddes states that she owns a slave named Lydia, who lives
in Maryland. She seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring Lydia from Maryland into Delaware.
Geddes states that she wants to bring Lydia into the state “for her future welfare."
0810. Kent County. John Price of Kent County, Delaware, purchased three slaves in Maryland.
They included Samuel, age about thirty-eight, Charlotte, about twenty-two, and Fanny, about
forty-five. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the three slaves from Maryland into Delaware.
0813. The petitioners urge the legislature to review the laws protecting free people of color and
slaves and to initiate “such steps as may lead to a gradual Abolition of Slavery.” They argue that
the “recent calamities in the West-Indies,” the alarm that recently spread through the southern
states, and the “experience of all nations having proved the impolicy of thus degrading our fellow
men” are sufficient cause for ending slavery. Petitioners {51}: Houston, John; Hudson, John; Kirk,
John; Newcomb, John; Shockley, Elias.
0816. Nancy Fooks, wife of Jonathan Fooks and resident of Worcester County, Maryland,
inherited a slave from her mother, who had lived in Sussex County, Delaware. Fooks seeks
exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission to bring the slave Simon from Delaware to Maryland. Fooks states that
Simon's wife resides in Maryland, one mile from Fooks's residence, and that Simon is very
anxious to move. Petitioners {5}: Bacon, Henry; Fooks, Jonathan; Hearn, George; Hearn, Joseph;
Hearn, Thomas.
0819. The petitioners urge the legislature to review the laws protecting free people of color and
slaves and to initiate “such steps as may lead to a gradual Abolition of Slavery.” They argue that
the “recent calamities in the West-Indies,” the alarm that recently spread through the southern
states, and the “experience of all nations having proved the impolicy of thus degrading our fellow
men” are sufficient cause for ending slavery. Petitioners {11}: Anderson, Lewis; Copes, Joseph;
Moore, Isaac; Williamson, N.; Wilson, James P. Petitioners {8}: Maxwell, Robert; Rothwell,
Joseph; Thompson, Richard B.; Vandyke, Jacob; Williams, William.
0825. Samuel Hyatt Jr., a pump maker and pump repairman living in New Castle County,
Delaware, is “the owner of a certain manumitted Man Slave, named Jeremiah,” who assists him
in his business. Hyatt states that he often travels out of state. He requests permission to take
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“said Jeremiah out of the State whenever your petitioner has occasion to do so in pursuing” his
business.
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0001. Descriptive material.
1825.
[January 1825 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0131.]
[3 January 1825 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0128.]
0007. New Castle County. Forty-two citizens of Wilmington support the passage of an act to
incorporate the African Benevolent Association. Petitioners {42}: Bringhurst, Joseph; Ferris,
Benjamin; Ferris, Liba; Reynolds, Charles; Reynolds, John.
0010. Sixteen citizens seek a law prohibiting persons of color from assembling at the polls during
general elections. The petitioners claim that persons of color, “by fighting, quarreling, and other
notorious and unlawful behavior,” had disrupted elections on a number of occasions. Their
actions encouraged “vice and immorality.” Petitioners {16}: Gray, William; Handy, John; Harris,
S.; Short, Phillip; Waples, William D.
0013. Sussex County. Citizens seek a law prohibiting persons of color from assembling at the
polls during general elections. The petitioners claim that persons of color through “fighting,
quarreling, and other riotous and unlawful” behavior had disrupted elections on a number of
occasions. Their actions encouraged “vice and immorality.” Petitioners {55}: Cannon, Daniel;
Cary, John; Jones, Zachariah; Robinson, Ralph; Swiggett, Aron.
0017. Thomas Ridon of Sussex County states that he recently became the owner of two slaves,
John and Peter, who are now in the state of Maryland. He seeks exemption from the Delaware
law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring
his slaves from Maryland into Delaware.
0020. Samuel Johnson of New Castle County, Delaware, states that he purchased the slave
William from his son-in-law, a resident of Maryland. Johnson states that William is to be freed in
five years and that he prefers to move William to Delaware rather than sell him to someone who
might not honor his manumission. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring William from
Maryland into Delaware.
0023. Thomas Moore of Sussex County, Delaware, states that he married Eleanor Howard of
Worcester County, Maryland. Eleanor's father, David Howard, gave his daughter the slave Anne.
Moore seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring Anne from Maryland into Delaware.
0026. Isaac Dale recently moved from Maryland into Delaware. The husband of his slave did not
want to be separated from his wife—they would be fifty miles apart—and Dale arranged to buy
the husband. Dale seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves and asks permission to import the husband, George, from Maryland into
Delaware.
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0029. In 1823 the Court of Quarter Session in Kent County sentenced free man of color Thomas
Sykes to three years of servitude. He was sold to Charles Kimmey of Dover, who then sold him to
William Dulaney of Kent County. In 1824 Thomas Sykes was convicted of another felony and
sentenced to be sold at auction for seven years of servitude. Dulaney seeks compensation for
being “deprived of his property in said negro” for the two years remaining on service owed him.
1826.
0034. A group of Delaware citizens urge the legislature to enact a law providing for the gradual
abolition of slavery in Delaware. The petitioners suggest that slaves born after 4 July 1826 be
freed when they reach age twenty-one or “such other period as shall be deemed more expedient
and proper.” As the slave population was small (4,509 in 1820), the petitioners note, this plan
would not cause injury or loss to slaveholders. “A wrong has been inflicted upon Africa, for which
it is our duty as Christians and Patriots to make every reparation in our power.” Petitioners {23}:
Crosley, Robert; Hillingsworth, J.; Lynam, Joseph; Lynam, Thomas; Vandever, Peter.
0038. New Castle County. The Wilmington Society of Friends urges the legislature to immediately
abolish slavery. The petitioners argue that slavery is evil, unjust, and oppressive. “For we believe
it to be a truth, that in oppression, cruel suffering, and degradation, Negro Slavery remains
without a parallel in the known world."
0044. A group of Delaware citizens urge the legislature to enact a law providing for the gradual
abolition of slavery in Delaware. The petitioners suggest that slaves born after 4 July 1826 be
freed when they reach age twenty-one or “such other period as shall be deemed more expedient
and proper.” As the slave population was small (4,509 in 1820), the petitioners note, this plan
would not cause injury or loss to slaveholders. “A wrong has been inflicted upon Africa, for which
it is our duty as Christians and Patriots to make every reparation in our power.” Petitioners {49}:
Bush, Samuel; Ferris, John, Jr.; Ganett, Thomas, Jr.; Jones, Philip; Wigglesworth, Joseph.
0048. A group of Delaware citizens urge the legislature to enact a law providing for the gradual
abolition of slavery in Delaware. The petitioners suggest that slaves born after 4 July 1826 be
freed when they reach age twenty-one or “such other period as shall be deemed more expedient
and proper.” As the slave population was small (4,509 in 1820), the petitioners note, this plan
would not cause injury or loss to slaveholders. “A wrong has been inflicted upon Africa, for which
it is our duty as Christians and Patriots to make every reparation in our power.” Petitioners {31}:
Bassett, Josiah; Bassett, Nathan; Pepper, Henry J.; Smith, John; Webster, David.
0052. A group of Delaware citizens urge the legislature to enact a law providing for the gradual
abolition of slavery in Delaware. The petitioners suggest that slaves born after 4 July 1826 be
freed when they reach age twenty-one or “such other period as shall be deemed more expedient
and proper.” As the slave population was small (4,509 in 1820), the petitioners note, this plan
would not cause injury or loss to slaveholders. “A wrong has been inflicted upon Africa, for which
it is our duty as Christians and Patriots to make every reparation in our power.” Petitioners {19}:
Bane, William; Bradford, M.; Reece, Thomas; Saunders, Charles; Thomas, Isaac. Petitioners
{29}: Bancroft, John; Caulley, William; Poole, William; Snipley, Samuel; Tatnall, Edward.
Petitioners {53}: Lamborn, Cyrus; Latimer, Henry; Megear, Michael; Scott, James; Shalleross,
John. Petitioners {30}: Chandler, William; Gordon, John; Staples, John; Stroud, Samuel;
Torbert, John.
0068. Isaac Davis owns three slaves who are to be manumitted in the future and holds the
indenture on a free black apprentice. They work on his farm in Cecil County, Maryland. Davis also
owns a farm in Kent County, Delaware, and is “extensively engaged in agricultural pursuits” in
both states. He has three black indentured servants—Charles Carpenter, Mitchel Davis, and John
Davis—working his land in Kent County. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission for his slaves to plant and
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harvest his crops in both states. He is “no slaveholder except as he occasionally buys and
manumits them by which their eventual freedom is secured, And that the sole object of this
petition is to enable him to avail himself of the reasonable labor of said slaves (so called) and
apprentices in his own employment."
0072. Kent County. Curtis Beswick acquired the female slave Gastura through his marriage to
Sarah S. Purnell, a resident of Maryland. He states that he is very much attached to the slave. He
seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of
slaves and asks permission bring Gastura from Maryland into Delaware.
0075. New Castle County. Peregrine Hendrickson states that he is “possessed” of slaves and
“manumitted Negroes” in the state of Maryland. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the
slaves and manumitted people of color from Maryland into Delaware.
0078. Kent County. Joel Clements owns the slave Jefferson, who resides in Maryland. He seeks
exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission to bring Jefferson into Delaware. Clements promises to free Jefferson on 1
January 1833, “when your petitioner agrees that the said slave shall be free and entitled to all the
privileges and immunities of free negroes and mulattoes of the State of Delaware, the said negro
Jefferson being at present a slave for life."
0081. Richard Lockwood of Cecil County, Maryland, purchased two slaves from estate sales in
Delaware. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the slaves from Delaware into Maryland. The
thirteen-year-old slave was to be manumitted in the future.
0084. Robert Rauleigh owns plantations in Dorchester County, Maryland, and Sussex County,
Delaware. He states that his slave labor force is divided between the two counties. He seeks
exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission for his slaves to work the land in both states.
0087. John Gibbons of Sussex County, Delaware, received the slave Aaron as a present from his
father-in-law, a resident of Maryland. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring Aaron from
Maryland into Delaware. Aaron, the petitioner states, will be used “solely for the purpose of a
servant."
0090. O. Horsey resides two-thirds of the year in Maryland and one-third in Delaware. He states
that among his domestic servants are slaves and the “children of manumitted slaves born before
the term of service expired and the females and mails respectively under the ages of twenty one
& twenty five.” He requests permission to move his slaves back and forth between the two states.
0093. Jane Taylor of Queen Anne's County, Maryland, owns three slaves who reside in
Delaware. She seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove her slaves from Delaware.
0096. Sussex County. As a minor, Isaac Giles moved from Maryland to Delaware in 1817 and
learned the trade of blacksmithing as an apprentice. He states that he owns the slave Arthur, now
residing with Giles's guardian in Maryland. The petitioner notes that he tried to bring his slave into
Delaware but was denied legislative permission because he was a minor. Now an adult, he again
seeks exemption from a Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of
slaves and asks permission to bring Arthur into Delaware.
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0099. The slave Nathan absconded from his master, Mary Ann Harper of Queen Anne’s County,
Maryland, and made his way to the farm of Thomas Smith in New Castle County, Delaware.
Nathan feared if he was returned he would be sold to Georgia. He pleaded with Smith to
purchase him so he could remain in Delaware. Smith agreed; he seeks exemption from the
Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission
to purchase Nathan and maintain him as a slave.
1827.
0102. New Castle County. The Wilmington Union Colonization Society expresses concern about
the expanding free black population. The petitioner argues that free people of color do not and
cannot enjoy the most important civil privileges (voting and office holding), cannot associate with
whites, and will not be accepted on a basis of equality. The petitioner suggests that free people of
color emigrate to the west coast of Africa, where the American Colonization Society has obtained
land, and asks the legislature to study the matter.
0111. Citizens of Delaware sign a statement of support for the memorial presented by the
Wilmington Colonization Society. Petitioners {105}: Griffin, George; Hendrickson, Isaac; Porter,
Alexander; Powell, John; Watson, James.
0115. New Castle County. Moses Bradford owns a “manumitted negro girl, named Ann,” who
resides in Cecil County, Maryland. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring Ann into
Delaware. Ann is about nine years old.
0118. New Castle County. Ann Bail of Wilmington, Delaware, states that she is the owner of a
four-year-old term slave named Rachel who lives in Cecil County, Maryland. Bail seeks
exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission to remove Rachel from Maryland into Delaware. The slave was to be freed
when she reached age twenty-eight.
0124. Kent County. Maryland and Delaware slaveholder Richard Holding, “extensively engaged
in Agricultural pursuits,” seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission for his slaves to pass between the two
states. He needs them to do “the planting sowing and harvesting” on his farms.
0128. By “right of his wife,” Major Lewis of Sussex County, Delaware, inherited six slaves from
the estate of Planner Elliott of Dorchester County, Maryland. He had petitioned the legislature and
been granted permission to bring the slaves into the state. He had recently acquired a slave
named Charity, he states, in the settlement of another estate and seeks exemption from the
Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves so that he may bring
Charity into Delaware. [Publisher’s Note: date of petition is January 3, 1825; petition out of
chronological sequence.]
0131. New Castle County. Members of the African Benevolent Association seek an act of
incorporation for their organization. Formed in 1820 “to promote good order” and to “cultivate
virtuous principles” among their “brethren the people of Colour,” they provide “relief in sickness,
want and distress.” Petitioners {30}: Burton, Joseph; Morgan, Jacob; Morris, John; Robeson,
Nathaniel; Shadd, Abraham. [Publisher’s Note: date of petition is January 1825; petition out of
chronological sequence.]
0141. New Castle County. Joseph Hossinger acquired the slave Jacob through the death of his
brother-in-law, late of Kent County, Maryland. Hossinger seeks exemption from the Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove
Jacob from Maryland into Delaware.
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0144. New Castle County. As guardian of her son, Sarah Banning of Wilmington, Delaware, has
control of the slave Mabel Skinner, who lives in Maryland. Banning seeks exemption from the
Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission
to bring Skinner into Delaware from Maryland.
0147. Sarah Hudson of Sussex County, Delaware, owns the slave Mary, who resides in
Maryland. She seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring Mary into Delaware from Maryland.
0150. Kent County. Curtis Beswick states that he owns the slave Caleb, who lives in Maryland.
Beswick seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring Caleb from Maryland into Delaware.
0153. John Robertson of Kent County, Delaware, states that he acquired a nine-year-old slave
girl as a present from his father-in-law, a resident of Maryland. Robertson seeks exemption from
the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to bring the slave into Delaware.
0156. Kent County. When she was quite young, Maryland resident Mary McDonough was
“presented with a Negro girl called Jane & at that time she [McDonough] resided in the State of
Delaware.” Now McDonough seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove her slave from Delaware
into Maryland.
0159. Levi Cathell states that he and his wife, Priscillia, are residents of Worcester County,
Maryland. They inherited twelve slaves through the death of Priscillia's father, who lived in
Sussex County, Delaware. Leah, the elder, and Peter are brother and sister; the other ten “are all
the Children of Leah.” The petitioner seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove the twelve slaves from
Delaware into Maryland. The slaves would be employed in agriculture.
0162. New Castle County. Samuel Hyatt states that he is a pump maker who does business in
Delaware and Maryland. Traveling to Maryland without his slave Moses subjects Hyatt “to
considerable inconvenience & loss.” He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to take his slave with him
across the state line on business.
1829.
0165. Arguing against the institution that denied blacks “certain unalienable rights, among which
are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” a group of Delaware whites urge the legislature “to
enact a law prescribing that all children who may be born of slaves within this State, at any time
hereafter, shall be free, at such ages as the Legislature may judge expedient.” Petitioners {33}:
Delaplain, Neh.; Dwayne, Thomas; Hollingsworth, A.; Hollingsworth, Jesse; Wilson, Thomas.
0168. Convinced of the “impolicy as well as injustice of Negro slavery,” eighty-one citizens
propose that “all children born of slaves, shall be free at age 21, 28, or whatever age you, in your
wisdom, may deem best.” Petitioners {81}: Gray, Joshua; Henry, John; Smithers, Elias; Williams,
S.; Wise, Samuel. Petitioners {18}: Aldred, William A.; Askew, Parker; Price, John H.; Price,
Joseph T.; Price, Henry, Jr.
0175. Kent County. Elias Naudain seeks permission to sell his term slave, Joshua Rodney, out of
the state of Delaware. Though it could not be proved in court, Naudain was convinced that
Rodney burned down his blacksmith shop, ran away, came back and burned down his stable (six
horses perished), and had previously set fire to and destroyed a neighbor's dwelling house.
Rodney had run away from his previous master.
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0178. Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania. A reward of $200 was posted by the governor of
Delaware for the apprehension of Samuel Ogg, a man of color accused of robbery and attempted
murder who had escaped from the Dover jail. Ogg was apprehended by John Engles and William
Warmock in Philadelphia; the men seek payment of their reward.
0186. Arguing against the institution that denies blacks “certain unalienable rights, among which
are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” a group of Delaware white people urge the
legislature “to enact a law prescribing that all children who may be born of slaves within this
State, at any time hereafter, shall be free, at such ages as the Legislature may judge expedient.”
Petitioners {133}: Heald, Henry; Peirce, Isaac; Philips, John C.; Porter, Alexander; Smyth, David.
Petitioners {37}: Ferris, John, Jr.; Garrett, Thomas, Jr.; Jackson, Isaac; Larnborn, Cyrus; Leonard,
Frederick.
0194. William Holland seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove three slaves from Delaware
into Maryland.
0197. Louis M. Lane states that in 1812 he came into possession “in right of his wife of a number
of negro slaves, many of whom he then and has since manumitted as they attained a suitable
age and were in a situation to be benefited by their freedom.” Lane still owned some slaves,
whom he planned to free, but in the meantime he owned a farm along the Bohemia River in Cecil
County, Maryland, and wished to work the slaves on the farm. Lane seeks exemption from the
Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission
for his slaves to travel to Maryland to work on his farm.
0201. Joseph Brown of Kent County, Delaware, states that he owns a number of slaves in
Caroline County, Maryland. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the slaves from Maryland into
Delaware.
0205. Joseph Dutton of Sussex County, Delaware, acquired a slave from General William Potter
of Caroline County, Maryland. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the slave Rachel from
Maryland into Delaware. Dutton promises to hold Rachel as a slave for a term of ten years after
the passage of an act permitting him to bring her into the state.
0208. Having received the slave Levi from the estate of Theodore Thomas of Cecil County,
Maryland, the petitioner requests an exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the
importation and exportation of slaves and asks for permission to bring Levi into Delaware.
0211. Kent County. Owner of a Maryland slave named Charlotte, the petitioner seeks exemption
from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and
requests that an act be passed authorizing him to bring Charlotte into Delaware.
0214. Manlove Jester of New Castle County, Delaware, purchased the slave Mary from Caleb
Harper of Cecil County, Maryland, for the term of six years. Jester promised to free Mary at the
end of that time. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation
and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring Mary from Maryland into Delaware.
0218. Ayres Stockly of Kent County, Delaware, inherited two slaves from his father, who lived in
Accomack County, Virginia. Stockly seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent
the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the slaves from Virginia
into Delaware.
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0221. William Cooch purchased a slave named Sophia for a term or fourteen years or until she
reached the age of thirty from the estate of Theodore Thomas of Cecil County, Maryland. Cooch
seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of
slaves and asks permission to bring Sophia into Delaware from Maryland.
0224. Robert Armstrong of Baltimore, Maryland, acquired two slaves through his marriage to
Sarah Luisa Bell of Sussex County, Delaware. Armstrong seeks exemption from the Delaware
law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove
the slaves from Delaware into Maryland.
0227. Jeremiah Morris of Sussex County, Delaware, requests permission to bring the slave Isaac
from Maryland into Delaware. Morris states that Isaac currently belongs to his sister-in-law,
Betsey Freeny of Worcester County, Maryland. Freeny inherited the slave from her father. Freeny
wants to sell Isaac to Morris and move to Delaware to be with her sister’s family. According to
Morris, Isaac was “also very desirous to come and live with and in the family of your Petitioner."
0231. George Wootton of Sussex County, Delaware, states that when he married Elizabeth King
of Worcester County, Maryland, her grandfather, Jesse Powell, gave her three slaves. The slaves
were Gatty and her children, Maria and Mary. Wootton seeks exemption from the Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the
slaves from Maryland into Delaware.
0236. Dorchester County, Maryland. Delaware slaveholder Thomas Handy states that he recently
moved to New Market, Maryland. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to take his two slaves—
Clem and George—from Delaware into Maryland.
0239. New Castle County. Stevens Woolford requests permission to bring four slaves from
Virginia and Maryland into Delaware. Woolford states that in 1816 he married a Virginia woman
named Casey Waples, who owned four slaves: Milley and her two children, Abel and Peter, and
an adult slave named Charles. In 1818 Woolford and his wife moved to Maryland, taking Charles
with them. In 1819 they returned to Virginia but left Charles in Maryland. Two years later the
couple moved to Delaware. Woolford now wishes to move Charles from Maryland and Milley and
her children from Virginia to Delaware.
0242. Benjamin Wattson states that he purchased Rachel and her child, William, in Cecil County,
Maryland. Wattson wants to keep them as “Domestics in his own Family.” He seeks exemption
from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to bring Rachel and William into Delaware. Wattson promises to free Rachel when
she reaches age twenty-eight.
0245. Delaware resident William Duhamel owns a Maryland slave named George. The petitioner
seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of
slaves and asks permission to bring George into Delaware.
0248. Convinced of the “impolicy as well as injustice of Negro slavery,” one hundred and thirty
qualified voters in Delaware propose that “all children born of slaves, shall be free at age 21, 28,
or whatever age you, in your wisdom, may deem best.” Petitioners {130}: Clendenin, Samuel;
Henry, Francis; McCullough, John; Swayne, Joel; Weatherall, William.
1830.
0252. New Castle County. Organizing themselves as the “Sons of Benevolence in the Town of
Newcastle,” a small group of Delaware free people of color seek an act of incorporation. They
state that they hope to suppress vice and immorality among free people of color and to create a
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fund for burials and to provide for the sick and indigent. Petitioners {7}: Darby, Caleb; Finney,
James; Finney, Levi; Jackson, Peter; Jackson, Robert.
0256. John Dashull of Somerset County, Maryland, was given the slave John by his aunt, Mary
Jones, of Sussex County, Delaware. The slave had been bound as an apprentice blacksmith until
he reached age twenty-one. Now that John’s term has expired Dashull states that he wishes to
“employ him in a Blacksmith Shop” in Maryland. He asks permission to remove John from
Delaware into Maryland.
0260. New Castle County. James Thompson seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed
to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring the elderly
slave Hannah from Virginia into Delaware.
1831.
0265. Sussex County. Free man of color William Toast, alias William Collins, was convicted in the
Court of Quarter Sessions of Sussex County in 1828 for stealing $5.50 and sentenced to a term
of seven years in slavery. Purchased by Benjamin Potter Jr., Toast absconded to Philadelphia.
Toast later returned, was again convicted of theft, and was sentenced to fourteen years in
slavery. He was sold to another man for $181. Potter seeks compensation for court costs and
restitution.
0272. The “American Convention for promoting the Abolition of Slavery, and improving the
condition of the African race,” which assembled in Washington, D.C., asks the Delaware
legislature to instruct its congressional delegation to press for the gradual abolition of slavery in
the District of Columbia. Petitioners {4}: Anderson, Robert; Cope, Charles; Parker, Joseph;
Rawle, W.
0274. John Watson Evans states that he owns two slaves now residing in Maryland. He seeks
exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves
and asks permission to bring the slaves—Evan and Hiram—from Maryland into Delaware.
0276. The “American Convention for promoting the Abolition of Slavery, and improving the
condition of the African race,” which assembled in Washington, D.C., asks the Delaware
legislature to instruct its congressional delegation to press for the gradual abolition of slavery in
the District of Columbia. Petitioners {4}: Anderson, Robert; Cope, Charles; Parker, Joseph;
Rawle, W.
1832.
0280. New Castle County. The memorialists, fearing “general insurrection” fueled by black
preachers, ask the legislature to prohibit people of color from owning firearms or other military
weapons, “to prohibit all nocturnal assemblies,” and to prohibit ingress of free people of color into
the state “upon plea of preaching.” Petitioners {25}: Crawford, Abner; Jones, Charles; Jones,
Zachariah; Spare, James; Tabman, Collins. Petitioners {9}: Caulk, Benjamin; Crawford, Alex;
Hendrickson, Perey; McWhorter, John; Wilson, Edward. Petitioners {23}: Biddle, Eli; Carpenter,
W.; Cleaver, Joseph; Craven, D.; VanDegrift, C. J. Petitioners {10}: McWhorter, David; Price,
Thomas; Simmons, Lawrence; Taylor, James; Towns, James R. Petitioners {70}: Carrow, James;
Foster, Charles; Lane, Thomas; Reynolds, Thomas; Templeman, Henry. Petitioners {7}: Clark,
Levi; Exton, John; Polk, Robert; Reybold, Philip; Tindall, Samuel L. Petitioners {12}: Ash, John;
Clark, Thomas; Hanes, William; Jefferson, Samuel; Kaisner, George W. Petitioners {18}:
Bowman, William; Burnham, James H.; Cox, Samuel; Holden, Isaac; McCrackin, John.
Petitioners {23}: Biddle, William; Crow, Andrew; Griffith, Joseph; Houston, George; Pouge,
Thomas. Petitioners {31}: Ellis, Joseph; Hastings, Eli; Lewis, Levin B.; Readen, Moulton; Windsor,
C. C.
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0308. Reacting to a rumored slave insurrection in Sussex County, thirty-one citizens request laws
that would prohibit nighttime assemblies of black people, bar black preachers from migrating to
the state, and forbid slaves or free blacks from owning or possessing firearms and other military
weapons. Petitioners {31}: Ellis, Joseph; Hastings, Eli; Lewis, Levin B.; Readen, Moulton;
Windsor, C. C.
0312. White citizens seek a law that would prohibit people of color from carrying arms or keeping
them in their houses and suggest the organization of a volunteer military force to preserve order
and protect civil authority in case of emergency. Petitioners {134}: Brackin, William; Chander,
Sidney; Derickson, Aquila; Ochiltree, James; Seal, Thomas.
0317. Sussex County. Francis Ludenum states that he was freed from slavery at the age of forty.
Now age sixty, he states that he labors hard to support his wife and seven children. Ludenum
seeks a divorce from his wife on the grounds that she is insane and is a “continuous and heavy
expense."
0320. Kent County. Dover residents complain that they “are much annoyed and put to great
inconvenience by nightly assemblages of negroes and mulattoes in the streets and upon the
public square.” They claim that people of color fire guns and “crackers” and light bonfires. The
petitioners seek a law granting greater powers to local authorities to suppress such assemblies.
Petitioners {31}: Bates, Martin; Clarke, W. John; Manlove, J. G.; Stevenson, Thomas; Wootten,
Charles H.
0325. The petitioners seek the repeal of a Delaware law prohibiting all persons from transporting,
carrying, or selling slaves out of the state. Petitioners {6}: Cook, Caleb; Engle, John; Foote,
William R.; Huston, Samuel; Springer, Lewis.
0330. James Windsor, administrator of the estate of the late John G. Anderson, seeks permission
to make a deed for a town lot to Jacob Trader, a free man of color who purchased the lot but did
not have “any right to the same."
1833.
0333. These free people of color petition for the repeal of the “Act to prevent the use of firearms
by free negroes and free mulattoes” that was passed by the Delaware legislature on 10 February
1832. The law, they argue, interferes with their religious privileges, violates their “rights of
conscience,” and exposes them to the “horrors of perpetual slavery.” They argue that they have
always conducted themselves in a peaceable and quiet manner and that many among them have
acquired land and other property. They “flatter themselves, that they had gained the confidence of
their superiors.” Petitioners {13}: Bounds, Plimmouth; Burton, Solomon; Ingram, Laurel; Tingle,
Jacob C.; Wright, Jacob. Petitioners {3}: Christopher, Zachariah; Hickman, James; Tunnell,
Sampson. Petitioners {28}: Gibes, Robert; Holsman, Robert; Parker, Simon; Richards, John;
White, Lewis. Petitioners {28}: Lewis, Cesar; Lewis, Peter; Mitchell, Pompey; Sommers, Cato;
Sommers, Jacob.
0343. Thirty-nine citizens of Delaware support the petition of the free people of color seeking the
repeal of the 1832 law regarding firearms. Petitioners {39}: Rodney, Caleb; West, Bailey; West,
John M.; West, Wuxham; West, Jacob, Jr.
0346. These free people of color petition for the repeal of the “Act to prevent the use of firearms
by free negroes and free mulattoes” that was passed by the Delaware legislature on 10 February
1832. The law, they argue, interferes with their religious privileges, violates their “rights of
conscience,” and exposes them to the “horrors of perpetual slavery.” They argue that they have
always conducted themselves in a peaceable and quiet manner and that many among them have
acquired land and other property. They “flatter themselves, that they had gained the confidence of
their superiors.” Petitioners {9}: Hanzen, Isaac; Johnson, Burton; Johnson, Burton; Johnson,
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Mitchell; Johnson, Purnell. Petitioners {9}: Duccas, James; Hanson, Jack; Hanson, Nehemiah;
Robison, Andrew; Robison, Thomas.
0351. Two citizens of Delaware support the petition of the free people of color that seeks the
repeal of the 1832 law regarding ownership of firearms. Petitioners {2}: Morris, Robert; Wingate,
Thomas.
0353. Ninety-eight whites support the 1832 statute concerning free blacks and firearms and “pray
that the Law referred to may not be meddled with.” Petitioners {98}: Ely, Robert; Hudson, Cyrus
C.; Knoles, William; Movain, Griffith; Wright, Elisha.
0358. The petitioners state that they own farms in Sussex County, Delaware, and in Maryland
and are joint owners of nineteen slaves. They seek exemption from the Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and ask permission to move slaves back and
forth between their farms at their own convenience. Petitioners {3}: Wright, Charles; Wright,
Jacob; Wright, Turpin.
0362. Robert Palmatary of Kent County, Delaware, contracted with a Maryland slave owner to
purchase the slave James Thompson. Palmatary seeks exemption from the Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring
Thompson into Delaware, promising to emancipate him after six years.
0365. The petitioners ask the legislature to repeal the ban on free people of color owning
firearms. Petitioners {5}: Harmon, John; Robinson, Moses; Stewart, Charles; Towsand, Prince;
Vinson, Leven.
0367. The petitioner supports the request of free people of color for the repeal of the law
prohibiting black people from owning firearms. Petitioner: Layton, Caleb L.
0369. Convicted of kidnapping in 1832, Isaac Tyre was sentenced to receive sixty lashes on his
bare back, well laid on. He was then to be committed for three years of solitary confinement in the
public jail of Sussex County. After his jail time he was to be sold to the highest bidder for seven
years. The governor, however, remitted the jail time. An excellent blacksmith, Tyre was
purchased by Elijah Gordy for $331, but a few days after the purchase Tyre escaped from the jail.
Three years later, he was still at large. Gordy petitions the legislature for reimbursement.
0374. New Castle County. Appointed by Delaware Governor Caleb P. Bennett to retrieve Robert
Harris, a fugitive charged with kidnapping, Robert Ritchie went to Chestertown, Maryland,
secured Harris, and brought him back to the town of New Castle. The journey was “attended with
loss of time, considerable expense, and great hazard.” Ritchie asks to be compensated.
1837.
0378. Thirty-two citizens of Sussex County seek the repeal of a Delaware law of 1827 prohibiting
the exportation of slaves to any other state or territory. The law had “a most powerful tendency to
render Slaves disobedient and Consequently far less useful and valuable to their owners than
they would otherwise be, leading at the same time to the exportation of many Slaves contrary to
this law and to many and indeed to a great portion of the frequent Cases of Kidnapping with
which Your Courts of Justice are so often resorted to in vain for redress by the enforcement of
this law.” Petitioners {32}: Lockwood, John H.; Prettyman, Marvel; Prettyman, Robert; Richards,
John M.; Robinson, Benjamin.
0383. In 1809, Delaware resident John Cooper manumitted several slaves, including a woman
named Lydia. By 1826, Lydia had married the free man of color John Hawkins, and the couple
had three children (Charity, Sally, and John) and were living in Caroline County, Maryland.
However, John Cooper's son-in-law, John Willoughby, convinced Cooper that the Delaware
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manumissions were not valid in Maryland and that Cooper faced prosecution for allowing his
former slaves to move there. Willoughby thus “seduced” Cooper to sign a deed conveying Lydia
and her children to Willoughby, to Cooper's son, Richard, and to other relatives. Soon after,
Willoughby and Richard Cooper took Lydia and her children to the Sussex County jail with “the
intention to selling them to southern traders.” John Cooper and another of his sons learned of this
and demanded that the former slaves be released, which they were. The freed slaves were never
bothered again during John Cooper's life, the petitioner states. In April 1836, however,
Willoughby and a gang of armed men kidnapped Hawkins' three children and the children of
others freed by John Cooper and carried them to the jail in Queen Anne's County, Maryland.
Willoughby's objective was to sell them to “foreign traders, or carry them to the south himself.”
The case of their freedom is still pending in Queen Anne's County, Maryland. Hawkins seeks an
act that would affirm the legality of the manumission of his wife and children.
0395. Joseph Ford of Washington, D.C., seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to remove Jane Green, a
“family slave” inherited by his wife.
0398. Delaware resident Nicholas Bell of Sussex County owns a fishing dock on the Nanticoke
River about two miles below the Maryland state line. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law
designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to bring two
slaves, Hannah and Ra[chel?], into Maryland to assist him in his fishing operations.
0401. Sussex County. J. Ginn states that he is retiring from farming. He owns a term slave,
George Johnson, who has about three or four years left to serve. Ginn seeks exemption from the
Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission
to sell George to a man in Cecil County, Maryland.
1839.
0404. In 1822, Delaware free man of color John Hutson was indicted and convicted on four
counts of larceny. He was sentenced to pay $118.50 restitution or spend seven years as a term
slave. Unable to pay, he was sold for $260 to Benjamin F. Barstow, a resident of Georgia. When
his term expired Huston returned to Delaware and asked David C. Wilson, sheriff of New Castle
County, to refund to him the difference between the amount of restitution required by the court
and his sale price. The sheriff informed him that he had turned the surplus over to the state
treasury. Hutson asks the legislature for the money.
0408. John Green states that he was confined to the Kent County jail when he could not pay his
debts. He seeks relief on the grounds that his family is dependent upon him for support. If he
remains imprisoned his family “may become paupers on the County."
0411. New Castle County. The women of the city of Wilmington seek the abolition of slavery.
They argue that slavery is “inconsistent with the sentiments nobly avowed in the Declaration of
Independence, which secures unto all men the unalienable rights, with which they are endowed
by their Creator.” The legislature should adopt resolutions “abolishing slavery throughout this
state.” Such would forever “relieve it from a burden oppressive both to master and slave.”
Petitioners {319}: Hilles, Gulalma; Hilles, Margaret; Hilles, Martha; Knight, Martha B.; Robinson,
Catherine.
0416. Former Kent County Sheriff Nehemiah Clark denies that he owes the state $136.04, as
claimed in the state auditor's report. In 1828 Clark had sold Absalom Davis, a “negro man”
convicted of a crime, to Abel Harris. When it was discovered that the black man suffered from a
life-threatening “disorder,” Harris refused to pay. Clark supported Harris' decision. He neither
demanded the money nor took legal action, leaving a delinquency in the accounts. Clark asks the
legislature for relief.
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0421. Kent County. Isaac Walker moved from Delaware to Maryland. He seeks exemption from
the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to remove his slave, Moses, from Delaware into Maryland.
0424. Lewis McConckin moved from Maryland to Kent County, Delaware. He seeks exemption
from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to bring two slave children from Maryland into Delaware.
0427. Catherine and John Robinson of Caroline County in Maryland inherited two young slaves
from their grandfather, Ralph Robinson of Sussex County, Delaware, in 1831. George Martin, the
guardian of Catherine and John, now asks for an exemption from the Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves so that he may bring the slaves Julia and
William from Delaware into Maryland. At present the slaves are “of little or no service to the
legatee."
1840.
0430. Thomas Clarkson, president of the Convention of the Friends of the Negro, “assembled
from various parts of the world” in London, England, requests that the state of Delaware take
immediate action to abolish slavery and aid in the abolition of the slave trade.
1841.
0435. The petitioners complain about the difficulty of obtaining “efficient and responsible hirelings
and laborers” for their farms and households. This was due to “the great number of lazy,
irresponsible, lawless, and miserable free negroes and mulattoes” in their county. The free people
of color roamed from city to country “as whim or necessity may drive them in their erratic and
wayward course.” Thus farmers “are deserted by the laborers they have employed in the
cultivation of their crops.” The petitioners ask the legislature to enact laws that will enable “our
farmers and housekeepers to compel such as would otherwise be idle and worthless, to enter into
engagements for the month or year, at the customary wages.” Kent County Petitioners {90}:
Boyer, James; Denney, William; Ford, Daniel; Griffin, Samuel; Hoffecker, Joseph. Sussex County
Petitioners {22}: Cannon, Edmunson; Cannon, Elijah; Jacobs, James M.; Lewis, John; Ross,
Edward. Sussex County Petitioners {24}: Adams, John; Goshen, M.; Honey, Nathaniel; Neal,
Jacob K.; Ross, Curtis J. Kent County Petitioners {20}: Green, James; Prettyman, Cornelius;
Slayton, David H.; Tilney, Jonathan; Webster, A. Kent County Petitioners {22}: Atkinson, John W.;
Jacobs, William K.; Jones, William, Jr.; Smith, N. O.; Williamson, Charles. Kent County
Petitioners {44}: Duhamell, Daniel; Milbourn, Samuel W.; Smith, David J.; Smith, Joseph; Virdin,
William. Kent County Petitioners {21}: Adams, C. N.; Atkinson, Henry; Bullock, John; Cahall,
Archibald; Smith, William. Kent County Petitioners {18}: Cannon, Daniel; Cannon, Stansbury;
Cannon, Wingate; Lord, Thomas; White, Thomas J. Kent County Petitioners {28}: Graham,
Ezekiel; Graham, Whitley; Pratt, Eli; Scott, Nathan; Wheeler, Robert. New Castle County
Petitioners {65}: Crouch, Thomas; King, William; Townsend, John; Townsend, Samuel; Veldon,
William. Kent County Petitioners {32}: Blackiston, R. H.; Davis, James; Hillyard, A.; Patterson,
Robert; Temple, Thomas.
0473. A group of whites lament the number of laborers who hire themselves out for a specified
period of time but fail to fulfill their contract obligations. The petitioners seek a law that would
make such a breach of contract “finable or damageable” before a justice of the peace. Petitioners
{18}: Anderson, James C.; Anderson, John D.; Campbell, John W.; Emerson, John P.;
Harrington, William.
1843.
0476. New Castle County. The African School Society seeks an amendment to its original act of
incorporation to increase its property holdings beyond $5,000. The society had expended nearly
$2,500 in purchasing lots and erecting two school houses, one for boys and one for girls. The
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income from the remaining funds was sufficient to support only the school for boys, and it was
necessary to raise up to $15,000 in additional funds to keep both schools open for “the otherwise
destitute colored children in this city.” Petitioners {2}: Gibbons, H.; Tatnall, Edward.
0480. Sussex County. Samuel Laws seeks an exemption from the Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission for his slaves to work on
land in both Maryland and Delaware. Laws's children live in both states, he states, and he is
anxious to assist them in their “agricultural pursuits."
0483. Kent County. Free man of color Isaac Longfellow was convicted of theft and sold for a term
of seven years to raise restitution money and pay costs. William H. J. Comegys, a victim in the
case, asks that money from Longfellow's sale exceeding that needed for restitution be divided
prorata among the three white victims of the larceny.
0489. Fifty-one free persons of color seek the repeal of the third and fourth sections of the 1832
act concerning free people of color. They contend that the sections interfere with their ability to
worship “according to the dictates of their consciences.” Furthermore, several free people of color
have been unjustly charged with violations of the law and forced to appear in court. Petitioners
{51}: Burton, Elish; Johnson, Return; Lockum, Elish; Parker, George; Tingle, Henry.
0493. New Castle County petitioners seek the repeal of a law granting free people of color the
right to carry firearms. The petitioners argue that free people of color who owned guns have
created many problems, including the “shooting of a respectable and worthy citizen.” Any
storekeeper or other person who supplies free persons of color with arms or ammunition should
be subject to a fine. Petitioners {24}: Cassidy, Peter; Day, John W.; Day, Wm. M.; Talley, William
W.; Wickersham, Amos H.
0497. Kent County. Free man of color Jesse Dean died intestate, leaving fifty acres of land and
some personal property. John Dean and Thomas Butcher, Jesse's half-brothers, ask the
legislature for the right, interest, and title to the property. Otherwise, they said, it would revert to
the state. Jesse, John, and Thomas Butcher were children of the same white man by different
women of color. The petitioners describe themselves as the “illegitimate brother[s] of the half
blood."
0501. Free man of color Mitchell Anderson died intestate, leaving a lot and small house in Kent
County that escheated to the state of Delaware. Luther Swiggett argues that the property will be
an expense to the state. Promising to pay the costs incurred by the escheator “in making the
Inquisition,” Swiggitt asks for title and interest in the property.
0504. White petitioners argue that the public good requires that free people of color be denied the
use of firearms in the state of Delaware. They ask for a repeal the 1832 statute permitting justices
of the peace to issue licenses to members of the group. Petitioners {49}: Caulk, Jacob; Clayton,
J. M.; Clement, R.; Moore, W. E.; Young, N.
0508. In 1809, Charles and another slave were arrested for theft and jailed. The other slave was
returned to his owner in Maryland, a woman in Queen Anne's County. Charles, however,
escaped from jail before he could be indicted and tried. Now, thirty-four years later, Andrew Gray
of Kent County seeks compensation for the loss of the slave Charles.
0512. Kent County. Andrew Gray asks the legislature to reconsider its decision rejecting his
original petition of January 1843 and asks again for compensation for his slave, Charles, who was
arrested and escaped from jail in 1809.
0518. Worcester County. Curtis Jacobs and William Holland state that they own a plantation lying
partly in Delaware and partly in Maryland. They also own several uncultivated tracts of land in
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Delaware. They could clear the heavily timbered tracts and put them under cultivation “at a much
cheaper rate” by using their slaves than by hiring laborers. They seek exemption from the
Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and ask permission
for their slaves to work the land in both states.
0521. Sussex County. Elijah Cannon purchased “of a moiety of a Seine ground and right of
fishery” lying partly in Maryland and partly in Delaware. He used slaves to conduct his fishing
business. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to work his slaves in both states.
0524. New Castle County petitioners seek the repeal of a law granting free people of color the
right to carry firearms. The petitioners argue that free people of color who owned guns have
created many problems, including the “shooting of a respectable and worthy citizen.” Any
storekeeper or other person who supplies free persons of color with arms or ammunition should
be subject to a fine. Petitioners {65}: Anderson, Isaac; Hand, Patrick; Husbands, William;
McBride, Thomas; Pierce, Jesse.
1845.
0527. In 1809, Charles and another slave were arrested for theft and jailed. The other slave was
returned to his owner in Maryland, a woman in Queen Anne's County. Charles, however,
escaped from jail before he could be indicted and tried. Now, thirty-four years later, Andrew Gray
of Kent County seeks compensation for the loss of the slave Charles.
0538. Petitioners seek amendments to the law governing the retailing of liquor. They ask to
“separate intoxicating drinks from other articles of ordinary traffic—to require that a license to
retail them shall only be had in the manner now required for tavern license; that the tax be at least
$12; and that under no circumstances shall a sale either to or by negroes or mulattoes be
permitted.” The current license fee of $2.50, they argue, allows “the most abandoned negro” to
obtain “a legal commission to poison both morally and physically a whole neighborhood, or at
least to render worse than worthless almost all the servants within his reach.” Petitioners {43}:
Clements, James R.; Enos, Benjamin; Jones, Loadman; Mann, Joseph; Stockly, N.
0541. The petitioners seek legislative action to prevent the “Abolitionists of the East” from making
Delaware “the Theatre of their actions and abusive language.” They ask for laws to prevent the
state from being overrun by “vagrant negroes.” Petitioners {24}: Bishop, Jesse; Brackin, William;
McKibbin, James; Reed, Ezekiel; Slack, Hall.
0544. Twenty-seven residents of Kent County seek the repeal or modification of “An act relating
to fugitives from labor.” With rivers extending from Marcus Hook to Lewestown, it was easy for a
well-intentioned citizen unknowingly to carry “a worthless slave” out of the state and thus expose
himself to harsh penalties. Only those who “knowingly and willfully” violate the law should be held
accountable, and the current law should be so modified. Petitioners {27}: Hamilton, Lewis, Jr.;
Humphreys, Joseph; Jester, Peter; Macy, Joseph; Milds, John.
0547. Residents of Smyrna seek a law preventing people of color and others from assembling in
the streets, especially during the holiday seasons. They also ask that the law prohibit “firing
guns[,] crackers[,] Squibbs[,]” etc., as well as throwing fireballs. A law should be passed halting
these dangerous practices, they contend. Petitioners {63}: Barton, Joseph; Fisher, Samuel M.;
McGinnis, J. R.; Patterson, Robert; Ringgold, William.
0550. The petitioner asks the Delaware legislature to authorize his purchase of the slave
Saulsbury from Roger Wright. In 1818, Maryland resident Roger Wright received permission from
the Delaware legislature to bring six slaves into the state. Wright was required, however, to
register the bill of sale for the slaves in the deeds office of Sussex County. In 1845, Jacobs states
that he attempted to purchase the slave Saulsbury for one hundred twenty dollars but could not
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find the slave’s registration. Jacobs speculates that Wright did not know he had to register
Saulsbury at his birth. Jacobs asks the legislature to “revive” the 1818 act so he can enter the bill
of sale for the slave on the record and consummate his transaction with Wright. Petitioner:
Jacobs, Thomas.
0553. In 1842, John Anderson was shot in the neck by his servant, Thomas Brown, who was tried
and convicted of attempted murder. Brown was sentenced to seven years of servitude and was
sold to Elijah McDowell of Maryland for $200. After paying costs, the sheriff of Kent County still
had $130.19, which he turned over to the state treasury. Anderson asks the legislature to pass an
act authorizing the state to pay him the surplus.
0558. In 1835, William Hudson secured an indenture on a six-year-old child of color, John
Conway. The child, bound out by his father, Abraham Conway, until the age of twenty-three, was
released in 1842 by the New Castle County Court because the indenture had not been recorded.
Hudson seeks a law that would make the indenture legal and enable him to retain Conway as an
apprentice.
0562. In a printed three-line petition, eleven Delaware women ask the legislature to “take speedy
and adequate measures for effecting the immediate abolition of slavery within this
commonwealth.” Petitioners {11}: Pennington, Mary E.; Phillips, Albina; Phillips, Elizabeth;
Wilson, Abigail J.; Wilson, Eliza.
0565. Sussex County. In 1834, William Lowe sent his son, James, to Somerset County in
Maryland to live with Clement Beach, the boy's uncle. In 1844, the uncle died and left James
Lowe, now seventeen, the slaves Isaac and Charlotte. As guardian of his minor son, William
Lowe seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission bring the slaves from Maryland to Delaware.
0568. James Law owns land and slaves in both Delaware and Maryland. He seeks exemption
from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks
permission to transport his slaves back and forth between the two states.
0571. Sussex County. Elijah Cannon purchased a fishery in Dorchester County, Maryland, in
1842. He seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and
exportation of slaves and asks permission to work his slaves in Maryland. Cannon was “the
owner of several slaves whom he could profitably employ in hauling his seine at said fishery, and
about other work & business connected therewith."
0574. Kent County. Maryland resident John Black states that he plans to move to Delaware and
that he owns lands in both states. Black seeks exemption from the Delaware law designed to
prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission to work his slaves in both
states.
0578. Delaware residents ask the legislature to “take speedy and adequate measures for
effecting the immediate abolition of slavery within this commonwealth.” Petitioners {82}:
Chambers, Caroline; Chambers, Elizabeth; Chambers, Susanna; Thompson, Daniel;
Tyson, Samuel.
0585. New Castle County. “The petition of the undersigned, inhabitants of the said state,
respectfully asks that you will enact a suitable law for effecting the extinction of slavery within this
commonwealth.” Petitioners {60}: Chandler, William; Hilles, Eli; Hilles, Samuel; Starr, Isaac;
Webb, Thomas D. Petitioners {51}: Chandler, Purthena; Conrad, Rachel; Gilpin, Lydia W.;
McCalb, Esther Ann; Nicols, Margaret.
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0592. New Castle County. “The petition of the undersigned, inhabitants of the said state,
respectfully asks that you will take speedy and adequate measures for effecting the immediate or
gradual abolition of slavery within this commonwealth.” Petitioners {53}: Farris, Jacob; Ferris,
C. E.; Griffith, William J.; James, Margaret; Shields, Susanna.
0594. New Castle County. “The petition of the undersigned, inhabitants of the said state,
respectfully asks that you will enact a suitable law for effecting the extinction of slavery within this
commonwealth.” Petitioners {48}: Duncan, B. W.; Duncan, Martha; Harlan, Mary; Marshall, John;
Philips, Albia. Petitioners {44}: Bartley, Margaret; Brannion, Margaret; Griffin, Robert D.; Pusey,
Jacob; Pusey, Saml. N.
0598. New Castle County. “The petition of the undersigned, inhabitants of the said state,
respectfully asks that you will take speedy and adequate measures for effecting the immediate
abolition of slavery within this commonwealth.” Petitioners {82}: Bonney, Betsey P.; Currender,
Jacob; Haughey, Sarah; Rhees, Morgan J.; Semple, Anne.
0601. New Castle County. “The Petition of the undersigned, inhabitants of the said state,
respectfully asks that you will enact a suitable law for effecting the extinction of slavery within this
commonwealth.” Petitioners {12}: Ely, Caroline; Flint, Isaac S.; Heald, Hannah P.; Pusey, Edith;
Webb, William.
0603. New Castle County. “The petition of the undersigned, inhabitants of the said state,
respectfully asks that you will take speedy and adequate measures for effecting the immediate
abolition of slavery within this commonwealth.” Petitioners {39}: Flint, Isaac; Heald, Hannah P.;
Newcomb, Joseph T.; Pusey, Edith; Webb, William. Petitioners {63}: Palmer, Mary W.; Tatnall,
Rachel R.; Webb, Catharine; Webb, Eliza; Webb, Lydia P.
1846.
0610. The petitioner asks the governor to direct “All persons of all grades and colors who retain
human men as Bond men” to refrain from working them on Sundays and days “Ordained as Holy
days by the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.” Petitioner: English, Launcelot P.
1847.
0615. New Castle County. Although incorporated by an act of the General Assembly in 1824, the
African School Society had existed as an association since 1809. Its goal, the petitioners state,
has been to support a school in Wilmington exclusively for the benefit of children of color. “The
Society are still pursuing upon their original principles the same purpose: they believe, that the
effect has been to elevate and meliorate the mental and moral character, and the social condition
of those to whom the benefits of instruction provided, have been extended.” The society seeks an
act to enlarge their allocated property holdings to $15,000. Petitioners {21}: Bellah, Edward;
Ferris, Tiba; Knight, Dubre; Smyth, David; Webb, Benjamin.
0618. New Castle County. Free man of color Elias Handy was tried and convicted of rape and
sentenced to be sold into bondage for fourteen years. The petitioner holds Handy's indenture and
seeks compensation for the loss of his worker. Petitioner: Wolfe, Nathaniel.
0621. Residents of North and South Milford in Kent and Sussex counties complain about
“Negroes and others” who flooded the streets at night and on Sundays. The petitioners state that
to the great annoyance of the citizens, people of color used “all manner of profane language” and
went about “Yelling and bawling, boxing, wrestling & fighting.” The petitioners request that the
legislature force the local authorities “to perform their respective duties.” Petitioners (72): Adkins,
John W.; Cannon, Matthew; Fleming, Charles; Taylor, Henry; White, John M.
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0625. “The petition of the undersigned, inhabitants of the said State, respectfully asks that you
will ena[ct] a suitable law for effecting the extinction of Slavery within this Commonwealth.”
Petitioners {44}: Buckingham, Alban; Eastburn, David; Eastburn, Joseph; Lindsey, Joseph;
Lindsey, Joseph, Jr.
0628. “The undersigned citizens of New Castle Co. state of Delaware respectfully request you to
adopt some feasible plan to abolish slavery immediately throughout the state.” Petitioners {80}:
Healey, Jacob; Jackson, James C.; Jackson, John E.; Pusey, Jacob; Wilson, David.
0631. In response to an act in the Delaware House of Representatives seeking to emancipate all
slaves born after 1850, citizens of Sussex County advise the legislature to “abstain for the
present” from enacting any law on the subject. Rather than helping black people, such a law
would prompt many greedy slaveholders to sell their slaves and “forever exclude” any possibility
of the slaves obtaining their freedom. Petitioners {41}: Fooks, Benjamin; Green, Stephen; Moore,
Edward B.; Moore, John; Rust, Cotesby F.
0639. Jacob Nicholson owns land in Maryland and Delaware. He seeks exemption from the
Delaware law designed to prevent the importation and exportation of slaves and asks permission
to work his slaves on the land in both states.
0642. Kent County. Indentured servant Henry Cullen, a man of color, was convicted of burglary
and sold at auction for $280. The man who held the indenture, James Wilds, seeks $125.78 from
the legislature, money that was turned over to the state treasury after payment of jail fees, a $100
fine, and court costs.
0645. “The petition of the undersigned, inhabitants of the said State, respectfully asks that you
will enact a suitable law for effecting the extinction of Slavery within this Commonwealth.”
Petitioners {183}: Bringhurst, Jos.; Byrnes, J. F.; Cauley, Charles; Ferris, Tiba; Patterson,
Nicholas.
0652. New Castle County. The memorialists support an increase to $15,000 of the amount of
property that can be owned by the African School Society of Wilmington. The increase “could be
employed for the general benefit in providing good schools for the colored children in this city.”
Petitioners {31}: Hall, Willard; Parrington, H. B.; Porter, R. R.; Shipley, John; Thomson, Allan.
0655. “The petition of the undersigned, inhabitants of the said State, respectfully asks that your
will ena[ct] a suitable law for effecting the extinction of Slavery within this Commonwealth.”
Petitioners {44}: Buckingham, Alban; Eastburn, David; Eastburn, Jos.; Lindsey, Joseph; Lindsey,
Joseph, Jr.
1849.
0659. Free people of color seek to repeal the law requiring them to produce passes or freedom
papers when travelling from one area to another. Any white man, though his character be much
“blacker Then our Skins,” could take them up. They might remain in jail six weeks before being
able to prove their free status. Petitioners {29}: Berry, Caleb; Brinkley, Nathaniel; Caldwell, Palm;
Caldwell, Prince; Caldwell, Thomas.
0663. “We the undersigned Citizens of your State, do hereby most solemnly protest and
remonstrate against any Law being passed by your Honorable body, abolishing Slavery in the
State of Delaware.” Petitioners {44}: Allen, M. W.; Cannon, Daniel; Ross, William H.; Rust, P. N.;
Wright, Charles.
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0665. Residents of the Camden area seek a special legislative act to punish the “notorious Saml.
D. Burris a free Negroe or Mulatto who still persists in the nefarious practice of enticing Servants
& Slaves away from their masters.” He had been convicted of the offense before but continued in
the same manner, they state. Petitioners {29}: Clements, Joel; Jackson, J. W.; Lockwood, W. K.;
Martindale, Thomas; Slaughter, William.
0668. New Castle County. In 1827, Benjamin Holt, a free man of color, signed a contract to buy
forty acres from Edward Wilson, a white man. When Holt had nearly paid off the purchase price
he learned that Wilson had become “a person of unsound mind.” Holt asks the legislature to pass
an act in which “all the right title and estate of the Said Edward Wilson in the said Tract of land
shall be conveyed to Your petitioner and his heirs."
0672. The petitioners request that the legislature amend an 1811 law that declared all free
persons of color who left and remained out of the state for more than six months nonresidents
and thus subject to the penalties and restrictions imposed upon free persons of color attempting
to immigrate into Delaware. The petitioners seek to reduce the time to thirty days. Petitioners
{199}: Bacon, Henry; Green, Stephen; Horsey, G. W.; Moore, J. Y.; Moore, Louther T.
0676. “Your petitioners, votable citizens of the state of Delaware[,] respectfully ask that you will
enact such laws, as in your wisdom, may be deemed necessary for the immediate abolition of
slavery in Delaware, with the least possible injury to vested rights.” Petitioners {241}: Bacon,
Henry; Green, Stephen; Horsey, G. W.; Moore, J. Y.; Moore, Louther T.
0685. “Your petitioners, votable citizens of the state of Delaware, respectfully ask that you will
enact such laws, as in your wisdom, may be deemed necessary for the immediate abolition of
slavery in Delaware, with the least possible injury to vested rights.” Petitioners {243}: Bringhurst,
Jos.; Canby, Charles; Ferris, Tiba; Hilles, Eli; Megear, Wm. V. Petitioners {91}: Hoopes, Alfred;
Hoopes, Barton; Kersey, Guard C.; Remington, William; White, Robert.
0705. Women residents of Delaware petition for the abolition of slavery. “Your petitioners,
inhabitants of the state of Delaware, respectfully ask that you will enact such laws, as in your
wisdom, may be deemed necessary for the immediate abolition of slavery in Delaware, with the
least possible injury to vested rights.” Petitioners {40}: Garrett, Rachel; Neeper, Phebe H.; Rhees,
Grace W.; Semple, Anne; Shields, Susanna.
0707. “Your petitioners, votable citizens of the state of Delaware, respectfully ask that you will
enact such laws, as in your wisdom, may be deemed necessary for the immediate abolition of
slavery in Delaware, with the least possible injury to vested rights.” Petitioners {38}: Dixon, A. H.;
Hobson, Benjamin; Lindsey, Joseph; Wilson, Jonathan; Worrell, Thomas.
0710. Citizens of Sussex County ask that the 1760 law regarding emancipation be amended so
that all petitions for freedom are presented by “a next friend,” a free white citizen of the county
where the petition is being filed. In addition, if not submitted by the parties for a judge's decision,
a jury should decide freedom cases, and the costs should “follow the decision” as with other
cases in the superior court. Sussex County Petitioners {22}: Davis, H. P.; Day, Levin B.;
Pettyjohn, James; Sipple, C. B.; Wilson, Minus C. Petitioners {32}: Allen, M. W.; Dawson,
Thomas; McNeilly, William S.; Robinson, J. W.; Smith, William.
0715. The petitioners ask that the legislature “enact such laws, as in your wisdom, may be
deemed necessary for the immediate abolition of slavery in Delaware, with the least possible
injury to vested rights.” Petitioners {40}: Bassett, Ann; Garrett, Rachel; Hewes, Sally G.; Semple,
Anne; Wayne, Sally.
0718. The petitioners, “votable citizens of the State of Delaware[,] respectfully ask that you will
enact such laws, as in your wisdom, may be deemed necessary for the immediate abolition of
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slavery in Delaware, with least possible injury to vested rights.” Petitioners {91}: Hersey, Gerard
C.; Hoopes, Alfred; Hoopes, Barton; Remington, William; White, Robert.
0722. The petitioners ask the legislature to enact “such laws, as in your wisdom, may be deemed
necessary for the immediate abolition of slavery in Delaware, with the least possible injury to
vested rights.” Petitioners {243}: Bringhurst, Jos.; Canby, Charles; Ferris, Tiba; Hilles, Eli;
Megear, Wm. P.
0734. “Your petitioners, votable citizens of the state of Delaware[,] respectfully ask that you will
enact such laws, as in your wisdom, may be deemed necessary for the immediate abolition of
slavery in Delaware, with the least possible injury to vested rights.” Petitioners {241}: Bridge,
David; Flint, Isaac S.; Greenhalgh, Wm.; McHugh, Patrick; Stansfield, Saml.
1852.
0741. Kent County. In 1850, “a Small black boy” belonging to James Bewley was kidnapped on
the streets of Smyrna and carried to Maryland. Bewley offered a reward for the slave's return.
One of the kidnappers was arrested and jailed in Dover; the second, following a request from the
governor of Delaware, was arrested in Maryland but broke out of jail and later died. Friends and
relatives of Bewley ask that he be reimbursed for his expenses. Petitioners {5}: Bewley, John H.;
Cloak, Eben; Cummings, George W.; Davis, George; Raymond, Jacob.
1853.
0744. Kent County. Free people of color petition the government to repeal the 1851 acts
regulating slaves, free people of color, servants, and apprentices. The laws are “grievously
oppressive.” Especially burdensome was the stipulation prohibiting free people of color from
entering the state unless as a servant for a white man or as a seaman on a trading vessel. This
prevented family members from visiting one another if they lived across state lines. There were
also penalties for resident free persons of color who stayed out of the state more than sixty days.
“We endeavor to perform the duties of good, orderly citizens, and it bears hard on us not to be
allowed the privilege of seeking to do better elsewhere without losing our residence and being
subject to arrest, fine, imprisonment and sale, provided we return temporarily to visit our families
and friends.” They argue that, like their “white brethren,” they profess the Christian religion and
ask God for “salvation of our souls hereafter.” Petitioners {27}: America, Moses; Bell, Alexander;
Brown, Francis; Draper, John; Jacobs, Richard.
0746. New Castle County. Residents protest the 1851 laws concerning free people of color and
slaves, servants, and apprentices. They argue that the laws are driving free people of color out of
Delaware and into New Jersey and Pennsylvania, “where their just rights are better protected.”
The emigration caused an increase in the price of labor. Meanwhile, thousands of dollars were
being lost by Delaware steamboat owners and businessmen because free people of color did not
enter the state for religious services as they had previously. In short, the laws were neither just
nor humane and should be repealed. Petitioners {39}: Allan, William; Eastburn, Isaac; Heald,
Caleb; Lindsey, Joseph; Mitchell, Abner.
0749. New Castle County. Free people of color petition the government to repeal the 1851 acts
regulating slaves, free people of color, servants, and apprentices. The laws are “grievously
oppressive.” Especially burdensome was the stipulation prohibiting free people of color from
entering the state unless as a servant for a white man or as a seaman on a trading vessel. This
prevented family members from visiting one another if they lived across state lines. There were
also penalties for resident free persons of color who stayed out of the state more than sixty days.
“We endeavor to perform the duties of good, orderly citizens, and it bears hard on us not to be
allowed the privilege of seeking to do better elsewhere without losing our residence and being
subject to arrest, fine, imprisonment and sale, provided we return temporarily to visit our families
and friends.” They argue that, like their “white brethren,” they profess the Christian religion and
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ask God for “salvation of our souls hereafter.” Petitioners {221}: Anderson, Levi; Biyard, Bernard;
Graves, Robert; Jackson, James; Price, Joseph.
0754. New Castle County. Residents protest the 1851 laws concerning free people of color and
slaves, servants, and apprentices. They argue that the laws are driving free people of color out of
Delaware and into New Jersey and Pennsylvania, “where their just rights are better protected.”
The emigration caused an increase in the price of labor. Meanwhile, thousands of dollars were
being lost by Delaware steamboat owners and businessmen because free people of color did not
enter the state for religious services as they had previously. In short, the laws were neither just
nor humane and should be repealed. Petitioners {42}: Bird, Harry B.; Downing, George; Hammutt,
Edmund M.; Latimer, John R.; Wise, John. Petitioners {61}: Crookes, Samuel; Johnson, P.
Sheama; Lawrence, Henry; Lear, John M.; Riddle, James. Petitioners {43}: Betts, Edward; Knight,
Dubre; Robinson, John T.; Robinson, William; Stephens, Geo. Petitioners {297}: Bradford,
Moses; Chandler, William; Huxley, Elihu; Lee, Alfred; Milligan, J. J.
0772. Kent County. Free people of color petition the government to repeal the 1851 acts
regulating slaves, free people of color, servants, and apprentices. The laws are “grievously
oppressive.” Especially burdensome was the stipulation prohibiting free people of color from
entering the state unless as a servant for a white man or as a seaman on a trading vessel. This
prevented family members from visiting one another if they lived across state lines. There were
also penalties for resident free persons of color who stayed out of the state more than sixty days.
“We endeavor to perform the duties of good, orderly citizens, and it bears hard on us not to be
allowed the privilege of seeking to do better elsewhere without losing our residence and being
subject to arrest, fine, imprisonment and sale, provided we return temporarily to visit our families
and friends.” They argue that, like their “white brethren,” they profess the Christian religion and
ask God for “salvation of our souls hereafter.” Petitioners {26}: Brinkley, Nathaniel; Brinkley,
William; Clark, John C.; Lewis, Peter; Miller, James.
0775. Kent County. Residents protest the 1851 laws concerning free people of color and slaves,
servants and apprentices. They argue that the laws are driving free people of color out of
Delaware and into New Jersey and Pennsylvania, “where their just rights are better protected.”
The emigration caused an increase in the price of labor. Meanwhile, thousands of dollars were
being lost by Delaware steamboat owners and businessmen because free people of color did not
enter the state for religious services as they had previously. In short, the laws were neither just
nor humane and should be repealed. Petitioners {76}: Dickson, William R.; Jackson, Caleb;
Lowber, Michael; McBride, Joseph; Wallace, Benjamin.
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0001. Descriptive material.
Undated.
0008. Wilkinson County. The petitioner states that he is the guardian of the three minor siblings of
his wife—Amanda, William, and Gillian Mitchell. He asks authorization to move the children with
their property, including six slaves, to Louisiana. Among the slaves, only one is an adult. The
mother of the minors supports the move, noting that the father is irresponsible and not willing to
“take Charge” of his children's slaves. Petitioner: Gibson, J. Y.
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0012. The petitioners assert that the 1809 law requiring retailers to take an oath that they would
neither buy nor sell liquor to slaves without written permission from the slaveholder “is unequal
unnecessary and unjust.” Some retailers, the petitioners note, fail to obtain a license, and some
private citizens sell liquor to slaves. Moreover, not all merchants obey the law. Thus when
slaveholders send their domestic servants to stores without permission slips some merchants
refuse to sell the slaves “the smallest trifle” while others sell items to the slave “without the
formality of any permission in writing.” They urge the legislature to consider the “necessity of
reform.” Petitioners {26}: Irvin, Walter; Millard, A.; Munce, Thomas; Scranton, A., Jr.;
Watson, James, Jr.
0017. Claiborne County. Drury Breazeale seeks to emancipate two slaves—a man named John,
age fifty-eight, and a woman named Matilda, age forty-six—who have been “faithful, industrious
and obedient Servants, and rendering meritorious services."
0022. Adams County. “Jerry a Man of Colour” was born a slave and asks for his freedom as
stipulated in the will of Benajah Osmun. Jerry quotes the following clause from the will: “Item for
the faithful services of my boy Jerry, I hereby manumit and set him the said Jerry free from
slavery, from and after my decease."
0026. Hancock County. William Smith requests emancipation of the slave Bill, who “without
direction” protected and supported Smith following the death of his parents. Smith secured an
education through the “laborious and unassuming exertions of this humble protector."
0030. Hinds County. William S. Byrd asks to emancipate the female slave “Tener about forty five
years of age, of good Moral Character.” He states that she had served in his and his father's
family for many years. She was known for “good deeds done, and worthy acts Performed."
0033. Adams County. Natchez resident Richard Terrell asks for a change of venue for the trial of
his slave, Henry, accused by another slave of burglary. Convicted once but granted a new trial,
Henry “cannot have anything like a fair trial” in Adams County. The slave who accused Henry was
a “man of bad fame."
0037. William Parker, a free man of color, asks permission to remain in Mississippi. Parker states
that he arrived before the enactment of the law “prohibiting the emigration of Free negroes and
Mulattoes into this State.” He avers that he has accumulated property and remains married to a
slave in the state.
0040. Wilkinson County. W. Davis asks for the emancipation of two old slaves, Charles and Eve,
formerly owned by the late Colonel Hugh Davis of Wilkinson County. Davis planned to free the
slaves but died before he could carry out “his benevolent intention.” Davis's heirs never claimed
ownership of the two, but the slaves were nonetheless “levied on and sold as their property” and
purchased for the petitioner.
0043. Samuel Osborne asks for emancipation of an infant “whom he verily believes to be the
issue of white parents” and by fraud has been brought into state and sold as slave. He states that
he recently purchased the child and wants to raise her as his own and change her name from
Margaret to Indiana Osborne.
0046. Claiborne County. The petitioners ask for the emancipation of Samuel Martin, “a slave for
life” belonging to John W. Thomson. Martin possess “an unimpeachable character, and has
rendered many meritorious Services.” Petitioners {30}: Carson, Stephen D.; Nicolls, Joseph;
Thomson, John W.; White, Thompson; Whiting, A.
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0052. Samuel Miller asks for the emancipation of Martha Tyler, a slave about thirty years old. He
states that he is aware “that the inclination of the public is somewhat opposed to the grant of such
privilege” but hopes that the legislature will pass an act of “benevolence and Kindness to a
servant endeared to him by years of faithful servitude.” In addition, Miller states that he is growing
old and recognizes his time is limited.
0056. Claiborne County. The petitioners ask for the emancipation of Samuel Martin's family.
Three years before, Martin, a free man of color, purchased his wife and three children. Petitioners
{30}: Campbell, R. W.; Loring, Israel; Posey, H. M.; Stamps, V.; Thomson, J. W.
0062. William Moreton and his wife, Violet, were emancipated by Jesse Carter in Louisiana about
1814. The Moretons were forced to leave their daughter, Charlotte, behind when they moved to
Mississippi. When Carter died the couple bought Charlotte for $350. Moreton now petitions to free
his daughter. He writes, “Your Petitioner although' a colored man is not devoid of feelings of
humanity and nature & considers it against the laws of nature to hold his own offspring in a state
of servitude."
0066. Lewis Glover asks for the emancipation of his “good true and faithful servant,” Rachel.
Glover explains that Rachel's “good economy and industry enabled her to raise a sufficient sum
of Money to pay to your Petitioner her full value."
0070. Jefferson County. Free man of color Malachi Hagins states that he is descended from
several generations of free ancestors. His grandmother was a white woman, and his father died
in the American Revolution fighting on behalf of the “Revolted Colonies.” Hagins notes that he
moved to Mississippi twenty-two years ago, married a white woman, fathered nine children, and
acquired land, cattle, and nine slaves. He is now subject to being driven from his county and
having his property confiscated and his life put in jeopardy “for want of the guardian protection of
the Laws of the Land.” He asks for an act to give him “security & protection, such rights and
liberties” as the legislature might deem “humane, politick and right."
0075. John B. Nicaisse purchased his two-year-old daughter, Izabella, in 1806 at the Bay of St.
Louis, which was then under Spanish rule. The bill of sale stipulated that Nicaisse legally
emancipate the child “before the command[an]t at mobile.” Before Nicaisse could do so, however,
the area became part of the United States. He now seeks to free her through the Mississippi
legislature.
0078. Wilkinson County. Twenty-five citizens of Woodville write on behalf of Charles and Eve,
elderly slaves previously owned by the late Colonel Hugh Davis. The petitioners ask for the
slaves' emancipation, believing them to be “worthy and deserving their Freedom.” Petitioners
{25}: Gordon, George H.; Henderson, John; Smith, Prestwood; Stamps, William; Waide, J.
0081. Nicholas P. Carr asks the legislature to emancipate the slave named Betsey, who was
freed in the will of deceased Adams County resident Timothy Gifford. The testator was much
attached to Betsey because of “her fidelity & attention to him."
0085. Bartlett Sims, former sheriff of Monroe County, requests payment of $30 from the
legislature for advertising two runaway slaves, Peter and John. Sims had put the slaves in the
Monroe County jail, but it was “wholly insufficient to answer the ends of public justice.” The jail
was so inadequate that the runaways “got out and made their escape so that they could not be
got."
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0089. South Carolina resident William H. Taylor is the uncle and guardian of Thomas, Frances,
and William Taylor, minor heirs to an estate “consisting chiefly of negroes.” The minors live in
South Carolina, but the slaves are in Warren County, Mississippi. Taylor states that he finds it
difficult to manage the slaves and hire a suitable overseer from such a distance. He asks the
legislature for permission to transport the slaves to South Carolina.
0094. Citizens of Warren County write on behalf of William and Candis Newman, a slave
husband and wife who were “faithful and favorite family servants” in the white Newman family.
The slaves lived for many years “in a manner free.” Their intercourse and dealings were “entirely
with white people,” and they “carefully avoided commingling with or having transactions with
Slaves.” During three epidemics in Vicksburg, William Newman “faithfully and carefully”
distributed supplies to the “suffering and afflicted.” The petitioners ask the legislature to
emancipate the couple. They “are deserving of it and entitled to it.” Petitioners {209}: Finney,
Thomas J.; Gaines, W. F.; Gibson, David; Green, H. W.; Green, Washington.
0103. Wilkinson County. Clarissa Neylans supports the petition of J. Y. Gibson to transport her
children's slaves to Louisiana. Gibson is the children's guardian.
0105. A dozen residents of Jefferson County verify that Malachi Hagins was married to a white
woman. The couple had ten children: Sally, John, Mary, Malachi, Elizabeth, Angelina, Susannah,
David, Rhod[es], and Gideon. On all occasions Hagins conducted himself “with great propriety”
as an “honest and upright man.” He had long been a member of the Baptist church. The
petitioners ask the legislature to extend to Hagins and his children the right to sue and be sued
and “all the rights privileges and immunities of a free white persons of this state.” Petitioners {12}:
Duggan, E.; Dunbar, James; Durden, Washington; Harrison, P. W.; Hinds, Thomas.
1806.
0109. Adams County. In 1804 Israel Leonard purchased a slave named Samuel for $600. A few
months later, however, Samuel sued for his freedom. The sheriff took the slave into custody, but
Samuel escaped. Leonard asks the legislature to force the county to pay him for the loss of his
slave.
1809.
0115. Michael Bruner, jailer of Adams County, complains about the cost of maintaining prisoners.
The state law concerning runaway slaves, for example, required that absentee slaves be reported
as lost by their masters or overseers. When absconders were taken up but not so reported, the
master was not responsible for paying jail fees. Consequently, some slave owners knowingly left
their slaves in jail for months at the county's expense. He asks for relief.
1813.
0125. Dubroca asks to emancipate his slave, Mimie, and her three children, Joisen, Edouard, and
Catherine. Petitioner: Dubroca, Hugh.
0128. Agness and David Pannill, executors of the estate of the late Joseph Pannill of Adams
County, ask the legislature to allow them to sell land rather than slaves in order to satisfy debts
against the estate. All but one of the heirs are minors, and to sell the landed estate to discharge
debts “cannot be valid or authorized…without the interference” of the General Assembly.
0133. Hancock County Sheriff Amos Burnet seeks $99.05 in reimbursement for transporting
William Smith, arrested for stealing a slave, from Hancock to Claiborne County as ordered in a
writ of habeas corpus issued by Judge Walter Leake.
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1814.
0138. Walter Irvin, executor of the estate of James McCarey, requests permission to emancipate
the slaves Robert and Kitty. Irvin states that McCarey provided in his will for the freedom of the
two “mulatto” children and bequeathed them the bulk of his property.
1815.
0142. The slave Toney absconded from his master, John Brown of Wilkinson County, and was
captured by an American Indian, who turned him over to Justice of the Peace Behajah Randle.
After paying a $6 reward, Randle took the runaway to the Washington jail in Adams County. A
short time later, Toney died. Illiterate, poor, and with a large family, Randle seeks reimbursement
for expenses.
0146. In June 1812, Solomon Whitley traded with Isaac Waters for a female house servant
named Hannah. A few months later, Whitley accused Waters of stealing Hannah, and Waters
was jailed in Franklin County. Because of an “insufficient” jail, the accused was transferred to
Jefferson County, where he posted a $500 bond using two slaves as security. This, according to
Whitley, gave him a chance “to make his escape with your petitioners Negro,” while the two
slaves were turned over to the territorial government. Whitley complained that he was the only
one hurt by the theft and that his wife was weak and unable do “domestic labor which she has
been obliged to do since Walters have deprived her of her help.” He asks for relief.
1816.
0161. Adams County residents ask the legislature to pass acts of emancipation for the family of
Ben Vousdan, who died in 1816 without providing for their freedom. The petitioners note that Ben
Vousdan was freed in 1802 by William Vousdan. Ben married a slave named Mary, whom he
purchased from Stephen Minor, and the couple had five children: Louisa or Lucy, Rachel, Sandy,
Mary Anne, and Benjamin. Ben and his wife lived “as free persons, separate and apart, to
themselves,” but when Ben died in 1816 his family remained legally in bondage. The petitioners
argue that Ben intended to free them and was attempting to have a will drawn up to that effect
when he died. Petitioners {28}: Bracken, James; Evans, Lewis; Foster, William; Lehman, William
E.; Seip, F.
1819.
0166. Adams County. David Lawson, as executor of the will of Peyton Sterne, seeks to
emancipate three children—Washington, Walter, and Adeline—whose mother was “a colored
woman called Milly.” Lawson had emancipated Milly, and Sterne, who recently died, provided for
the freedom of her children in his will.
0174. Adams County. Benjamin Farar asks to emancipate Louisa and her daughter, Betsey, as
requested by Abraham Ellis in his will. “He is aware that it has been deemed inexpedient by
some of our best legislators to extend too freely to this unfortunate race of beings the
discretionary aid of the Legislature,” Farar explained, “at the same time it has almost always been
done in cases like the present, when the applicants had performed essential & faithful services to
their master, and had uniformly borne an excellent character."
0181. Jefferson County. Benjamin Bullen, a close friend of David Carradine, asks to emancipate
the woman Juliett, a faithful slave who nursed Carradine “during a long distressing and lingering
illness.” Carradine had owned Juliett until shortly before he died, when he sold her for $1 to
Bullen and asked him to see that she was emancipated. Juliett was twenty-four years of age and
worked as a house servant. She should be freed, Bullen said, because of her “services, honesty
and fidelity."
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1820.
0190. Franklin County. As the administrator of John Middleton’s estate, Bartlett Ford asks to sell
land rather than slaves to pay off debts. This, he writes, would be best for the heirs, who are still
young.
0193. Slave owner William Johnson, having previously freed the slave woman Amey in Louisiana,
now seeks to free Amey's son, William. Johnson asks the legislature for permission “to make that
disposition of his property most agreeable to his feelings & consonant to humanity.” He adds that
emancipation will “give that Liberty to a human being which all are entitled to as a Birthright, &
extend the hand of humanity to a rational creature, on whom unfortunately Complexion, Custom
& even Law in this Land of Freedom, has conspired to rivet the fetters of Slavery."
1821.
0196. About 1818, John Morin purchased his eighteen-month-old slave daughter, described as a
“quadroon” girl named Adele. Morin then went to the justice of the peace in Hancock County and
procured an “act of emancipation.” A short time later Morin died. His mother, Louise Favre,
discovered that the act was not valid. She asks the legislature for an act of emancipation to free
Adele. Favre states that she has six children by her former husband, Peter Morin, and that one of
them is threatening to keep Adele in bondage. The mother laments that she is growing old and
wants to respect her son's wish before she dies.
1822.
0204. Adams County. John Forsyth asks to emancipate Hannah, described as “of yellow
Complexion, Aged about forty years,” and previously owned by Edward Brooks. She was “Verry
faithful, honest, and diligent,” a nurse who tended to family and friends during the “malignant
fevers” in 1817 and 1819. She also saved her former master's property when his house was
going up in flames. Forsyth seeks permission for her to remain in the state and notes that he has
posted a bond guaranteeing that she will “never become a public charge.” Petitioners {30}:
Carson, John; Forsyth, John; Irwin, Walter; Whitney, Morris; Wren, Woodson.
0213. Jefferson County. Philip Harrison requests that the legislature fulfill the wishes of Adam
Rum, who in his will gave his “servant woman named Betty, her freedom after his death.”
0218. Jacques Andres of Natchez asks permission to emancipate a female “mulatto” slave who is
the daughter of Ema, a slave owned by the petitioner. He states that the girl, Maria Louisa, born
in 1820, “was regularly baptized according to the Holy ordinances of the Roman Catholic
Church."
0223. Monroe County. David Burton, Thomas Wright, and John Trail ask the legislature not to
emancipate certain slaves named in the will of Lawson Thompson, their brother-in-law. The
slaves were children, and Thompson's goal was to “gratify his ill will” toward the petitioners rather
than to reward meritorious service by the slaves.
1823.
0234. Adams County. A group of twenty-nine citizens ask the legislature to approve the
emancipation of Limerick, a fifty-year-old slave who paid his master $600 for his freedom.
Limerick, they write, “has ever been a faithful and trusty Slave,” and they believe “no injury will
arise to the community by means of his legal Emancipation.” Petitioners {29}: Chew, W. W.;
Grayson, B. R.; Mann, Isaac; Newman, E.; Nugent, John.
0240. Wilkinson County. The heirs and executors of deceased slaveholder Patrick Foley ask for
an act of emancipation for two slaves in Foley's estate: Sall and John. In his will Foley expressed
his desire to “manumit and set free from slavery” these two slaves. Sall, they explain, is about fifty
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years old and John, Foley hoped, would be bound to a trade and sent to Ohio. Petitioners {6}:
Brandon, Gerald C.; Chandler, Mary Ann; Evans, Francis A.; Evans, Lucy A.; Keary, Elizabeth.
0244. Claiborne County. Robert Cochran asks the legislature to pass acts of emancipation for two
slaves whom Cochran’s brother sought to free in his will. Executor of the will, Cochran states that
Patience and Gloster are mother and son and should be freed because of their “long & faithful
Services to both my deceased Brother [George Cochran] & myself."
0247. Adams County. As executor of Rebecca Franklin's estate, White Turpin asks to emancipate
Sylvia, “an old & Very harmless woman.” Franklin died and stipulated in her will that Sylvia should
be freed. [Editorial Note: date of petition is December 1824; petition out of chronological
sequence.]
0251. Pike County. J. A. McNabb seeks to “manumit a certain very aged negro woman named
Lucy” in accordance with the will of Michael Morris. For many years she had been a “faithful
servant,” though the petitioner states that he did not know if she had performed “meritorious
service.”
0254. Monroe County. John Smith and George Meaders, executors of the estate of Lawson
Thompson, seek an act of emancipation for slaves named in Thompson's will. They say that
Thompson “removed to the western Country for the express purpose of securing to them [his
slaves] their freedom."
1824.
[December 1824 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0247.]
0273. Jefferson County. The son of a white man by a woman of mixed race, Andrew Barland
married into “a respectable white family.” He states that he was always received and treated as a
white man. He had served as a juror, given testimony in court, voted, and “enjoyed all the
privileges of a free white Citizen.” A controversy arose when Joseph Hawk called into question
whether Barland should testify because Barland was a man of color. Barland writes to the
legislature that “his education, his habits, his principles, and his society are all identified with your
views.” Barland notes that he owns slaves and therefore “can know no other interest than that
which is common to the white population.” He asks, therefore, that the state “extend to your
petitioner such privileges as his countrymen may think him worthy to possess.”
0278. As executor of her late husband's will, Elizabeth Bullin seeks to emancipate the slave
Thomas. She says that Thomas was a “faithful servant” and that her husband, the physician
Benjamin M. Bullin, wished him to be free.
0281. Wilkinson County. Charles Bruce died in July 1823. His widow, Mary Bruce, states that she
was left with six small children and a very limited estate. The claims against the widow's property
amounted to more than $1,700. The personal estate sold for $2,372, “of which sum the three
slaves she purchased” amounted to $1,401. That left her only $971 to pay claims. She asks to
sell a parcel of land to pay off the debts. The slaves, she writes, were very necessary for her to
support herself and her children.
0286. Monroe County. John Smith and George Meaders, executors of the estate of Lawson
Thompson, seek an act of emancipation for certain slaves named in Thompson's will. During the
past year “some improper claims” were advanced by the heirs, they assert, but these should have
no bearing on the emancipation of the slaves.
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1825.
0294. Adams County. Andres seeks to emancipate the three-year-old slave Pauline because of
the “great fidelity” she had already “manifested towards him.” Andres states his unwillingness that
“she should remain in slavery during life."
0298. Jefferson County. Gaspar Sinclair seeks to emancipate James and Franky, husband and
wife, as “they have been to him the Kindest and best friends in his sickly and solitary course
through this life.” Sinclair also wishes to give them use of land for life and “as much personal
property as will be equal to all their wishes.” He also proposes giving his property to a poor infant
orphan “now in the care of your petitioner and these black friends, by the name of Ann Maria
Eliza Stephens."
0303. Wilkinson County. Thomas G. Ellis, a minor, states that he is entitled to a considerable
estate in land and slaves left him by his father. He asks the legislature to “pass a law declaring
him of full and legal Age” to take effect in the winter before his legal age is reached. This would
enable him to prepare for the next crop.
0307. Warren County. Benjamin Bedford, administrator of the estate of Dr. Thomas K. M. Elrath,
and Rebecca Cavens, Elrath's widow, seek permission to sell land rather than slaves to satisfy
debts against the estate. This would better serve the six children who were heirs and “whose
education, support, and maintenance depend alone on the proceeds of the labor of the negroes.”
Petitioners {3}: Bedford, Benjamin; Cavens, Elijah; Cavens, Rebecca.
1826.
0312. Adams County. In 1818, a slave named John was stolen from Samuel Martin by Philo
Andrews, a resident in the town of Washington. Andrews was arrested, put up a $2,000 bond,
and then fled prosecution. The bond went into the state treasury. Martin estimated his loss at
$900, plus an estimated $504 in interest (8 percent for eight years), and $100 in expenses,
including travel to court and to present the petition to the legislature. In all, he sought a total of
$1,500 in compensation.
1827.
0320. John Bryce purchased at a sheriff's auction in Wilkinson County a purported runaway slave
named George. When it was learned that George was in fact a free man of color named Harry
Anger, Bryce lost his purchase money ($301). He presented a claim to the county but received
only $187.03. He asks the legislature to make up the difference and pay him “the amount actually
paid into the treasury of his county."
0332. Amite County. In 1825, William Norman and James Hill were witnesses for the state
against John H. Watson, accused of stealing people of color. Watson was found guilty but gained
a retrial and then broke out of jail and escaped. The two witnesses seek reimbursement for the
expenses. There was no law, they said, “under which the Auditor can Audit our Claims."
0336. The guardian of five children who live in Louisiana and Mississippi asks permission to
remove thirteen slaves inherited by the minors into Louisiana. The guardian, Thomas H. Chew,
had married the widow of the children's father. Chew also asks to be relieved of responsibility for
the minors’ property in Louisiana.
0337. Mary Chew supports her husband's petition requesting the removal of thirteen of her
children's inherited slaves from Mississippi to Louisiana. The removal, she argues, would be best
for the children. Petitioners {3}: Alexander, William; Chew, Mary; Thomas, J. P.
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1828.
0342. Claiborne County. Willing to put up a good-behavior bond, Thomas Collen asks the
legislature to pass acts of emancipation for Mary Willis and her three children—Richard, age
about six, Daphne, age about three, and William, age about six months. Mary had “long been
recognized as a free woman and exercised the privileges of one."
0347. Warren County. In his last will and testament, Thomas Ferguson freed his “man servant
Reuben” for the “faithful and great service, rendered to him in sickness and in health.” Ferguson's
sister, Martha, asks the legislature to honor this “extraordinary fidelity."
1829.
0351. Wayne County. Rebecca Jones, guardian of daughters Vina, Darling, Polly, Emily, and
Catherine, asks permission to take the minors' property to Alabama. The property consists of a
few head of cattle and a female slave.
0356. Franklin County. A resident of West Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Dempsey Cain is the
guardian of a nephew whose estate is located in Mississippi. He asks permission to bring “a
Number of Valuable Slaves” belonging to his nephew, a minor, into Louisiana, where “he will be
able so to manage and transact the business of said Ward as to make his Estate produce a
greater profit.” In the part of Louisiana where he lived the labor of slaves was “more valuable and
productive” than in Mississippi.
0361. James Parker and E. Ogden ask the legislature to pass an act of emancipation to free a
slave named Hannah, a “woman of colour aged about forty year.” She was past childbearing age
and had always conducted herself as “a good and useful citizen in her sphere of action.” She
could post bond and was a person of “uniform good conduct.” Petitioners {33}: Buck, John L.;
Callender, L.; Ogden, E.; Parker, James P.; Robertson, John.
0367. Natchez barber William Hayden, a man of color, says that the Mississippi Act passed in
1822 concerning slaves and free people of color might well “produce absolute ruin to his
prospects.” He states that he has a good business, has a good reputation, and owns property. In
constant danger “of being driven from his home,” he asks for “a special act exempting him from
that part of the said act which requires his removal from the state."
1830.
0372. Jefferson County. Theodore Richey asks the legislature to pass an act of emancipation to
free a woman slave named Ama. Richey states that Ama married an “honest and industrious free
man of colour” who had saved his earnings and was willing to purchase her freedom. Ama was a
woman of good character and could provide adequate security against becoming a public charge.
0375. Citizens of Jefferson County support Theodore Richey's petition to emancipate Ama, who,
they say, “is and always has been remarkably honest, faithful and trust worthy.” Neither the state
nor any citizen would suffer any inconvenience if the emancipation were granted, they state.
Petitioners {13}: Bolls, Alex; Hughes, Philip O.; Jenings, D.; Torry, John M.; Torry, Neal.
0378. As administrator of the estate of Phillip Alston, James Enloe asks to emancipate Sam, a
slave about sixty years old. The slave was a man of “good character for honest fidelity and
correctness of deportment.” The recently deceased Alston had provided for Sam's freedom in his
will.
0381. Hinds County. Elizabeth Fort seeks remuneration from the state after her slave Henry was
executed for stabbing a white man with intent to kill. She is fifty-two years old and owns only two
other slaves, a man and a woman, “capable of serving her, & providing a support for her declining
years."
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0386. Jefferson County. Working and saving for many years, free man of color Jeremiah Gill
purchased his wife, Amy, and daughter, Betsey. Now being “advanced in years,” he asks the
legislature for an act of emancipation for his family. He feared that if he were to die his wife and
daughter might “through the tyranick grasp and relentless cupidity of some unfeeling wretch, be
deprived of that portion of liberty, which the sweat of your petitioner's humble brow has
purchased for them."
0396. Wilkinson County. As executor of Patrick Foley's estate, Francis Evans asks for the
emancipation of “a certain negro Slave named Burwell.” In his will Foley had stipulated that five
years after his death the slave should be freed. Evans was complying with this stipulation.
0405. Eleven Jefferson County residents ask for the emancipation of Elizabeth, a sixty- or
seventy-year-old slave. Elizabeth's owner, Isaac Corey, said on his deathbed that he wished her
to be freed and that after his debts were paid the residue of his estate should be paid to her. The
citizens seek to carry out Corey's final wish. Petitioners {11}: Baldwin, John; Duncan, John H.;
Lewis, Pierson; Mead, W. C.; Pipes, Isaac.
0413. Adams County. Thirty-three citizens of Natchez ask that Esther Barland, a free woman of
color, be permitted to remain in Mississippi. She should not be subject to the penalties of the
1822 act concerning “Slaves, free Negroes, and mulattoes,” they contend, because of her
industry. The governor's proclamation demanding rigid enforcement of the 80th and 81st sections
of the 1822 act caused her much anxiety. She is “much grieved at the idea of being driven from
the Land of her home and her friends to find shelter she Knows not where.” Petitioners {33}:
Hughes, I. J.; Nannuson, Wm.; Pukite, R. K.; Rowan, L. G.; Smith, John.
0419. Claiborne County. E. W. Haring asks the legislature to free his slave, Rose Alston, who
“has been a very faithful and obedient Servant to me for some years, and has through her
industry and Economy procured money enough to partly pay for herself.”
0424. Monroe County residents ask that Jasper A. McQuery be compensated for the upkeep and
support of an abandoned, insane black girl who was brought to the county in February 1829 and
left by an unknown person. The girl was “incapable of laboring for her support and is an object of
the greatest pity.” They also request the legislature “to make some permanent provision for like
cases in the future.” Petitioners {85}: Bickerstaff, Johnson; Daggett, L.; Lucey, J. B.; Niles, J. M.;
Watson, Josiah N.
1831.
0429. Monroe County. The petitioners ask that John Thompson be compensated for caring for a
young woman of color named Mary Ann. They state that Jasper McQuarey had refused to care
for the woman any longer and that John Thompson had agreed to assume the responsibility.
Mary Ann is “a perfect ediot,” they explain, and “the laws of humanity enjoin that she should not
be permitted to perrish.” Petitioners {68}: Buckingham, Thomas; Cocke, Stephen; Echot, Lucious;
Fisher, John; Symes, Edward.
0433. Covington County. Jacob Duckworth seeks compensation for expenses incurred pursuing,
apprehending, and prosecuting a man of color named Henry, who murdered Duckworth's slave,
Peter. Duckworth journeyed into Alabama, through the Choctaw Nation, and as far as Baton
Rouge, Louisiana, before catching up with the fugitive. His expenses, “labor and travelling,”
amounted to $229.25.
0444. Hinds County. Lewis Glover asks to free a slave named Rachel, who served him with
“industry, honesty, and fidelity” for many years.
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0447. Claiborne County. John Thomson seeks to emancipate his slave, Cato Buck, who “by his
own industry and economy has saved sufficient money to pay & satisfy his owner for his time and
services.” Having paid his master so much, the forty-year-old Buck “considers it a hardship that
he should now be held in bondage; that his freedom at this time, would be nothing more than
what is due to industry & fidelity."
0451. Wilkinson County. John Collins seeks to manumit a slave named Catharine and her child,
Dulcinia, according the will of his late brother, William B. Collins.
0455. Adams County. Upon the death of her half-brother, Jane Randolph, an infant, inherited
forty slaves and about 460 acres of land. Her guardian, R. C. Randolph of Natchez, asks
permission to sell the property because he does not have time to manage the slaves properly.
Rather, he would prefer to sell the land and slaves at one-third cash, the balance on credit of one
or two years with interest, and invest in bank stock.
1832.
0463. Adams County residents seek the emancipation of Grainger Butler Green, a man of
integrity, upright conduct, and high principles, “an exception to any Negro they [the petitioners]
are acquainted with.” He was freed in the will of his master, the late James Green, and he would
never abuse his freedom. Petitioners {15}: Hutchins, John; Railey, J.; Throckmaster, R. L.;
Turner, E.; Washington, Henry W.
0466. Warren County. Elizabeth Jones and others seek to emancipate Joe, a slave owned by the
late Eve Hyland, who stipulated in her will that if Joe paid her heirs $500, his appraised value, he
should be freed. Joe was well-behaved, industrious, honest, and would not “become a state
charge.” He had paid the money and should now be emancipated. Petitioners {7}: Gloss, James;
Hyland, Frances; Jones, Elizabeth; Kirkwood, Mary; Steele, Claiborne.
1833.
0474. Lowndes County. The executor of Benjamin Nail's estate, Nathan Rea of Lowndes County,
explains that Nail did, by his will, “manumit liberate & set Free” a black woman named Delila. Rea
seeks legislative approval for the emancipation.
0481. Adams County. As executor of the late Mary H. Green's estate, James Railey asks to
emancipate an elderly woman named Aggy, or Aggy Butler Green, on account of her “meritorious
conduct and faithful services.” As executor and trustee of the late James Green's estate, Railey
seeks to “liberate and set free a negro man slave” named Grainger, or Grainger Butler Green, for
his “faithful services and meritorious conduct.”
0489. Relatives and heirs of the late Timothy Terrell of Warren County ask to emancipate Eliza
and Charles, the daughter and son of the slave Patty, in accordance with Terrell's last will and
testament. Petitioners are desirous that the “humane and benevolent intentions of said testator
may be carried into effect.” Petitioners {4}: Blunt, James R.; Collins, Jane; Terrell, James; Terrell,
Samuel.
0495. Simpson County residents write in behalf of Enoch Perritt, “a yellow man or one of that
Class of our Citizens whom the Laws of this State term Mulatto and that under those Laws the
said Enoch is taxed to the amount of about Seven dollars per annum.” Such an amount, they
assert, is oppressive. Enoch is a blacksmith by trade, peaceable and temperate, one of the most
useful “Citizens of the County.” The petitioners ask that he be “placed on a footing with other free
Citizens of the State” with regard to taxation. Also they ask that he may be protected by “the laws
of this state in relation of proving open accounts extended to him as to other individuals.”
Simpson County Petitioners {59}: Bennett, Henry C.; Brooks, James; Clark, Q. B.; Farrington,
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Daniel; Freeman, John. Simpson County Petitioners {22}: Boggan, Joseph; Caraway, Laban;
Harvey, William; Powell, Benjamin; Stokes, William.
0503. Citizens of Jefferson and Claiborne counties seek to emancipate Richard Sanders, “one of
the most worthy and faithful Negros in the State.” Sanders, age about forty, is an excellent
ginwright, they state. Even while paying his master, Colonel Daniel Burnett, “full wages” he had
saved enough to purchase his own freedom. Petitioners {109}: Carpenter, H.; Davis, William;
McDougall, N.; Shaifer, A. K.; Whiting, Amos.
0509. Franklin County. Micajah Pickett, guardian of his grandson, James Knox Pickett, and
manager of James's estate, asks permission to sell two slaves from the estate: “one a very old
negro man aged about 70 years named Peter—and a negro woman named Christian more than
forty years of age.” They would be sold to Louisiana slaveholders Nathan and James C. Knox,
owners of Peter's wife and Christian's husband, as partial credit for debts owed to them by the
estate.
0514. William Tolar and Rolin Williams seek compensation for expenses incurred apprehending
three escaped prisoners from the Simpson County jail. The three included Samuel Pool, charged
with larceny, and two slaves held as runaways. The pursuers “ran great risk & peril of their lives.”
Tolar was severely cut by one of the slaves and unable to do “any Kind of labour for near two
months."
1834.
0517. Adams County. Natchez resident Robert Bradley asks for the “privilage of Amansipating”
his dutiful slave, Emory Wilson, whom he had owned for thirteen or fourteen years. Wilson was
about twenty-six years old.
1852.
0520. Wilkinson County residents request additional patrols and better enforcement of the laws.
They argue that such measures are needed because of “a certain class of lawless and
unprincipled persons, whose chief occupation is illegal traffic with negroes, bartering whiskey for
pigs, poultry, meal, corn &c., &c., thus corrupting the morals and injuring the health of the
negroes, to the great detriment of their owners, and the imminent danger of the community.” They
also note that “it is a common practice with shop-keepers, particularly during the Christmas
Holidays, to have, in and about their shops, crowds of negroes, drinking, fiddling, dancing,
singing, cursing, swearing, whooping, and yelling, to the great annoyance and scandal of all
respectable and order loving persons.” The petitioners ask the legislature to make it illegal to
“encourage or allow any noisy or clamorous assembly of negroes, about his or her store or shop.”
Petitioners {63}: Cage, William L.; Hunter, John; Lovelace, P. E. H.; Rodney, W. O.; Scudder,
W. R.
1854.
0523. Pike County. Robert Bacot asks for reimbursement of $50 paid to slave catcher Isaac
Brumfield for the apprehension of an escaped prisoner, a slave named Green who was charged
with the attempted rape of a white woman.
1857.
0528. Rankin County. An aging Louis Curan asks to manumit his slave, Letty, and her four
children: Rosina, age seven; Sarah, age four; Henry, age two-and-a-half; and Hiram, age one. He
points to the “Meritorious Services rendered by the said slave Letty for the last ten years” as his
justification. Once freed the slaves would be required to leave the state within three months.
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0532. Claiborne County. The friends and relatives of William Adams petition the legislature to
permit the twenty-year-old slave owner “to take charge and manage” his own affairs. He has the
skill and economy to do so, they assert.
0534. Oktibbeha County. William Bell requests compensation for expenses incurred during the
prosecution of J. J. Rainwater, convicted of “trafficking & bartering with slaves.” Rainwater was “a
dangerous man in a slave community,” inducing bondsmen to steal from their masters. One of
Bell's slaves, for example, stole $260 from him and took the money to Rainwater, who
“appropriated it to his own use.” Bell retained attorneys and paid their fees. When a criminal
indictment was handed down, Rainwater fled to parts unknown, forfeiting $500 in securities. Bell
seeks a portion of the forfeiture.
1859
0539. In the summer of 1858, a slave named Peter, owned by Dr. E. A. Miller of Wayne County,
was employed on the railroad near the town of Enterprise. The petitioners claim that Peter
“caught and by force violated the person of a beautiful young Lady by Committing a Rape.”
Captured the same day, he was jailed and tried within twenty-four hours. In the presence of the
young woman and her parents, Peter was tried and found guilty by a jury sitting in magistrate
court. That night he was taken from jail by a mob and hanged. A committee of five townspeople
seek compensation for Miller for the loss of his property. Petitioners {5}: Hand, J.; Houze, H. L.;
Moody, L. B.; Smith, W. B.; Wier, R. S.
0544. Albert W. Dunbar, guardian of the estate of Dr. James P. McPheeters of Adams County,
purchased in 1858 for the widow and her eight children a plantation on the Black River in
Catahoula Parish, Louisiana. He then transported the slaves belonging to the estate to Louisiana
and worked them on the plantation. Durnbar was an experienced planter, the petitioners aver,
and this was the best way to use the slaves. The widow and her children explain that because of
the minor status of five of the children, the removal of the slaves needs an “Enabling Act.” They
ask the legislature to pass such an act. Petitioners {5}: Dunbar, Albert W.; McPheeters, Ann C.;
McPheeters, Gabriel P.; McPheeters, Martha; McPheeters, William A.
0548. Hancock County. The mayor and others in the town of Shieldsborough write in behalf of
twenty-seven free persons of color who are “useful members of the Community.” They request
that they be exempted from a bill now before the legislature that would “exclude from this state all
the Free Negroes and mulattoes without any distinction, after the First of July A.D. 1860.”
Euphrosine Labat was the widow of Joseph Labat. Other free persons of color mentioned in the
petition (all relatives of the Labats) include Adele and Louis Puernas, and their children, Louisne,
Mimi, Louis, and Osthaire; Joseph Labat and Celestine Labat and their children, Charles, Honore,
and Cloraine; Aimee Labat; Sylverne Labat; Oierre Labat; and the grandchildren of Euphrosine
and Joseph Jolly, and Gracieuse Jolly. Petitioners {59}: Carver, Elihu; Euger, R.; Johnston, D. W.;
Monet, J. C.; Relman, James A.
0553. Forty-four citizens of Hinds County write in behalf of Joseph Nelson, a good house
carpenter who is “sober & respectful in his deportment.” They request that he be exempted from
the pending bill designed to drive free persons of color from the state. Petitioners {44}: Bankston,
N. W.; Dabney, A.; Gray, J. L.; Latimer, George; Marshall, S. G.
0557. Fifty-three citizens of Kemper County write in behalf of Gillam, a free person of color “of
good character” and a carpenter by trade. They request that he be exempted from the pending
bill designed to drive free people of color from the state. Petitioners {53}: Halsell, William;
High, C. M.; Lipscomb, J. L.; McCaleb, P.; Swann, William B.
0559. Forty-four citizens of Hinds County write in behalf of A. Chevis, who “has conducted himself
with honesty, sobriety, & humbleness; never having, to our Knowledge, indulged in any Conduct
Calculated to render his residence here objectionable.” He had worked as a barber and
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bricklayer. His wife was a slave, and they had eight slave children. The petitioners request that he
be exempted from the pending bill designed to drive free people of color from the state.
Petitioners {44}: Drane, Richard F.; Gray, James; Hunter, T. J.; Latimer, George; Sivley, H.
0563. Residents of Copiah County say that free person of color John Hunter “universally deported
himself in an humble and praise worthy manner.” He was a carpenter by trade. They request that
he be exempted from the pending bill designed to drive free people of color from the state.
Petitioners {127}: Deason, Edmund B.; King, Benjamin; Morgan, Thomas S.; Sellers, James C.;
Strahan, William.
0567. Warren County residents say that Green, a free man of color, is sober, industrious, and
very useful as a planters' supply man. He had lived in the area nearly thirty years, and his wife
also resides on the Harris plantation. They request that he be exempted from the bill pending in
the Senate designed to drive free blacks from the state. The bill, they said, had passed the
House. Petitioners {181}: Bland, John C.; Harris, James C.; Harris, Samuel; Harris, R. W., Jr.;
Steele, F. N.
0572. Warren County residents say that Green, a free person of color, is a very useful ginwright
and supplier. He had lived in the area nearly thirty years. They request that he be exempted from
the bill designed to drive free blacks from the state. Petitioners {15}: Barnes, George;
Clark, Peter; Gee, John T.; Jett, Thomas N.; Laughton, E. C.
0576. Hinds County residents support Edward Hill, a free man of color residing in the town of
Raymond. Hill, a blacksmith, was temperate, honest, and industrious and managed an extensive
and successful business. They request that he be exempted from the pending bill designed to
drive free people of color from the state. Petitioners {156}: Alston, P. M.; Bankston, H. K.;
Bankston, N. W.; Peyton, John B.; Weldon, George.
0583. Adams County. Natchez free woman of color Agnes Eahart asks for a special license to
remain in Mississippi. She is the mother of many children—Elizabeth, Andrew, Mary, Margaret,
David, Napoleon, Emma, Elina, William, Almon, and Melvin—all born free; and she can post a
$5,000 good-behavior bond.
0586. The undersigned legal voters of Adams County observe that there are certainly “vicious
and evil disposed” free people of color, but there are also those “who have spent a life here free
from reproval, or even the suspicions of improper conduct.” Any law that may be passed to expel
free black people should take this into account. The city's Board of Police should be given the
authority to discriminate between the loyal and disloyal and remove only the “unworthy.”
Petitioners {21}: Davis, Thomas T.; Foules, H. L.; Fowler, David; Thorn, John H.; Williams,
David P.
0590. Warren County whites ask that a sixty-year-old free black man who fought as a soldier in
the War of 1812 be permitted to remain in the state. Petitioners {33}: Adams, W. J.; Hill, Herbert
W.; Lakeman, Francis M.; Parks, Samual G.; Patterson, John E.
0594. Adams County. Recently deceased William Ferguson bequeathed “certain negro slaves &
their increase” in trust to Benadam Pendleton, executor of his estate, to be hired out for the
benefit of Francis Ferguson and, after Ferguson's death, for the benefit of Ferguson's children.
Pendleton asks that he be permitted to hire the blacks out in Louisiana because of the higher
wages for hired slaves in that state.
0598. Holmes County. Wilson Melton and John Sproles ask that Wesley Moore, “a free man of
Yellow Complexion,” be exempted from the bill designed to drive free people of color from the
state. Moore had lived in Mississippi since 1834, was married to a slave owned by one of the
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petitioners, and had several children owned by the petitioner. Moore was about forty-six years
old. If he could not receive an exemption then he wished to enter slavery to be with his family.
0601. Illiterate free man of color Joe Bird, born of free parents, asks to “elevate himself from his
present condition into Slavery.” Having lived in the state nearly twenty years, he had a wife and
children and wished to remain with them. He asked to become the slave of Robert Graham.
0604. Tippah County. Illiterate free black man Wilson Jackson states that “he is desirous under
the late law passed” by the legislature “of going into slavery upon condition that he may elect his
owner.” The white man he elects to become property of is James T. Craig.
0607. Illiterate free man of color Jesse Russell asks the legislature to pass a special act to make
him the property of James Tapley of Hinds County.
0609. Itawamba County. Illiterate free man of color Billard Filmore seeks a special act making him
a slave for life to James J. Lindsey, a lawyer in the town of Fulton. At a recent court session,
Filmore had been charged with attempted murder of a slave. He was desirous of procuring
counsel in his defense and was “looking to the law recently passed by your Honorable body
respecting free Mulattos in Said State."
0612. Free born William Webster asks for a special act allowing him to become the slave of a
physician in the town of Charleston, Tallahatchie County. Webster is not only indebted to the
physician, Dr. Atheral Ball, but is attached to him and “does not wish to be removed from his
possession."
0614. The son of a white woman, free man of color Johan Perrot seeks a special act allowing him
to become the slave of Reverend Charles Hailey. He had journeyed with Hailey from Anson
County, North Carolina, in 1844 as an apprentice and settled with him in Kemper County. He was
now about twenty-three years old and viewed Hailey as “a Kind Master and friend.” For the past
two years Perrot had been an invalid. He would “vastly prefer going into Slavery, than to be
compelled to leave.” [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames 0616–0617.]
0615. Kemper County citizens most respectfully pray that the petition of free man of color Johan
Perrot be granted as consistent with “good policy.” Petitioners {33}: Adcock, John; Hailey, John;
Hailey, L. D.; Willis, Peter; Wilson, William. [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames
0617–0618.]
0619. Free man of color Joseph Nelson asks for an exemption from the law forcing free black
people to leave the state. He had arrived in Mississippi as a child in 1835 and had lived in Hinds
County ever since. He has a wife and children who are slaves belonging to Judge A. Dabney of
the town of Raymond.
0621. Franklin County. Ann Caldwell, free woman of color, asks for a special act allowing her to
remain in the state. She is willing to give bond “for her behavior & that she will not be chargeable
to the State or any County in which she may be permitted to reside.” Previously the slave of
Margaret Camron of Natchez, who was confined for years with pulmonary consumption, Caldwell
served as a faithful nurse and was rewarded with her freedom.
0624. Franklin County. Ann Caldwell, a free woman of color, asks for a special act allowing her to
remain in the state. She is willing to give bond “for her good behavior & that She will not be
chargeable to the State, or any county in which she may be permitted to reside.” Previously the
slave of Margaret Camron of Natchez, who was confined for years with pulmonary consumption,
Caldwell served as a faithful nurse and was rewarded with her freedom.
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0628. Hinds County. Free people of color Howard Cash and his wife ask for a special act allowing
them to remain in the state. Howard had purchased his freedom, and his wife had been born free.
Both were elderly, and if “it may please the Almighty to spare their lives, they will endeavour to
demean themselves as good and loyal Subjects to the State."
0632. Thomas Boone, guardian of the minor Sallie Knox, sold a slave belonging to his ward for
$1,750 in the state of Alabama. He was motivated to do so because the slave had a wife and
refused to move to Mississippi. Having been informed that the sale was illegal (he should have
sought permission from the Carroll County Court), Boone asks the legislature to pass an act to
confirm and ratify the sale.
0636. Warren, Jasper, and Clarke Counties. Eighty-one citizens of Jasper and Clarke counties
write on behalf of Dick Dale, a free man of color who was the body servant of General Samuel
Dale in the “Indians Wars.” Dale performed meritorious service attending to his wounded master.
Dale was now in his early sixties and in ill health, and the residents ask the legislature to pass a
bill exempting him “from the penalties of the Act requiring free persons to leave the state & that
he be authorized to remain in this state as a free man of Color.” Petitioners {81}: Dease, O. C.;
Hyde, A. J.; Hyde, Jesse; Markham, J. G.; Walton, J. J.
0640. Kemper County citizens most respectfully pray that the petition of free man of color Johan
Perrot be granted as consistent with “good policy.” Petitioners {33}: Adcock, John; Hailey, John;
Hailey, L. D.; Willis, Peter; Wilson, William. [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames
0617–0618.]
1860.
0642. Harrison County. Ninety-eight citizens of Pass Christian petition the legislature to exempt
certain free persons of color named within from the pending bill to force free blacks to leave the
state. The free people of color were mostly descendants of Charles Asmar, who was
emancipated by Madam Asmar sometime before 1783. Members of the family were land owners
and “well known to the Undersigned as good, peaceable, orderly, industrious, worthy and useful
members of the Community.” Petitioners {98}: Berean, F. F.; Lainge, Thomas L.; Lightfoot,
William B.; Shepard, J. A.; Smith, L. D.
0647. Clarke County. Seventy-nine citizens of Clarke County write in behalf of “General” John
Harkins, an elderly free man of color who had purchased his freedom. They ask “that the
Legislature may exempt him from the operation of any law they may pass requiring the free
negroes of this State to emigrate, or be sold into slavery.” Petitioners {79}: Baldwin, E.; Reynolds,
Benjamin, Jr.; Wier, F. D.; Wier, W. W.; Williams, Thomas.
0650. Hinds County. Roseanna, a free woman of color, asks the legislature to pass a law making
her the slave of Calvin Bolls.
0653. Nineteen citizens of Wilkinson County write on behalf of free man of color Titus Hill, who
had never been guilty of “a single mean, or dishonest act.” He was about sixty years old and had
acquired between four thousand and five thousand dollars worth of property. “We approve the
policy of the general law prohibiting free negroes from remaining in this state, but think, that in
consideration of Titus Hill's old age, his honesty and energy as a man and his good behavior as a
citizen, a special act should be passed for his benefit.” Petitioners {19}: Hoff, Joseph B.; McLain,
Enoch B.; Ratcliff, Charles; Ratcliff, Peter; Stewart, C. E.
0656. Seventy-six citizens of Clarke County write on behalf of Lewis, a free man of color, who by
“honest industry has purchased his own freedom and that of his wife.” They ask the legislature to
exempt him from any law that might pass “requiring free negroes of this State to emigrate, or be
sold into slavery.” Petitioners {76}: Chandler, G. C.; Cochran, John; Davis, Thomas G.; Gill, Sam
C.; Woolerton, Thomas.
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0660. Ten citizens of Wilkinson County write in behalf of Peter Antoine, a free person of color,
requesting that he be permitted to remain in the state “on good behavior.” Antoine “has a slave
wife and children here.” Petitioners {10}: Dorsey, John; Green, William; Len, J.; Rea, William D.;
Taylor, W. A.
0662. Marshall County. Free woman of color Ann Archie asks the legislature “to pass an act to
empower her & and her infant child [Julia] to become the slaves of Andrew H. Caldwell” rather
than be forced to emigrate from the state.
0664. Citizens of Carroll County write on behalf of Wiley Wiggins, a twenty-two-year-old free
person of color who had lived in the area six years. Whereas a late act of the legislature denied
free blacks the right to remain in the state past 1 August 1860 without express permission of an
act of the legislature, they ask the legislature to grant Wiggins permission to remain in
Mississippi. Petitioners {57}: Gordin, G. G.; Hairston, W. H.; Harper, S. A.; Hearn, J. A.; Hudson,
C. L. [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames 0666–0667.]
0665. Campbell County. The petitioners testify “our approval of the law passed your body, for the
purpose of freeing our state from Free Negroes, and also our wish that it will be executed without
exceptions whatever.” Petitioners {9}: Davis, David; Durham, John; Durham, S. J.; Kennedy,
T. H.; McBride, E. C. [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames 0668–0669.]
0671. Marshall County jailer C. T. Furr requests compensation for expenses incurred while
housing a slave named Anthony, accused of burning a gin house. Anthony was tried and
released. Incarcerated 26 October 1858, he remained in jail until 19 April 1859, a total of 166
days. At 40 cents per day, and $2 for two turnkeys, the county should be reimbursed $68.40.
0674. Marshall County. Emmarilla Jeffries, a free woman of color, requests that the legislature
pass an act enabling her and her children to become the slaves of E. W. Ward. Her husband and
sister are slaves, and she wants to remain “in the service of a gentleman who has Kindly provided
for her wants.” With a law about to be passed forcing free blacks out of the state, she asks for
permission to remain in Mississippi.
0678. Thirty citizens of Kemper County write in behalf of free man of color Will Reed, “a faithful
and quiet negro” who had always been trustworthy and honest. He had bought himself for $935.
They ask that he be exempt from an act of the legislature that would force him to leave the state
or be sold into slavery. They said that the act had been “lately passed and approved.” Petitioners
{30}: Donald, S. D.; Gooing, J. H.; Hickman, S. F.; Hickman, W. A.; Reed, A.
0681. Kemper County whites write in behalf of free man of color Will Reed, a quiet man who had
always been trustworthy and honest. He bought and paid for himself, saving $935 to do so. They
ask that he be exempt from an act of the legislature that would force him to leave the state or be
sold into slavery. They said that the act had been “lately passed and approved.” Petitioners {62}:
Allen, W. F.; Bird, E. P.; Cook, Henry; Meredith, Elisha; Meredith, T. J.
0686. A committee appointed by the citizens of Enterprise complains about “travelling agents of
various kinds from abroad” who promote “insubordination of our slave population.” They ask the
legislature to pass an act requiring these agents to obtain a license in the county to transact
business. Petitioners {3}: Holland, O. S.; Price, W. S.; Woolerton, Thomas.
1861.
0690. Holmes County citizens write on behalf of William T. Hopson, a minor between the ages of
eighteen and nineteen years old who “is the owner of considerable real and personal property”
bequeathed him by his mother. For the past two years he had been in charge of a plantation and
its hands. They request that “he be relieved from the disability of minority by Legislative
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enactment.” This would permit him to take charge of his own business affairs. Petitioners {8}:
Boyle, William; Hoskins, Samuel; Levy, M.; Povall, J. P.; Walton, W. W.
1862.
0694. Sarah Garrett was indicted and found guilty on three charges of “permitting her slaves to go
at large and trade as freemen.” She was fined $500 in each case. Citizens of Madison County
request that an act be passed “remitting the fine imposed in said cases” because she was “utterly
ignorant of the existence of the law under which she was indicted.” A widow with four children—
including two in the army and another recently killed in the war—she was forced to permit the
slaves to “hire their time” to support herself and her remaining child. The slaves hired out as a
barber and as draymen. Petitioners {31}: Gurley, A. M.; Noonan, B. H.; Noonan, P. T.; Thompson,
Charles; Wood, C. W.
1863.
0697. Clarke County. Reese Price requests compensation for his slave, Anthony, who died from
exposure after being impressed to work on fortifications near Columbus, Mississippi. Anthony
was a mechanic and one of only three male and two female adults Price had to work on his farm.
Although he owned twenty slaves, he notes that the others are children under thirteen years of
age.
1864.
0705. James A. Mayfield, sheriff and tax collector of Issaquena County, asks that he “may be
released from his bonds as tax collector.” He states that conditions in the county are such that
any “attempt to collect taxes or execute any other legal process would be idle and absurd.” He
states that slaves are no longer being sold at auction “for the want of bidders."
0710. Pike County. The petitioners state that the slave women Mary and Tena plotted to murder
several “helpless” white families and to destroy the property of their masters by setting fire to a
store, a warehouse, and “several dwelling houses.” The two women were captured as they
sought to “flee to their friends—the Yankees—for protection.” They were hanged. The owners of
the store also owned the slaves and seek compensation for their losses. Petitioners {3}: Cerf, J.;
Hiller, H.; Wolf, Samual.
0714. Twelve citizens of Madison County request the legislature to pass various laws restricting
railroad employees to “Southern raised men or their slaves.” They state that they “apprehend no
danger from our blacks—they are by us as strong as can unite man to man, our true friends—the
danger we dread is from base white men, from the free soil states who having waited in vain for
that manifestation of discontent among the servile population…are determined with unparalleled
effrontery to attempt to hasten our destruction by overt acts of their own.” Thus not only should
the legislature pass the railroad laws but it should also require the sheriffs of the state to provide
the names of those who refuse to swear allegiance to the state of Mississippi or to the
Confederacy. Petitioners {12}: Baldwin, F. M.; Brooks, W. L.; Brown, Peter; Luckett, Oliver A., Sr.;
Samuel, Alex.
1865.
0719. Residents of Claiborne County request relief from pre–Civil War contracts—deeds,
mortgages, liens, bills of exchange, promissory notes, accounts—made predicated on slave
labor. Some of these debts could never be paid, and it was not fair for the sheriff to seize cotton,
land, and stock when both Confederate and Federal troops had confiscated private property.
They ask that a “Court of Equity and Insolvency” be established to hear their cases since they are
no longer able to pay debts “predicated on Slave labor.” Petitioners {79}: Clarke, C. B.; Greenlee,
W. A.; McCaleb, Edwin H., Sr.; Owen, H. H.; Scott, R. B.
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0724. Madison County. W. S. G. Walker requests compensation in the amount of three thousand
dollars for his slave named Caroline, who died in jail awaiting trial on charges of burning Walker’s
house. Due to the war, the circuit court was held neither in November 1861 nor April 1862, and,
after fifteen months in jail, the slave died.
1866.
0728. Citizens of Simpson County ask that Lewis Dixon be granted all the rights and privileges of
white men. Dixon's mother was white; he was three generations removed from the “African race”;
and he had never associated with “recently made Freedmen.” Petitioners {58}: King, R. B.;
May, James; Patterson, A.; Patterson, J. K.; Patterson, R. P.
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0001. Descriptive material.
1777.
0008. New Hanover County. Alexander Campbell states that he arrived in America in 1775 but
that his principal fortune lay in St. Vincent, Grenada, and Jamaica. Because of the nonimportation
act in North Carolina he was unable to bring his slaves into this country. This “Disappointment
has made it Difficult for your Petitioner to Support his Family ever Since.” Should he sign the state
oath he might be denied access to his property in the islands. He appeals to the legislature to
allow him to remain in the state until peace exists or until he can gain access to a ship to the
islands.
1779.
0012. In behalf of the inhabitants in the upper section of Bladen County, Jacob Alford explains
that he and his neighbors live in “Constant dread & Fear of Being Robbed and Murdered by a Set
of Robbers and Horse Thiefs.” The robbers, mostly “mulattoes,” number about forty. The
petitioners seek to obtain guns to protect themselves and ask for “Relief As Your Goodness may
Think proper."
1780.
0016. Chowan County. The petitioners complain about an inequitable tax structure in which
money and stock, not being assessed, were taxed higher than slaves, who were assessed but at
considerably less than their market value. They request that money be taxed at the same rate as
slaves. Petitioners {29}: Allen, Nathaniel; Bennett, William; Dickinson, L.; Hardy, Rob; Littlejohn,
William.
1781.
0023. Taken prisoner by the British in March 1781, Thomas Cabeen of Crosscreek was released
as a “prisoner on parole.” When the British left, however, he found himself under suspicion. While
he was away on a business trip, a group of patriots went to his house, threatened his wife, and
confiscated his female slave. The petitioner requests that his slave be returned.
0026. On behalf of a committee representing Franklin County, John Robinson tells of the tax
burdens of local residents. “Black Slave Children” were to be taxed so high while still a charge to
their owners; young black men were taxed lower “than a Black Suckling.” They seek relief.
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1782.
0031. Orange County. The petitioner requests compensation for three slaves taken from her late
husband by John Hinton, who sold them after obtaining a judgment in the Wake County court.
The widow charges that the judgment is bogus since the two men never had any financial
dealings. Petitioner: Thompson, Martha.
0034. Hertford County. Joseph Benthall requests that Joseph Wood, a justice of the peace in
Northampton County, be removed from office. He charges that Wood illegally seized a slave
owned by Susanna Benthall, his ward, and then falsely accused him of stealing the slave. In
tracing the events that led to Wood's action, Benthall explained that his ward's “Negro Wench
named Hagar had been secretly conveyed out of the County near four years ago.” Benthall
searched and found her, now with a child, in Edgecomb County and took her to Northampton. A
short time later Wood appeared and seized the slaves, shooting Benthall's brother in the process.
0039. Quakers in the Eastern Quarter ask for the repeal of “acts which now prevent Freedom,
tolerating such” persons of color who “may receive Liberty by any of our Society, to enjoy it,
without danger of being again Reduced to Bondage.” As reasons for their request, they cite the
love of Jesus Christ and the injunction of “our Blessed Lord, 'To do unto others as we would they
should do unto us.'” Petitioner: Munden, Levi.
0043. Warren County. Guardian John Jones requests reimbursement for having paid taxes on
some of his ward's property twice. Jones notes that the estate of Joseph John Alston, his ward, is
in Halifax County, where all the slaves except one live, and Chatham County, where his ward's
land is located. In 1781, Jones was forced to pay taxes in both counties, one an estate tax and
the other a land tax. He asks for relief.
1784.
0049. Chowan County. The petitioners, representing the merchants and traders of Edenton,
request that the legislature repeal a new tax on all merchandise, including slaves, sold at public
auctions. The tax is two pounds ten shillings on every hundred pounds. Petitioners {34}: Allen,
Nathaniel; Bennett, William; Cabarrus, S.; Dickinson, L.; Iredell, James.
1785.
0057. Halifax County. The petitioner requests that the legislature return to her the unsold portion
of her late husband's confiscated estate. The mother of many children and now returned to her
“native County,” she asks for restitution for “herself and her innocent and helpless Children.”
Some of the property—including slaves Mungale, Bobb, Ceasar, and Hannah—was confiscated
for debt. Petitioner: Miller, Elizabeth.
0064. Charleston District. Dr. Robert Thomas Hornby requests a patent for his Horizontal Wind
Machine, used for beating rice, draining ditches, manufacturing indigo, grinding wheat, sawing
lumber, and drawing shingles. The machine would be of great benefit to planters who are well
acquainted “with the heavy expence and labour (not to mention the mortality of Negroes)
attending the usual mode of beating rice & Indigo."
1787.
0071. The property of James McNeill of Halifax County was confiscated and sold. Claiming onethird of the estate, as decreed by the county court, Fanny McNeill asks for $270, the proceeds
from the sale of three slaves owned by James McNeill, from Joseph Clinch of Nash County.
0073. Having left for West Africa in December 1785, a slave ship outfitted by Henry Hill and
Thomas Fitt returned to North Carolina in 1787 to find that a law had been passed placing a duty
of five pounds on each imported African slave. The law took effect in December 1786. They
argued that it was unfair to penalize them when they could do nothing to avoid the penalty.
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0078. A few years before, William Parham and his father had journeyed to the residence of a
widow named Cox in Halifax County and retrieved at gunpoint a slave owned by Parham’s father.
Charged with trespass, Parham put up a bond of two hundred pounds. When he did not appear in
court he forfeited the bond and now asks the legislature, “being a poor man with a large
increasing family,” for relief.
0082. Executor of the last will and testament of Major General John Ashe, Samuel Ashe seeks
relief for the general's heirs, charged 6,385 pounds “depreciated Money” for an unpaid debt.
During the Revolution, the general had been forced to flee from British troops invading
Wilmington; shortly before leaving, with the assistance of a black man, he buried his papers.
Unfortunately, the general died a short time later, and when the papers were dug up, Ashe says,
they were either defaced or destroyed. The papers would have proved that the claims being
made against his estate were false.
0087. Perquimans County. The owner of a slave who was hanged for robbery claims that his
agent sold the man “at the time the Negroe was taken into custody.” The purchaser refuses to
pay part of the purchase price. Left to “Arbitration,” the owner's agent was forced to refund the
purchaser his money. Harvey Thomas, the owner, asks for compensation.
1788.
[November 1788 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0115.]
0090. William Delaney requests reimbursement for medical expenses incurred while recovering
from a wound received while helping put down a slave insurrection “Ex[c]ited by John Seveir &
Others in the District of Washington.” During a confrontation on the plantation of John Tipton,
Delaney was wounded in his right arm. The wounds were so severe that he was unable to
conduct any type of business for five months. Moreover, he was forced to hire someone to “dress
his wounds & take care of him” during that period.
0094. A slave named Peter absconded from his master in Brunswick County but was captured
after robbing a henhouse near Wilmington. Although armed, he put up no resistance; but he was
nonetheless tried, convicted, and executed. His master believes Peter was used as an example
to instill “terror into a Gang of Runaways who infested the said Town & neighbourhood.” Peter's
former owner asks for compensation. Petitioner: Lucas, Thomas.
1789.
0098. Robert Rayford's servant, Parker Rogers, acted as a piper in the U.S. Army, as evidenced
by the muster rolls. Rayford sold his slave but requests to draw back pay for allowing his slave to
serve the common good in such a manner.
0103. New Hanover County. John Walker asks for compensation for his slave, Galloway, who
worked as a tradesman but was killed in 1780 as an outlawed runaway.
0110. Craven County. As the former superintendent commissioner of confiscated property in the
district of New Bern, Benjamin Sheppard sold some slaves. The money received, as he
understood the law, was to defray the expenses of the North Carolina delegates in Congress.
When officers in the Continental Army demanded that the certificates given them be made good,
Sheppard “paid into the hands of the officers who had obtained certificates” part of the money he
had obtained from selling the property. He now asks for “a warrant on the Treasury for the
amount of the certificates now in his hands together with Interest thereon."
0115. Brunswick County. “Old and well advanced in years,” Sarah Dupre asks to be
compensated for the loss of her slave, who had been “tried, Condemned, and Executed
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agreeable to Law” in March 1778. She had moved to South Carolina and remained there a year
but was now back in North Carolina. The money was greatly needed as she was “infirm in her
Constitution.” [Editorial Note: date of petition is November 1788; petition out of chronological
sequence.]
0120. Washington County. In August 1785, the slave Tom was convicted of crime and
condemned to death. His owner, William Evans, says that “On the Revival of Government on this
Side of the Mountains,” he sued the sheriff, but his effort resulted in a “nonsuit.” Evans argues
that government should protect “life Liberty & Property” and asks for “a reasonable Compensation
for his negroe.”
0123. Orange County. As agent for “upwards of twenty officers of the late Continental line,”
Nicholas Long purchased confiscated slaves by using certificates and signing a bond. The
commissioner who sold the slaves was not willing to receive the full purchase price in certificates,
and the buyer posted a bond amounting to one-third of the cost. Now he was being sued and the
bond was tied up in court. He had on hand the certificates and said they “ought to be received in
discharge of the said bond, and that the suit thereon should be ordered to be dismissed.” The
slaves were used as a bounty for Revolutionary War service.
0129. Surry County. William Terrell Lewis requests payment of a debt created when James
Armstrong obtained a judgment against James Roberts. Roberts had sided with the British during
the American Revolution and had his property, including two slaves, confiscated and sold. When
the judgment in favor of Armstrong was transferred to Lewis, he explains, there was nothing left in
the estate. He argues that the debt should be paid by the state.
0133. John Herritage was appointed a commissioner of confiscated property in Dobbs County. By
order of the county court, Herritage received certificates from persons indebted to absentees
(whose property had been confiscated). These certificates were not honored by the General
Assembly, however, and he now asks for relief. He had posted bond and was in jeopardy of
paying out “a greater Proportion than hath been by him received.” The property involved included
five slaves—Rachel, Violet, Perry, Ned, and Ben—hired by the year.
1790.
0141. Chowan County. Edmund Blount's sister, Elizabeth, was married to Halifax County
merchant Andrew Miller, who fled to Bermuda in 1776. Blount agreed to purchase five of their
slaves for 1,600 pounds state currency. He hired three of them out “in the Boating Business,”
since they preferred it to farming. Despite his right to the three slaves, a commissioner of
confiscated property took them up and sold them. Unless the legislature intervened, he would “be
a Great Sufferer.” He asks for relief.
0145. The petitioners request the legislature to pass a law validating acquisition of land by a
group of descendants of American Indians and blacks. In 1724, the Chowan Indians received
11,360 acres of land in Chowan County, later Gates County. The Indians “sold” most of the land.
The Native American men all died, and the women “mixed with Negroes.” The free blacks and
their mixed-blood children served as soldiers for the colonials in the Revolution. Supported by
William Lewis, Samuel Harrell, and other white men, they seek title to “Small Remnants of the
aforesaid Tract of Land."
0150. The three petitioners, speaking in behalf of the inhabitants of Perquimans County, complain
that “great numbers of free Negroes have been taken up” and sold. The money derived from the
“Sales of such Liberated Negroes” went into the state treasury. Petitioners ask for a law
authorizing the sheriff to pay the money to the Wardens of the Poor. With the funds, county
residents could construct a poorhouse. Petitioners {3}: Perry, Benjamin; Skinner, Joshua; Sutton,
Ashberry.
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0155. Zadock Knowes (also spelled Nowis and Noes) was accused of stealing pitch and
turpentine and transported from Tyrrell to Chowan County, where he was convicted and sold into
slavery. The Tyrrell County constable complains, however, that the man “did not sell for enough
to pay the Prison fees.” The constable asks for relief. Knowes is referred to as “a felon” without
reference to color. Petitioner: Jones, James, Jr.
0159. Perquimans County. Arguing that the slaves emancipated by Mark Newby when they
reached “full age"—males twenty-one and females eighteen—were likely to be “taken and sold,”
Ezeckiel Arrington asks that Newby's heirs retain possession of the slaves “in the same Manner
as if the said Negroes had Never been Emancipated.” Arrington states that he was the husband
of one of the heirs.
0164. Rowan County. Commissioner of Confiscated Property Charles Bruce of Salisbury District
sued John Lopp over a male slave whom Bruce thought had been confiscated. The court ruled a
“nonsuit.” Bruce was forced to pay costs and charges. He asks for reimbursement.
0169. Wake County. In his last will and testament, slaveholder Simon Turner omitted assigning
certain lands and buildings to his heirs “either from forgetfulness of the person who drew the will,
or the extreme indisposition of the said Testator.” The heirs ask that the assembly pass an act
giving them the property. Turner did leave slaves to his heirs. Petitioners {6}: Turner, David;
Turner, Elizabeth; Turner, Jonathan; Turner, Simon; Turner, William.
0180. Brunswick County. Thomas Neal seeks to emancipate two “mulatto” slaves, James, a boy
about eight years old, and Betsy, a young woman about eighteen. He asks that they be given the
surname Phillips.
1791.
0183. A group of farmers living on the northwest branch of the Cape Fear River in New Hanover
County complain that their cattle and hogs are being shot by slaves. The planters living on the
Brunswick side of the river fail to fence their fields, the petitioners state. As a result the livestock
of “industrious labouring men” roam onto the unfenced lands of “their oppulent neighbours” and
are destroyed. Petitioners fear slaves having firearms and other “instruments of destruction” and
ask for a law to require the planters to fence in their fields. Petitioner: Scull, John.
0189. Franklin County. Presly Nelms states that during the American Revolution he provided
General Horatio Gates a wagon, a four-horse team, and a slave driver, all of which were lost at
the battle of Camden in South Carolina. Allowed only 26,000 pounds depreciated currency by the
Committee of Claims, he says that the property was worth more and asks for “a more Equitable
allowance."
0192. Brunswick County. When Moses Gilbert died, he left a widow, a tract of land, five head of
cattle, and “One Negroe of but small Value.” The land had been bought on credit in 1789 from the
estate of Aaron Roberts, and now the executors of Roberts's estate were demanding payment. If
the widow's personal property were sold to discharge the debt, she and her family would be left in
“utmost distress.” The administrators of Gilbert's estate ask for an act to protect the “small Estate”
and for permission to sell the tract of land to pay the debt. Petitioners {2}: Bell, Robert; Cains,
John.
0195. Edgecomb County. In 1785, the widow of slaveholder James Hill bought a 246 acre tract
from the state with certificates issued to veterans of the American Revolution. The land had been
purchased by her husband from William McClennan but was included in property owned by
McClennan that was confiscated and sold at auction after McClennan fled to Europe during the
Revolution. After repurchasing the land with the certificates, Barbara Hill states, she was sued by
the other heirs of James Hill, who successfully recovered the land “by due course of law.” The
widow asks that the “Certificates” she used to buy the land that are now deposited in the Public
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Treasury be returned to her with interest or that “equitable retribution be made to your petitioner.”
Related documents state that the estate left to her and the other heirs included various slaves.
0203. Chowan County. Edmund Blount's sister, Elizabeth, was married to Halifax County
merchant Andrew Miller, who fled to Bermuda in 1776. Blount agreed to purchase five of their
slaves for 1,600 pounds state currency. He hired three of them out “in the Boating Business,” as
they preferred it, he explained, to farming. Despite Blount's right to the three slaves, a
commissioner of confiscated property took them up and sold them. Unless the legislature
intervened, he would lose a great deal. He had attended three sessions of the assembly “at a
Considerable Expense in hope of Relief but to no Effect.” He asks for the “interposition” of the
legislature.
0209. New Hanover County. Slaveholder George Merrick seeks to free three slaves—the
“mulatto” man Richard, a black woman named Dolly, and her three- or four-year-old son, Nathan.
During the Revolution, when many slaves along the Cape Fear River were deserting to the
British, Merrick says, Richard and Dolly displayed “uncommon Fidelity” and prevented a number
of Merrick's slaves from going over to the enemy. Moreover, they had been “in Every Respect,
attentive, Honest, faithfull, and obedient Slaves.” He had petitioned the county court of pleas and
quarter sessions and also received “the Consent & Approbation of the P[robate] Court.” Now he
seeks legislative approval.
0216. Duplin County. Slaveholder John Housman laments the loss of his slave, Sampson, who
was hanged for various felonies, including robbery and assault. Housman claims that he was
entirely ignorant of his slave's behavior and did not know that Sampson had bludgeoned a white
man with a hatchet head. Housman, now “far advanced in life” and the head of a large family,
asks for relief.
0222. Rowan County. During the Revolution, John Loop suffered the loss of grain, fodder, hay,
fencing, and his barn at the hands of William Spurgens (also spelled Spurgins and Spurgines).
Loop was also captured and held as a prisoner. In 1785, he received from Spurgens a slave as
compensation for his losses. Now an attempt was being made by the commissioner of
confiscated property in the Salisbury District to secure his slave in behalf of the state. He asks for
legislative intervention.
0228. Emancipated in 1764 by her master, John Davis of Brunswick County, Grace Davis
continued to live with her former owner until his death in about 1790. Her son, Richard, a
freeman, “cheerfully turnd out during the war in defence of his Country,” risking his life. Since her
manumission she had given birth to “a number of other Children all of whom have & do continue
to enjoy their freedom.” To make their freedom “perfect,” however, she asks for a special act in
behalf of herself and her children.
0231. Guilford County. The clerk of the Yearly Meeting of North Carolina, South Carolina, and
Georgia Quakers seeks a law to protect blacks who “are, or may be Emancipated.” The current
acts of the North Carolina Assembly prohibiting the freedom of slaves are inconsistent with the
Declaration of Independence and the “prerogative of Almighty God.” Moreover, the Quakers
express their consternation that liberated slaves are often “reduced to a State of Slavery again.”
These matters demand “very Serious Consideration.” Petitioner: Munden, Levi.
1792.
0234. Samuel Jasper, brother of Caleb White and executor of his last will and testament, seeks to
emancipate Jack, a black man who took prisoner an entire crew of a British privateer, released
his master and a number of others who had been captured, and took the British vessel for the
United States.
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0243. Craven County. Petitioners write in behalf of Rose, a slave emancipated in the last will and
testament of Mary Clear. Although the executors were instructed to purchase land and build a
house for Rose, the petitioners say that the “Tenor” of the will had never been fulfilled, and Rose
remained in slavery. Petitioners ask the legislature to “grant her such relief as you in your
Judgment shall think meet.” Petitioners {48}: Bryan, M. C.; Chapman, Samuel; Daniel, John;
Good, William; Thomlinson, Thomas.
0251. Brunswick County. Slaveholder Roger Spendlove seeks to emancipate his domestic
servant, Affy, age about twenty-two, and her two children, Roger, age two, and William, age four
months. Affy was a person of fidelity and good disposition.
0255. The twenty-year-old daughter of a self-purchased free woman, Charlotte Green asks for
her freedom. She can earn her own living and plans to travel to foreign countries. She needs to
defend herself “against unjustifiable or unwarrantable Provocation from Evil disposed Persons."
0256. John Waite holds “a legal Bill of Sale” for Charlotte Green and believes she should be
granted her freedom. She is honest, is able to earn her own living, and has always demonstrated
“good Conduct."
0261. Craven County. Free man of color John Moore seeks to liberate his children, “who are
unfortunately illegitimate being born of a negro woman slave belonging to himself.” He had
worked for fifty years to acquire a small amount of property and wishes to pass it along to his
children.
0264. Pasquotank County. Jeremiah Symons seeks to emancipate three slaves—David, Joan,
and Abby—of mixed racial origin. He is aware of the favorable treatment given mulattos in the
General Assembly's acts of emancipation.
0267. Perquimans County. Three brothers ask to emancipate their deceased father's slave,
Thamar, about twenty-five years of age. Their father had wished to establish Thamar's freedom
when he died, but there was “then, & yet remains” an act “prohibiting the emancipation of Slaves,
except as therein excepted.” A house maid, Thamar was honest and “Generally Respected in her
station in the Neighborhood where she dwells.” Petitioners {3}: Nicholson, Christopher; Nicholson,
Nicholas; Nicholson, Thomas.
0271. Franklin County residents complain that John Webb, acting justice of the peace, is guilty of
a criminal conspiracy with slaves. Among other things, they contend that Webb induces slaves to
plunder their masters' property, trades with them for the goods, and then sells the purloined
commodities at a great profit. Petitioners {9}: Devaney, Jenkins; Hale, Durham; Lancaster,
William; Norwood, John, Jr.; Yarborough, Henry.
0274. Wake County. In 1789, plantation owner Samuel Parker's slave (about eight or nine years
old) stole two Continental certificates issued in 1786 in the name of Richard Vaughn and William
Lock. Another of his slaves found one of the certificates. Even after the thief confessed the other
could not be found. Parker asks that a new certificate be issued.
0279. Craven County. John Handy, the “reputed father” of mulatto Peggy Handy, age about two
years, purchased his daughter from Elizabeth Vail. He then loaned the child back to the former
owner for the “purpose of maintaining and educating her.” A mistake in the transfer deed,
however, meant that Peggy would not remain with Vail after the term for which she had been lent
but would revert to John Handy's estate. Fearing his intentions “would be thereby defeated,” he
issued a deed of emancipation, saying that after the loan period Peggy would “be forever free.”
Vail asks the legislature to free “the said Mulatto girl."
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0289. Pasquotank County. God was no respecter of persons, the Quakers state in this 1792
remonstrance, and His mercy “is over all his works.” They believed that national tragedies
occurred as a result of the “Unrighteous Acts of the Rulers” as well as “the sins of the people.” As
Christians, they seek a law liberating blacks at some future time. Petitioner: Munden, Levi.
0293. John McLellan purchased a black woman in 1786. She bore two children while his slave.
McLellan wishes to free the mother and children because the mother had “conducted herself in a
manner so meritorious” as to induce him to do so.
1793.
0296. Chowan County. Responding to a petition of whites in Pasquotank County who charge that
emancipation renders “that Species of Property of Small Value” and encourages slave discontent
and rebellion, the Quakers of Edenton District contend that such assertions are groundless. The
prices for sale and hire of slaves had risen over the past twenty years and there was, they insist,
no evidence that emancipation led to “the Risings of the Negroes.” Citing the Declaration of
Independence, they request that those who wish to free their slaves be permitted to do so.
Petitioner: Jordan, Thomas.
0301. Guilford County. William Brittain asks to emancipate Peter Cabin, a Negro man who had
served him faithfully for twenty years. Cabin wanted his freedom and was willing to pay forty
pounds “Current Money, which sum the said Peter Cabin has Punctually Paid me.” Fifty-seven
“Neighbours & Acquaintances” verify Brittain's statements, adding that Cabin is “an industrious
frugal man and has Conducted himself orderly & honestly."
0304. Darby Hinagan seeks to emancipate two mulatto children named Penny and Ned whose
mother and grandmother served him for years. “Advanced in life,” he also detests seeing persons
of “mixed blood” held as slaves, especially those like Penny and Ned who were nearly white.
0307. Nash County. In May 1793, the sheriff of Nash County hanged a slave woman, Beck, the
property of Sarah Taylor, who was convicted of poisoning her owner's family. He asks the state to
pay his expenses both for the hanging and for guarding the woman during confinement.
Petitioner: Griffin, Archibald.
0312. Beaufort County. In late 1788 and early 1789, Nathan Keas was robbed by his house
servant for a sum of five hundred pounds. Much trusted by both master and mistress, and in
possession of the keys to the desk where the money was kept, she took various amounts over a
period of time. When she was finally discovered, the money was “all Spent and Wasted” by her
and some fellow slaves. The only thing recovered was the “fine articles of Clothing which had
been purchased and made up by the Wench who committed the Deed.” He does not wish to be
reimbursed by the state, but rather asks if he can pay a debt to the state in the following manner:
he would pay into the Treasury the same amount “in the present Currency of the State, adding to
the Sum So to be paid in, the Depreciation or difference between the estimated value of the Cash
Stolen and the Present Value of the paper Money of this State."
0317. New Hanover County. As a dying request, Thomas Cunninghame, the father of the
petitioner also named Thomas Cunninghame, asked that his five slaves—Rachel and her four
mulatto children: Mary, Cressy, Katy, and Peggy—be emancipated. The father did so because of
Rachel's “fidelity to him” and her tireless efforts during his last illness.
0321. For a considerable period, John MacLellan owned a female slave named Maria who had
rendered him “Considerable Services.” She had two children and he is desirous of freeing the
three slaves.
0324. Bladen County. John Hall is the owner of a mulatto slave, Judith, age about five. Hall
explains that the girl is the “Offspring of a Gentleman who is lately deceased.” On his deathbed,
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the unnamed gentleman made Hall promise to “procure the manumition and freedom of the said
female Slave.” Hall is complying with his wishes.
0327. When his wife's master died, the slave Ben, owned by James Hogg, arranged to purchase
her, using his owner as a trustee. After the transaction, Ben asks his owner to present a petition
for her emancipation. Having no right of ownership, Hogg as Ben's trustee asks the assembly to
grant the manumission of the “Negro woman named Beck” because Ben “desires she may be
made free."
1794.
0330. Pasquotank County. Quakers “deeply impressed with sorrow and concern” express their
opposition to the institution of slavery. They believe the legislature should address the issue in its
capacity “as the professed Guardian of every description of Men within the State.” They want the
law depriving citizens of the right to free their slaves repealed. In the Holy Scriptures, they say,
cruelty by a people results in God's retribution. Petitioner: Munden, Levi.
1795.
0335. Rowan County. Among his many slaves, William Giles explains, two black men had
“always distinguished themselves by the strictest attention to their masters Interest, and the Most
dutiful obediance to all his Orders.” The two men—Anthony, age about twenty-seven, and
Cumbey, age thirty-two—had been “brought up in his family.” He seeks their manumission.
0339. In his last will and testament, a Rowan County man, Michael Beam, provided for the
emancipation of his mulatto slave, Mary, also bequeathing her “one hundred pounds currency.”
Beam left the implementation of these provisions to his wife, but after his death the wife also died.
Now Nicholas Click, clerk of the county, petitions the legislature for Mary's freedom.
0342. As executors of the last will and testament of Charles James, the petitioners seek to
emancipate “a certain negroe fellow named Will” for “meritorious services.” They ask for an act of
emancipation. Petitioners {2}: James, Isaac; Robertson, William.
0345. Anson County. Abraham Jones is the father of seven slaves—Isaac, Jacob, Susanna,
John, Abraham, Thomas, and Lewis—born of the same black woman. He purchased his children,
but he is concerned about their remaining in bondage after his death. He asks the legislature to
emancipate them so they might be protected “in the same manner as others of their colour who
were born free."
0348. Perquimans County. In 1788, Nathan Creecy bought at auction a condemned black woman
named Peg and her child, Hannah, for seventy-eight pounds, “a large price at that time for a
Negro woman & child that had once enjoyed freedom.” Creecy then learned that Hannah had
been born prior to Peg's manumission, and was the slave of Robert Newby. Wishing to keep
mother and child together (Hannah was only ten months old), Creecy bought her as a slave until
she reached age eighteen. Then she would go back to her original owner. In the same manner,
Creecy bought Peg's son, Tom, about two years old, until he reached age twenty-one. He had
experienced “much expense & trouble in raising the said boy.” As it was the wish of the former
owner that the three slaves should remain together, Creecy asks for a law “establishing &
confirming the right of said Negroes Tom & Hannah in him."
0351. Pasquotank County. John Lowe put up bail for the appearance of a black woman “who was
taken up as a liberated Slave under the Existing Laws of the State.” Before her trial the woman
either eloped or was carried away leaving Lowe responsible for a sum of one hundred pounds.
Following his death, his widow, Miriam Lowe, explains what a hardship the payment of such a
large amount would be and asks for relief from her “Distresses."
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0354. Perquimans County. Believing that “all men are Created equal,” Quakers at their yearly
meeting lament the condition of emancipated blacks who are often “reduced to Abject Slavery
under Sanction of Several Acts of the Assembly.” This has a devastating effect on black families.
They ask for a law permitting emancipation of slaves and protection of the freed blacks.
Petitioner: Jordan, Thomas.
0359. Bertie County. Henry Spiller requests the manumission of his slave, Isaac, for “Meritorious
Services and general good behaviour."
0361. Brunswick County. Planter Drury Allen seeks to free his mulatto slave, Amey, who is about
twelve years old. He is totally free of debt and believes that no claims can interfere with the
proposed manumission.
0364. Charles Johnson requests the emancipation of Gustavus Aldolphus Johnson, a near-white
four-year-old boy. In fact, it is “almost impossible for any person to discern that he is of Mix'd
blood."
0367. John Kilby requests compensation for providing goods and services to the General
Assembly, including the hire of a slave.
0372. New Hanover County. Henry Taylor requests compensation for being shot in the shoulder
while hunting runaway slaves. The doctor's bill amounted to “one hundred Spanish Milled
Dollars,” an amount he could not pay. Moreover, he worked as a blacksmith and is now disabled
and unable to support his family. The number of outrages committed by runaways in the area, he
adds, are “enormous,” and Taylor explains he was rendering a important service in seeking to
halt their activities.
1796.
0376. Darby Henagan requests the emancipation of two slaves, Ned and Penny, whom he had
“raised” from infancy. He asks that they be named Ned Ferguson and Penny Arline.
0378. Robert Freeman asks that his “negro woman by the name of Rachel” be emancipated on
account of her “singular services” during a fire at his father's house in Norfolk. He requests that
she be called Rachel Joel.
0381. New Hanover County. Respecting the wishes of his aged father on his deathbed, Thomas
Cunningham seeks to emancipate Rachel and her five daughters: Mary, Kitty, Cressey, Peggy,
and Sally. He recounts how Rachel “faithfully attended and served” his father for many years and
performed especially “meritorious services” during his final illness.
0385. The slave Hardy, owned by James Massey, robbed the house of Patrick St. Lawrence, in
Chatham County, along with a “company of thieves.” Captured and convicted, Hardy was
sentenced to death, but a number of residents and some of the jurors sought mercy from the
governor. After consideration, the governor granted a reprieve and sent word of his decision, but
the messenger lost his horse and arrived too late. Hardy was hanged. Massey seeks
compensation.
0391. As his future children “will be Slaves contrary to his wish without the interposition of the
General Assembly,” free black William Brown asks for the emancipation of his wife, Phillis, whom
he had recently purchased from Reading Blount.
0395. New Hanover County. Henry Taylor requests compensation for being shot in the shoulder
while hunting runaway slaves. The doctor's bill amounted to “one hundred Spanish Milled
Dollars,” an amount he could not pay. Moreover, he worked as a blacksmith and is now disabled
and unable to support his family. The number of outrages committed by runaways in the area, he
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adds, are “enormous,” and Taylor explains he was rendering a important service in seeking to
halt their activities.
0399. Craven County. Fearing that their freedom might be in jeopardy and that they might lose
title to their property, recently freed blacks Nancy Handy, Princess Green, and John Carruthers
Stanly ask the legislature to pass a law that would completely “set free and emancipate them, and
vest them with all powers, privileges and advantages which free people of color enjoy."
0402. Duplin County. Matthew Edwards requests permission to emancipate the “mulatto” slave
Peter.
1797.
0405. Anson County. Abraham Jones, a person of mixed blood, purchased his wife, Lydia, about
1757, and they now had six grown children—Isaac, Jacob, Thomas, Abraham, Lewis, and one
other. It concerns him that once he died his wife and children would revert to slavery, having not
been formally freed. He asks that they be emancipated.
1798.
0411. Halifax County. Under sentence of death for stealing slaves, Randal Parks petitions for
clemency. He had petitioned the governor but was advised to seek a pardon from the legislature.
[Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames 0413–0414.]
0412. Halifax County. A long list of citizens write their support for the case of Randal Parks,
convicted for stealing a slave and sentenced to hang. They explain that Parks is a young man
recently removed from the “protection of a very respectable family” in Virginia. Being “deprived of
their advice and example” and “exposed to the company of evil, disposed persons,” Parks, they
add, was “induced” to commit the crime. Petitioners {69}: Hammond, John; Harris, W.; Hawkins,
Benjamin; Hawkins, Henry. [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames 0415–0417.]
0419. Jones County. A coroner's inquest following the death of a slave named Will took more
than three days. Not fully understanding the law, the coroner paid several jurors $1 a day for their
attendance and promised the others that he would pay them in the future. He made a claim to the
state treasury but did not receive payment. He asks for legislative relief.
0423. Cumberland County. Neill Buie claims that he did not receive enough expense money to
cover costs incurred from having to testify in a case involving the recovery of slaves. The case
involved the confiscation of slaves said to belong to Thomas and James Rutherford. Buie asks for
compensation.
0427. Craven County. Dixon Bogye requests the emancipation of his slave, Chelsea, for her
promising to give “the most satisfactory security."
0433. Emancipated slave John Carruthers [misspelled Caruthers] Stanly asks the legislature to
confirm his status as a free man. He had previously been freed in Craven County at the request
of his owners, Alexander and Lydia Steward, who testified as to his “long, faithful & meritorious
services.” He feared that some “accident may deprive him of the evidence of his emancipation &
thereby of the fruits of his honest industry."
0437. Person County. Osborn Jeffreys seeks to emancipate an elderly slave known as Buffaloe
Sam, who had always conducted himself in an honest, faithful, and industrious manner. Sam paid
his master “forty five pounds Virginia Currency as a Consideration for his freedom."
0440. Cumberland County. In 1788, the General Assembly passed an act “directing suits to be
brought against several persons” who possessed supposedly confiscated slaves formerly
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belonging to Thomas and James Rutherford. Seven suits were instituted in the Superior Court of
Fayetteville District. The suits remained undecided for a decade until October 1798 when a
verdict came down in favor of the defendants. As clerk of the district court, John Winslow seeks
compensation for his services.
0443. Wake County. Passing the State House in Raleigh, Peter [Bird], a slave owned by John
Haywood, espied “diverse men” in the act of robbing the Comptroller's Office. He asked them
their business but was greeted with flying stones and bricks. He ran for help and prevented the
pillaging of the office. Risking his life, Peter remained very fearful that “some secret violence
would be done him.” He asks for his freedom—for a black man “no reward can be so valuable."
0451. Perquimans County. At their yearly meeting, Quakers from North and South Carolina,
Georgia, and Tennessee ask that “free Citizens of the State, who are Conscientiously Scrupulous
of holding mankind in Slavery” be permitted to emancipate their blacks. Their reasons include the
nature of a republican government, the spirit of Christianity, and the great suffering of “the African
race.” Petitioner: Munden, Levi.
0454. For his “good Services,” Jacob Lamb asks to emancipate his slave named Bill Lamb.
0457. Halifax County. In his last will and testament, Thomas Amis, deceased, devised to loan his
slaves, Grace and her son Harry, to his friend, Jesse Rhymes, requesting that at the “earliest
opportunity” Rhymes liberate the slaves, naming them Grace and Harry Webb. Rhymes is
honoring the wish of his friend.
0460. Pasquotank County. Free born mulatto Lemuel Overton, who served faithfully during the
“American Warr with Great Britain,” asks to free his slave wife, Rose, and their two children—
John and Burdock. He had purchased his wife and eldest son from John Mullen, his second boy
being born after the purchase.
0467. Halifax County. A long list of citizens write their support for the case of Randal Parks,
convicted for stealing a slave and sentenced to hang. They explain that Parks is a young man
recently removed from the “protection of a very respectable family” in Virginia. Being “deprived of
their advice and example” and “exposed to the company of evil, disposed persons,” Parks, they
add, was “induced” to commit the crime. Petitioners {69}: Hammond, John; Harris, W.; Hawkins,
Benjamin; Hawkins, Henry. [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames 0415–0417.]
1799.
0468. Duplin County. Matthew Edwards, an illiterate white man, owns “a Mulatto man Slave”
named Peter, who had been permitted “to live to himself” with his wife and children for several
years. Edwards asks the legislature to emancipate Peter and grant him “all the Privileges of any
other person of mixed blood."
0471. The petitioner seeks to emancipate two mulatto boys, Thomas and Louis Sheridan. He
asks the legislature to pass an act freeing the children because “their Childhood would render
fruitless the recourse to the County Court."
1800.
0474. Perquimans County. In 1792 and 1793, Edward Hall, sheriff of Perquimans County, sold
“Sundry Negroes who had been Emancipated Contrary to Law.” Hall sold them on credit for
between nine and twelve months. The court decree said nothing about the buyers paying interest,
nor did it require the sheriff to collect the purchase money. In 1798 a judgment was entered
against him in the Hillsborough Superior Court for more than 303 pounds, and more than 70
pounds “by way of interest.” Hall was also facing a judgment against him for unpaid taxes. He
asks for legislative relief.
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0481. Granville County. Thomas and Susanah Hendley [also spelled Henley] request that the
state grant them title to property of Susanah’s reputed father, Israel Fuller, who had died. The
property, including slaves, was in the hands of Jeremiah Baily for the benefit of Israel Smith,
reputedly Susanah’s brother, who had also died.
0492. Edgecomb County. William Moore requests compensation for the loss of a horse that died
during his pursuit of a gang of outlaws. The loss forced him to mortgage his “One negroe and he
a very Valuable fellow.” Moreover, Moore claimed to be a cripple and “altogether Unable to work”
and support his large family of small children.
0501. Montgomery County. Daniel Shad, a free person of color, seeks to emancipate his family.
He purchased his wife some time ago and she subsequently had a baby. Petitioners {32}:
Addison, J.; Curtis, John; Neal, John; Russell, Archibald; Shad, Daniel.
0506. Cumberland County. Deming owns two slaves. He believes that Lucy, being the daughter
of a white woman, ought to be liberated. “Lucy,” he writes, “in colour is perfectly White, and
cannot be distinguished from the purest of the race.” Moreover, her demeanor is that of a white
person. Laura is her daughter. He seeks to emancipate the slaves. Petitioner: Deming, Gurdon.
0509. Thirty-nine citizens of Cumberland County write in behalf of Gurdon Deming's petition to
emancipate his slave, Lucy, and her daughter, Laura: “Others of Your petitioners Who have
known Lucy more recently have no hesitation in Saying that from her general appearance they
verily believe that She is of pure White blood too white to be a slave and ought to be
manumitted.” Petitioners {39}: Gibson, James; Kyle, James; MacRae, D. G.; Robinson, Benjamin;
Taylor, P.
0513. Chowan County. Seventy-eight-year-old Joseph Rogers recently was forced to have both
of his legs amputated above the knees because of the “Complication of diseases.” He owned 390
acres of poor quality land and two old slaves—a man and a woman—who were “a Burthen and
incumbrance.” Rogers asks for exemption from paying taxes for the reminder of his life.
0516. Richmond County. Swinney seeks to emancipate his two mulatto slaves, Ned and Penny,
and requests that they be given the surname Huten. Petitioner: Swinney, Darby.
0519. Rockingham County. Adam Tate seeks to emancipate “a woman of Colour, by the name of
Sylvia” and requests that she be given the surname Green.
0521. Rockingham County. Adam Tate seeks to free his “woman of colour” named Sylvia.
1801.
0524. Seventy-year-old Richard Warren, “much afflicted” with the infirmities of old age, seeks to
emancipate his Negro woman, Lettice, who nursed him through a long illness. His children were
grown and gone and he is “now entirely dependent on the faithful services of the said negro
woman Lettice, for the care of his house and property.” She is a woman of “uncommon
faithfulness."
0534. Residents of Randolph County ask that two “mulatto” girls be granted their freedom and the
right to inherit property. Their mother died some time before and their white father, John Bagnell,
recently passed away. They ask that the girls be named Sarah Bagnell and Hannah Bagnell and
receive “what little property may be found.” Petitioners {18}: Harvey, Michael; Maudlain, John;
Millham, Sam; Ratliff, Thoma[s]; Winslow, Thomas.
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0537. Buncombe County. Thomas Foster requests the emancipation of his slave, Jerry Smith,
who had “performed the task of slavery in such a faithfull and industrious manner as to merit
freedom the remainder of his life."
0540. Chowan County. Free woman of color Madelene St. Rigue purchased her husband, Major,
from Henry Elbeck in Edenton, making the final payment 22 September 1801. She seeks her
husband's freedom.
0543. Northampton County. Henry Crittenden seeks to emancipate “a Certain Small negro Girl
named Eliza, and to alter her name to that of Eliza Crittenden.” The slave was owned by Henry's
brother, Robert Crittenden, who had recently died and provided for the emancipation in his will.
0546. Spencer Macay seeks to emancipate the mulatto female slave Harriet as requested in the
will of Herbert Haynes. Harriet is owned by Macay, William E. Johnson, and Eaton Pugh.
0549. Having become an American citizen in 1786, Deane planned to move from the Bahama
Islands to Chowan County with his family and slaves. A number of “intervening accidents”
prevented his migration, but now he wishes to settle permanently in North Carolina. It was his
understanding, however, that his slaves over age fifteen could not be imported “without subjecting
himself to very heavy and severe penalties.” He had no intention of selling or trading his slaves
and asks for a special act to allow him to bring them into the state without penalty. Petitioner:
Deane, James.
0557. Halifax County. The slave Winney, owned by Henry Motley, faithfully served Motley's
father. Following the father's death, she cared for his “numerous offspring” who were left “without
sufficient funds for their maintenance.” In addition, Winney and her husband accumulated “some
small Estate,” enough to be self-sufficient with “further attention to business.” Motley asks for
Winney's freedom.
0562. Montgomery County. John Davidson is the owner of Doctor Wallace, a slave physician.
Davidson states that his slave “is often Time sent for some Times at a very Considerable
Distance so that the most of his Time is taken up in Visiting and administering Physic & waiting
on those Patients who Chooses to Imploy him.” As a result his slave was to him almost useless.
He asks for Wallace's emancipation, and that he be named Peter Wallace.
0565. Montgomery County residents support John Davidson's petition to free Doctor Wallace, a
slave physician who was particularly adept at healing sores and ulcers. Wallace was “a very
Usefull Black man.” Petitioners {32}: Allen, William; Davidson, George; Davis, Isaac; Lee, James;
Smith, Joseph.
1802.
0568. In March 1802, Lard Sellars of Chatham County “unfortunately kill'd a Negro man named
Arthur” owned by Edward Jones and was forced to pay $400 for the slave. Sellars asks the
legislature for relief. It was a meritorious service to “rid the world of a daring lawless villain,” he
argues, who by his frequent depredations “Struck terror on all Woman and Children within the
vicinity of his range."
0570. Residents of Chatham County support Lard Sellars's petition seeking compensation for
killing the slave Arthur, a runaway who menaced women and children. As a captain in the militia,
Sellars pursued the slave and shot him only after he refused to surrender. Petitioners {106}:
Marsh, John; McMath, James; McMath, John; Perry, John; Terry, James.
0575. New Hanover County. In his last will and testament, James Hazel Sr. left his German-born
wife, Ann Sophia Hazel, a considerable estate, including six slaves, with the view that his
grandchildren should eventually benefit thereby. When the widow died the estate willed to her
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was “in Fee,” and when she died intestate the property “became the Right of the State.” The
petitioners, grand- and great-grandchildren of James Hazel Sr., ask to be given the land and
slaves. Petitioners {3}: Berry, William; Quince, Susanna; Walker, Mary A.
0581. Washington County. Byrd requests compensation for expenses incurred during his efforts
to suppress a “threatened Conspiracy of the Negroes.” Byrd was the colonel of the county militia.
0586. Craven County. Free black John Carruthers Stanly purchased in 1800 and 1801 two young
slaves. The first, named John, he bought from a New Bern man and believed the two-year-old
boy to be his child. The second, a mulatto also named John, was purchased from a New Hanover
County man. The mulatto boy was his wife Kitty's son for whom he had “affection” and “tender
ties.” He asks that they be freed and that the first John be named John Florence Stanly, the
second John Stewart Stanly.
0593. New Hanover County. The mechanical society and other inhabitants of Wilmington explain
that slave artisans are undertaking work at sometimes one-half the rate charged by a “regular
bred white Mechanic.” Contrary to law, slaves hired their own time and even employed other
slaves in work gangs. Slaves given such freedom of movement could, they write, formulate
insurrection plans. Moreover, skilled white workers were either not settling in the area or leaving
the state. The memorialists request that a designated “civil Officer” be given the authority to adopt
and pursue measures to prevent such abuses. Petitioners {21}: Allan, John; Keddie, William;
MacLeod, Normand; Martin, John; Ure, Andrew.
0602. Nash County. John Jones purchased a slave in North Carolina and started to take him to
Georgia, for sale, but the slave escaped. Later, for his “villainous actions,” the slave was
executed. Jones seeks compensation.
0605. Hertford County. During the slave insurrection panic in June 1802, the “commanding
officer” in the town of Winton dispatched “an express” to Windsor, borrowing a horse owned by
Francis Bell, the local tavern keeper. Being pushed excessively, the horse died, and Bell seeks
compensation. It was a time of great anxiety and fear, Bell said, as the blacks were plotting to
burn farmhouses and plantations, murder masters and their families, and plunder the countryside.
0609. Residents of Northampton County complain that the last law dealing with slave conspiracy
was passed in 1741. Its provisions said that three or more slaves must conspire before they could
be convicted of a “plot,” and the statute did not provide legal remedies for “a state of insurrection,
or even an assent to join or enlist upon application.” They argue for a careful revision of the patrol
laws. This would deter slaves in their “constant efforts to effect their freedom by insurrection.”
Petitioner: Haynes, [Mr.]
1803.
0616. Beaufort County. Arnold and Euphan Rhodes, though husband and wife, have lived apart
for two years. There is no hope of reconciliation and they jointly ask for a divorce. Their division of
property will include settlement on ownership of their slaves.
0619. Northampton County. Nathaniel Harrison died in April 1803, leaving a will that provided for
the freedom of a black woman. James Bradley and Robert Peebles, executors of the will, ask that
the woman be placed “in possession of the advantages of intended her by the testator.”
0625. Citizens of Guilford and Stokes counties write that for their “Sympathetic kindness and
gentle treatment in his last long and afflicting illness,” slaves Aaron and Magg were promised
their freedom by their master, James Love Sr. They were “good Obedient Slaves towards a
generous, aged, debilitated and dying Master.” They were also sober, industrious, quiet, and
orderly. They had now lived with the legatees since September 1800, and the heirs sought to free
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the pair. In freedom, they would be named Aaron Moses and Mary Magdalene. Petitioners {6}:
Campbell, James; Jean, William; Jones, Travis; McDaniel, Reuben; McHenry, George.
0629. “[R]are as it is,” a group of Stokes County whites said, “there are Men of Black Colour who
deserve to be free.” Aaron was such a man: submissive, humble, faithful, industrious, sober,
devout. The petitioners ask that Aaron, who lived in Salem, be emancipated from slavery and
called Aaron Moses. Petitioners {13}: Biwighaus, George; Ganbole, John; Meinung, Lewis;
Reichel, Charles G.; Vierling, Benjamin.
0632. Beaufort County. At the time of her marriage to Captain Arnold Rhodes at the age of
seventeen in 1795, Euphan Alston possessed a valuable estate in lands and slaves. Shortly after
the marriage Rhodes wasted the property away, losing all the slaves and a large portion of the
real estate. Rhodes has “abandoned himself to Idleness, Intoxication, gambling &c,” a group of
the wife's family explain. They ask that a divorce be granted. Petitioners {4}: Farris, Mary; Sevoy,
Hellen.
Reel 5
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0001. Descriptive material.
1804.
0007. Rowan County. Dinah Seyers explains that her master died in 1795 and stipulated that she
be set free and given land. She feared that some “ill disposed persons” might return her to
slavery. She has borne three children since her master died and now asks for “An Act confirming
her emancipation and that of her three children.”
0016. Mecklenburg County. William Taylor's father, for many years a resident of Virginia, settled
in North Carolina on a tract of land bordering Virginia. When the father died, Taylor inherited the
land but could not cultivate it to “any tolerable Advantage” without the importation of slaves. He
asks that James, Joshua, Billy, Eve, and Venus and her two children, Sandy and Betty, be
permitted to enter North Carolina without penalty. Taylor did not wish to sell the slaves but
wanted them only to work his land.
0022. Rowan County. Convicted of selling a free person of color into slavery, James Murrell was
sentenced to death by the Salisbury Superior Court in September 1804. His wife asks for
clemency. She had gone to South Carolina, searched for the black man, and discovered he was
dead. Petitioner: Murrell, Polly.
0026. Guilford County. Harry Ash, a free black man, purchased his wife, America, in 1802 from
Milla Clarke. The next year he and his wife had a daughter named Jemima. Ash seeks to
emancipate his wife and daughter.
0031. Mecklenburg County. Slaveholder Cassandra Houston, formerly Cassandra Alexander,
seeks a divorce from her husband, James Houston. The couple married 4 January 1803 and lived
together until 28 November of the same year when Cassandra left him because he was impotent.
He was unable to perform his duties not only as a husband, but also “as a man in procreating his
species.” Depositions from Cassandra Alexander's relatives and others state that they suspected
from observing him “make water” that James Houston was not a man like other men; that he had
expressed anxiety that “he was not as complete as to genitals as other men”; and that he had on
several occasions attempted to “ride” other men and “act with [other men] as man would with a
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Woman.” Marshal Alexander, Cassandra's brother, stated in a deposition that he was once the
object of such attempts and noticed at the time that Houston had no testicles. With the marriage
unconsummated, the evidence suggesting that Houston “had not the genitals for propagation,”
and the Alexanders believing that Houston married solely to obtain property, Cassandra
Alexander asks to retain her property and be granted a divorce.
1805.
0069. Northampton County. Charlotte Forte, a slaveholding widow, seeks compensation for her
slave, Sam, who was executed after being implicated in the “late conspiracy of the negroes.” She
felt he was convicted on testimony “of less weight” than the testimony against others who
escaped punishment. There was also the “great expense” of twenty or thirty armed men ordered
out by the authority of the major general for the purpose of apprehending Sam “(tho' it was not
necessary from the Humble disposition of the negro for more than one man to have taken &
secured him)."
0074. As captain of a cavalry company in Wayne County, Isaac Hanely ordered out his troops in
1804 to keep order following the execution of slaves. He then used “four of his most active
troopers” to suppress “a Conspiracy of the Slaves.” He asks that his troops be compensated.
0077. Wayne County. In 1804, Willis Bryan kidnapped “a Certain small Negro,” the property of
John King, a neighbor. Bryan carried the slave out of the county, selling him or her before fleeing
the state. The petitioners explain that before the “accident,” Bryan “Supported an Honest
Character” but was addicted to liquor. Since the slave was now recovered and returned “to its
proper owner,” the petitioners ask that Bryan be permitted to return to North Carolina. Petitioners
{141}: Aarnold, Benjamin; Coleman, Elijah; Hallowell, Silas; Overman, Aron; Williamson, Henry.
0082. Sarah Johnson requests a divorce because her husband, John L. D. Johnson, squandered
the considerable property she brought to their union (including nine slaves) and then abandoned
her. She had waited some time before she realized he had left for good. She then traced him to
Fayetteville, Camden and Columbia, South Carolina; Augusta, Georgia; and Charleston, where
he “took Shipping for Ireland his native country.” He left her with little property—of the three
slaves remaining when he left she had sold two—and considerable debt. She asks for relief “as
the nature of her case requires."
0087. Through his lawyers, James Deane, a former resident of Turks Island, North Carolina,
requests permission to bring fifteen slaves into the state to use in manufacturing salt. Petitioners
{3}: Armistead, John; Collins, Josiah; Wynn, Thomas.
0090. By order of the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions for Perquimans County, February
Term 1802, free woman of color Amy and her three children, Ruth, Dolley, and Mourning, were
sold at auction, having been “emancipated contrary to the several acts of the legislature.” The
buyer was Alexander Stafford. A claimant of the slaves, John Saunders, filed an appeal and
obtained a writ of certiorari from the Superior Court of Edenton District. It was determined in 1803
that the slaves were the property of the claimant. Joseph White, administrator of the estate of
Alexander Stafford, seeks a refund from the state for the money paid for the slaves.
0098. Warren County. William E. Johnston petitions for the emancipation of three slaves—
Pollydore, Miranda, and Harriott—"for Certain reasons of an Interesting Nature."
0101. Camden County. Jeremiah Brite seeks to emancipate his female “mulatto” slave, Candiss,
age fourteen, who had always been faithful, honest, and loyal.
0104. Orange County. Petitioners request compensation for travelling four hundred miles to
testify against John Perry, a man charged with stealing “a negroe Boy” and a horse. The day
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before the two witnesses arrived in Windsor, the accused man broke out of jail and escaped.
Petitioners {2}: Blackwood, William; Craig, Johnston.
0107. Cumberland County. Petitioner requests permission to import slaves acquired from the
estate of his deceased uncle, Peter McDonald, who lived in Kingston, Jamaica. The slaves
included men, women, and children and numbered about twenty. Petitioner: McKeller, Laucklin.
0113. As sheriff in Jones County, Wilkinson was ordered by the superior court of Hillsboro to levy
an execution on the property of several men who had signed securities for Thomas Williams,
Wilkinson’s predecessor as sheriff. Among them was Benjamin Granade, who had left North
Carolina and died in Georgia but bequeathed relatives three slaves. Wilkinson confiscated the
slaves and sold them at auction only to learn later that the Jones County court refused to accept
the sale and demanded that Wilkinson make restitution. He asks for relief. Petitioner: Wilkinson,
Dawkins.
0120. Bertie County. Massengale requests compensation for Plato, a slave executed for his role
in the 1802 insurrection conspiracy. The owner noted that the slave was “of considerable value to
him, being the only slave he possessed.” Petitioner: Massengale, Kinchen.
0126. Robeson County. Tried, convicted, and fined in the superior court of Fayetteville District for
“Riot” against a “mulatto” man named Elisha Cumboe, the petitioners argue that the Cumboe clan
is notorious for its villainous, depraved, and vicious members. “In the Neighborhood where your
petitioners lives, there also lives a family of these Mulattoes, who are well known to be of
Infamous Characters, who have been for a great number of Years continually in the practice of
Villa[i]nous Transactions.” The petitioners ask that their fine be remitted. Petitioners {7}: Barnes,
John; Blount, Jacob; Odom, William; Pate, Charles; Townsend, William.
0139. Sampson County. Stephen Carrol pursued accused murderer Johnathan Charvers, a free
man of color also called John White, “with great labor and pains and at great expense.” He finally
captured Charvers and placed him in jail at Fayetteville. Charvers was convicted but later
pardoned. The petitioner seeks remuneration for services rendered “for the public good."
0146. Rowan County. Christian Limbaugh seeks a divorce from his wife, Catherina, formerly
Catherina Hess. Limbaugh asserts that Catherina, whom he left in 1799, had an “ungovernable
temper” and was frequently connected with other men, including blacks. After he left, she was
“delivered of one or more mulatto children.” In 1804, at the March Term of the Salisbury Superior
Court, she was convicted of murdering her infant child (generally believed to have been a
mulatto), but the governor pardoned her as she stood under the gallows.
0151. Edgecomb County. “Eli is absolutely impotent,” his wife, Winny Manning, explains in her
petition for divorce. As “unpleasant as that may appear to a young & healthy woman,” she adds,
still worse were his accusations that she was having “illicit connection with every man, both white
& black that may have seen her” and his threats on her life. Eli “freely & sincerely” joins Winny in
the petition for divorce. Winny is illiterate. Petitioners {2}: Manning, Eli; Manning, Winny.
0156. Craven County. Barber John Carruthers Stanley, a free man of color in New Bern, is the
father of three children born in slavery and out of wedlock. He asks the legislature to pass an act
legitimizing them so that they might inherit his property “in the same manner as if they had been
born in lawful matrimony."
1806.
0159. Emigrating from Guadeloupe to Chowan County, North Carolina, in 1794, planter Francis
Briols left valuable slave property behind. In 1802, he returned to Guadeloupe and reclaimed
twelve slaves: Mathias, Moses, Morris, Charles, Hector, and seven others—a total of six adult
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males, three adult females, and three children. Now he wishes to resettle in the United States and
asks permission to bring his property into North Carolina.
1807.
0164. Hertford County. The Copelands seek to emancipate their mulatto slave, Ben, because it is
“incompatible with the tenets of Christianity” to hold “any of the human race, in servile Bondage.”
Petitioners {2}: Copeland, Eli; Copeland, William.
0171. Richmond County. Martha Cole asks permission to sell property, including four slaves
given her by her father, that legally belongs to her insane husband. She explains that for the past
year she had kept her husband in a small building connected to her house. At the time of the
petition, she was sixty years old and “destitute of any white family except her said husband.” She
requests permission to sell the property to support herself and provide humane treatment for her
husband.
0181. Randolph County. James Alexander Sr. and Jr. request release from bail of one hundred
pounds they had put up as security for Joseph Alexander, accused of persuading a Negro man to
leave his master. Every possible means had been undertaken to find Joseph, they said, but to no
avail. They ask for legislative relief.
0184. Hertford County. Petitioners request that the petition of Eli and William Copeland to
emancipate Ben be denied. They contend that the slave is “a person of evil disposition often
having been the Instigation of disputes and Controversy between Neighbours and Brothers.” For
some time he had been “at Liberty to Run at Large.” Petitioners {61}: Bertholt, Lewis; Brantly,
Edward; Cutler, William; Martain, Richard; White, Soloman.
0189. In his last will and testament, a slaveholder in Orange County stipulated that his four slaves
should remain with his wife during her lifetime but that following her death they should be freed.
Thompson asks that the wish of the master be honored now that both master and mistress are
deceased. Petitioner: Thompson, John.
0192. Currituck County. Following the insurrection panic in 1802, George Howard was
successfully sued by Benjamin Taylor of Chowan County for damaging his property. Howard said
he was doing his duty “as all true Subjects ought to do,” but the ruling against him for more than
303 pounds proved to be disastrous. The payment “has Ruined and broke him up.” He asks for
reimbursement.
1808.
0205. Chowan County. Emancipated for “meritorious services” in 1808, Rose was presented a
short time later with her two children—Charlotte and Leon—a gift from her former master August
Cabarrus. If she were to die, she argues, the children might be “taken up and sold,” a calamity
upon which a mother could not think “without terror.” She asks that her two children be liberated.
0212. Greene County. The petitioner seeks to rescind a gift to his son, Nathan Lasitter. The gift
included land, livestock, tools, furniture, and seven slaves. Lasitter claims he had been forced to
sign the deed by “threats & insinuations of a man notorious for intrigue & and overbearing
influence.” He asks that his deed of gift be declared void. The slaves include Sam, Friday, Ned,
Jack, Peter, Sal, and Jenny. Petitioner: Lasitter, Silas.
0218. Perquimans County. Edward Hall seeks to recover his slaves from Job Riddick, a Gates
County man who had taken possession of Harry, Lydia, Silus, Charles, Nanny, Judah, Jim, and
Sam. Hall says he is too poor to institute a suit to recover his property. He had presented
previous petitions to the legislature but to no avail.
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0224. Chatham County. Abandoned by her husband, who absconded to the west with her four
slaves, Milly Farrar was left with virtually nothing. She had an infant to care for and asks that she
be permitted to keep any future property she might acquire.
0227. Brunswick County. McAlester, also spelled McAlister, purchased his grandson, Joseph, by
saving money from his “own honest Industry.” “He therefore humbly requests your honorable
Body to grant to an old Man the Freedom of his Grand Child by passing a Law emancipating him
by the name of Joseph Blackwell."
0231. Rowan County. The heirs of Isaac Holeman seek to manumit the slave Charles, as
stipulated in Holeman's last will and testament. Charles should be freed “for divers good Causes
and meritorious acts.” Petitioners {6}: Holeman, David; Holeman, Isaac; Holeman, Jacob;
Holeman, James; Holeman, William.
0235. Mecklenburg County. William and Elizabeth Pickens seek to emancipate their two slaves,
Jack and Mary, who had been “faithful & good Slaves” and particularly helpful to William in his old
age.
0239. Warren County. Barnett Beasley purchased two elderly slaves, Sam and Abby, from the
estate of his wife's uncle in Virginia. Beasley said he acquired them from “motives of humanity”
rather than “any Considerations of emolument.” The slaves had been in the family for a long time,
and to effect a division of the estate he took them “for a sum Considerably less than his share.”
He was ignorant of the laws prohibiting importation and now requests permission to bring them
into North Carolina.
0244. Person County. Abandoned by her husband, William Crockett, shortly after their marriage,
Lucy Crockett explains that he had squandered her property, including several valuable slaves,
and had left her pregnant and without funds. He was later arrested and convicted for passing
counterfeit bank notes and imprisoned for two years in the Hillsboro jail. She asks that any
property she might acquire in the future be free from his debts, or, as she put it: “That she may be
allowed some surety for that property which by her future industry she may acquire."
0249. Beaufort County. Adams requests manumission of his slave, Rachel, and her son, Joseph.
Rachel had always been dutiful and obedient and had been very “careful and attentive to him
during a spell of sickness which continued for seven Years.” Petitioner: Adams, Abraham, Sr.
0252. Lucy Self moved with her husband in 1803 to the “western Country.” About 1806, she lost
her eyesight and was abandoned by her husband. She returned to Anson County to live with her
father, who had given her a “Negro wench Named tisha” as a gift. Self asks the legislature to
allow her to own property in her own right, “Securing to her” the slave and “such other property as
she may hereafter acquire."
1809.
0257. Iredell County. The administrator of the estate of Alexander Worke requests the
emancipation of eight slaves—Granny Nan, old Bet, old Hannah, Peter (and Sall, his wife), Big
Pegg, Harry, and Ned. In his will, Worke freed nine slaves, but one had since died. At the time of
his death Worke owned about seventy slaves. Petitioner: Stokes, Montfort.
0268. Ashe County. In 1784, Alexander Smith married Sarah Dickson. The couple lived together
for many years “in domestic peace and pleasure,” raising a family of five girls. In 1801, however,
Sarah ran off with a “a Mullatoe man Nearly as Black as an Negro and has lived without the
Bounds of this State with said man of mixt collur ever since.” Petitioner asks for a divorce.
0273. Abandoned after nine years of marriage, Frances Murdin called her husband an “unfeeling
monster.” He had run off to Georgia, taking their eight slaves and leaving her and their three
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children without protection or support. “Will your Honoble Body in tender consideration be
pleased to enact such a law as will secure to your Petitioner what little she at present possesses
or may hereafter obtain by her own labour, by gift or Inheritance free from the debts or power of
her Husband David Mundin."
0277. Guilford County. Citing the right to liberty of “all the Human Species” and arguing that God
made all nations of “one blood,” Quakers seek the “gradual extension of the inestimable blessing
of Liberty to the unhappy, and long-injured African race in Our Land.” Petitioner: Coffin,
Barnabas.
0282. Wilkes County. About 1795, John P. Waters took as his partner a woman of color,
Elisabeth Culmes; over the years they had “six fine Children.” A malicious neighbor informed the
authorities and a bill of indictment was drawn up against him for living with a black woman in “an
unlawfull manner.” At the trial, he and Elisabeth were each fined twenty-five pounds. He was a
poor man and could not pay and asks for relief.
0286. The executor of the last will and testament of Richard Sayrs of Randolph County seeks to
emancipate a mulatto slave named George who had lived with the family for a number of years,
was literate, and worked as a blacksmith. At age twenty-one, George was “a boy of good Moral
Charactor and honoust principles.” Petitioner: Bell, William.
1810.
[November 1810 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0349.]
0289. As an executor of the estate of Dr. William Morrison of Mecklenburg County, James Wallis
went to the house of the widow Susanna Morrison to divide up “some of the negro property.”
Following the division, several intoxicated men began quarreling, and Wallis attempted to
intervene. He was charged and convicted of assault and fined fifty pounds. He denies any
wrongdoing and asks the legislature for “relief which it alone is competent to afford."
0297. Perquimans County. Arguing that blacks are equal with whites in the eyes of God, they ask
that the legislature pass a law stating that “such Citizens who are Conscienciously scrupulous of
holding their fellow Creatures as Slaves, may Legally emancipate them.” Petitioner: Coffin,
Barnabas.
0300. Bertie County. The petitioner requests compensation for housing in jail two prisoners and
three witnesses, including the black man Tom. The man accused of horse stealing remained in
jail 254 days, the man accused of murder 162 days, and the witnesses—Mary Manley, Winnifred
Wiggins, and the “Negro Tom"—146 days. Both accused men, Allen Bilch and Anthony Wiggins,
were executed. Petitioner: Green, William.
0307. By virtue of an execution against Bryan Lane for twenty dollars, Greene County constable
Nathan Holmes sold two slaves worth an estimated $500 to Branum Packer for 40 shillings each.
The execution was held by Packer then transferred to Holmes; the slaves—Comfort and Selah—
were sold to Packer before Lane could walk a half-mile and obtain the $20 to pay the execution.
The result was an “illegal Collusive & arbitrary sale.” Lane petitions for relief.
0313. Edgecomb County. In 1803, Isaac Bracewell's wife, Nancy Low, had left him “without just
cause, or provocation.” Bracewell, who signed with a mark, seeks an “act whereby he may be
separated” from Nancy who had long extended her favors to all “without distinction of color."
0317. Duplin County. Left in “oppulent Circumstances” by her former husband when he died—
with a manor house, outbuildings, plantation lands, orchards, livestock, household and kitchen
furniture, and slaves—Barbara Wilkinson was stripped of her property by her second husband, a
young physician named John Wilkinson. When he finally abandoned her she was left nearly
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destitute. She asks that any property she acquires in the future she be allowed to “possess and
enjoy” in her own right.
0323. Perquimans County. Caleb Winslow requests the emancipation of his slave named Mills,
age about twenty-five, for the services he had rendered and his past loyalty.
0328. Surry County. Nichols Hutchens and others seek to emancipate Sucky for her industry,
loyalty, honesty, good conduct, and meritorious services. Petitioners {6}: Hutchens, Benjamin;
Hutchens, James; Hutchens, John; Hutchens, Nicholas; Hutchens, Strangeman.
0333. Daniel Redmond seeks to manumit the “Negro Woman Rose,” whom he inherited from his
mother-in-law.
0336. Wake County. About 1807, Young Utley married Mary Woodward in Wake County.
Sometime afterward she “was delivered of a black child.” The petitioner asserts that she moved to
Tennessee and now lives “with a man of Colour, (the Supposed author of her shame) in the
character of a wife.” Utley, though “of obscure birth & condition,” claims he is a man of high
principles and thus seeks a divorce.
1811.
0340. Martin County. Having long and faithfully served their master, Joseph John Hill of Halifax
County, Boson and Petty were purchased following Hill's death by William Williams, a family
friend and executor of the estate. He did not buy them to “benefit from their Service,” Williams
said, but rather, because of their “long continued & meritorious Services,” to assist them in
purchasing their freedom. A short time later, but after the birth of their son, Freeman Hill, Boson
paid for himself and his wife. Williams asks to emancipate the three blacks.
0345. The executor of Isaac Lowe's will, Andrew Boyd, writes in behalf of six slaves, who were to
be freed following the death of Lowe and his wife. The Rockingham County Court emancipated
only those who were over twenty-one as “regulated by the strict letter of the law requiring
meritorious Services.” As the slaves were all in the same family, meaning the parents were free
while the children remained in slavery, undermining the benevolent intentions of the testator. In
addition, the heirs of the deceased had already sold their claim in the black children to
speculators. Boyd asks for legislative “interposition."
0349. Thomas Carr Jr. and twenty other citizens of Stokes County petition to liberate a former
slave of Noble Ladd. The petitioners state that “Richard a black man” has totally purchased his
freedom. Richard has “a free woman to his wife and several Children.” Richard and his wife own
“some property that they have acquired by their Labor.” The petitioners attest to the honest
character of the slave man. Petitioners {21}: Bostick, Absalom; Carr, Thomas, Jr.; Douglass,
Thomas L.; Lomax, Abel; Vaughn, Q. [Editorial Note: date of petition is November 1810; petition
out of chronological sequence.]
1812.
0354. Alexander Hambleton of Nash County explains that at the previous session of the
legislature a law was passed emancipating a slave named Silvey as stipulated in the will of
Abraham Bass. Between the time of the petition and the passage of the law, however, Silvey
gave birth to a daughter named Violet. Hambleton asks that the child also be emancipated.
0360. Perquimans County. About 1804, Rhoda Wynn's first husband died. He left her lands,
houses, livestock, and slaves. About 1808, she married Benjamin Wynns of Tyrrell County, who
represented himself as a “Gentleman” but was a wife-beater. She was forced to flee for her safety
on a number of occasions. After one beating, she stopped and rested at the house of a Negro
man named Dick. The husband sold most of the property and rented out the houses and lands
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before returning “from whence he came.” She asks to be permitted to “possess quietly such
property as she may obtain by donation, industry, or otherwise."
1813.
0366. A group of Orange County residents request that a law be passed permitting only two dogs
on each plantation. The large number of dogs owned by whites and blacks made it very difficult to
raise sheep, and consequently people were unable “to manufacture as much Cloth as will be
requisite for the common use of their families.” Petitioners {86}: Bowman, James; Carrol, Michael;
Numum, William; Palmer, Will; Thompson, Samuel.
0371. Camden County. Sarah Bell seeks a divorce from Samuel Bell, who abused her and sold
her slaves and other property. She was treated “in a very harsh unmanly and Cruel manner,
descending to Blows with Cruel and Barbarous Weapons on the Body of your Orator—then far
advanced in years and Mother of Ten."
0379. Gates County. James Hoffler says that his wife, Deborah, left him in 1802, and six or eight
months later she gave birth to a child. She then moved in with a free black man, John Lowance,
and had a child with him as well. When the black man moved out, she took up with Thomas Ball
and went with him to Charleston, South Carolina. The husband had previously divested her of
any dower rights in his property (through a legislative act) and now seeks a divorce.
0384. Wake County. Joseph Hancock requests a divorce from his wife, the former Tabitha
Askew, who had “Abandoned herself to the most vile prostitution and debauchery” and given birth
to children “of various colours and complexions.”
0387. During the War of 1812, inhabitants in Lenoir County recommend the organization of
cavalry units throughout the state. They would be ready on short notice to “keep in check any
attempt at invasion” or to suppress any insurrection. Petitioners {56}: Campbell, Thomas; Croom,
William; Gray, Thomas C.; Phillips, Thomas; Whitfield, Bryan.
1814.
0391. Gates County. Slave owner Love Brady contends that her husband beat and maltreated
her “Without Cause on her part.” He also “Wasted” all of her property, including “Negroes and
other things.” She asks that any property she obtains in the future be secured against her
husband's possible claim.
0394. Gates County. Richard Ballard seeks to emancipate his female slave, Agatha, about fortyfive years old. Such an emancipation, Ballard asserts, would “hold out an encouragement to
others of her condition to behave themselves properly.” Agatha deserved to be freed as a reward
for her “fair and upright character” and her long and loyal service.
0397. Guardian William Vines requests permission to sell slaves willed to Margaret Hammond by
her father. Margaret is insane, and Vines believes the sale is the only way to pay for her care.
The slaves—Jin, Bett, Silvy, and Tom—were hired out “at public sale for the most that could be
attained which from their small Value and their particular situation has been found far short of
supporting themselves, and consequently nothing can be obtained towards the support of the
said Lunatick.” Jin was chargeable rather than profitable, “still more so by her having children."
0402. Gates County. Petitioners request that their conviction for hog stealing be revoked because
the court relied on testimony of Abraham Green, who was at the same court session tried,
convicted, and sentenced to be hanged for stealing Negroes. Although later reprieved, Green, the
petitioners argue, was not a credible witness. Petitioners {2}: Green, Nathaniel; Green, Samuel,
Jr.
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1816.
[December 1816 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0462.]
0407. New Hanover County. Harriet Laspeyre requests a separation from her husband and
protection from any claims he might make on her property. She claims he married her solely for
the purpose of selling her slaves and using the money to engage in his adulterous practices with
black and mulatto women. In addition, he was a violent and brutal man, haughty, arrogant,
“capricious and tyranic."
0413. Randolph County. Isaac Farlow and Lewis Jones are the executors of the will of Henry
Justice, deceased. They seek to fulfill his wish that the “Negroe Slave Jim” be given “his freedom
together with the sum of seventy four Dollars.” The estate was not in debt and a handsome
legacy had been provided to Justice's widow and only daughter. Jim “is an Honest, Industrious
and Orderly Fellow."
0417. Mecklenburg County. Petitioners requests that the slaves left by Reese Price, deceased,
be sold and the money invested, with the interest going to the Presbyterian Church. Price left
instructions that his slaves be hired out and the profits go to the church, but the executors were
having difficulties. The slaves were “placed in very Disagreeable Circumstances By Changing
their Masters annually,” they explained, and it was an “arduous task” to hire them at “Publick
Auction” each year. Petitioners {2}: Harris, Elizabeth; Harris, John.
0420. New Hanover County. Ann Parker and Samuel Buxton, the administratrix and administrator
of the estate of John Parker, deceased, request permission to sell three slaves. They do so
because after the sale of livestock, furniture, and plantation tools, there were still outstanding
debts. Consequently, it was necessary to “sell three small negroes which is the only personal
estate left by the Intestate not already sold."
0424. Frederick James fought in the American Revolution, enduring the “hardships and privations
of a Camp often ill provided,” the dangers of battle, and the “horrors of a tedious imprisonment.”
Now with his constitution “impaired and broken,” he ran a refreshment house for those who attend
public meetings in Bertie County. Unfortunately, some customers did not pay for their
refreshments, and having the “misfortune to be born of Parents tho' free of African descent” he
had no recourse against them in collecting the debts. He asks for redress from the legislature.
0435. Ship owners and mariners along the coast ask that the 1812 law prohibiting the licensing of
slave pilots be repealed. Black pilots were “generally well qualified, skillful & hardy: their
Competency judged of & certified by the same board by whom Branches are granted to White
men Viz.—the Commissioners of Navigation.” Petitioners {32}: Gooding, Sa[muel]; King, Ed;
McKinley, James; Snead, John; Taylor, Isaac.
0439. Iredell County. In her last will and testament, Mary Knox requested her executors to free
her slave, Sall, who lived in Rowan County with her free black husband. Following the mistress’s
death, and the death of one of the executors, Mussendine Matthews, the second executor, seeks
to comply with the mistress's wishes. Sall should be freed and given the name Sarah Ford.
0442. Bertie County. Owned by various members of the Thompson family, including William
Thompson, the slave Willis “performed many & important services for his respective masters.” A
“great part of the time” he worked as a superintendent or overseer. William Thompson provided in
his will that Willis should be freed, and upon the master's death Willis asked William Carnal if he
would purchase him and then he would buy himself. Carnal agreed, and Willis bought his
freedom, receiving a Certificate of Emancipation from the Martin County Court of Pleas and
Quarter Sessions. But the court did not give Willis a name or title whereby he could purchase
property, sue or be sued, or enjoy the rights and privileges of other free persons of color. He asks
for an act of emancipation giving him the name Willis Thompson.
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0449. Washington County. As the “true & only proprietor” of a mulatto woman, Mace, age about
twenty, and her two mulatto children, Clara and William, ages four and six months, Thomas
Johnson seeks to emancipate his three slaves.
1817.
0453. Rowan County. When George Mills of Randolph County made his will in 1808, he
stipulated that his slave, Lucy, should be freed “by the Congress” nine years hence. As executor
of Mills's estate, Ransom Harriss seeks to free Lucy in 1817, explaining that by Congress the
owner actually meant by “existing Laws."
0462. Granville County. A widow requests the legislature's intervention so that the $5,000 debt
from her husband's estate can be settled by selling off land, rather than slaves. She wants to
keep the slaves for her children and believes their value will increase. [Editorial Note: date of
petition is December 1816; petition out of chronological sequence.]
0467. Sampson County. In a prior application, Harriet Laspeyre, Bernard's wife, received
permission to separate from her husband. She claimed that he married her solely for the purpose
of selling her slaves and using the money to keep his black and mulatto mistresses. The husband
now defends himself by charging his wife with “Virulent and Infamous Libel.” He asks that the act
passed at the previous session of the legislature, so “Ruinous to your Memorialist,” be repealed.
Petitioner: Laspeyre, Bernard.
0472. Iredell County. Seventy-nine-year-old slave owner Peter Mock requests that Weiney and
her daughter, Jean Ridgeway, be emancipated. He had purchased them in 1794, and they had
served him “with as much care & Industry as ever Slaves did."
0475. Bertie County. Mary Hassell seeks protection from any claims that her husband, Benjamin
Hassell, might make against her property. She asserts that he “has betaken to himself as a wife &
Companion, a negro woman, the slave & lawful property of your petitioner."
0480. Rockingham County. John Walker asks for mercy after being convicted of murdering a
slave and sentenced to death. William Miller, the governor, granted him a pardon, but “did not
finally extend his clemency.” Walker asks the legislature to grant him mercy.
0484. Brunswick County. Hannah Allen and her five children—Mary, Sam, Nancy, James, and
John—were to be emancipated according to provisions made by their late master, but only the
mother was freed. The children could not be freed because they had not performed meritorious
services. Noting that her master, who was also named Allen, created a trust in New Hanover
County to be used for their freedom, she asks the legislature to emancipate her children.
0489. Franklin County. The executors of John Hoof's will explain that the recently deceased Hoof
directed “all his Slaves to be Liberated by the General Assembly.” The slaves included, among
others, Hoof's acknowledged daughter, a woman of color named Sylvia, and her children (Hoof's
grandchildren), Nancy, Sally, Betty, John, Polly, and James, and grandchildren (Hoof's greatgrandchildren), Berry, Dolphin, and Billy. If the legislature could not free all of Hoof's slaves, the
executors argue, then it should emancipate these mulattos. Some eighteen or twenty years
before, the master had given Sylvia to a free man of color named Drewry Owen, a property
owner, and the two had raised their family “without any aid” from the master. Petitioners {2}: Sills,
David; Wheless, William.
0493. Guilford County. The clerk of the yearly Meeting of the Society of Friends, on behalf of its
members, seeks to ameliorate the condition of “the descendents of Africa.” Perhaps colonization,
as supported by “the General Government,” would be a way to discourage the “unrighteous”
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traffic in human beings “in our section of the Union.” The principles of Christianity demand action,
they contend. Petitioner: Hubbard, Jeremiah.
1818.
0496. Bertie County. Petitioners request an increase in the fees charged by constables for,
among other things, whipping blacks by order of the court. Petitioners {74}: Britton, William;
Hempsted, Benj.; Lancaster, William, Jr.; Norfleck, William; Peelle, Dempsey.
0502. A number of residents assembled at regimental or battalion musters in Iredell County
complain that this was “productive of much Vice & immorality.” They ask for a law “to prevent
Negroes from assembling at musters or to punish them for so doing.” Petitioners {25}:
McClelland, [Mr.]; Crawford, Thomas J.; Falls, Theophelus; Houston, Samuel; Morris, James.
0506. Taking into consideration the vice and immorality among blacks, the daring thefts and
robberies committed daily, and the increasing insolence among the slave population, residents of
Nash County call for an amended patrol law. They ask that justices of the peace be permitted to
appoint patrols in their districts if the county court failed to do so or the appointed patrols failed to
act. They also ask that the legislature prohibit free women of color from marrying slaves unless
owners gave “sufficient security” to protect residents from the free black children of such unions.
Petitioners {32}: Arrington, Joseph; Bellamy, William; Bisset, John; Dance, James W.; Drake,
John H.
0510. Stokes County. Slave owner John C. Blum seeks to emancipate his Negro man, Barthlett,
who had always been “an honest, faithfull, peaceable & obedient Servant.” In June 1817, Blum
had petitioned the county court and the court had declared Barthlett Reynolds “emancipated
according to Act of Assembly made and provided."
0515. Randolph County. Emancipated slave George Sears, a blacksmith, purchased Tillah for
$300, married her, and the couple had two children, when he discovered that he needed an act of
the legislature to free his family. He asks for an act to free his wife and two daughters, Patsey and
Polly Sears.
1819.
0520. Wake County. The Raleigh Auxiliary Society for the Colonizing [of] the Free People of
Color of the United States requests that senators and representatives from North Carolina
support the movement to colonize free blacks in Africa. The state's delegation should use its
influence to obtain support for the American Colonization Society. Petitioner: Potter, H.
0525. Duplin County. Former slave owner Rebecca Newkirk, who signed with a mark, requests
protection from her husband's debts. She notes that all of the property she brought to the
marriage, including land and slaves, was sold to pay his debts. In addition, Alexander Newkirk,
her husband, still owned a “great amount.” She asks for protection against having to discharge
the remainder of his debts.
0529. Johnson County. Supporters of John McLeod, accused of whipping a slave to death, ask
for leniency. It is true, they write, that McLeod whipped the slave Isom severely (with the master's
permission) when the slave refused to divulge the whereabouts of a runaway owned by McLeod
(Isom eventually confessed). But, they contend, his whipping was “entirely unconnected” with the
slave's death a few hours later. Addressed to the governor, the petition is sent to the General
Assembly. Petitioners {14}: Brame, L.; Fox, L.; Lane, Joel H.; Lucas, A.; Taylor, James F.
0535. New Hanover County. British citizen Mary Ann Sansum, travelling from the West Indies to
North Carolina, was shocked when her two body servants—a black and “mulatto” couple—and
their four children were seized at the port of Wilmington. The family was taken up shortly after the
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boat arrived, as the importation of slaves was prohibited. She said that the United States consul
in Martinique told her that if she were merely travelling she could take her slaves along without
interference. She seeks the return of her slaves or a refund of the money arising from their sale.
1820.
0547. New Hanover County. Residents in Wilmington complain about transient traders who arrive
during the winter and spring months and sell liquor to blacks. The results are “truly alarming,” they
say, demoralizing the slave population and “on many occasions” causing blacks to go with these
traffickers out of the state to the North. White youngsters were also hurt by these activities.
Petitioners ask the legislature to “impose a Tax on all transient persons engaged in the vending of
Goods, wares, & Merchandise, similar to that exacted by our sister States—South Carolina &
Georgia.” Petitioners {95}: Callender, Thomas; Cowan, Thomas; Hartman, J.; Macneill, A. F.;
Rankin, Rob.
0555. Burke County. Samuel Love, a free man of color, acquired a small estate though his own
industry and hard work. He asks to be able to give his property to his son, Samuel, in his last will
and testament.
0558. Nathaniel Robards is the sheriff of Granville County. He asks for reimbursements approved
by the county court but not paid. In his compilation of a “List of Taxable property” he cited 117
“Insolvents,” including 111 “free polls and six slaves."
0562. Rockingham County. In 1819, a female slave was arrested and tried, and in May 1820,
convicted of murder. She remained in prison until the last day of June, when she was executed.
Her owner, Alexander Roach, seeks reimbursement for prison charges of $78.20 and travel
expenditures of $36.36, arguing that he is an eighteen-year-old orphan of modest means. He is
now left with only one slave, an eleven-year-old boy.
0570. Petitioner John Beard, a tax collector in Rowan County, petitions the General Assembly of
North Carolina for more than $370 to repay two out-of-state slaveholders who successfully
argued in the superior court of Rowan County that Beard improperly collected taxes on their
slaves as they passed through the county. On 22 January 1819, the petition states, Beard
collected a tax of $190 from William H. Hanford on nineteen slaves Hanford was transporting to
Tennessee. On 19 January 1819 Beard collected a tax of $180 from John Morton on eighteen
slaves that Morton was transporting to Georgia. Beard then forwarded the money collected to the
state treasurer. Hanford and Morton sued Beard, claiming that the laws of 1817 and 1818 taxing
slaves passing through North Carolina did not apply to slaves purchased in the state. The
superior court in Rowan County found in favor of Hanford and Morton and ordered Beard to repay
them the collected tax plus interest. Beard petitions the General Assembly to “pass a law
directing the Treasurer to pay to him the amount of the said judgments rendered against him in
Rowan Superior Court in favor of said William A. Hanford and John Morton for money collected
from them as a Tax on Negro Slaves passing through this state."
1821.
0574. Orange County. In 1818, Elijah Cate was convicted of forging a pass for a slave. Since the
conviction, he has conducted himself well, plus he is the father of a large family of children.
Petitioners ask the legislature to pass an act to restore Cate's credit.
1822.
0582. Seeking the repeal of a recent law permitting slaves to testify against free blacks in criminal
cases, free men of color in Hertford County assert that the law permits “vindictive masters” to
manipulate the testimony of their slaves. The free blacks say that some of them had fought during
the Seven Years War, and all of them believe that “men are by nature free & equal” and have the
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right to enjoy life, liberty, and property. Petitioners {52}: Brown, Allen; Brown, William, Sr.; Runiel,
John; Smith, James; Smith, William.
0588. A group of white residents in Hertford County support free blacks who are asking for repeal
of the law allowing slaves to testify against free people of color in criminal cases. Petitioners {82}:
Lewis, Watson; Morgan, J.; Smith, G. M.; Williams, George; Wynns, James D.
0592. Moore County. Hannah Ducksworth is the executrix of her husband’s will. She seeks to
carry out his desire to emancipate six slaves—Chainey, Peggy, Jerry, Daniel, Anderson, and
Esson. His debts were “trifling,” she said, and the slaves performed “Meritorious Services.” She
had petitioned the local superior court, but the judge told her “no trust Estate Had been created in
Said Negroes to any person” and consequently he could not free the blacks. Then she petitioned
the legislature.
0597. Camden County. Petitioners complain about the laws of 1820 and 1821 directing the “time,
manner, and place of the Sales of lands and Slaves under Executions levied on by Sheriffs,
Constables, and other Officers.” When auctions occurred at the courthouse, slave owners
sometimes lost as much as fifty percent of the value of the slave. Petitioners ask that the laws be
repealed. Petitioners {397}: Boushall, Mal. W.; Grandy, John; Hearring, William; Perkins, Caleb;
Wilson, W.
0612. Wake County. Widow Janet Corn's son, Henry, was stabbed to death by a slave named
Prince, owned by George Herndon. She is frustrated with delays in bringing Prince to justice.
Meanwhile, Prince's owner transported him out of the state. She asks that the justices of the
peace be impeached or removed for malfeasance.
0619. Petitioner John Rhem, on behalf of himself and fellow officers of the Craven County militia,
“appeals to the Justice and Gratitude of this Country, for Indemnity against the pecuniary portion
of their sufferings” stemming from wounds received while on patrol. During the summer of 1821
“a number of negroes were collected together in arms, and were going about the counties of
Craven, Carteret, Onslow, and Jones Counties committing thefts, and alarming the inhabitants of
said Counties. The outrages of these villains became so frequent and daring that…it was thought
necessary to adopt measures either to arrest or to disperse them.” On 10 August, Craven County
officials ordered the militia regiment to patrol the county for the band of African Americans. After
midnight on 21 August 1821 Rhem and eight of his men encountered five armed men on the
Street's Bridge across the Neuse River. Rhem called out to the men to identify themselves. The
men responded with gunshots. Rhem was shot through the right lung, and his arm was shattered.
Alexander Taylor was shot through the head and his other officers received various wounds. The
two armed parties then retreated, waiting for daylight to learn the size of the opposing force. The
next morning Rhem discovered that it was not armed African Americans whom he had engaged
the night before but rather a group of nervous whites who lived in the area and “had turned out to
patrol from the same alarm which had brought your petitioners party into service, and who
ignorant of your petitioners station had mistaken his party for blacks and had fired under that
mistake.” Rhem and his fellow officers, “probably disabled for life,” seek restitution for medical
expenses and financial assistance. Petitioners {4}: Bexley, Christopher; Ewell, Thomas; Rhem,
John; Taylor, Alexander.
0637. Carteret County. Terence Pelletier, James Noe, and George Piner were ordered out by
Colonel John H. Hill of Carteret County to “suppress the depredations” of Negroes in surrounding
areas. The three militiamen ask the legislature for pay.
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0001. Descriptive material.
1823.
0007. In 1822, David absconded from his owner. Armed and dangerous, he remained “lurking
about in the neighbourhood, doing & committing divers mischief, and depredations.” Learning that
the black man was hiding in a house, a group of young men went to the house, and “David was
shot dead.” Citing the 1741 law promising compensation to owners of runaways who were killed
during attempts to apprehend them, Jarred Weaver seeks a “suitable allowance."
0010. Randolph County. In 1776, Jane married John Welborn. She remained with him until 1793,
“when his abusive treatment and dissipated habits became so intolerable” that she left. The
mother of six children, Jane received from her stepfather a lifetime right in five slaves together
with “other legacies for her support & maintenance,” but the property had to be sold to satisfy her
husband's debts. Concerned about her children in her old age, she asks for law protecting “such
estate as she may hereafter acquire” by gift, descent, or her own industry.
0014. Onslow County. Petitioner describes an insurrection in the summer of 1821 involving
“outlawed and runaway slaves and free negroes.” The militia was mobilized to protect
defenseless families and find the “daring, cunning and desperate slaves.” It took twenty-six days
of hunting through woods, swamps, and marshes before the revolt was put down. As colonel of
the militia, Hill asks the legislature to pay his men for their services. Petitioner: Hill, William L.
0032. Tyrrell County. On the day after Christmas in 1822, Mary Wynn, who lived with her “aged,
infirm, and helpless” grandfather, was murdered by a number of slaves. The blacks were tried,
convicted, and executed. Two of the slaves—Charles and Vina—belonged to Mary's father,
Joseph Wynn, and two others—Joseph and Jack—belonged to Ann Wynn. The Wynns were
ordered to pay jail and other expenses amounting to $350. They “feel entirely satisfied with the
loss of their property” as it was given up for the “publick good,” but they do ask for reimbursement
of jail expenses. Petitioners {2}: Wynn, Ann; Wynn, Joseph.
0041. Lenoir County. Phillip Miller paid “all the costs incidental to the prosecution” of his slave,
Toney, who was convicted of murder and executed. Miller asks for reimbursement.
0047. Orange County. Josiah Turner asks the legislature to refrain from passing a law to
emancipate three slaves held by the estate of Jehu Whitted. Whitted specified in his last will and
testament that if his only child, Anne, died before she reached “full age” without “heirs lawfully
begotten,” the slaves, James, Duncan, and Stephen, should be emancipated. Anne died in 1819
underage and without heirs. Jehu Whitted's widow married Josiah Turner, who became the
executor of Anne's estate, which he claims passed at her death to his son and her half-brother,
William. Turner sued Levi Whitted, Jehu Whitted's executor, to invalidate the will and asks that
the legislature allow the case to be settled in the courts before passing a law emancipating the
slaves. Petitioners {2}: Turner, Josiah; Turner, William.
1824.
0055. Halifax County. Petitioner seeks back pay for service during the American Revolution. He
was told that his claims were just but that there was a scarcity of money in the state treasury. He
was offered a black man with a burned-off hand but asserts that he would rather have nothing
than accept such a slave.
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0059. Washington County. After three years of marriage, John D. Barber’s wife, Mary Perry,
abandoned him and entered “a state of prostitution with black and white.” He seeks a divorce.
0069. Wake County. An immigrant from France, Lewis Tombereau, married a young woman
named Nancy Jolly. He soon learned, however, that she was “one of the most frail, lewd, and
depraved, daughters of Eve.” She took up with “a certain mulatto Barber named Roland
Colanche” in Williamston, North Carolina. He seeks a divorce.
0074. Guilford County. Representing the Manumission Society of North Carolina, Mendenhall
describes the inconsistency of slave ownership in a democratic society. He and the society seek
a “softening” of slavery and its eventual abolition in “our State and Nation.” Petitioner:
Mendenhall, Richard.
0077. Buncombe County residents express concern about the increasing number of free blacks in
their midst. They argue that these people “are immoral idle & dissolute” and “infuse corruption
and a spirit of insubordination into the slaves.” They propose the creation of an additional
statewide tax on free persons of color. Petitioners {19}: Fletcher, John; McDowell, A. A.; Murray,
William; Ruff, James; Smith, William D.
1825.
0083. A group of Lincoln County nonslaveholders complain about having to serve in patrols. They
ask for a law promising “That no person Who does not own a slave or slaves shall be compelled
to serve as Patroler against his own will.” Petitioners {83}: Gregory, Joseph; McCullough,
Alexander; McCullough, John; Price, Thomas; Robinson, John.
0089. Chowan County. Petitioners write on behalf of Christopher Burkitt, a free man of color who
purchased his wife and daughter's freedom. After the couple had a second child, Burkitt sought to
obtain a court decree recognizing the free status of his daughters, but a superior court judge ruled
against the request. The children were not old enough to come “within the meaning of the Act of
Assembly.” Petitioners ask that the children—Peggy, about fourteen years old, and Nancy, about
seven years old—be emancipated. Petitioners {25}: Bush, John; Bush, William; Elliott, Ephraim;
Felton, John; Felton, Kidar.
0095. Randolph County. Members of the Manumission Society seek a law prohibiting the
importation of slaves “from any other State or Country, Either to Sell, or retain & use as Slaves.”
Before the sale of any slave the seller should be required to produce a deposition, sworn before a
magistrate, stating that the slave had resided in North Carolina for a given number of years. The
society was seeking to prohibit blacks from being smuggled into the state from Africa. The
petitioners also ask that the state make it easier for owners to emancipate their slaves through
their wills. “Is it not enough, that the laws of a republican State permit one man with a few
hundred dollars to purchase absolute power over another.? Must he be forced to assert that
power when he is convinced he is doing wrong.? Must he in his last dying moments, be tortured
with the awful Reflection that the laws of his Country compel him to sin as it were in his grave.?"
Petitioners {2}: Coffin, Aaron; Mendenhall, Richard.
0100. Haywood County. John Chambers seeks an annulment of his marriage to Riney Oneal
shortly after the two were joined in matrimony. His wife gave birth to a mulatto child, Chambers
said, and though the baby was given to a slave woman owned by his wife's father, Chambers
knew about the “crime."
0107. Colonel John H. Hill of Carteret County seeks compensation for his militia regiment called
out to “suppress a number of slaves and free persons of colour who had collected with arms and
were going about the county aforesaid, committing thefts and alarming the inhabitants.” The
regiment was successful in its mission, and Hill asserts that according to a 1795 law his men
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should receive the same pay and rations “as the troops of the United States when in actual
service."
1827.
0129. Montgomery County residents complain about the “pernicious consequences of slavedealers and others” importing blacks into the state. The slaves were vicious and demoralized the
other blacks. The petitioners seek a law preventing the “further introduction of slaves into this
State, under any pretence whatsoever.” Petitioners {55}: Blake, Samuel; Earl, J.; Lilly, Nathaniel;
Munn, Neill; Stanley, John.
0132. Stokes County residents complain about the “pernicious consequences of slave-dealers
and others” importing blacks into the state. The slaves were vicious and demoralized the other
blacks. The petitioners seek a law preventing the “further introduction of slaves into this State,
under any pretence whatsoever.” Petitioners {52}: Coffin, Aaron; Coffin, Benjamin; Ladd, C. D.;
Sanders, Benjamin; Shepperd, A. H.
0134. Perquimans County residents complain about the “pernicious consequences of slavedealers and others” importing blacks into the state. The slaves were of the “most vicious
characters” and demoralized the other bondspeople. The petitioners seek a law preventing the
“further introduction of slaves into this State, under any pretence whatsoever.” Petitioners {37}:
Griffin, James; Hallowell, Abraham; Nicholson, Josiah; White, Thomas; White, George, Sr.
0136. Surry County residents complain about the “pernicious consequences of slave-dealers and
others” importing blacks into the state. The slaves were vicious and demoralized the other blacks.
The petitioners seek a law preventing the “further introduction of slaves into this State, under any
pretence whatsoever.” Petitioners {80}: Day, William; Hemrick, Henry, Sr.; Johnson, Ashley;
Johnson, Gideon; Tutburl, William.
0139. Davidson County residents complain about the “pernicious consequences of slave-dealers
and others” importing blacks into the state. The slaves were of the “most vicious characters” and
demoralized the other bondspeople. The petitioners seek a law preventing the “further
introduction of slaves into this State, under any pretence whatsoever.” Petitioners {37}: Cross,
David; Johnson, Lewis; Riley, John; Skeen, Jacob; Spence, Daniel.
0142. Randolph County residents complain about the “pernicious consequences of slave-dealers
and others” importing blacks into the state. The slaves were of the “most vicious characters” and
demoralized the other bondspeople. The petitioners seek a law preventing the “further
introduction of slaves into this State, under any pretence whatsoever.” Petitioners {81}: Branson,
John; Clark, John; Dennis, William; Hinshaw, Jesse; Parker, John.
0145. Mary Thompson asks that her slave, Isaac, be liberated at the time of her death in
recognition of his “Extraordinary services.” Thompson asserts that Isaac is a “person of truth &
industrious habits” and had always been kind, obedient, honest, trustworthy, and faithful.
0150. Wayne County. Ann M. Borden asks the legislature to reject the divorce petition about to be
filed by her husband. Four months after their marriage, Ann Borden left her husband because of
“ill treatment” and threats against her life. She admits that she “had the misfortune to have a child
born of which Jesse Borden was not the father” about one month before their marriage. She
argues that she never tried to conceal from him the fact that the child was not his, as she expects
he will contend in his petition, and that he never voiced any qualms about rearing another man's
child. Furthermore, she argues, attempting to pass the child off as his “would have been
unavailing as the child would unavoidably have shown for itself.” A related document
summarizing his petition states that Jesse Borden thought the child was his from the premarital
relationship he had had with Ann Borden but then discovered “to his mortification and
astonishment” that the infant was a “mulatto child the fruits of negro."
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0156. Northampton County. Ransom Cassel seeks compensation for a runaway slave named
Austin, who was killed by a white man in 1813 or 1814. Cassel says that he would have
petitioned the legislature sooner had he not been advised that a section of the 1741 law dealing
with such cases had been repealed prior to the death of his slave. Now he learns that such was
not the case and that the law providing compensation was indeed in force.
0160. Guilford County. The female benevolent associations of James Town, Springfield, and
Kennet petition on behalf of female slaves. They seek acts “prohibiting the separation of mothers
from their tender infants; and restricting Masters in the administration of corporal punishments
from the shameful practice of stripping the black matron's back.” Petitioners {6}: Albertson,
Abigail; Frazier, Rebecca; Hunt, Nancy D.; Mendenhall, Elizabeth; Tomlinson, Martha.
0164. Guilford County residents complain about the “pernicious consequences of slave-dealers
and others” importing slaves into the state. The slaves were vicious and demoralized the other
blacks. The petitioners seek a law preventing the “further introduction of slaves into this State,
under any pretence whatsoever.” Petitioners {720}: Dick, John M.; Foulks, John T.; McNairy,
James; Paisley, William; Williamson, Robert P.
0192. New Hanover County. Jonathan Bryan seeks a divorce from his wife, Ann Jane Anders,
who not only attempted to kill him but also incited “an Insurrection” among his slaves. His wife
had left him on several occasions and now had been absent for nearly two years. She is living “in
a Negro house,” he asserted, “With Negros."
0210. The Manumission Society of North Carolina petitions to prevent the further importation of
slaves into the state “in any way whatsoever.” Many of the slaves brought into the state were
“generally the most desperate, vicious characters that can be selected from their Masters farms,
and the Gaols of the Country.” In addition, the society believes that the abolition is inevitable
given the growing political power of nonslaveholding states and that the national and state
legislatures should therefore take steps to end slavery and see that the slaves are “removed
beyond the limits of our Government.” Petitioners {2}: Coffin, Aron; Gordon, John.
0215. Davidson County residents complain about the “pernicious consequences of slave-dealers
and others” importing blacks into the state. The slaves were vicious and demoralized the other
blacks. The petitioners seek a law preventing the “further introduction of slaves into this State,
under any pretence whatsoever.” Petitioners {89}: Huff, D.; Kinney, J.; Workman, Thomas;
Workman, Henry, Jr.; Workman, Henry, Sr. Petitioners {62}: Blackburn, John; Holmes, Reuben;
Hurley, Cornelius; Kinney, Alfred; Kinney, Martin. Petitioners {15}: Baker, John; Beeker, Henry,
Jr.; Tysinger, John; Winders, Henry E.; Workman, Henry G.
0223. Randolph County residents complain about the “pernicious consequences of slave-dealers
and others” importing blacks into the state. The slaves were vicious and demoralized the other
blacks. The petitioners seek a law preventing the “further introduction of slaves into this State,
under any pretence whatsoever.” Petitioners {85}: Henley, N.; Hoover, Joseph; Milliken, B.;
Poirns, G.; Swain, G. Petitioners {43}: Coffin, Jethro; Kenutt, Joseph; Swain, Moses; Swainger,
George; Vickrey, Christopher. Petitioners {31}: Gibson, Jesse; Lamb, Alexander; Leary, Thomas
R.; Low, Thomas; Nixon, Phineas.
0231. The Pasquotank Auxiliary of the American Colonization Society submits a printed petition
from the parent organization. It says that a “Colony of free coloured persons from the United
States, amounting to several hundred, has been planted on one of the most eligible situations
upon the coast of Africa.” The society seeks support from the state of North Carolina and its
representatives in Congress for the continuation of its program. Petitioner: Washington, Bush.
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1828.
0240. A Craven County grand jury and other residents ask that the law prohibiting slaves from
hunting with dogs and guns be extended to include free persons of color. Under the pretext of
hunting game, the whites argue, free blacks kill livestock “of every description.” In addition, free
persons of color encouraged slaves to evade the law. Petitioners {35}: Casay, Thomas; Griffe,
Jesse; Hartley, Abner; Pipkin, Jesse W.; Pollard, John.
1829.
0244. Craven County. William Morris carried his three mulatto slaves—Harriet, Albert, and
Freeman, ages eight to twelve—to Pennsylvania. There he set them free but was unable to find
them “suitable situations” and consequently brought them back to North Carolina. He asks that
their emancipation be recognized in his home state.
0252. Gates County. Clement Hill was indicted and convicted in 1828 for “an assault and battery
on the body of one Jesse Reed, a man of Color.” Fined $200, Hill prays that this sum be
refunded to him on the grounds that Reed threatened and frightened Hill's sister.
0265. Residents of Lenoir County complain that several persons had been injured pursuing
runaway slaves. Under existing statutes, if a runaway were killed the pursuer was responsible to
pay the master for damages. Whites are thus discouraged from pursuing runaways. The remedy,
the petitioners suggest, is to offer a $10 reward to anyone apprehending a fugitive, whether dead
or alive. Petitioners {137}: Desmond, Lewis C.; Jones, John; Loftin, Joseph; Wayne, William;
Westbrook, Charles.
0270. William Murchie requests an act restoring his credit and privileges as a citizen after being
convicted and imprisoned for having harbored a slave and having received stolen goods. Murchie
asserts that his only fault was apprenticing himself to Charles Roach of Craven County, marrying
Roach's daughter, and living in his father-in-law's house. Murchie contends that Roach carried on
the illicit trade with slaves. When Murchie discovered that his wife already had a husband, he
moved to Lenoir County and started a new life.
0275. Craven County residents support William B. Murchie who is about to “apply for an Act to
restore him to credit.” Murchie lost his good name after being accused of harboring and illicitly
trading with a slave. Petitioners {52}: Bryan, John H.; Bryan, Leroy; Gaston, William; Hawks,
Francis; Pasteur, E. G.
1830.
0279. William Whitfield, Edmund Whitfield, and Allen Whitfield of Wayne County request that
slave patrols from Lenoir County be permitted to patrol their neighborhood. They contend that
slaves from Wayne, Lenoir, and Duplin counties gather secretly in a small area the south side of
the Neuse river where patrols seldom visit.
0282. Seeking to curb the sale of alcohol among slaves and others, residents of Duplin County
request that a law be passed requiring anyone wishing to sell liquor to obtain a license from the
county court. To obtain the license the applicant would have to prove “his or her good moral
character.” The tax on the license, ranging from $5 to $20, would be higher for those who wanted
to sell smaller amounts of liquor (i.e., a quart) and lower for those who sold larger quantities (a
gallon or more). Petitioners {30}: Cooper, William; Gowen, William M.; Middleton, R.;
Moore, D. C.; Southerland, Phill.
0287. Caswell County. Citizens of the town of Milton seek an exemption from an 1826 North
Carolina law entitled “An act to prevent free persons of Colour from migrating into this state” for
Aquilla Wilson, a free woman of color of Halifax, Virginia. Wilson is married to Thomas Day, a free
man of color whom they describe as a “Cabinet maker by trade, a first rate workman, a
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remarkably sober, steady and industrious man—, a high minded, good and valuable Citizen.”
Petitioners {68}: Chalmers, J. G.; Dodson, Stephen; Farley, George; Smith, A.; Troxler, Eli.
0294. Whites in Sampson, Bladen, New Hanover, and Duplin counties seek to reorganize the
militia to better control runaway slaves. They note that slaves are “Almost Uncontrollable they go
and come when and where they please.” Petitioners seek permission to shoot runaways who
offer resistance. Petitioners also ask for a tax on masters who permit their slaves to own dogs.
Petitioners {78}: Cromartie, A.; Cromartie, John; Cromartie, P.; Cromartie, R. W.; Herring, Hanson
W.
1831.
0298. New Hanover County. Wilmington residents assert that an 1830 act imposing a quarantine
on ships carrying free persons of color is “more injurious to the commercial and mercantile
interest of our Town, than the polluting intercourse of the blacks possibly could be to its political
safety.” They also argue that a tax on goods not grown or manufactured in the state of North
Carolina is “oppressive in its nature and partial in its operation.” Petitioners seek protection from
peddlers “whose manners, habits and political notions are essentially different from ours,” and
who were partially responsible for sowing “seeds of discord” among slaves. Petitioners {114}:
Brockett, H.; Cameron, James; Collins, D.; Gardner, J. D.; Marstelle, L. H.
0310. Anson County. Arthur Davis requests compensation for his horse, which was pressed into
service by Captain Thomas Waddill during a search for slaves suspected of plotting an
insurrection. The horse died and Davis, noting he was neither a slaveholder nor a man of means,
asks for payment.
0314. Montgomery County. Mary Christian, Thomas Christian, and Duncan McRae Jr. seek
reimbursement for the 369 meals they served to the militia during an insurrection panic in
September 1831. The petitioners are tavern keepers at Lawrenceville who volunteered their
services.
0319. Guilford County Society of Friends applauds the efforts of the colonization society and
urges annual contributions from the state legislature to aid in the removal of blacks to Liberia.
Petitioner: Hubbard, Jeremiah.
0323. Residents of Lenoir County seek to exclude “all coloured retailers of Cakes, spirits &c,”
except those licensed by the county court. Petitioners argue that self-hired slave and free Negro
hawkers not only stole lambs, pigs, and poultry, but distributed “seditious writings & notions.”
Petitioners {87}: Blount, William; Carr, Matthew M.; Croom, Issac; Kennedy, John B.; Westbrook,
Charles.
0329. Halifax County. Jesse H. Simmons seeks compensation for his out-of-pocket expenses
during the Nat Turner revolt. As he led a company of light infantry to Southampton County,
Virginia, his house in North Carolina was used as a retreat for militia and a refuge for women and
children.
0338. Craven County. Farmers and planters along the Neuse River and adjacent creeks complain
about “large gangs of slaves” who “sell, buy, traffick, and fish” in their neighborhoods. Slave
owners give these slaves passes to go at large for a month or longer. The residents argue that
self-hired blacks corrupt their slaves, encouraging them to run away and offering them
employment on their fishing boats. The whites ask for legislative intervention. Petitioners {56}:
Burch, Calvin; Galtin, William; Gaskins, Daniel; Gaskins, Levin; Whitford, Nathan.
0343. Craven County. Residents of New Bern complain that many free blacks in their town “claim
the right of voting” and that fifty or more actually cast their ballots to send a representative to the
House of Commons. The state constitution permits those who possess a freehold, had lived in
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the town for twelve months, and had paid taxes to cast their ballots as freemen. But, the
petitioners argue, free blacks are not freemen. They are forbidden to marry except within their
own class, cannot sit on juries or testify in court except in certain cases, and can be sentenced
death on the testimony of a slave. “Can these disabilities,” the petitioners ask, “belong to a
Freeman?” They ask the legislature to “ascertain and determine the true construction of the
Constitution” in order to produce a more precise meaning of a free man. Petitioners {164}: Fowler,
Joseph L.; Jackson, Daniel; Jarvis, Moses; Jarvis, Moses W.; Watson, Thomas.
1832.
0357. Lincoln County. The petitioners, heirs of Christian Eaker, seek to implement Eaker's wish
that his three slaves—Hanna, age about forty-seven; Violent, about forty-two; and Dave, a
mulatto about ten years of age—be “liberated & set free.” In his last will and testament Eaker
asked that the three slaves be emancipated because they had performed meritorious services
and showed “more than usual Kindness to myself & to my said wife both in sickness & health.”
The heirs would not receive any of Eaker's estate until after they had signed the emancipation
petition. Petitioners {9}: Carpenter, Christopher; Eaker, Christian; Eaker, Peter; Hambright,
Christian; Hullet, Catharine.
0364. Wake County. Manumitted by his master for meritorious service, John Scott purchased his
wife and only son. He was able to emancipate his wife but, on account of the boy's “tender
years,” not his son. Now, “far advanced in the Journey of life,” he asks the legislature to manumit
his son. As a slave, Scott explains, he had always “scrup[u]lously performed his duty to his
master."
0368. Citizens of Orange County complain about slaves being present during muster calls and at
elections. It was common knowledge that attending such events made blacks obstinate, sulky,
and “very frequently full of melancholy reflections upon that hard destiny which deprives him of
the privileges of a free man.” Moreover, slaves had opportunities to discuss plots of rebellion on
such occasions. Petitioners seek a law that would prohibit slaves from being present at muster
calls and elections. Petitioners {32}: Cate, Solomon; Morrow, James; Odham, Thomas; Strover,
H.; Williams, David.
0375. Mary Reid, cited as Polly Read in the petition, seeks a divorce from her husband, Elias
Reid, who after their marriage banished her to the Negro quarters, beat her, and eventually
abandoned her, taking her slaves out of state and vowing never to return during her lifetime.
1833.
0380. Lenoir County. Slave owner Gatsey Stevenson, also spelled Stephenson, seeks an act to
protect any future property she might acquire. She had married Silas Stephenson of Craven
County, but discovered that he was a drunkard. Forced to leave him, she lost five slaves—"being
a part of the filial portion which she brought to him"—and other valuable property. Now her
husband and the woman he was living with are making a claim on her plantation.
0387. Cumberland County. Fayetteville barber Joseph Hostler seeks legal emancipation after
purchasing his freedom. He paid his owner and his owner's estate a sum of $500; in addition, he
turned over $96 a year for more than four years for the privilege of hiring himself out. He had
arranged for his former master, Caleb Nichols of Wilmington, to sell him to David Smith of
Fayetteville so he could purchase his freedom.
0400. Residents of Granville County support an act for the relief of Admiral Dunston, a free black
man from Mecklenburg County, Virginia. Dunston recently married “in a respectable Family in this
neighbourhood,” the petitioners explain, but can neither take his wife back to Virginia nor move
into North Carolina. A wheelwright by trade, he would be an asset to the community and should
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be allowed to relocate with his wife. Petitioners {37}: Henderson, A. E.; Hilliard, Jeremy;
McIntosh, George L.; Newton, Thomas; Sneed, Richard.
0403. Cumberland County. Residents of Fayetteville ask that the slave Thomas be granted an act
of emancipation. Owned by Daniel Sutherland and his wife, Thomas “justly maintains the
reputation of an honest & faithful Servant.” He is also an exemplary member of his church.
Petitioners {55}: Anderson, D.; Kelly, John; Robinson, Benjamin; Rose, Beverly; Winslow, N.
0408. Martin County. Samuel Hyman writes that on many occasions and especially during a
recent illness, his slave, Ned, has remained a “faithful and honest servant.” Hyman now holds
that Ned should “do service as a slave to no person—but that as far as was consistent with the
Laws of the State” should be granted his freedom. Over the years Ned Hyman has been hired
out, has lived with his free wife, Elizabeth Hagans, and through his own and his wife's industry
has accumulated between $5,000 and $6,000 worth of property.
0417. Martin County. Residents of Williamston ask that Ned Hyman's petition for emancipation be
granted. They assert that “Ned has been, and still is, a very uncommon and extraordinary Negro,”
in addition to being “remarkably industrious, frugal and prudent.” Petitioners {153}: Bryan, James;
Bryan, John; Hyman, Ann G.; Hyman, Frances H.; Hyman, John.
1834.
0422. Burke County. Ellena Cobb seeks a divorce from her husband, John Cobb. John Cobb first
presented himself to her (and her father) as a wealthy slave owner and a practicing physician.
Thus convinced, she married him. Ellena Cobb then reports that just two days after the wedding
John Cobb began to drink to excess. John Cobb turned abusive, turned out to not own any slaves
or land, and did not have the slightest idea how to practice medicine. He is, she writes,
continuously drunk, cavorts with free mulatto women, and runs with “the very dregs of society."
0429. Owner Abraham Hammer and others seek to emancipate Edith, or Edee, a slave who “has
always sustained the character of a faithful trusty and meritorious Servant.” Hammer is a member
of a religious society whose doctrine forbids its members to own slaves. Since Edith's father,
mother, brothers, and sisters lived in Randolph County, Edith wished to remain in the county
following her emancipation. Petitioners {23}: Elliott, B.; Hammer, Abraham; Hammer, Catherine;
Marsh, A. H.; Worth, Jonathan.
0434. Hertford County. Richard Cowper, executor of the estate of Dr. Thomas O'Dwyer, seeks to
carry out a clause in O'Dwyer's will specifying that any slaves he owned at the time of his death
should be freed, except for Henry who had not been “very dutiful."
0440. Cumberland County. The executor of the estate of Thomas C. Hooper seeks to emancipate
Matilda, age about forty-five, in consideration of her “wonderful fidelity, honesty, kindness,
obliging & Humane disposition, and trustworthiness.” The emancipation was stipulated in
Hooper's will. Petitioner: Hooper, James H.
0445. Guilford County. Considering it the duty of government to permit the education of every
class of citizen, the Quakers ask for a repeal of laws prohibiting the literary instruction of slaves.
They seek new laws and regulations “for the general instruction of Slaves, in the doctrines and
precepts of the Christian Religion.” Petitioner: Hubbard, Jeremiah.
0448. Caswell County. Susana Enoch, a widow, mother of five children, and owner of several
Negro slaves, is unable to pay the taxes on her small estate and seeks relief. She describes her
children as “blind & otherwise helpless."
0454. Rowan County. Slave Daniel Macay, about forty-five years old, seeks his freedom in
accordance with the wishes of his master and a certification of faithful service from his employer.
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Macay asserts that he has “been able to acquire money enough, (without at all neglecting his
duty to his master,) to pay for himself."
0462. John Waddell was transporting twenty-two of his slaves from North Carolina to a plantation
along the Red River in Louisiana. En route, they were shipwrecked in the Caribbean. When he
and his slaves finally made it to Nassau, the slaves were “immediately liberated.” The petitioner
argues that if the British guarantee freedom for American slaves it would be the same as “holding
out a premium to insurrection.” The situation in the South would be “rendered even more anxious
than it has heretofore been.” He asks North Carolina to “make common cause with her sisters of
the South on this most delicate, but vital subject."
Reel 7
North Carolina (cont.)
0001. Descriptive material.
1835.
0007. New Hanover County. James Green requests the emancipation of James Hostler, who had
been bequeathed to him by John Gabie on the condition that Hostler be freed when he reached
age twenty-one. The law required that emancipated slaves emigrate from the state within ninety
days, however, and Hostler did not want to leave his mother. A good house joiner, an industrious
and honest man, Green asks the legislature to extend to Hostler all the “rights and privileges
which attach to free persons of colour resident within this state."
0015. Randolph County. Robert Walker requests the emancipation of his slave, James, who has
“been an honest & faithful Servant, & has amply paid him in labour” for his purchase price. James
was about forty years old, married to a free woman of color, and had five free children.
0020. Residents of Craven County seek the passage of a law that would require free persons of
color to obtain a license before possessing a gun. To obtain a license a person would have to
post bond and prove good character. The petitioners argue that free black people could easily
provide slaves with guns and ammunition for “rebellion and insurrection.” As the citizens of the
North persist in acting as “firebrands of insurrection and blood,” it was especially important to
keep a watchful eye on free blacks in the South. Petitioners {39}: Chesnutt, Owen; Dennis, David
H.; Gibson, David B.; Smith, John; White, Nathaniel.
1836.
0024. Rowan County. A group of memorialists seek to manumit a female slave, Moreah,
previously owned by Isaac Knight, who died in 1834. In obedience to Knight's last wish, a legatee
and others ask in 1836 to manumit Moreah and her child, Susan. Petitioners {7}: Beard, John, Jr.;
Caldwell, David F.; Craig, Burton; Giles, John; Pearson, R. M.
0027. Cumberland County. Citizens of Fayetteville seek the passage of a law prohibiting free
black people from voting in town elections. Although an amendment to the state constitution
excludes their casting ballots in state elections, it fails to exclude municipal elections in
Fayetteville. The petitioners assert that, with few exceptions, free persons of color are “totally
unfitted either by intent or by property” to exercise the franchise, yet they wield considerable
power. Petitioners {90}: Baker, James; Belcher, Louis S.; Fuller, Elijah; Sanford, Thomas; Stuart,
Charles T.
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0032. Rowan County. Sam Reeves seeks the manumission of the slave Moreah and her child,
Susan, on the grounds of meritorious service and in accordance with the last wishes of Moreah’s
deceased owner, Isaac Knight, who died in 1834.
0034. Rutherford County. William Baber seeks to free a nine-year-old mulatto slave, Sanders, in
accordance with a deed of trust signed by William Arthur, the boy’s deceased owner.
0040. Cumberland County. Residents of Fayetteville oppose the proposed changes to the Town
Charter that would prohibit the suffrage of free persons of color. They assert that many free
persons of color own property and pay taxes and are therefore entitled to vote for their
representatives. Petitioners {72}: Cameron, Thomas; Hybart, Thomas; Jordan, Thomas; Kyle,
James; Roundfoot, W. G.
0047. Citizens of Buncombe County seek to emancipate a mulatto slave named Ned in
accordance with Benjamin Davidson’s will. Davidson specified that after his and his wife’s death
Ned should be “hired to the highest bidder” until he earned $300, then he should be freed. The
petitioners say that Ned served his master and mistress faithfully, even managing the farm for his
mistress during a period of seven or eight years. Petitioners {18}: Davis, Samuel; Gullick,
Benjamin D.; Johnson, James; Murray, John.
0051. Buncombe County. The legatees of Benjamin Davidson, deceased, seek to emancipate the
mulatto slave Ned in accordance with Davidson's will. His owner had died about ten years before;
his mistress, about four years before. Petitioners {5}: Davis, George D.; Davis, Samuel; Gullick,
Benjamin; Haddon, David; Johnson, James.
0055. New Hanover County. In 1815, John M. Gabie bequeathed an infant mulatto slave to
James Green with instructions to free him when he reached age twenty-one. With Gabie dead,
Green now seeks to fulfill the former master's wish; he describes the slave, James Hostler, as
being about twenty-two years of age and a man of good character.
1838.
0060. Halifax County. Gideon P. Harvey and P. P. Harvey, an elderly couple, seek to emancipate
the following slaves: Elizabeth, age about thirty-seven, Preston, age thirty-two, Denton, thirty, and
Mary, twenty. The slaves were industrious, obedient, and had demonstrated “Meritorious
service."
0067. Wake County. Richard Ashton, a groundskeeper appointed by the governor, seeks
compensation for his services. He applied too late for payment during Governor Swain's last days
in office, and when he applied to the legislature he was awarded only $50 per year. The amount
was so small because he was accused of renting out houses on the grounds for his own profit.
Ashton denied the accusation: “Governor Swain had placed one of his Negro Women & her
Children in the Kitchen, & hence the charge that Your Petitioner had rented out some of the
Houses."
0072. Christopher Vickrey seeks reimbursement of $8 he paid between 1824 and 1831 for a
“black pole” on a free black indentured servant. After paying each year until 1837, Vickrey learned
that it was not necessary to pay during a free black's term of service or apprenticeship. He
petitioned the Randolph County Court for compensation and was informed that the money was
now in the state treasury.
0078. Wake County. Charles Dewey seeks to emancipate his slave, Tom Mitchell, a twenty-sixyear-old carpenter who is quiet, orderly, “& very humble & respectful in his deportment towards
white people.” Petitioners {6}: Carrington, W.; Carter, David; Counts, D. W.; Dewey, Charles;
Gales, Weston R.
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0082. A group of Davie County residents seek to emancipate Roger Brown, who had acquired
enough money to purchase his freedom from his late master, Isham P. Ellis. About fifty years old,
Brown was too old to be “a proper subject to be sent to Africa” and should be permitted to remain
in North Carolina. Petitioners {6}: Brunt, William; Ellis, Isaac W.; Foster, Zenos; Little, Adam;
Lunn, John.
0087. Edgecombe County. Forty citizens of Edgecombe County oppose the emancipation of Ely,
who was “a turbulent and what may be termed a bad Negro” prior to his being purchased in
Halifax County, Virginia, by Drewry King of North Carolina. Following King's death it was learned
that Ely was to be freed. The petitioners argue that he should be kept in bondage and sold out of
the state. Petitioners {40}: Edmondson, Joseph; Howell, Britain; Mabrey, Charles; Pender,
James; Staton, Baker.
0091. Twenty-two citizens of Rockingham County seek compensation for Abner Webster, the
owner of three slaves who were executed for murder. They argue that it is the duty of the
legislature to “pay a fair price for the property so used by the publick” and that without the help of
Webster the three would never have been brought to justice. Petitioners {22}: Gibson, J. P.;
Howerton, William; Scales, Peter; Smith, Joshua T.; Twishell, Joseph A.
0095. Wake County. Free black artisan Henry Patterson seeks to free his wife whom he has
purchased. Patterson fears that if he were to die his brothers and sisters would inherit his wife
and she might be sold to settle their debts. He is an industrious, quiet, well-behaved man who
owns real estate in Raleigh.
0100. Residents of Robeson County seek a law prohibiting the consumption and sale of alcohol
to free persons of color. They assert that the free people of color are “great topers” and as a
result are “indolent, roguish, improvident and dissipated.” Petitioners {36}: Brown, W. H.; Gilchrist,
John; McCallum, Archibald; McCallum, Edward; Smith, Archibald. [Editorial Note: date of petition
is December 1840; petition out of chronological sequence.]
0108. Residents of Orange County ask Governor Edward B. Dudley to overturn the court-martial
conviction of Lieutenant William Benson of the 48th North Carolina Regiment. Dudley passed the
petition on to the legislature for consideration. Benson had been fined for refusing to obey an
order given him by Captain John Griffis. The petitioners say that Griffis's father was “a Coloured
man and was of very dark Complexion,” and that Griffis himself is a “man of Colour within the
fourth Degree.” They argue that he is therefore not “Capable under the Constitution & laws of N.
Carolina to hold a commission in the military Service of the State.” Consequently, the courtmartial and fine are invalid. Petitioners {8}: Benson, Edward; Mcadams, David M.; Mcadams,
Hugh; Murray, John.
1840.
[December 1840 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0100.]
0115. Residents of Spring Creek, Buncombe County, ask that William Hammons, a man of color,
be allowed to “pray, exhort, or Preach” in public. Hammons is a respectable black man, who
“keeps company with no negroes all his association is with white people and no person that
knows him doubts his sincerity as a religious Carracter.” Petitioners {31}: Askew, G. C.; Askew,
James; Reynolds, John; Robertson, Alexander; Swain, Enoch.
0120. Fifty residents of Halifax County seek a law prohibiting free people of color from carrying or
using firearms under any circumstances. Petitioners {50}: Day, W. H.; Hallsey, William E.; Pierce,
T. W.; Richards, William; Walker, R. H.
0124. Lincoln County. Citizens of Lincolnton seek a repeal of the laws passed in 1829 and 1830
concerning “the liability of certain hands in the town of Lincolnton to work on roads.” The act
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prohibits town slaves who work outside the corporate limits from doing road work in town. The
petitioners believe this prevents a good labor source from maintaining the roads. Petitioners {63}:
Dailey, J. F.; Hicks, H. S.; Johnson, B.; Ramsour, Alexander; Schenck, D. W.
0129. Randolph County. Jacob Harman seeks to free his slaves, Abram, age about thirty-four,
and Elick, age about thirty-three. They had been “raised” by the petitioner and possessed “habits
of industry & Sobriety.” They were also good blacksmiths. Neither Hammond nor his wife would
die in peace if they knew that the two might “pass into the hands of Strangers."
0134. Cumberland County. Joshua Carman asks to free Abel Payne, a slave he acquired from
the estate of the late John Woddell of Brunswick County. Carman asserts that Payne, age about
forty-five, had “a long Course of exemplary fidelity, and devotion” to different masters. Such
loyalty constituted faithful and meritorious service.
1841.
0137. Craven County. William H. Haywood and Edward E. Graham, executors of the estate of
Mary McKinley, deceased, seek to free her slaves as outlined in her will. If their request is denied,
the executors are instructed to carry McKinley's ten or eleven blacks out of the state and then
emancipate them.
1842.
0142. The Convention of the Friends of the American Colonization Society sends a memorial to
the North Carolina General Assembly asking for an annual appropriation of $10,000 to support
settlements in Liberia. The members cite the success of many of these settlements and the
Colony of Cape Palmas as “conclusive evidence of what a single state, and by an appropriation
of a few thousand dollars annually can accomplish in this cause.” Petitioners {2}: Clarke, M. St.
Cla[u]; Underwood, Joseph R.
0147. Thomas Kennedy requests passage of an act appropriating annual contributions to the
American Colonization Society. Kennedy argues that state support of the society would
encourage enterprising free people of color to emigrate to Liberia and might encourage slave
owners to liberate their slaves.
0157. Iredell County. William King, Annis King, and Matthew Brandon, heirs of the estate of Mary
Haggins, deceased, seek the emancipation of a slave named Sam in accordance with the last will
and testament of Haggins. Sam was a “faithful and obedient Servant."
0162. Superintendents in Iredell County propose several amendments to the Common School
Law. Among other things they ask lawmakers to strike out “In the Ratio of Federal population”
and insert “In the ratio of there white population” in the provision determining distribution of the
school fund. Petitioners {7}: Campbell, Milton; Hall, Edwin; Hill, John; White, Robert R.; Young,
John.
0169. Chowan County. Molly Horniblow, a free black emancipated by her owner for meritorious
service, asks to free her son, Marcus Ramsey, a slave about forty-four years old. Horniblow notes
that she had acquired a substantial amount of property and had purchased her son, who ran a
business in Edenton as a barber. He had always been “honest, industrious and obedient, faithful
and attentive to the interest of those who of right have had control of him.” She wanted him to
inherit her property.
0176. Wake County. Commissioners in Raleigh propose amendments to the laws designed to
control slaves and free blacks. It is well known, they explain, that for years past a band of
unscrupulous fanatics has been “using every exertion to produce discontent and ultimately to
engender rebellion amongst the slaves of the South.” The commissioners did not presume to
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dictate how the laws might be changed, but they did “beg that such provisions may be made” as
would protect whites from the evils lurking in black communities. Petitioner: Loving, T.
0187. Henderson County residents ask the governor for leniency for the Reverend Robert
Jourdan, who put up security when his son was jailed for stealing a slave. The son absconded,
and the father was left to pay $1,000 for the surety and $500 to reimburse the slave owner. The
governor sent the petition to the legislature. Petitioners {150}: Banette, David; Champ,
Thompson; King, Benjamin; King, Elisha; Thompson, Jesse.
0193. A committee appointed by the superintendent of the Robeson County schools points out
the inequity of free persons of color paying into the school fund but not being able to send their
children to public schools. Two committee members, Absalom Davis and Archibald Smith,
suggest that the law be modified to include free persons of color. “They are poor, ignorant, and
vicious, & Consequently troublesome,” the two contend; education, especially reading the Bible,
would improve their condition. Petitioners {3}: Davis, Absalom, Jr.; Norment, Thomas A.; Smith,
Archibald.
1844.
0200. Jacob, Mary, Patsey, Meriwether, and Matilda, free blacks in Halifax County, Virginia, ask
to settle in North Carolina. They explain that they were freed by their late master, Phillip E. Vass,
who provided them with $2,000 but stipulated that the money could only be used to purchase
land (at least 250 acres) in North Carolina where the freed people would settle. The will was
contested and the court decreed that unless the petitioners could move to North Carolina, the
provisions of the will were null and void and the executors of the estate could sell the blacks back
into slavery.
0237. Cumberland County. Slaveholder Joshua Carman petitions for the emancipation of Abel
Payne, age about fifty, his wife Patsey, and their five children. The couple had long exhibited
“Exemplary fidelity and devotion” and shown “Faithful and Meritorious Services."
0243. Halifax County residents complain about “runaway negroes” who steal and butcher hogs
and threaten and attack farmers. If outlying slaves are caught committing serious crimes they
should be hanged, the petitioners contend, and the state should reimburse the owners. In
addition, runaways hiding in the woods should be shot without penalty. Petitioners {17}: Day,
W. H.; Ivey, G. W.; Long, N. M.; Moody, William M., Jr.; Pierce, Rice B.
0250. Twenty-three citizens of McDowell County seek the passage of a law that would impose a
heavy fine on “men and minors and black people” who allow their dogs to trespass and run
among the stock of others. Petitioners {23}: Allison, Ephram; Allison, Moses; Curry, Amos M.;
Curtis, Joshua, Jr.; Cury, William M.
0255. Craven County. Citizens of New Bern ask the legislature to free Dave and Alphonso and
permit them to remain in North Carolina with their wives and children. For a number of years, the
two men nursed and cared for their mistress, Mary Grover, deceased, who provided for their
freedom in her will. The slaves were of “respectful character” and had been born and raised in
New Bern. Petitioners {144}: Clark, W. W.; Jones, Frederick; Roberts, John M.; Simpson,
Samuel; Wallace, Josephus.
1846.
0263. Pasquotank County residents ask for a law requiring that free black people “not bound to a
trade” be hired out at the beginning of each year. The petitioners decry the corrupting influence
free people of color had on slaves. Moreover, they assert, the “mass of these negroes [free
persons of color] are idle, drunken, and vagabond.” Petitioners {65}: Fletcher, Francis; Keaton,
William T.; Miller, Thomas; Overman, Em.; Pendleton, Dem. B.
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0270. Wake County. John Malone, a free black man living in Raleigh, purchased his wife, Cherry,
and their son, Edmund. He asks that they be emancipated and allowed to remain in North
Carolina. In his mid-fifties, Malone had resided in the capital nearly thirty years and during that
time enjoyed the “respect and confidence” of whites.
0282. Following an order from the Craven County Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions, a group
of residents and leaders in New Bern ask the legislature to revamp the civil and criminal court
system. They assert that large numbers of free black people and “a floating population of
irresponsible white people” committed so many crimes that the superior court had a huge backlog
of cases. The county needed either another superior court, an extension of the sessions in the
current court, or the establishment of a new criminal court. Petitioners {5}: Nelson, John H.;
Richardson, John H.; Scott, Joshua; Stevenson, J. C.; Wood, C. B.
1848.
0287. Franklin County. Slave owner Amy Moore sold the slave David Moore to Alexander
McKnight for $1,000, a sum actually paid to the buyer by the black man to purchase his own
freedom. He had been a faithful and dutiful slave, the memorialists explain, and on one “certain
melancholy occasion” he had saved the life of his owner and a member of his owner's family.
They ask that the legislature pass an act of emancipation. Petitioners {5}: McKnight, Alexander;
Moore, Alexander; Moore, Amy; Moore, Jacob J.; Moore, Lucius.
0292. Cumberland County. The joint owners of Peter Turner seek his emancipation on the
grounds of meritorious conduct. They assert that Peter “is a man strictly honest, sober and
industrious.” Among his many meritorious acts, his “suppression of fires has been remarkable."
Petitioners {5}: Branson, H.; Carman, Joshua; Hawley, S. T.; McLean, Archibald; McLean, W. A.
0298. Fifty-seven citizens of Pasquotank County seek a local tax of $25 on all retailing licenses.
They assert that retailers are corrupting the morals of slaves by selling them ardent spirits and by
receiving goods that the slaves had stolen from planters. Petitioners {57}: Carver, James L.
Carver, Job; Hinton, E. L.; Hinton, James W.; Hinton, John M.
0304. New Hanover County. Nicholas Nixon seeks to emancipate the slave Sam for meritorious
service. Sam was owned by Robert Nixon until 1809 and then by Robert Nixon's widow, Christian
Nixon, until 1832. Sam managed his mistress's business affairs for twenty-three years. He
superintended her farm, oversaw her other slaves, and sold her crops. The petitioner notes that
Sam, between fifty-five and sixty years of age, also performed meritorious service by saving his
mistress's dwelling house in 1822 when a fire consumed a nearby kitchen. Sam was a faithful
and devoted slave.
0312. Nineteen residents of Bertie County seek compensation on behalf of Andrew Northcoatt,
whose slave was attacked and killed by two other slaves. The petitioners assert that the sheriff of
Bertie County retained a security bond of $250 on the two slaves when they failed to appear in
court. Residents believe this money should be given to Northcoatt. Petitioners {18}: Bernard,
Samuel A.; Bernard, Thomas S.; Mitchell, Jeremiah; Perry, John D.; Ward, Henry L.
0318. Cumberland County. White mechanics of Fayetteville complain about the competition of
free black artisans. They oppose future emancipations and support the use of public monies,
derived from a capitation tax, to transport free persons of color to Liberia. They also complain that
three-fourths of the free people of color avoid paying poll taxes. Finally, they suggest a special tax
be levied on manufactured goods from states in the North that “refuse to comply with the
provisions of the fugitive slave law.” Petitioners {76}: Dunn, Joseph; Livingston, W. B.; Mitchell,
James; Sandy, James; Todd, Zebina.
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0322. Wake County. James G. Mitchell, an elderly harness maker in Raleigh, says he has lost
most of his property. He requests permission to erect a “Shanty upon the State land at the Rock
Quarry.” Mitchell argues that his presence may protect the “State Rock, from negro and other
plunderers."
1850.
[1850 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0376.]
0327. Duplin County residents express concern about the “spirit of discontent” among their
slaves. This was due to free black people living in their midst. Petitioners seek appropriations to
transport free Negroes to Liberia; those who refused to leave should be sold as slaves and the
proceeds used to defray the cost of colonization. Petitioners {77}: Carr, James B.; Dickson,
Robert; Miller, W. W.; Olive, Benjamin; Sloan, David.
0332. Kendall seeks to free his slave, Daniel, who has been “a faithful slave and has Performed
wonderfully.” Daniel is about sixty years old. His father, Daniel Shad, was liberated forty years
before in Montgomery County and had “Ever supported a good honest character.” Petitioner:
Kendall, David.
0336. Beaufort County. Complaining about unfair competition, white mechanics propose a tax on
all people of color working as mechanics. They contend that the growth of the free black
population in North Carolina, stemming from a recently passed Virginia statute to encourage
colonization of free people of color, was a serious problem. A tax “upon free negroes” could be
used to defray the expenses of colonization to Liberia. Petitioners {176}: Hall, J. C.; McGowan,
John; Morgan, Arthur; Peterson, Charles C.; Ross, John B.
0341. Residents of Northampton County seek to emancipate James Langford, an “industrious
and frugal” slave carpenter. They also ask that he be permitted to remain in the state with his wife
and children, who were slaves. Petitioners {40}: Baggat, Nathan; Bolton, Samuel; Brown, R. W.;
Elliot, Etum; Vann, John.
0345. Washington County residents condemn “the selling of Spirituous Liquors to free negroes.”
Most members of this group, they declare, are “idle, & intemperate” and are willing to sell liquor to
slaves. Residents ask for the passage of laws to “correct the evil.” Petitioners {99}: Beasley,
John; Long, Thomas; Short, H. B.; Willis, E. H.; Wurster, W.
0350. Slave owner Abraham Rencher asks for compensation for his slave, Emeline, who escaped
to the “free states of the North” in July 1846 with her husband, Mike, and child. Hired out in
Chapel Hill, the black family traveled to Henderson, met a white man named Nelson, “a northern
interloper” who posed as their owner, and boarded a passenger car of the Raleigh and Gaston
Rail Road and rode to freedom. The petitioners assert that the agents of the railroad company
should have demanded “proper indemnity for the true owners,” and the railroad was therefore
legally responsible for the slaves. Mike's owner took the case to the Board of Commissioners in
1847, but it was dismissed on the grounds that the board did not have the authority to pay the
claim. After the passage of the Fugitive Slave Law in 1850, one of the owners and an authorized
agent for the other journeyed to the North to recapture the slaves but failed. As a last resort, the
owners seek assistance from the General Assembly. Petitioners {2}: Manly, Charles; Rencher,
Abraham.
0356. Citizens seek to emancipate Sucky Borden, “a worthy woman, who will duly appreciate all
her privileges.” Petitioners {26}: Everett, John; Hooks, Raiford; Kennedy, Thomas; Washington,
N.; Washington, William H.
0359. Cumberland County. Having an interest in or being owners of Lewis Williams, about sixtyfive years of age, Sophia Smith, Eliza Matthews, and C. J. Williams seek his emancipation.
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Williams is “a man of unblemished character, honest and industrious, and in every respect a
suitable person for emancipation.”
0360. Cumberland County. Residents of Fayetteville praise Lewis Williams as a man “of good
moral character,” peaceable, quiet, and “very much respected in the community.” They ask the
General Assembly to “look favorably on his case” and provide for his liberation. Williams is about
sixty-five years old. Petitioners {55}: Banks, James; Husker, James; McLean, John P.; Stewart,
John; Warden, Jesse T.
1851.
0365. Fourteen free people of color ask the General Assembly to petition Congress for land in the
“western Territory.” They want to establish a colony for southern free blacks. They consider
themselves Americans, “Knowing no other Clime nor Soil,” and note that many among them are
the descendants of Revolutionary War soldiers. They fear, however, “that the knell is constant on
the public Ear—that your petitioners are the Eating Cancers and the morbid incubus on the public
peace.” Thus they are compelled “in the spirit of peace to ask for a separation in the name and
meaning of a Colony.” Petitioners {14}: Halston, O.; Hughes, Branch; Lewis, Mareus L.; Roe,
Thomas; Smith, William.
0370. Thirty-eight whites in Beaufort County seek the passage of a law that would permit the
court to levy an execution on the “body” of free persons of color. Thus, if unable to pay a debt,
free blacks could be hired out at auction “untill the debt be paid.” Petitioners {38}: Cratch,
Richard; Latham, Seth W.; Pud, Josephius; Tripp, Benjamin F.; Tuten, Thomas, Jr.
0371. Beaufort County residents seek passage of a law prohibiting free persons of color from
owning or carrying firearms. Petitioners contend that free black people use weapons to “kill a
good many of our cattle hogs and sheep and to corrupt the morals of our slave population by
loaning them guns and hunting with them on the Sabbath.” Petitioners {39}: Cox, William A.;
Crutch, Richard A.; Gerrard, William T.; Latham, Thomas; Redan, W. A.
0376. Rockingham County residents ask to emancipate Joe in accordance with the will of Jarrot
Bowling, deceased. Joe “is decent well behaved humble and orderly in his conduct.” The
petitioners ask that Joe be permitted to remain in North Carolina to be with his wife and several
children who lived in the area. Petitioners {57}: Chaplin, G. H.; Martin, J. C.; Moir, John; Smith,
Samuel; Stephens, A. [Editorial Note: date of petition is 1850; petition out of chronological
sequence.]
0380. Lincoln County. James Graham urges the General Assembly to enact legislation “to induce,
if not compell, the free Negroes in North Carolina to emigrate to the Abolition and Free Soil
States. It appears to me that Negrophobia, which is now raging and rousing up a large number of
people in the Non-Slaveholding states cannot be cured more effectually than by giving them
some strong black medicine out of their own black Bottle.” Graham proposes making landlords
who rent land to free persons of color liable for all of their tenants' “taxes, contracts, damages,
Penalties, fines and costs, and other legal liabilities which colored persons may contract or incur
while living thereon: that is, I would make the actual possession of the free Negro, a lien, on the
land on which he lived; and let that lien continue until his public and private liabilities were paid.”
Graham urges such action because “There is a numerous class of the worst sort of Abolitionist
dwelling in our midst in the Southern States who clandestinely trade with Slaves and receive
stolen goods in payment for ardent spirits and other articles, thereby corrupting and destroying
the value of Servants.” He proposes that white men convicted of trafficking with slaves be
whipped as well as fined.
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1852.
0386. The son of a slave and a white woman of “respectable parentage,” Hilary Croom, alias
Coor, became one of the best blacksmiths in Goldsboro. Croom married a slave who was
transported to Alabama; he followed her there, but after a period of time was forced to leave the
state. Purchasing his wife and three children—Ann, Charles, and Temperance—he returned to
North Carolina but now faced another law requiring him to emigrate from his home state or pay a
heavy fine. A small number of Wayne County residents request that Croom be exempted from the
law. Petitioners {6}: Bryan, W. C.; Cogdell, L.; Croom, Hilary; Herring, Benjamin; Smith, William.
0390. Columbus County. William Gore and others ask to free Gore's slave, Rachel, about thirtythree years old, because she “is very white and So little distinguishable from white persons that it
would Shock our feelings, that she Should be compelled to remain in bondage.” In addition,
Rachel is “humble and obedient and of good character.” Petitioners {15}: Gore, Asa F.; Gore,
Pinkney; Gore, William; Stanley, W. J.; Williamson, N. L.
0395. Northampton County residents seek an exemption for James Langford from the North
Carolina law requiring emancipated slaves to leave the state. Langford “has a good moral
character, is exceedingly industrious and demeans himself [well].” He had purchased his own
freedom, but his wife and children remained in bondage. He does not want to abandon his family.
Petitioners {88}: Clement, D. H.; Drake, J. R.; G[a]rner, R. H.; Gay, John W.; Peebles, E.
0396. Northampton County residents seek exemption for James Langford from a North Carolina
law requiring emancipated slaves to leave the state. A skilled and industrious carpenter, he had
purchased his own freedom, but his wife and children remain in slavery. He does not want to
abandon his family. Petitioners {31}: Allen, Andrew J.; Beale, Willis M.; Lassiter, Caleb; Maddrey,
James; Moore, John D.
0400. Residents of Hertford County ask the legislature to include their county in a bill to prohibit
the sale of liquor to free blacks. Petitioners {55}: Beaman, W. P.; Hill, J. W.; Neal, Thomas G.;
Parker, R. R.; Southhall, John.
0404. Sampson County residents condemn free blacks as a “perfect Nuisance, to civilized
Society.” Holding themselves above slaves, and equal to whites, free people of color by their very
being caused slaves to be disobedient and turbulent. Whites ask for legislation to force free
blacks out of the state, either by imposing a special tax and using the income to return them to
Africa or by petitioning the U.S. government for assistance in relocating them “in the far West.”
Petitioners {51}: [Berry], W. F.; Culbreth, J. D.; Herring, Silas; Owen, Irvin; Parker, Gabriel.
1854.
0411. Richmond County free black James Dunn, a former slave who had purchased himself, his
mother, his wife, and his son Louis, asks through white intermediaries for his son's freedom.
Dunn is now old and “desires to leave his son Free.” Petitioners {26}: Campbell, A. C.; Campbell,
John H.; Johnson, John; Johnson, N. D.; Shaw, John D.
0414. A group of women ask to emancipate Malinda Carmon's slave, Betty, mother of seventeen
children. She was “of good character, faithful, obedient, and submissive.” She also performed
“meritorious and praiseworthy service.” Petitioners {17}: Carmon, Malinda; Huskie, Frances;
Warden, Ann; Winslow, Amanda M.; Winslow, Caroline M.
0415. Joshua Carmon seeks to free his elderly slave, Betty, because of her faithful and
meritorious service. The mother of seventeen, Betty had lived with her master's family from
childhood. She was faithful, obedient, respectful, and submissive.
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0420. Cumberland County. The owners of Peter Turner, a slave about sixty years of age, ask to
free him “in consideration of his fidelity & other good traits of character.” Petitioners {4}: Branson,
Henry; Carmon, Joshua; Hawley, Samuel T.; McLean, Archibald.
0426. Cumberland County. Fayetteville slave owner John Cook requests freedom for his three
slaves—Handy, Polly, and Louisa—because of their “uniform good Conduct and great industry.”
Handy saved enough to purchase his wife and daughter, the master said, and the three blacks
are sober, humble, and upright.
0433. Duplin County. Jacob Smith seeks to free Abraam Smith, a slave about sixty-five years of
age, because of his “faithful services through a long life, His humble and obedient demeanor, and
his strict honesty."
0434. Duplin County residents support the petition of Jacob Smith to free his slave, Abraam
Smith. They request that he be exempted from the state law requiring emancipated slaves to
leave North Carolina. “We believe that he is desirous,” they said, “of remaining in our midst.”
Petitioners {38}: Houston, S. M.; Hussey, John B.; Merser, William; Phillips, Thomas; Worley,
Fred.
0440. Cumberland County. The joint owners of Dolly, age about fifty, and Caroline, age about
twelve, seek to free the two slaves in accordance with the wishes of their previous owner who
specified in the bill of sale that they “should hold the said slaves as tenants in Common until they
[are] lawfully emancipated or conveyed to some free state or territory.” Caroline was referred to
as “his [original owner's] daughter.” Petitioners {4}: Boon, Sampson; Carmon, Joshua; McLean,
Archibald; Stark, O. P.
0445. Greatly annoyed by “the frequent depredations committed on our Poultry Yards by
Negroes,” Mecklenburg County residents request passage of a law “Prohibiting entirely, the trade
& traffic with Negroes, for either ‘Eggs or Poultry.’” Petitioners {146}: Blair, J. T.; Johnston, J. M.;
Ross, Joseph W.; Ross, L. W.; Wallace, Wilson.
0451. The North Carolina Agricultural Society seeks new laws to protect sheep from being killed
by dogs. Many slaves owned dogs that committed such depredations, and it was the contention
of the society that the masters should be “liable for damage” done by dogs owned by their slaves.
The petitioners suggest that the legislature create a tax on all dogs or on a certain number of
dogs whether owned by whites or blacks. Petitioner: Ruffin, Thomas.
0457. Citizens of Warren County request the passage of a law to prohibit selling liquor to slaves.
Any retailer or other person selling quantities of less than a quart should be required to obtain a
license, signed by the freeholders in the neighborhood. Sellers of liquor should also be required
to sign an oath once each year vowing “not to sell, or have sold, or cause to be sold, any spiritous
liquors, directly or indirectly to any Slave whatever, without an order from his or her owner.”
Violators would be charged with perjury and subject to a heavy fine. Petitioners {72}: Kearny,
John T.; Pittman, Thomas; Powell, Morgan; Shearin, Robert A.; Snow, Samuel.
0460. Cumberland County. Owners and others seek to emancipate Thomas Malett, a fifty-threeyear-old slave. Malett, the petitioners state, is “an exemplary member of the Church—He is
Carpenter by trade, strictly upright & honest in all his dealings—and has ever evinced fidelity
towards his owners.” Petitioners {17}: Benbow, Charles; Lillywood, Henry; McKethan, A. A.;
McNeill, George; Mysover, H. L.
1855.
0463. Citizens of North Carolina seek the passage of new laws regarding slaves and free persons
of color, including a legal recognition of slave marriages and prohibitions against separating
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husbands and wives and parents and children. The laws against teaching slaves and free
persons of color to read “the Bible and other good books” should be repealed.
1856.
0469. A group of whites seeks to emancipate Nathan B. Hill's slave, Robert, a “faithful, honest,
and meritorious servant” who was about sixty-five years old. Petitioners {76}: Hislop, Geo.;
Lawrence, Jesse; Marsh, A. H.; Rush, Noah; Worth, J. M.
0474. James Newlin of Alamance County asks to emancipate his slave, Samuel Morphis, a hack
driver and waiter at the University of North Carolina.
0475. Orange County. Seventy-three students at the University of North Carolina support the
emancipation of Sam Morphis, a well-known and respectful servant. Petitioners {73}: Christmas,
Thomas H.; Hill, T. N.; Jacobs, John C.; Ramsey, J. N.; Sanders, Edwin.
0476. Orange County. Residents of Chapel Hill and vicinity support the emancipation petition for
Sam Morphis. Petitioners {81}: Battle, Will. H.; Phillips, James; Swain, D. L.; Wheat, J. T.;
Yetter, M.
0485. Wayne County residents ask to free slaves Sam and Sookey, two “aged persons of color”
who were honest, humble, sober, peaceable, and inoffensive. Both had purchased their freedom.
Sam was more than seventy-five years of age, and Sookey was about sixty-eight. They were too
old to emigrate and wished to “spend the short remnant of their days in the County of their
nativity, the home of their affection and the land of their birth.” Petitioners {30}: Kennedy, Thomas;
Moses, A. F.; Strong, George; Thompson, V.; Washington, R.
0490. Carteret County. Jesse H. Davis asks to emancipate his thirty-eight-year-old mulatto
female slave, Mary Eliza, who is “intelligent and fully able to support herself.”
0493. Robeson County citizens seek laws to control free people of color. The petitioners ask that
free black people be prohibited from owning more than one dog per family; prohibited from
possessing firearms unless a freeholder and then only on their own property; prohibited from filing
suit in either county or superior courts; and prohibited from declaring insolvency. If free people of
color are unable to pay debts or do not pay their lawful poll tax, they should be sold into slavery.
Petitioners {11}: Baxley, Elias; Black, C.; Brown, Malcom C.; McIntyre, A.; McNeill, A.
0498. White mechanics of Smithville, Brunswick County, seek the passage of a law prohibiting
free persons of color from becoming contractors in the building trades. They also request the
passage of more stringent laws against slaves hiring out their own time, demanding protection
“against the competition of colored persons whether free or slave.” Petitioners {58}: Daniel, C. B.;
Dosher, Asa; Dosher, Lafayette; Dosher, W. R.; Lehew, S. W.
0502. Northampton County residents seek a law allowing three free black families to remain in
the state. They assert that Anthony Copeland, Warren Boon, and Joshua Small moved from
Virginia to North Carolina between 1840 and 1844 and married black women from the county.
Copeland, a bricklayer by trade, and the other men are industrious, honest, and law abiding, the
petitioners aver. The free men of color were unaware of the North Carolina law prohibiting free
blacks from entering the state. Petitioners {69}: Gatting, Henry; Lambertson, James T.; Lane,
Edwin; Weaver, J. A.; Williams, W. R.
0506. Citizens of Northampton County assert that Anthony Copeland, Warren Boon, and Joshua
Small, free persons of color who immigrated from Virginia during the early 1840s, should not be
permitted to remain in the state. The signers had endured “many inconveniences & evils” at the
hands of free blacks, and no group among this class made them more uneasy than the “aforesaid
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three.” Petitioners {94}: Askew, Lemuel; Bevell, Imes; Futrell, Benjamin; Futrell, J. H.; Futrell,
John.
0511. Citizens of Northampton County seek the passage of a law prohibiting free people of color
from “carrying a dog on any pretense whatever.” They ask that the law apply to “negroes free
negroes and mulattoes in this County if not throughout the State.” Petitioners {69}: Faison, J. W.;
Gatling, Thomas B.; Jacobs, James W.; Peele, Bryant; Shy, William M.
1857.
0514. Mechanics and others in Rowan County seek legislation to end unfair competition from free
black mechanics who should be bound to white masters and required to secure a license each
year “upon proof of good moral character only.” Petitioners {126}: Brown, J. W.; Sherman, John;
Smith, Henry A.; Smith, Hy; Williamson, John.
0524. Rowan County. Forty-two residents of Salisbury seek the repeal of the recently passed
five-gallon law. Prohibiting the sale of small amounts of liquor, they said, did little to curtail
trafficking between “immoral persons” and slaves. Indeed, the “late atrocious murder of two
individuals in the suburbs of the town” was traceable to the illegal traffic. Petitioners {42}: Beard,
Horace H.; Fleming, N. N.; Henderson, A.; Kerr, James E.; Nesbitt, A. M.
0529. Granville County. Following his marriage to Mariah P. Kennon of Oxford, R. O. Britton
seeks compensation for Kennon's runaway slave, Marina, who had absconded in 1845. Posing
as the wife of James Smith, a free person of color, Marina boarded a car of the Raleigh and
Gaston Rail Road and journeyed to the North. Britton asks the legislature to “indemnify him for
the loss which he has sustained, in right of his wife, & for which by the laws of the State, the
proprietors of Said Raleigh & Gaston Rail Road are liable.” At the time of her escape, Marina was
about nineteen, intelligent and healthy.
0533. Jackson County. Following his wife's death, John Gibbs asks to free his mulatto slave,
Lucy, and Lucy's daughter, Roxanna. He promises to give them a sufficient legacy so that they
would not become “a burden to the public."
0537. Wake County. The Raleigh Baptist Association seeks to halt the peddling of liquor at sales,
musters, “tax gatherings,” and elections. The petitioners assert that the legislation requiring a
license for the sale of liquor is inadequate. They speak of “itinerant venders of circulating poison,
which they introduce into all the veins and arteries of society, stopping at every cross road and
every gathering, stopping man, boy and slave, selling them in every quantity from gallons to
drams.” Petitioners {5}: James, J. J.; Purify, James S.; Skinner, Thomas E.
1858.
0542. Granville County. Mr. Gilliam hired out a slave carpenter to the Raleigh & Gaston Rail
Road. While in this employ an accident occurred that resulted in the slave's death. “The death of
this said slave was a heavy loss to your memorialist. He was an excellent carpenter & was worth
at least $2,000.…” Petitioner is asking the legislature to compensate him for the value of the
slave. Petitioner: Gilliam, Wm. H.
0549. Onslow County residents seek legislation to “relieve the people of the State from the evils
arising from numbers of free negroes in our midst.” Free blacks are not only lazy and indolent, the
petitioners say, but have a damaging influence on the slaves, inducing them to pilfer whiskey
from their masters. Petitioners {58}: Barry, B. M.; Frazel, J.; Newbold, E. J.; Sandlin, D.; Venters,
S. W.
0553. Owner F. M. Phillips and residents of Davie and Davidson counties seek to emancipate
Ephraim, a slave known for his “honesty, industry and fidelity.” The petitioners also request that
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Ephraim be permitted to remain in the state with his family. Petitioners {39}: Fry, David; Hanes,
L. C.; Harris, A. N.; Phillips, F. M.; Sparks, J. H.
0558. Mecklenburg County residents seek legislation to prohibit people from bringing dogs to
church. The petitioners suggest fining white males and females five dollars for each offense; Free
people of color and slaves should receive “thirty nine lashes on their bare backs.” Petitioners {73}:
Davis, Samuel A.; Henderson, James P.; Morrow, B. F.; Morrow, J. W.; Williamson, E. D.
0563. Buncombe County. Concerned about the “manifold evils induced by the free negro
population,” Asheville residents support a bill being considered in the General Assembly to
“permit free persons of African descent to Select their own masters and become slaves.”
Petitioners {93}: Clayton, E.; Clayton, E. M.; Patton, James A.; Speas, G. T.; Stapp, Jesse.
0568. Granville County. William H. Gilliam seeks compensation for his slave, Jacob, a carpenter,
who was hired out to the Raleigh and Gaston Rail Road and killed in an accident. Jacob was an
excellent carpenter, worth at least two thousand dollars. Gilliam incurred a heavy loss. Had he
hired his slave to a private company, he could have sued the company. Since he cannot sue the
state, or so he was informed, he is applying to the General Assembly for relief.
1860.
0582. Mecklenburg, Iredell, and Cabarrus county residents seek stronger penalties for trafficking
with slaves. The petitioners claim that “evil-disposed persons located in our midst” trade with
slaves and induce them to commit murder, robbery, and arson. Even when such people are
caught and convicted, the punishment is “totally inadequate.” Petitioners {194}: Gillan, William N.;
Harris, E. R.; Johnston, M. W.; Mcauley, Hugh; Pope, Kirby.
0590. Citizens of Currituck County ask the legislature to pass a law expelling free people of color
from the state or requiring them to be sold into slavery. Free black people, they assert, “furnish a
ready and safe medium for the diffusion of incendiary doctrines.” Further, they inculcate slaves
with notions of insubordination, playing into the hands of “Northern Emissaries.” Petitioner:
Sanderson, M. S.
1861.
0595. Wayne County. Free black Abisha Locus asks permission to sell himself as a slave to D. H.
Bridger so that he may have “the protection and support of a master."
00598. Martin County. Eliza Hassel, age about twenty-five, asks permission to “bind herself in
perpetual slavery” to Shepard R. Spruill, who promises to give her “support and protection."
0601. Pasquotank County. Free woman of color Kissiah Trueblood, about twenty-three years old,
asks to become the slave of her employer, Dr. H. P. Ritter, because she is “destitute and without
protection.” Trueblood also offers her future children as slaves.
0605. Citizens of Martin County seek an amendment to the Revised Code of North Carolina. The
penalty for selling liquor to slaves, they suggest, should be imprisonment of not less than one nor
more than six months and a fine of not less than fifty nor more than five hundred dollars.
Petitioners {5}: Jones, Thomas; Staten, Archibald; Walker, W. J.; Weathersbee, R. E.; Williams,
Joseph J.
0608. Justices of the county court of Hertford seek modification of an act that prohibits free
persons of color from keeping shotguns. The petitioners request the restoration of the former law,
which gave county courts the right to determine gun licenses on the basis of “character and good
conduct.” Petitioners {15}: Daniel, W. L.; Harrell, John W.; Jones, H. M.; Riddick, James A.;
Valentine, Daniel.
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0611. Local residents ask that Frances Russell, a free mulatto woman residing in Grayson
County, Virginia, be granted permission to move to Alleghany County, North Carolina, “She being
the lawful wife of M. V. Russell.” Under the law, neither had the right to cross the state line.
Petitioners {11}: Black, David; Gintry, A.; Kitchens, John; Parks, J. H.; Smith, John.
0613. Richmond County. Residents of Rockingham and vicinity ask that the legislature ignore a
previous petition from residents to stop the sale of liquor within two miles of the village.
Petitioners believe that the sale of liquor to black people could be best controlled if the dram shop
were located in Rockingham itself. Petitioners {31}: Dawkins, J. W.; Hagans, Green; McDonald,
John; McDonald, W. P.; Pool, Seth.
0617. Citizens of the town of Rockingham ask for an act prohibiting the sale of liquor within two
miles of the Richmond County Court House, providing that a majority of the free white male
citizens of the town consented to it by vote. Such a prohibition, they explain, will curtail slave
thievery—blacks stole from their masters’ storerooms and traded for “ardent spirits"—as well as
lessen slave insubordination. Petitioners {29}: Carter, B. F.; McNeill, John; Nathan, John T.;
Ussery, John C.; Ussery, W. D.
1862.
0620. Thirty-four residents of Catawba and Burke counties question the need to conscript more
men from their counties. They consider it unfair “to take any more Conscripts from this State untill
the rest of the states fills up there number.” With so many men off to war and so few slaves to do
the work, they fear “starvation and famine.” Petitioners {34}: Abernathy, William.
0624. Wake County. Sally Scott, a twenty-two-year-old free woman of color, asks permission to
enslave herself and her son, John, nine months old, to Sidney A. Hinton. “Your petitioner shows
that she is tired of being free,” Scott said, “that she finds it difficult to support herself and is
desirous of having a master."
0628. Gaston County. C. A. Featherston requests permission to enslave Wyat, a free black man
thirty-five years of age. Wyat was “tired out of being buffetted about from place to place with no
settled home” and preferred “A life of Slavery with the master of his choice & with the woman he
had taken up with & his children to the life of a free negro."
1863.
0631. Davidson County. After being informed that her marriage would be “broken off” by the
owner of her husband, Percy Ann Martin, a free woman of color, asks to become the slave of her
husband's owner. She is attached to her husband and “does not wish to be separated from him.”
She is fearful she “will come to want."
1864.
0633. Union County citizens seek relief for the families of soldiers. The petitioners state that
“where the laboring class consists chiefly of white men, and where those white men are mainly in
the Army as is the case with this County, leaves but few to make support for the thousands of
Women and Children and old men that are left behind.” Union County, which has a slave
population of about 2000, provides as many soldiers as Anson and Mecklenburg, each of which
have three times as many slaves. Residents ask for assistance—the assumption of the county's
debt, an appropriation, or “such other help"—in providing for the “families of our brave and patriot
Soldiers.” Petitioners {49}: Covington, D. A.; Helms, J. C.; Irby, J. E.; Richardson, C. W.;
Wiatt, F. S.
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1866.
0637. Wake County. Representatives of the Colored Baptist Church of Raleigh seek permission
to use state property to erect a church for freed people. Although they used the basement at the
white Baptist church in the past, “Under the new order of Events, by which we have been freed
from Slavery We feel satisfied that Our religious enjoyment, and usefulness as a Church of
Christ, would be greatly promoted, by having a separate organization. and distinct house of
Worship.” Petitioners {14}: Fisher, Nelson; Ivey, Arthur; Jett, Henry; Palmer, Todd; Sheppard,
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0001. Descriptive material.
Undated.
0008. Richland County. William Clarkson, executor of brother John Clarkson's estate, is “bound in
conscience” to emancipate the slaves belonging to the estate. He seeks permission to execute
the emancipation.
0011. Charleston County. Claude Rame wishes to reward the “faithful services, and meritorious
character” of his slave, Aurora. He seeks permission to emancipate Aurora and her four children,
Achilles, Eugenia, William, and Adelle, the oldest of whom is seven years of age.
0016. Colleton County. Thomas Jones seeks compensation for his slave, who was executed for
shooting at a mail driver.
0019. Colleton County. St. Paul's Parish resident James Legare seeks compensation for a “very
valuable Negro” named Abraham, who was convicted and executed by the Provost Marshall's
Court of Colleton District on a capital offense. Although Abraham was not appraised before his
execution, Legare seeks relief as allowed by law, i.e., half the value of the slave.
0022. Wharf owners and merchants in Charleston ask the legislature to take action to halt the
theft of cotton bales. People of color—slave and free—use forged permits to haul bales away and
then sell them to unscrupulous store owners, the petitioners claim. The practice is very difficult to
stop and even when suspects are brought in it is difficult to prosecute, the bales having already
been shipped out, they state. As many as five hundred bales are lost each year. The petitioners
ask for stricter laws and better enforcement. Petitioners {43}: Adger, James; Campbell, A. W.;
Chisolm, George, Jr.; Crawford, John; Mason, William.
1783.
0028. St. Helena Island resident William Sams, formerly a planter on St. Johns Island, seeks
relief from the amercement act passed 26 February 1782. By it he is subject to “an Amerciament”
of [blank] per Cent on his Estate.” Although he had acted as a magistrate under the British, he
had done so only to avoid bearing arms against his countrymen, he argues. Moreover, he never
signed an oath of allegiance to the king of Great Britain or took an oath of office. Having lost
“upwards of Forty slaves” to the British and having a wife, four children, and three orphans to
support, he would be reduced from “Ease and Affluence to bare Susistance” if forced to pay a
percentage of his estate as punishment for alleged disloyalty.
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0032. Thomas Tims purchased two slaves, Jupiter and Fanny, at a public sale for “a large price in
Cash.” He later discovered that the slaves were “confiscated property.” As person of modest
means, he could not replace the slaves. He asks for relief.
0035. In 1782, Emanuel Pincell purchased two slaves, Judy and Lindy, at an estate sale. A short
time later, he discovered that the entire estate, including the slaves, had been confiscated under
an act of the legislature. Pincell states that he paid full price for the slaves. Since they
represented almost his entire estate, Pincell asks if he may “hold them as his property."
0039. A group of white carpenters and bricklayers in Charleston seek to prohibit “Jobbing Negroe
Tradesmen” from undertaking work on their own account. The skilled people of color “undervalue
Work, by undertaking it for very little more than the Materials would cost, by which it is evident the
Stuff they work with cannot be honestly acquired.” They further assert that this competition
deprives white artisans of business and a means to support their families. Petitioners {36}:
Cannon, Daniel; Clement, John; Lesesne, John; Muncrief, John; Shrewsbury, Stephen.
[2 Petitions.]
0046. About 14 January 1782, Martha Miggins purchased the slave Sara from the estate of
Hopkin Price at public auction. At that time, the confiscation act had not yet been passed. Miggins
sold Sara to a man from Charleston named Spencer, who recently informed her that “he is under
the necessity of delivering of the said Negro to the Commissioners of Confiscated Estates, and
that he shall expect to be reimbursed.” The petitioner asks for relief from her predicament.
Petitioner: Miggins, Martha. [2 Petitions.]
0052. Delivering powder, ball, medicine, and clothing—a cargo worth six thousand pounds
sterling—"up to Pon Pon” during the American Revolution in 1782, Joshua Lockwood lost a very
valuable slave. The slave, who drowned, could not be replaced for one hundred pounds sterling.
Lockwood seeks compensation.
0055. In May 1779, Samuel Hasford and several other residents of All Saints Waccamaw were
“robbed of a number of their Negroes, by a party of the British.” The British took the slaves
aboard a ship bound for a British port, but two American ships from Massachusetts captured the
ship and the slaves. The slaves were carried to Boston. Hasford and several other owners fitted
out a vessel “at a considerable Expense” and journeyed to the North to retrieve their slaves but
were unable to do so because under the laws of Massachusetts the slaves were entitled to their
freedom. The petitioner argues that such action is “contrary to the Spirit, and Subversive of the
Intention and meaning of the Articles of Confederation.” Furthermore, such actions would
“inevitably tend to the certain ruin and annihilation of the planting-Interest, by holding out the
Temptation to the Slaves, to take refuge in the State of Massachusetts Bay, where they will
remain secure in their Liberty.” Hasford seeks a return of his property or restitution.
1784.
0078. Charleston County. John Calvert seeks compensation for two young slaves, Jack and
Primas, who were killed in 1779 after being directed to “prove some Cannon belonging to this
State (under the direction of Major Thomas Grimball).” It was impossible for him to replace the
two men, Calvert asserts; he seeks compensation.
0081. Elizabeth Clitherall seeks permission for her husband to return to South Carolina from
exile. After the surrender of Charleston to the British, he accepted a commission from the British
in the militia of Berkeley County in order to “grant Indulgences to his Neighbors.” Later he
became an officer of the commissioner of claims, acquitting himself with great integrity. Since his
unfortunate exile he had exerted every effort to retrieve South Carolina slaves who had fled to
East Florida.
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0084. Charleston slave owner James Nassau Colleton seeks the return of his wife’s slaves who
were taken to St. Augustine, East Florida, before the evacuation of the British. He asks
permission to return the slaves to South Carolina. If he were not permitted to do so his very
existence would be jeopardized. Moreover, the return of his wife and child from Great Britain to
South Carolina would be impossible. Relying on the legislature’s humanity and the terms of
peace between Great Britain and the United States, he asks that the property be speedily
returned.
1785.
0088. Delivering powder, ball, medicine, and clothing—a cargo worth six thousand pounds
sterling—"up to Pon Pon” during the American Revolution in 1782, Joshua Lockwood lost a very
valuable slave. The slave, who drowned, could not be replaced for one hundred pounds sterling.
Lockwood seeks compensation.
0091. John Magarity seeks compensation for a slave man who was tried, condemned, and
executed.
0094. Charleston County. Having fought during the American Revolution, Joseph Warnock
returned home to St. Thomas Parish to be with his wife and six children. To his horror, he
discovered that his entire family “were most wantonly & Cruelly poisoned” by two of his slaves.
Two of his children died. Warnock seeks compensation for the slaves, who were tried, convicted,
and executed.
0098. Charleston County. Residents of St. James Santee Parish seek stronger penalties for
those convicted of trafficking with persons of color. “Patroons of schooners and other small craft,”
they explain, move up and down the rivers “to Trade, Traffick, Barter, and Sell to, and with
Negroes, to the great Prejudice of their Owners and a Manifest hurt to the fair Traders in our
City.” Petitioners {15}: Collins, Jonah; Legard, Joseph; McGregor, Daniel; Vanderhorst, Elias;
Wirosdick, John.
0101. Charleston County. Having fought during the American Revolution, Joseph Warnock
returned home to St. Thomas Parish to be with his wife and six children. To his horror, he
discovered that his entire family “were most wantonly & Cruelly poisoned” by two of his slaves.
Two of his children died. Warnock seeks compensation for the slaves, who were tried, convicted,
and executed.
1786.
0104. Charleston resident William Livingston appeals to the legislature for relief regarding the
slave Dublin, who had been sentenced to life in prison. Although the slave's offense was “highly
criminal,” the magistrate and freeholders had exceeded their authority when they sentenced the
slave to life. Livingston and his brother and sister, who are minors, inherited the slave from their
father. Livingston states that they have been injured “being so Long deprived of his [Dublin's]
Labour and Service."
0107. Five hundred residents of Camden District contend that a sufficient check has not been put
on the importation of slaves. The slave trade skewed the balance of trade against America,
drained cash out of the county, prevented the increase of the population, and halted the growth of
manufacturing. This should be “speedily remedied.” Petitioners {500}: Kershaw, James.
1787.
0118. Planters along the north side of the Santee River complain that the causeway through the
swamp to the river ferry is in such bad repair that people are moving away. They ask that all male
slaves between the ages of sixteen and fifty on both sides of the Santee River be required to
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work on the causeway to keep it in good repair. Petitioners {47}: Hilton, James; Locke, Thomas;
Moore, John; Ridgell, Richard; Singleton, J.
0121. Residents of St. John Parish state that the law requiring male slaves to repair the public
roads has expired. It is now “entirely out of the power of the Parish,” they complain, “to Keep the
said Roads in proper Repair.” Noting that wagon traffic has increased on the roads, they ask for
relief.
0124. John Dorsius and William Bellamy seek compensation for their slave, Anthony, who was
convicted and executed for highway robbery in February 1784. The Court of Justices and
Freeholders appraised Anthony's value at fifty pounds sterling.
1788.
0127. Charleston residents Ruth and Barbara Cole, mother and daughter, request that they be
appointed executors and administrators of the estate of Susanna Raper, a free woman of color.
Raper had neither heirs nor next of kin at the time of her sudden death. Her estate, which
included one slave and other personal property, escheated to the state. The petitioners cared for
Raper, who was subject to “many attacks of a Violent Complaint,” during her last illness. Raper,
they state, wanted to give to them “all she possessed as a small return for their long and
unremitted Services.” When a “Gentleman as greatest Creditor” applied to administer the estate,
Ruth Cole took the case to the Charleston Ordinary Court and was appointed administrator. Now
they seek an act granting them Raper's estate. Raper's debts are paid. Ruth Cole's deceased
brother, William Raper, a bricklayer, had been married to Susanna Raper.
1789.
0131. Charleston residents Ruth and Barbara Cole, mother and daughter, request that they be
appointed executors and administrators of the estate of Susanna Raper, a free woman of color.
Raper had neither heirs nor next of kin at the time of her sudden death. Her estate, which
included one slave and other personal property, escheated to the state. The petitioners cared for
Raper, who was subject to “many attacks of a Violent Complaint,” during her last illness. Raper,
they state, wanted to give to them “all she possessed as a small return for their long and
unremitted Services.” When a “Gentleman as greatest Creditor” applied to administer the estate,
Ruth Cole took the case to the Charleston Ordinary Court and was appointed administrator. Now
they seek an act granting them Raper's estate. Raper's debts are paid. Ruth Cole's deceased
brother, William Raper, a bricklayer, had been married to Susanna Raper. Petitioners {2}: Cole,
Barbara; Cole, Ruth. [2 Petitions.]
1790.
0141. Charleston County. In 1785, John Champneys's wife, who was seriously ill, purchased a
slave nurse from her brother, Alexander Harvey, for £420. The slave had begged Champneys's
wife to purchase her. The slave feared that she might be bought by Champneys's “greatest
Enemy” and be “extremely ill used.” As a consequence, the purchase price was extremely high.
The slave, however, came under the confiscation act, Harvey having fled the country, and
Champneys asks to be permitted to pay off the Bond in Indents or “her full value in money with
Interest from the day of Sale."
0144. Residents of Georgetown seek authority to require butchers and others carrying beef to
market to produce the branded hides and ears from the cattle. This would curtail illicit trafficking
with people of color. The residents also seek to prevent persons from selling liquor to slaves on
board vessels in the harbor and to prohibit people of color from “galloping Horses &c through the
Streets.” Petitioners {74}: Brownfield, R.; Hughes, John; Irving, Mat; Magill, William; Shearwood,
Joseph. [2 Petitions.]
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0154. Sarah Barker asks that her husband, John Barker, a schoolmaster in Kingston, Jamaica,
be permitted to settle in Charleston with his thirteen house servants.
0157. Charleston County. John Champneys asks to be permitted to pay off the value of a slave
purchased by his wife as a nurse but in jeopardy of being taken under the Confiscation Act. In
October 1785, his wife purchased a house servant for £420 from her brother, who had fled the
country as a loyalist and was thus to have his property seized. The price was unusually high, he
states, because at the auction, the slave woman tearfully begged Champneys's agent to
purchase her, fearing she would be “extremely ill used” by Champneys's “greatest Enemy,” who
was also bidding. Now, following the passage of the Confiscation Act, John Champneys seeks
permission to keep the slave and “to pay off the Bond in Indents, or her full value in money with
Interest from the day of Sale.”
0160. William Ancrum petitions for relief from what he calls an arbitrary fine amounting to £1,495,
one half to be paid in special indents and the other half in paper. In July 1782, the governor
ordered the sale of thirty-one of Ancrum's slaves. The sale took place at Camden, and the slaves
sold for specie “for the use of the state amounting to seven hundred and forty six Guineas.” When
a House resolution in 1788 permitted discounts of “audited demands against the State,” Ancrum
sought to settle his amercement, but the state refused. He argues that the 1788 resolution applies
only to those who do not have “audited demands against the State” and asks for relief. He
laments that he is also subject to payment of a large British debt. Petitioner: Ancrum, William. [2
Petitions.]
1791.
0166. English-born slave trader John Holman seeks to bring a cargo of seventy slaves into South
Carolina. Holman had lived for twenty-five years in West Africa on Isle de Los and at a fortress
along the Rio Pongo River, both north of Sierra Leone. Following the American Revolution he
decided to settle in South Carolina. In 1787 he purchased a tract of land on the Cooper River in
Charleston District. Holman states that he then went with his friend, Henry Laurens, to the
customs house and discussed a plan to import slaves with Collector George Abott Hall, who
assured Holman that he could bring the African slaves into the state. In February 1788, Holman
sailed for Africa; in June 1790, he embarked across the Atlantic for Charleston. Upon his arrival
he was informed that he would be fined one hundred pounds for each slave brought into the state
under a law passed in November 1788—after Holman had left for Africa. Thus, Holman states, he
was forced to take his human cargo to Georgia, where he lived for seven months without “home,
friends, money and credit.” Petitioner: Holman, John. [2 Petitions.]
0174. John Jordan states that in 1778 his only slave was convicted and executed for poisoning.
The Court of Magistrates and Freeholders appraised the slave at twelve hundred pounds “Old
Currency.” When Jordan delivered his certificate to the treasury for payment Charleston was
under British control, and Jordan never received payment. He requests compensation.
0177. Charleston County. James Clitherall seeks relief from three long overdue accounts. In
1782, the state sold Clitherall's slaves for specie at “very inferior” prices. The specie was paid to
the state before the delivery of the slaves. The account was audited, delivered to the Board of
Commissioners on Accounts, sent to the auditor, and reported to the treasury. Yet, the “same
hath in no wise been satisfied, nor hath your Memorialist been allowed to discount it, as so much
of the Specie part of his Amercement.” The second overdue account, arising from the sale of
slaves by the Commissioners of Forfeited Estates in 1783, brought Clitherall bonds payable in
specie on a credit of three and six months. The bonds remain in the treasury unpaid. Moreover,
the bond signed by John Cox and another man, Clitherall states, is “totally bad.” Despite these
just claims, Clitherall is “obliged to pay part of his Amercement in Specie, and the remainder in
general and special indents, without being allowed any discount whatever.” The third account
derives from articles confiscated at Clitherall's plantation in 1782 by the Commissioners of
Forfeited Estates. Clitherall asks for payment in specie, including interest, for the first account; a
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general indent, with interest, for the second account; and “other relief” for the third account.
Petitioner: James Clitherall. [2 Petitions.]
0193. St. Thomas Parish resident John Syme seeks compensation for an executed slave valued
at six hundred pounds “old Currency.” Syme states that he obtained a certificate indicating the
value of the slave and presented it to the South Carolina House of Representatives; it was then
referred to the Committee on Certificates. On 3 March 1775, the report of the committee favoring
Syme's claim was read and debated. Two motions to defeat the question failed, and the House
passed the report. Syme never received compensation, however.
0196. In 1786, Simon Tufts purchased an “infirm old negro wench formerly the Property of one
Malcolm Brown” from the Commissioners of Forfeited Estates. To make the purchase Tufts
signed a note for £450 sterling plus interest. He made the purchase with the assurance that he
would be given a position in “Public Employment.” Although appointed supervisor of public
buildings on Sullivans Island at a salary of fifty pounds sterling a year, Tufts remained at the post
only a short time. Unable to pay his note, he now owed the “enormous sum” of £610 sterling.
Tufts seeks relief on the grounds that the “Property was at no time worth a twentieth Part."
0200. William Brisbane states that his deceased father's estate, including several slaves, was
sold at a public auction by the Commissioners of Forfeited Estates. This occurred in October
1785. Brisane's father had left the slaves to his son for “the express purpose of supporting him by
their labor.” Brisbane purchased the slaves at the auction, giving his bond of £280 to the treasury.
He asks the legislature to require the treasury to give him back his bond. The sale of his father's
estate had amounted to five thousand pounds.
0204. Charleston bricklayer Thomas Cole and butchers Peter Matthews and Matthew Webb seek
certain rights of citizenship. Currently they are subject to trial without jury, and slaves can testify
against them without taking an oath. They seek these rights in behalf of themselves as taxpayers
and other free persons of color. They “do not presume to hope that they shall be put on an equal
footing with the Free White Citizens of this State,” but they ask for a revision of the 1740 “Negroe
Act."
0208. Chester County. In 1781, General Thomas Sumter's Brigade surprised and captured
several British officers who had in their possession a slave. As a “Lawfull Capture,” and under “an
Act to Indemnify General Sumter and the Officers acting under his command,” the slave was sold
to Hugh Knox at public auction. Knox was sued for “detaining the Negroe,” and a judgment was
rendered for the plaintiff. The opinion, the petitioner states, thus indicates that it was legal for
Sumter and his officers to make such sales but that the purchasers could not retain the property.
Knox asks for relief for himself and others in “like circumstances likely to share the same fate.”
[Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames 0211–0213.]
0209. Chester County. Serving in Wade Hampton’s Regiment of South Carolina troops during the
American Revolution, Shadrack Jacobs was entitled to a slave or eighty pounds for his services.
In 1793, Jacobs sold his claim to Hugh Knox “for a valuable consideration.” Now Knox’s widow
seeks payment of a claim made to the legislature on numerous previous occasions. Petitioner:
Knox, Jennet. [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames 0222–0223. Date of petition is
November 1822; petition out of chronological sequence.]
0235. Ann Summerall seeks compensation for a slave who was “taken & applied” as payment to
Captain Richard Johnson, a member of Samuel Hammond's Regiment of State Dragoons.
1792.
0238. St. Thomas Parish resident John Syme seeks compensation for an executed slave valued
at six hundred pounds “old Currency.” Syme states that he obtained a certificate indicating the
value of the slave and presented it to the South Carolina House of Representatives; it was then
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referred to the Committee on Certificates. On 3 March 1775, the report of the committee favoring
Syme’s claim was read and debated. Two motions to defeat the question failed, and the House
passed the report. Syme never received compensation, however.
0241. James Montgomery seeks compensation for seven slaves who were confiscated during the
American Revolution and used by General Thomas Sumter’s state troops. Montgomery petitioned
the legislature for redress, but Sumter had said the slaves were “Not taken by his Authority” and
the petition was denied.
0244. Beaufort County. John Lightwood seeks compensation for his slave, Bacchus, who ran
away and was killed by members of a patrol about twelve months before. Bacchus was worth
sixty pounds sterling.
0249. Camden County. Black River planter Sylvester Dunn seeks compensation for slaves
confiscated during the American Revolution. In May 1781, Colonel John Marshall appropriated
twelve of Dunn's slaves without authority. Later, ten of the slaves were used to pay off General
Thomas Sumter's state troops. When several of the slaves returned to Dunn's plantation on their
own, a suit was commenced against Dunn for their return. The court allowed Dunn to keep two of
the slaves. He requests compensation for the other ten.
0252. Josiah Culbertson seeks compensation for a slave convicted and executed for murder.
Culbertson states that he is a man of limited means and cannot afford to lose his slave.
0255. Charleston County. With the prospect that the prohibition against importing slaves would
cease on 1 January 1793, Christopher Fitzsimons, a distiller, and William Stephens, a merchant,
sent the brigantine William to Africa with a cargo of tobacco and 168 casks of distilled rum
(14,841 gallons). They would be “materially injured” if they could not return with their “Cargo of
Slaves.” Fitzsimons does not plan to sell his share of the Africans but will take them “for his own
use and Employment."
0260. Charleston County. With the prospect that the prohibition against importing slaves would
cease on 1 January 1793, Christopher Fitzsimons, a distiller, and William Stephens, a merchant,
sent the brigantine William to Africa with a cargo of tobacco and 168 casks of distilled rum
(14,841 gallons). They would be “materially injured” if they could not return with their “Cargo of
Slaves.” Fitzsimons does not plan to sell his share of the Africans but will take them “for his own
use and Employment.” They ask for permission to bring the slaves into South Carolina despite
the bill under consideration in the legislature to continue the ban on slave importation.
0265. Charleston County. With the prospect that the prohibition against importing slaves would
cease on 1 January 1793, Daniel O'Hara and John Connolly fitted out the brigantine Hale with
produce and manufactured goods in preparation for a voyage to Africa to procure slaves. The
ship's owners “will be much injured and sustain a considerable loss” if a new law extending the
ban on slave importation passes. O'Hara had already purchased twenty-six Africans. They ask
permission to import slaves if the ban is not lifted. Petitioners {2}: O’Hara, Daniel; Connolly, John.
[2 Petitions.]
0273. Slave owners seek to protect themselves from possible lawsuits arising out of the purchase
of captured slaves (and other confiscated property) after the American Revolution. In a recent
case John Christin Smith won a suit against Hugh Knox, who had purchased a slave captured
from the British Army. Knox argued that he was protected by an ordinance of the General
Assembly, passed 21 March 1784 and titled “An Ordinance to indemnify Brigadier General
Sumter and the Officers &c,” but in the trial it was determined that although the officers were
indemnified, the purchasers were not. Since many of the petitioners were in a like circumstance,
they seek relief. Petitioners {93}: Bell, John; Harben, Nathan; Hemphill, Andrew; Taliaferro,
Richard; Wear, John.
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0276. Charleston County. James Clitherall seeks relief from three long overdue accounts. In
1782, the state sold Clitherall's slaves for specie at “very inferior” prices. The specie was paid to
the state before the delivery of the slaves. The account was audited, delivered to the Board of
Commissioners on Accounts, sent to the auditor, and reported to the treasury. Yet, the “same
hath in no wise been satisfied, nor hath your Memorialist been allowed to discount it, as so much
of the Specie part of his Amercement.” The second overdue account, arising from the sale of
slaves by the Commissioners of Forfeited Estates in 1783, brought Clitherall bonds payable in
specie on a credit of three and six months. The bonds remain in the treasury unpaid. Moreover,
the bond signed by John Cox and another man, Clitherall states, is “totally bad.” Despite these
just claims, Clitherall is “obliged to pay part of his Amercement in Specie, and the remainder in
general and special indents, without being allowed any discount whatever.” The third account
derives from articles confiscated at Clitherall's plantation in 1782 by the Commissioners of
Forfeited Estates. Clitherall asks for payment in specie, including interest, for the first account; a
general indent, with interest, for the second account; and “other relief” for the third account.
0284. Citizens of Fairfield District seek to prohibit the importation of “any negroes into this State
from beyond the seas.” The consequences of the “unlimited toleration” as now exists for the
importation of Africans must eventually “threaten our Country with ruin and destruction.”
Petitioners {53}: Caldwell, Samuel; Craig, James; Mobly, Levi; Nelson, James; Robertson, B.
1793.
0287. Charleston County. Susanna St. John of St. James Goose Creek Parish seeks
compensation for the slave Titus, who was convicted and executed as an accessory to the
murder of her husband. They had purchased Titus in 1785. When her husband was killed eight
years later by a group of runaway slaves the Court of Justices and Freeholders ruled that Titus
was involved. The black man was appraised at seventy pounds sterling.
0291. St. Thomas Parish resident John Syme seeks compensation for an executed slave valued
at six hundred pounds “old Currency.” Syme states that he obtained a certificate indicating the
value of the slave and presented it to the South Carolina House of Representatives; it was then
referred to the Committee on Certificates. On 3 March 1775, the report of the committee favoring
Syme's claim was read and debated. Two motions to defeat the question failed, and the House
passed the report. Syme never received compensation, however.
0295. Members of “The Society of Master Coopers of Charleston” express frustration at the
“inattention” given by authorities to the law passed 10 May 1740 and revived 12 March 1783
regarding the management of slaves within the state. “[A]t present as well as for considerable
Time past,” they observe, “the Slaves of Charleston have been privileged (although illegally) to
traffick and barter, as well as to carry on different Trades and Occupations (free from the
Direction of a Superintendence of any white Person whatever.” The black mechanics and
tradesmen worked for “their own Emolument” and to the great injury of white artisans; they
worked at their trades, bought and sold goods, and did so at “cheaper Rates” than their white
counterparts; they also stole materials. Moreover, they refused to accept the “Subordination
which the Situation of this State requires from the Slave towards his master and all other
Citizens.” The white coopers ask for an act of incorporation, with “Privileges and Rights as are
usually granted in such Cases.” Petitioners {9}: Forrest, Thomas H.; Haig, David; Mitchell, James;
Moir, William; Righton, McCulley.
0299. Camden County. Black River planter Sylvester Dunn seeks compensation for slaves
confiscated during the American Revolution. In May 1781, Colonel John Marshall appropriated
twelve of Dunn's slaves without authority. Later, ten of the slaves were used to pay off General
Thomas Sumter's state troops. When several of the slaves returned to Dunn's plantation on their
own, a suit was commenced against Dunn for their return. The court allowed Dunn to keep two of
the slaves. He requests compensation for the other ten.
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0302. Fairfield County. Joannah Boylstone and her son, George Boylstone, administrators of the
estate of William Boylstone, seek compensation for a “Negro Wench” named Rachel worth about
seventy-five pounds. Rachel, the petitioners contend, was “forcibly taken & carried off by an
armed party of Troops under the command of Genl. Sumter.” William Boylstone thought Rachel
had either run away or been stolen. In 1790, learning she was held by Major John Davidson in
North Carolina, Boylstone brought suit. At the trial in September 1791, the evidence revealed that
Rachel had been taken up by troops under the command of Colonel Henry Hampton of Sumter's
Brigade and then turned over to Thomas Williams, a soldier in the brigade, as payment for his
services (eighty-six pounds sterling) during the war. It was ruled that according to the laws of
North and South Carolina owners of slaves taken up as payment to Revolutionary soldiers should
apply to their respective legislatures for relief. Thus, the plaintiff lost his case after considerable
expense. By the time this occurred, the South Carolina Auditor's Office no longer accepted claims
for such property. Now Boylstone's widow and son, both in indigent circumstances, seek relief.
0307. Godin Guerard seeks relief from an unpaid bond he had signed to pay the duty on imported
slaves. In 1785, Guerard had purchased and transported a considerable number of slaves from
St. Augustine into South Carolina. In addition, four of his slaves, with a value of at least one
hundred guineas each, were killed by the South Carolina militia. With a large family, and through
a series of “calamitous unforeseen and unexpected events” reduced to near indigence, Guerard
seeks relief.
0312. Fairfield County. Joannah Boylstone and her son, George Boylstone, administrators of the
estate of William Boylstone, seek compensation for a “Negro Wench” named Rachel worth about
seventy-five pounds. Rachel, the petitioners contend, was “forcibly taken & carried off by an
armed party of Troops under the command of Genl. Sumter.” William Boylstone thought Rachel
had either run away or been stolen. In 1790, learning she was held by Major John Davidson in
North Carolina, Boylstone brought suit. At the trial in September 1791, the evidence revealed that
Rachel had been taken up by troops under the command of Colonel Henry Hampton of Sumter's
Brigade and then turned over to Thomas Williams, a soldier in the brigade, as payment for his
services (eighty-six pounds sterling) during the war. It was ruled that according to the laws of
North and South Carolina owners of slaves taken up as payment to Revolutionary soldiers should
apply to their respective legislatures for relief. Thus, the plaintiff lost his case after considerable
expense. By the time this occurred, the South Carolina Auditor's Office no longer accepted claims
for such property. Now Boylstone's widow and son, both in indigent circumstances, seek relief.
0324. Members of “The Society of Master Coopers of Charleston” express frustration at the
“inattention” given by authorities to the law passed 10 May 1740 and revived 12 March 1783
regarding the management of slaves within the state. “[A]t present as well as for considerable
Time past,” they observe, “the Slaves of Charleston have been privileged (although illegally) to
traffick and barter, as well as to carry on different Trades and Occupations (free from the
Direction of a Superintendence of any white Person whatever.” The black mechanics and
tradesmen worked for “their own Emolument” and to the great injury of white artisans; they
worked at their trades, bought and sold goods, and did so at “cheaper Rates” than their white
counterparts; they also stole materials. Moreover, they refused to accept the “Subordination
which the Situation of this State requires from the Slave towards his master and all other
Citizens.” The white coopers ask for an act of incorporation, with “Privileges and Rights as are
usually granted in such Cases.” Petitioners {8}: Forrest, Thomas; Haig, David; Mitchell, James;
Moir, William; Righton, McCulley.
0328. Charleston County. Susanna St. John of St. James Goose Creek Parish seeks
compensation for the slave Titus, who was convicted and executed as an accessory to the
murder of her husband. They had purchased Titus in 1785. When her husband was killed eight
years later by a group of runaway slaves the Court of Justices and Freeholders ruled that Titus
was involved. The black man was appraised at seventy pounds sterling.
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0332. St. Thomas Parish resident John Syme seeks compensation for an executed slave valued
at six hundred pounds “old Currency.” Syme states that he obtained a certificate indicating the
value of the slave and presented it to the South Carolina House of Representatives; it was then
referred to the Committee on Certificates. On 3 March 1775, the report of the committee favoring
Syme's claim was read and debated. Two motions to defeat the question failed, and the House
passed the report.
0336. Charleston County. James Clitherall seeks relief from three long overdue accounts. In
1782, the state sold Clitherall's slaves for specie at “very inferior” prices. The specie was paid to
the state before the delivery of the slaves. The account was audited, delivered to the Board of
Commissioners on Accounts, sent to the auditor, and reported to the treasury. Yet, the “same
hath in no wise been satisfied, nor hath your Memorialist been allowed to discount it, as so much
of the Specie part of his Amercement.” The second overdue account, arising from the sale of
slaves by the Commissioners of Forfeited Estates in 1783, brought in bonds payable in specie on
a credit of three and six months. The bonds remain in the treasury unpaid. One bond signed by
John Cox and another man is “totally bad.” Moreover, the slaves sold for only one-third of their
value. Despite these just claims, Clitherall is “obliged to pay part of his Amercement in Specie,
and the remainder in general and special indents, without being allowed any discount whatever.”
The third account derives from articles confiscated at Clitherall's plantation in 1782 by the
Commissioners of Forfeited Estates. Clitherall asks for payment in specie, including interest, for
the first account; a general indent, with interest, for the second account; and “other relief” for the
third account.
0345. Washington County. Alexander Chavis asserts that his slave was taken under a supposed
order of General Andrew Pickens and given to Captain John Norwood as reward for killing John
Masterson, “a notorious & mischievous Enemy of the Country.” Pickens informed Chavis that he
had never issued such an order. Chavis brought suit in the county court against the man who
possessed his slave but lost. It was too late to make a restitution claim to the claims commission.
He submits his case for restitution for the “Wench and her issue” as well as the cost of his suit.
0350. Charleston County. The president and directors of the Santee Canal Company seek the
passage of an act to exempt slaves who labored on the canal—a service extremely beneficial to
the state—from being compelled by the “Commissioners of the high Roads” to do road work.
Petitioner: Ramsay, David.
1794.
0354. Thirty-four free persons of color seek to repeal the “Act for imposing a poll tax on all free
Negroes, Mustees, and Mulatoes.” They wish to support the government, but the poll tax caused
great hardship among free women of color, especially widows with large families. Tax collectors
hunted them down and “extorted” payment. Petitioners {34}: Bolton, Spencer; Linagear, Isaac;
Mitchell, Isaac; Price, Jonathan; Swett, William N.
0358. On or about 26 August 1794, Thomas Coburn, an immigrant from Europe, bludgeoned a
slave to death in a “most cruel manner.” In September, the slave's owner, Peter Horlbeck,
prosecuted Coburn “to conviction.” Coburn's friends, however, raised one hundred pounds
sterling to pay Coburn's fine and court costs, thereby securing his release. Horlbeck petitions for
his legal share of the fine.
0361. Marlboro County resident Thomas Bingham seeks compensation for his slave, Toney, who
in 1776 was tried, convicted, and executed for raping a white woman. Bingham had turned the
Certificate of Appraisement and Execution over to Tristram Thomas to deliver to the State
Auditor's office, but Thomas had lost the document. Bingham asks for relief. Petitioner: Bingham,
Thomas. [2 Petitions.]
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0372. Camden County. Black River planter Sylvester Dunn seeks compensation for slaves
confiscated during the American Revolution. In May 1781, Colonel John Marshall appropriated
twelve of Dunn’s slaves without authority. Later, ten of the slaves were used to pay off General
Thomas Sumter’s state troops. When several of the slaves returned to Dunn’s plantation on their
own, a suit was commenced against Dunn for their return. The court allowed Dunn to keep two of
the slaves. He requests compensation for the other ten.
0376. Planter Elizabeth Deveaux states that during the British occupation of Charleston in 1782
three of her slaves were seized by patriots as the slaves journeyed to the city with family
provisions. She also lost a boat. Her property was sold “upon a Supposition of having violated
Governor [John] Mathew's Proclamation.” She seeks compensation. Petitioner: Deveaux,
Elizabeth. [2 Petitions.]
0382. In “the heat of Passion,” David Kain mortally wounded a man of color. Kain writes from his
jail cell in Charleston that he is truly sorry about the incident, but the fine of fifty pounds is beyond
his ability to pay. Without the intervention of the legislature, he explains, he faces the grim
prospect “of ending his days in confinement."
0385. Conrad Holman seeks compensation for a slave impressed by the state to defend
Charleston against Great Britain during the Revolutionary War. The slave was captured by the
British and is now “entirely lost to your petitioner."
0389. Camden County. Black River planter Sylvester Dunn seeks compensation for slaves
confiscated during the American Revolution. In May 1781, Colonel John Marshall appropriated
twelve of Dunn's slaves without authority. Later, ten of the slaves were used to pay off General
Thomas Sumter's state troops. When several of the slaves returned to Dunn's plantation on their
own, a suit was commenced against Dunn for their return. The court allowed Dunn to keep two of
the slaves. He requests compensation for the other ten.
0392. Charleston County. The subscribers, directors, and stockholders of the Santee Canal
Company seek the passage of an act to exempt slaves who labored on the canal—a service
extremely beneficial to the state—from being compelled by the commissioners of roads to do
road work. Seeking to open a waterway between the Santee and Cooper rivers, the petitioners
state, the company employed a great number of slaves; it should not be required to send its
laborers off to work on roads in St. Stephen or St. John parishes. Petitioners {4}: Ramsay, David;
Russell, Nathaniel; Rutledge, Ed; Rutledge, J., Jr.
1795.
0395. In January 1795, delegates from several societies promoting the abolition of slavery
convened in Philadelphia. Arguing that “nothing can be effectual while the number of Slaves may
be daily increased by importation, and while the minds of our Citizens are debased, and their
hearts hardened, by contemplating these people only through the medium of avarice or prejudice
(a necessary consequence of the traffic in Man),” the delegates seek a “total prohibition of all
traffic in Slaves.” Petitioners {2}: Franklin, Walter; Rush, Benjamin.
0400. On or about 26 August 1794, Thomas Coburn, an immigrant from Europe, bludgeoned a
slave to death in a “most cruel manner.” In September, the slave's owner, Peter Horlbeck,
prosecuted Coburn “to conviction.” Coburn's friends, however, raised one hundred pounds
sterling to pay Coburn's fine and court costs, thereby securing his release. Horlbeck petitions for
his legal share of the fine, to which he is entitled “for his trouble and expense in attending to the
Prosecution, [and for] the great loss he sustained in being deprived of the services of so valuable
of a Slave."
0403. John Green states that as the manager of his plantation one “very valuable” slave was
virtually indispensable. When the black man was apprehended for an unspecified offense, tried,
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convicted, and executed, it was a great loss. Green seeks compensation. The slave was
appraised at seventy pounds sterling.
0406. Camden County. Black River planter Sylvester Dunn seeks compensation for slaves
confiscated during the American Revolution. In May 1781, Colonel John Marshall appropriated
twelve of Dunn’s slaves without authority. Later, ten of the slaves were used to pay off General
Thomas Sumter's state troops. When several of the slaves “came home to your petitioner” on
their own, a suit was commenced against Dunn for their return. The court allowed Dunn to keep
two of the slaves. He requests compensation for the other ten.
0410. In a petition to the legislature in 1793 seeking compensation for “a Negroe Executed,” John
Bellamee failed to provide the necessary vouchers. Now he is able to do so and seeks
compensation for his loss.
0413. Conrad Holman seeks compensation for a slave impressed by authorities in 1779 “to work
upon the lines of Charleston” in preparation for the British invasion. When the city fell, the slave
was taken up and “entirely lost” to his owner.
0417. In a petition to the legislature in 1793 seeking compensation for “a Negroe Executed,” John
Bellamee failed to provide the necessary vouchers. Now he is able to do so and seeks
compensation for his loss.
0420. John Adams seeks compensation for a “valuable” slave, appraised at eighty pounds
sterling, who was shot and killed “by a Party of Militia in pursuit of some runaways.” Adams sent
“papers” to the legislature seeking compensation but was turned down on the grounds that his
claim did not fall under the prevailing laws. Adams asserts that his claim is in fact legal and asks
for relief. Petitioner: Adams, John. [2 Petitions.]
0426. On or about 26 August 1794, Thomas Coburn, an immigrant from Europe, bludgeoned a
slave to death in a “most cruel manner.” In September, the slave's owner, Peter Horlbeck,
prosecuted Coburn “to conviction.” Coburn's friends, however, raised one hundred pounds
sterling to pay Coburn's fine and court costs, thereby securing his release. Horlbeck petitions for
his legal share of the fine, to which he is entitled “for his trouble and expense in attending to the
Prosecution, [and for] the great loss he sustained in being deprived of the services of so valuable
of a Slave."
1796.
0429. Black River planter Sylvester Dunn seeks compensation for slaves confiscated during the
American Revolution. In May 1781, Colonel John Marshall appropriated twelve of Dunn's slaves
without authority. Later, ten of the slaves were used to pay off General Thomas Sumter's state
troops. When several of the slaves “came home to your petitioner” on their own, a suit was
commenced against Dunn for their return. The court allowed Dunn to keep two of the slaves. He
requests compensation for the other ten.
1797.
0435. Malachi Ford seeks compensation for a slave who was shot and mortally wounded “in a
most wanton and barbarous manner” by Wherriett Lewis. In behalf of the state, Ford lodged
“information” against Lewis, who was convicted and fined fifty pounds sterling; then “in Justice to
himself,” Ford sued for damages and won a judgment of one hundred and fifty pounds sterling.
Since Lewis is too poor to pay, Ford complains that his only recourse is to have the man arrested
and confined to jail. Such a course of action would only add jail fees to Lewis's debt and would
not compensate Ford. Moreover, Lewis's family would suffer for lack of a breadwinner. Ford asks
the legislature to pay him fifty pounds sterling.
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0439. Charleston County. Susanna St. John of St. James Goose Creek Parish seeks
compensation for the slave Titus, who was convicted and executed as an accessory to the
murder of her husband. They had purchased Titus in 1785. When her husband was killed eight
years later by a group of runaway slaves the Court of Justices and Freeholders ruled that Titus
was involved. The black man was appraised at seventy pounds sterling.
0442. Charleston County. On 6 March 1797, “a Certain Negro man slave Named Benj” set fire to
planter George Keckeley's house and barn in St. James Goose Creek Parish. The house and its
contents burned, and Keckeley and his family barely escaped with their lives. The slave was
owned by Keckeley's father, Conrad, who turned the black man over to authorities. On 6 April
1797, the slave was found guilty of arson by the Court of Magistrates and Freeholders; he was
sentenced to death and hanged. The slave was valued at one hundred pounds sterling. A group
of neighbors asks that the legislature be “moved with Humanity and Pity” for George Keckeley
and provide him with the full amount of the appraised value of the slave. Petitioners {9}: Glover,
Charles; Gray, Henry; Mitchell, John; Mitchell, William N.
0445. Concerned about the “dangerous designs and machinations of certain French West India
Negroes,” Charleston residents propose several modifications to the laws prohibiting the
importation of slaves and to the system of patrols. Captains or mates of all vessels arriving from
the West Indies should be required “to report on Oath to some proper officer” whether any people
of color on board are from the Caribbean Islands, and all ships should be subject to a search. In
addition, they argue, free French people of color who entered South Carolina after 1 January
1790 should be forced to leave. Petitioners ask for a permanent guard in Charleston, including
fifty infantrymen and twenty-four horsemen, and propose the formation of a committee to oversee
patrols when the legislature is not in session. Petitioners {98}: Gilchrist, Adam; Howard, Robert;
McCalla, Thomas H.; Pringle, John J.; Ray, E. M.
0454. Williamsburgh County. Robert Gamble seeks compensation for a slave, by trade a
blacksmith, convicted of house burning and sentenced to death. The slave, however, broke out of
custody and is “officially lost to him as if the execution had really taken place.” The income from
the slave's work, Gamble said, was considerable and supported him in his “advanced period of
Life."
0457. Concerned about the “dangerous designs and machinations of certain French West India
Negroes,” Charleston residents propose several modifications to the laws prohibiting the
importation of slaves and to the system of patrols. Captains or mates of all vessels arriving from
the West Indies should be required “to report on Oath to some proper officer” whether any people
of color on board are from the Caribbean Islands, and all ships should be subject to a search. In
addition, they argue, free French people of color who entered South Carolina after 1 January
1790 should be forced to leave. Petitioners ask for a permanent guard in Charleston, including
fifty infantrymen and twenty-four horsemen, and propose the formation of a committee to oversee
patrols when the legislature is not in session. Petitioners {5}: Gilchrist, Adam; Howard, Robert;
Lowndes, James; McCalla, Thomas H.; Vanderhorst, Adam.
0466. James Hughlin and Elijah Clark of Wilkes and Lincoln counties, Georgia, seek
compensation for their slaves, who were executed in Abbeville District, South Carolina, for
burglary. The slaves were appraised by the Court of Justices and Freeholders as follows:
Hughlin's slave, Jim, at $300; Clark's slave, Summer, at $150.
0471. Charleston County. On 6 March 1797, “a Certain Negro man slave Named Benj” set fire to
planter George Keckeley's house and barn in St. James Goose Creek Parish. The house and its
contents burned, and Keckeley and his family barely escaped with their lives. The slave was
owned by Keckeley's father, Conrad, who turned the black man over to authorities. On 6 April
1797, the slave was found guilty of arson by the Court of Magistrates and Freeholders; he was
sentenced to death and hanged. The slave was valued at one hundred pounds sterling. A group
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of neighbors asks that the legislature be “moved with Humanity and Pity” for George Keckeley
and provide him with the full amount of the appraised value of the slave. Petitioners {7}: Glover,
Charles; Glover, Sanders; Gray, Henry; Mitchell, John; Mitchell, William N.
1798.
0474. John Desbeaux seeks compensation for a slave, Figaro, who was found guilty of high
treason. On 20 November 1797, he was tried, convicted, and sentenced to death within hours of
his capture in Charleston. Between noon and one o'clock the next day, at the end of Tradd Street
facing the Lower Market, Figaro and fellow conspirator John Louis were hanged. A third man was
transported beyond the limits of the United States.
0482. Charleston County. James Delaire states that his slave, Paul, alias Figaro, was convicted
of sedition and sentenced to be transported from the United States to the Dutch colony of
Surinam and sold. Other slaves involved in the plot were hanged, but Paul testified against them
and his life was spared. Paul was turned over to Duncan Hill, owner of the brig Aurora, for
transport to Surinam. Owing to the “Intense cold the said Figaro had suffered in the Workhouse at
Charleston & the strong pressure of the Irons on his legs very few days after the Sailing of the
Aurora he was taken with a swelling about the ankles which turn'd into a sore & that a
mortification of the flesh ensuing his toes rotted & one of his feet drop'd of[f] entirely.” As a result,
Paul sold for only about $20 though he was worth $350. Delaire seeks compensation. Petitioner:
Delaire, James. [2 Petitions.]
0499. During an expedition against the Cherokee Nation in 1782, General Andrew Pickens
captured nine slaves, who were sold and the proceeds divided among Pickens's men. The sale
was later approved and confirmed by a March 1784 act of the South Carolina legislature.
Holeman Freeman bought three of the slaves, a man named Peter, a “wench named Cate,” and a
girl named Charlotte. The original owner eventually filed suit for the recovery of the slaves and
their children. In an action of trover, a jury ruled that Freeman either surrender the slaves or pay
the “original owner” twenty-four hundred dollars. Freeman seeks relief.
0503. George Keckeley seeks compensation for the slave Benj, who was hanged after being
convicted of setting fire to Keckeley's house and barn. Keckeley states that he lost a considerable
amount of property, including Benj, who was valued at one hundred pounds sterling.
0506. George Keckeley seeks compensation for the slave Benj, who was charged, convicted, and
hanged for setting fire to the petitioner's house and barn. Keckeley suffered a substantial loss, he
states, in part because he was determined to make “a public Example of so Great a Crime” and
personally “Deliver'd up the offender” for punishment. The slave was valued at one hundred
pounds sterling.
1799.
0509. Charleston County. George Keckeley seeks compensation for the slave Benj, who was
charged, convicted, and hanged for setting fire to the petitioner's house and barn. In a joint
resolution, Keckeley explains, the legislature awarded him $120.25, but when he applied to the
“Treasurer of Charleston” he found that no provision had been made for him to collect the money.
He seeks redress.
0512. Williamsburgh County. Isaac Matthews seeks compensation for Sam, a “Prime” slave
about twenty-three years old, who drowned in 1798 while working to clear debris from the Black
River. The Commissioners of the Navigation of the Black River had “legally called upon” owners
to furnish slaves to clear the river.
0515. Charleston County. Henry Martin, a poor and elderly immigrant who fled Santo Domingo in
1793, seeks compensation for his only slave, Figaro. The slave, Martin states, was hired out to
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labor at the public works on Sullivan’s Island. While moving a gun carriage, Figaro was gravely
injured when one of the wheels fell on his back. The slave did not receive medical attention and,
despite severe pain, was sent to work two days later. By the time a doctor arrived it was too late,
and Figaro died from internal injuries.
0520. Williamsburgh County. Isaac Matthews seeks compensation for Sam, a “Prime” slave
about twenty-three years old, who drowned in 1798 while working to clear debris from the Black
River. The Commissioners of the Navigation of the Black River had “legally called upon” owners
to furnish slaves to clear the river.
0523. Charleston County. Henry Martin, a poor and elderly immigrant who fled Santo Domingo in
1793, seeks compensation for his only slave, Figaro. The slave, Martin states, was hired out to
labor at the public works on Sullivan's Island. While moving a gun carriage, Figaro was gravely
injured when one of the wheels fell on his back. The slave did not receive medical attention and,
despite severe pain, was sent to work two days later. By the time a doctor arrived it was too late,
and Figaro died from internal injuries.
0528. Charleston County. Purchased for seventy-six pounds by Joshua Canter from Thomas
Coveney, the slave Cain was within a short time convicted of burglary and larceny. On 6
November 1799, Cain was tried before the Court of Justices and Freeholders and found guilty; on
15 November 1799, he was executed. Cain's new owner asks that the state pay him “the value of
the Said slave."
1800.
0534. Marion County. John Jordan seeks payment of an indent for a slave executed in 1779.
0537. LeRoy Buford seeks compensation for a slave convicted and executed for poisoning.
0540. Colleton County. Petitioner Major Brown states that on 5 October 1800 her husband,
Chandler Brown, and William Dunn, overseers in St. Paul Parish, left home in search of a gang of
runaway slaves. Her husband was shot and killed by the slaves, and Dunn was severely
wounded. Left with four small children, and basing her claim on the eighth paragraph of the “act
for the better ordering & Governing Negroes,” she asks for relief.
0545. Samuel Fairchild seeks compensation for two slaves, Solomon and Dorcas. Solomon was
convicted and executed for murdering his wife, Dorcas. He was appraised by the Court of
Justices and Freeholders of Charleston District at £65 sterling. Dorcas was valued by “three
honest and worthy Citizens” at £120 sterling.
0552. Charleston County. Benjamin Langstaff, administrator of the estate of John Langstaff,
seeks compensation for the slave John Davis. Davis was convicted and executed for treason in
1797.
0559. Sumter County. James Richardson seeks compensation for his slave, a “very valuable
Negro Fellow” who was tried, convicted, and executed for burglary. Richardson states that shortly
after he purchased the slave, the bondsman ran away when he discovered he was to be
“removed into the Country.” The slave was arrested and jailed in the Charleston. Richardson
paid fifty dollars for his release, but the slave was then accused of burglary.
0562. Leroy Beuford seeks compensation for a slave who was convicted and executed for
poisoning.
0568. Richland County. St. Bartholomew Parish planter Philip S. Smith seeks compensation for
his late father's slave, Ishmael, who was executed at Ashepoo in 1795 for a felony. During his
father's life no application was made for restitution.
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0572. Charleston County. Edisto Island slave owner Samuel Fairchild seeks compensation for
two slaves, Solomon and Dorcas. Solomon was convicted and executed for “the atrocious crime”
of murdering his own wife, Dorcas. He was appraised by the Court of Justices and Freeholders at
£65 sterling. Dorcas was appraised at £120 sterling.
0576. Charleston County. Benjamin Langstaff, administrator of the estate of John Langstaff,
seeks compensation for the slave John Davis. In 1797, Davis was convicted and executed for
treason.
0579. Marion County. John Jordan seeks payment of an indent for a slave executed in 1779.
0582. Josiah N. Kennedy seeks compensation for his slave, Barnett, who was executed on 17
November 1797.
0585. William Somarsall seeks compensation for his slave, September, who was convicted and
executed for murder. The Court of Justices and Freeholders appraised the slave at one hundred
pounds sterling.
0588. Former South Carolina resident Richard Pearis, a slaveholder in the Bahama Islands,
seeks to return to South Carolina. He asks to return with his family and the sixty slaves who “have
been his own property for many years past."
0591. Colleton County. Petitioner Major Brown states that on 5 October 1800 her husband,
Chandler Brown, and William Dunn, overseers in St. Paul Parish, left home in search of a gang of
runaway slaves. Her husband was shot and killed by the slaves, and Dunn was severely
wounded. Left with four small children, and basing her claim on the eighth paragraph of the “act
for the better ordering & Governing Negroes,” she asks for relief.
0596. York County. In April 1799, Robert Murphy states, he worked as a guard under constable
William Moore as they pursued a black man named Joe, a notorious outlier charged with
ravishing a white woman. They came across the fugitive, owned by Robert Ash, hiding in the
“Negro House.” When they attempted to arrest him, Joe “fled and was killed.” In a subsequent
court case, Murphy was required to pay a $124 fine. He seeks relief.
0605. Ava Culliatt, widow and mother, seeks legislative support following the death of her
husband, who was killed by his horse while serving in the Jacksonborough troop in the pursuit of
slaves accused of murder. Her husband was a blacksmith in St. Paul Parish. She is entitled to her
claims by the “Act for the better ordering and governing of negroes.” Petitioner: Culliatt, Ava. [2
Petitions.]
0613. York County. In April 1799, Robert Murphy states, he worked as a guard under constable
William Moore as they pursued a black man named Joe, a notorious outlier charged with
ravishing a white woman. They came across the fugitive, owned by Robert Ash, hiding in the
“Negro House.” When they attempted to arrest him, Joe “fled and was killed.” In a subsequent
court case, Murphy was required to pay a $124 fine. He seeks relief.
0616. Charleston County. Mary Norton seeks compensation for her slave, Cuffy, who was
convicted and executed for larceny and for attempting to cut the throat of Solomon Nathan.
Norton explains that she is a poor widow and depended on the income derived from her slave's
labor for her livelihood. Cuffy was appraised at eighty pounds sterling.
1801.
0621. Leaders of “The Company for the inland navigation from Santee to Cooper River” seeks
permission to import African slaves as laborers. Having completed one phase of the operation,
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they argue that they must now build several roads and a ferry canal in the Santee Swamp. These
projects will be of great value to the public, they assert. However, since the company is already
one hundred thousand pounds in debt, the directors hope to secure a cheaper source of labor by
importing slaves from Africa. Petitioners {10}: Gilchrist, Adam; Johnston, Charles; Morris,
Thomas; Russell, Nathaniel.
0625. Union County. John Jefferies seeks permission to bring a hired slave from North Carolina
into South Carolina to work “getting A Quantity of Iron.” Jefferies had signed a contract for the
slave's hire on 27 July 1801, and the contract is about to expire.
0628. On 17 July 1801, Jamaican merchant and ship owner William Boyle McCullock arrived in
Charleston on board his brig Perseverance. Also on board were three of his slaves—Dublin,
Belfast, and Cork—who were members of the crew. When the brig anchored in Charleston
harbor, Captain Peter Grantham “incautiously and by mistake” reported the crew members as
“cargo.” The commandant of Fort Johnson reported the matter to city authorities, an arrest
warrant was issued, and the three sailors were sent to the workhouse. McCullock's attorney, John
Potter, petitions the legislature for release of the slaves.
0636. Residents of Chester District seek the revision and modification of a recent law passed “for
the better governing of negroes and other persons of color.” The petitioners argue that the law
infringes on the “religious rights and privileges of churches and citizens.” It will make “that class of
the negroes who value religious privileges, and are disposed to support good principles, feel
unhappy, and consider themselves oppressed.” The petitioners wish to do nothing that might
“destroy the foundations of peace and social order,” but they ask that the law be revised to leave
their religious liberties “unimpaired.” Petitioners {144}: Creary, John M.; Gaston, Joseph;
Stanford, George; Stanford, Thomas; Wilson, John.
0640. Residents Chester District seek the revision and modification of a recent law passed “for
the better governing of negroes and other persons of color.” The petitioners argue that the law
infringes on the “religious rights and privileges of churches and citizens.” It will make “that class of
the negroes who value religious privileges, and are disposed to support good principles, feel
unhappy, and consider themselves oppressed.” The petitioners wish to do nothing that might
“destroy the foundations of peace and social order,” but they ask that the law be revised to leave
their religious liberties “unimpaired.” Petitioners {146}: Creary, John M.; Gaston, Joseph;
Stanford, George; Stanford, Thomas; Wilson, John.
0644. Representatives of the Charleston Baptist Association seek a revision of the recent law
passed “for the better governing of negroes and other persons of color.” The petitioners argue
that the law infringes on the “Religious Rights and Privileges of Churches and Citizens.” As
ministers, they have instructed slaves and believe that those who received such instruction
remain loyal to their masters. During the American Revolution, for instance, such slaves resisted
temptation. The petitioners argue that the law will make slaves who value religion “unhappy, and
consider themselves oppressed.” Petitioners {7}: Bradley, Robert; Cook, Joseph B.; Furman,
Richard; Roberts, John M.; Woods, F.
0647. Amos Pilsbury, administrator of the estate of Edward Tash, seeks compensation for the
slave Mary, who was convicted of arson by the wardens of the city council of Charleston in July
1798 and executed shortly afterward. Mary was worth three hundred dollars. Neither Tash during
his life nor Pilsbury as administrator had received “any payment, satisfaction or recompense for
the said Negro Woman Mary."
0652. As “the only alternative for the Preservation of myself & family,” Samuel Lacey killed his
slave. Lacey informed the coroner, who convened a jury. The jury voted in Lacey's favor. The
coroner turned his findings over to the solicitor for Chester District, who during the April 1801 term
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told Lacey that “he thought me very Justifiable in what I had done, & should dismiss me without
any Indictment.” Lacey seeks compensation for his slave.
0657. Leaders of “The Company for the inland navigation from Santee to Cooper River” seek
permission to import African slaves as laborers. Having completed one phase of the operation,
they argue that they must now build several roads and a ferry canal in the Santee Swamp. These
projects will be of great value to the public, they assert. However, since the company is already
one hundred thousand pounds in debt, the directors hope to secure a cheaper source of labor by
importing slaves from Africa. Petitioners {10}: Gilchrist, Adam; Johnston, Charles; Morris,
Thomas; Russell, Nathaniel.
1802.
0661. Representatives of the Charleston Baptist Association seek a revision of the recent law
passed “for the better governing of negroes and other persons of color.” The petitioners argue
that the law infringes on the “Religious Rights and Privileges of Churches and Citizens.” As
ministers, they have instructed slaves and believe that those who received such instruction
remain loyal to their masters. During the American Revolution, for instance, such slaves resisted
temptation. The petitioners argue that the law will make slaves who value religion “unhappy, and
consider themselves oppressed.” Petitioners {29}: Botsford, Edmund; Cook, Joseph B.; Furman,
Richard; Inglesby, William; Roberts, John M.
0664. Samuel Harris seeks compensation for his slave, Harry, who was killed 26 March 1802 by
“the fall of a tree” while working on the public road from Vienna to Abbeville Courthouse. Harry
was about twenty years of age. Petitioner: Harris, Samuel. [2 Petitions.]
0672. Representatives of the Charleston Baptist Association seek a revision of the recent law
passed “for the better governing of negroes and other persons of color.” The petitioners argue
that the law infringes on the “Religious Rights and Privileges of Churches and Citizens.” As
ministers, they have instructed slaves and believe that those who received such instruction
remain loyal to their masters. During the American Revolution, for instance, such slaves resisted
temptation. The petitioners argue that the law will make slaves who value religion “unhappy, and
consider themselves oppressed.” Petitioners {30}: Botsford, Edmund; Cook, Joseph; Furman,
Richard; Inglesby, William; Woods, Foame.
0675. Citizens of Abbeville District seek to repeal the law of 1800 and a supplementary act
passed the following year that prohibited the importation of slaves into South Carolina. They
argue that the acts are “a direct Bar to the Increase of wealth and population in the upper and
Middle Districts.” Immigrants from the North who preferred settling in South Carolina were going
to other southern states because of the nonimportation acts. Abbeville residents seek to attract
newcomers “with the Natural Goodness of our Soil and Healthiness of our Climate and the
freedom of our government.” Petitioners {46}: Bankes, James; Banks, George; Carswell, Joseph;
Gray, William; Stanfield, Richard.
0678. Charleston County. William Simmons submitted receipts for payment for his services in the
execution of two slaves. The receipts included “1800 Decemb. 4th To Materials viz. Wood, tar,
post & chains &cet.: furnished for the Execution of a Negro fellow named Davey found Guilty of &
Sentenced to be burnt for Robbery & Murder.” The cost was £7 6s. 10p. And on 5 December: “To
attending the Execution of the Negro Smart at the 13 Mile Bouse, armed to prevent a rescue, by
order of a magistrate.” The cost was £3. Simmons did “Furnish the materials for the Execution of
Davy above mentioned,” one observer noted, and attended “armed under the apprehension of a
rescue” the execution of Smart.
0683. Zacharia Nance of Union District inherited a slave named Julius from his father, William
Nance, late of Halifax County, Virginia. As the trustee of his father's estate, Nance states that he
is also responsible for distributing two other slaves, one each to his brother and his daughter. He
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seeks an indemnification, or a mode to allow him to possess the slaves, and asks that a
“Superanuated negro woman” freed in his father's will be permitted to enter South Carolina to be
near her children who are owned by Nance.
0686. Citizens of Abbeville District seek to repeal the law of 1800 and a supplementary act
passed the following year that prohibited the importation of slaves into South Carolina. They
argue that the acts are “a direct Bar to the Increase of wealth and population in the upper and
Middle Districts.” Immigrants from the North who preferred settling in South Carolina were going
to other southern states because of the nonimportation acts. Abbeville residents seek to attract
newcomers “with the Natural Goodness of our Soil and Healthiness of our Climate and the
freedom of our government.” Petitioners {104}: Chiles, James; Linn, Nathan; Lipscomb, Joel;
Sample, Alexander; Wright, Pleasant.
0690. Charleston County. In 1801, the legislature passed a law requiring the Commissioners of
Roads in St. Thomas and St. Dennis Parish to assess a tax on slaves ages sixteen to fifty to keep
the causeway leading to the ferry owned by William Clement in good repair. The causeway,
however, remains unrepaired and “almost impassable.” It would cost no more than “a half dollar
per head,” Clement explains, to keep it in good repair.
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0001. Descriptive material.
1803.
0007. Kershaw County. Joshua Dinkins seeks compensation for two “valuable” slaves who were
taken by the “Rebel” Colonel James Cary during the Revolutionary War. Dinkins notes that nine
slaves owned by Cary, though subject to the Confiscation Act, had not been disposed of by the
state; he suggests obtaining some of these slaves as a compensation for his loss.
0011. Samuel Harris seeks compensation for his slave, Harry, who was killed on 26 March 1802
by “the fall of a tree” while working on the public road leading from Vienna to Abbeville
Courthouse. About twenty years of age, Harry was valued at six hundred dollars.
0016. Citizens of Abbeville District support the petition of Samuel Harris, whose slave Harry was
accidentally killed while working on the public road. Harry, who was killed on 26 March 1802 by
“the fall of a tree,” was about twenty years of age. Harris owned only one slave and was “in such
circumstances as renders him very illy able to sustain a loss of that nature & degree.” Petitioners
{21}: Bacon, Lyddal; Beale, Jeremiah; Glover, Benjamin; Waddel, Moses; Wimbish, Alexander.
0019. Charleston County. Citizens of St. Luke and St. Peter parishes assert that by “the patriotic
and highly meritorious conduct” of Abram, a slave owned by William Kirk, an insurrection plot was
discovered and the “incendiaries” involved “easily and speedily apprehended” and punished.
They seek a “suitable reward” for Abram, but note that if he were to be freed that some additional
compensation should be extended his owner, who had three of his five slaves executed.
Petitioners {92}: Edwards, George; McCumbee, John; Pelot, Charles; Postell, James; Wigg,
William H.
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1804.
0024. Edgefield District slave owner Cradock Burnell seeks compensation for a slave, Adam, who
was executed after being convicted of a house robbery in Barnwell District. Adam was appraised
at $250. Petitioner: Burnell, Cradock. [2 Petitions.]
0032. William Royall seeks compensation for his slave, Jack, who was convicted and executed
for murdering another of Royall's slaves, a woman named Beck. The “loss of two such Prime
Hands is Particularly hard and unfortunate to Your Petitioner whose pecuniary circumstances are
by no means eligible.” The Court of Magistrates and Freeholders appraised Jack at two hundred
dollars.
1805.
0036. Black River planter Sylvester Dunn Jr. and his brother, Roger Dunn, seek compensation for
slaves confiscated from their father, Sylvester Dunn Sr., now deceased, during the American
Revolution. In May 1781, Colonel John Marshall appropriated twelve of the elder Dunn's slaves;
eventually ten were delivered to Colonel Henry Hampton for the purpose of paying troops. The
sons seek reimbursement.
0039. In October 1800, the slave Will ran away from his owner, Stephen Boykin, but was taken
up near Charleston by a man named Tredwell. Will was not turned over to authorities, as required
by law, but forced to work for Tredwell at gunpoint. Observing Tredwell off guard, Will struck him
with an axe and ran off. Tredwell died. Will returned home and confessed his crime. He was tried,
convicted, and executed. Boykin seeks compensation.
0043. Black River planter Sylvester Dunn Jr. and his brother, Roger Dunn, seek compensation for
slaves confiscated from their father, Sylvester Dunn Sr., now deceased, during the American
Revolution. In May 1781, Colonel John Marshall appropriated twelve of the elder Dunn's slaves;
eventually ten were delivered to Colonel Henry Hampton for the purpose of paying troops. The
sons seek reimbursement.
0046. In October 1800, the slave Will ran away from his owner, Stephen Boykin, but was taken
up near Charleston by a man named Tredwell. Will was not turned over to authorities, as required
by law, but forced to work for Tredwell at gunpoint. Observing Tredwell off guard, Will struck him
with an axe and ran off. Tredwell died. Will returned home and confessed his crime. He was tried,
convicted, and executed. Boykin seeks compensation.
0049. Charleston County. Peter Berry seeks to emancipate his slave, Sally, who is “advanced in
years, but well able to provide for her subsistence.” She is a person “of good character.” Berry
asserts that he will be “bound for the said Slave not being chargeable on the Parish as a Pauper
or Beggar."
1806.
0053. Barnwell County. Nathaniel Heywood, John Gibbes, Ann Gibbes, and Daniel Blake oppose
a petition that proposes to establish a public landing on one of their plantations along the
Combahee River. They say that a public landing would be a “great inconvenience,” enabling “the
Idle and the Vagrant” to “remain in the Vicinity of the large and productive rice plantations, for the
purpose of trading with the Negroe Slaves to the very great loss of the Owners, and the
Corruption of such Slaves.” Moreover, there is a perfectly adequate public landing at Dunhams,
three miles away by land and five or six by water, used by rice planters in that area of St.
Bartholomew's Parish.
0063. Richland County. Mary Ellis seeks compensation for her “negro wench,” who was “willfully
killed.” Ellis brought a suit against the man accused of the crime, and the accused put up a bond
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but then absconded. Ellis asserts that had the man been convicted she would have received
compensation and now asks to receive the bond.
0066. Charleston County. Fined one hundred dollars by the tax collector for failing to develop and
maintain his property according to law, John C. Mikell, a small planter, explains that he rented the
tract from the Presbyterian Church of Edisto Island. The land did not have a dwelling, slave
houses, or other buildings. He remained on the land attending to his duties and participating in
patrol duty for ten months—January through October 1805—but was then forced to abandon the
property. He believes the fine is excessive and asks for a refund.
0069. Edgefield County. On a hunting excursion in July 1800, Mason Moseley came across a
man of color hiding in the woods. After interrogating him he discovered that he was a runaway
slave. Moseley ordered the man to strip for a search. Moseley found no weapon, but as the two
men began walking back to Moseley's farmhouse, the slave suddenly produced a knife and thrust
it into Moseley's stomach. Despite great pain and having part of his intestine protruding through
the wound, Moseley made it home; he died two days later. His widow seeks relief.
0072. Benjamin Scott seeks compensation for the slave Lamb, who was executed for his
involvement in a December 1805 insurrection plot. Since no overt act was committed, Scott
argues, the execution was a public example, and therefore the public should compensate him for
his loss.
1807.
0075. Colleton County. William McCants seeks compensation for the slave Daniel, who was killed
“by the falling of a tree” while working on a public road.
0079. Charleston County. Noting that they had recently sent a petition to the U.S. Congress
concerning the act to prohibit the importation of African slaves, South Carolina merchants and
planters ask the state senate to consider a copy of the remonstrance and provide “such aid & cooperation” as can be extended under the law. The aid would be for slave traders who might arrive
after the 1 January 1808 deadline. Petitioners {185}: Adams, John S.; Bixby, Nathan; Broadworth,
Gibson; Everingham, John; O'Hara, Charles.
0085. Benjamin Scott seeks compensation for the slave Lamb, who was executed for his
involvement in a December 1805 insurrection plot. Since no overt act was committed, Scott
argues, the execution was a public example, and therefore the public should compensate him for
his loss. Petitioner: Scott, Benjamin. [2 Petitions.]
0092. Merchants of Charleston seek exemption from the U.S. law, effective 1 January 1808,
prohibiting the importation of African slaves. They had sent their ships out before passage of the
act. Now they faced substantial losses. Some of the slave ships had encountered unfavorable
winds, others had lost officers and crew members, still others had lost sailors by desertion. A few
ships were lost off the coast of Africa. Seeking to extricate themselves from this “distressful
dilemma and unfortunate predicament,” they ask for some modification of the prohibitory act.
1808.
0097. Orangeburgh County. On 23 May 1807, William Fairy, a poor farmer, was severely
wounded attempting to take a runaway slave named Jack back to his master. The slave, owned
by Timothy Barton, was later caught, tried, convicted, and executed. Confined to bed for a lengthy
period and unable to plant his crops, Fairy seeks relief.
0102. Colleton County. George Bellinger seeks to free three slave children. The preamble of the
state law, he notes, includes the following: “Whereas it has been a practice for many years past in
this State for persons to emancipate or Set free their Slaves, in cases where such slaves have
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been of bad or depraved characters, or from age or infirmity incapable of gaining their livelihood
by honest means: To prevent &c- &c[.…]” Nothing is said about children, Bellinger argues, and
surely no infant could be said to be of “bad or depraved character.” He promises to provide for the
children with a sufficient maintenance during their youth; when they reach adulthood they will be
able to provide for their own maintenance.
1809.
0107. Colleton County. St. Bartholomew Parish planter Charles Ashe seeks compensation for a
slave, Monday, who was convicted and executed for burglary. The slave broke into the house of a
white woman, took a gun and ammunition, and threatened to kill one of the woman's slaves. The
petitioner states that Monday, at age twenty-two, was strong and healthy and of “great utility” on
his plantation.
0112. St. George Dorchester Parish slave owner John Rose seeks compensation for his slave,
Tybee, who was convicted and executed for burglary in Richland District. Rose had previously
petitioned the state senate in 1807, presenting an appraisal from the Court of Justices and
Freeholders for $128, but his request was held up in committee because “The Record of the Trial
is wanting.” It must have been lost or misplaced, Rose contends, but it was sent along with the
petition. He now sends another petition and includes a deposition to prove his case.
0116. Orangeburgh County. Timothy Barton seeks compensation for his slave, Jack, who was
executed after attacking and maiming William Fairy, a white man. The slave was valued at four
hundred dollars.
0121. William Smith seeks compensation for a slave, George, who was convicted and executed
for burning a parcel of rye and a cotton machine.
0124. Orangeburgh County. Timothy Barton seeks compensation for his slave, Jack, who was
executed for attacking and maiming William Fairy, a white man. The slave was valued at four
hundred dollars.
1810.
0127. Pendleton County. James Anderson seeks compensation for a sixteen-year-old slave,
Wiley, who was caught in the act of burglary. Anderson brought the slave home and tied him up
in a room for the night, informing Wiley that he would probably be executed for his crime. When
the Anderson family rose the next morning, they found that Wiley had “Hanged himself With the
Rope he Was tied With.” The petitioner asks to be compensated as if the slave, worth four
hundred dollars, had been tried, convicted, and executed.
0138. Residents of Georgetown seek “pecuniary aid” to support a guard unit for the town. The
illicit trafficking of stolen goods had become so great that it required constant vigilance to
eradicate it, they claim. Residents had found several hundred bushels of rough rice in the
possession of some small shopkeepers, and the petitioners argue that it most likely had been
stolen by slaves from their masters and sold to “evil disposed persons.” In addition, the “love of
plunder” had become so strong among white traffickers that they had actually attempted to set
fire to the town. Residents had raised money by voluntary subscription for nightly patrols, but
more resources were needed. Petitioners {101}: Chapman, T.; Course, Isaac; Grant, William;
Taylor, John M.; Wilson, John L.
1811.
0143. Drury Couch, a poor, illiterate man from Spartanburgh District, seeks reimbursement for the
expenses he incurred while testifying at a trial against four men accused of stealing a slave.
Couch traveled to Charleston in January 1810 and again in June 1811 to testify at the Court of
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General Sessions. He spent a total of thirty-four days in the city. His costs amounted to at least
one hundred dollars.
0146. Edgefield County. Thomas Key seeks compensation for his slave, Dave, who was charged
and executed in 1810 for knowing about a slave insurrection plot. Since Dave was “not taken in
actual rebellion,” the owner argues, he is entitled to compensation.
0149. Williamsburgh County. The executors of the estate of Isaac Mathews seek compensation
for a “faithful & prime” slave who drowned while working to improve navigation on the Black River.
The heirs should not be forced to bear the loss of “so faithful & prime a servant as he was.”
Petitioners {2}: Leister, William; Mathews, John.
0152. Williamsburgh County. Samuel Wilson, administrator of the estate of John Wilson, seeks
compensation for a “faithful & prime” slave who drowned while working for the public on the Black
River.
1812.
0155. Charleston County. As administrator for the estate of Thomas Harvey, William Linen
initiated a suit against Major Joseph Jenkins for the recovery of a slave named Smart. The trial
was a “sham,” Linen asserts, and in 1807 he brought suit against several lawyers, the deputy
sheriff, and the foreman of the jury. The case was not admitted to court, however, and in 1810
Linen himself was jailed. He escaped and now asks for “Justice."
0159. Darlington County. Andrew Muldrow Sr. seeks compensation for a slave, Bristol, who in
1810 was executed for burglary. Muldrow had petitioned the legislature for compensation but had
not received payment. Bristol was worth “two hundred pounds current money."
0163. Orangeburgh District residents assert that slave men are exhibiting sexual “freedom and
familiarities” with white women. Such behavior is “degrading to them and dangerous to society.”
Among the white people both the “dregs of society” and “reputable families” are “disgraced and
covered with infamy.” Laws are inadequate, they claim, since it defied belief that slaves would be
so presumptuous or white women so degraded. In some neighborhoods, white men were taking
matters into their own hands. The petitioners seek legislation to punish slaves or free people of
color who attempt sexual intercourse with white women. Petitioners {163}: Carmichael, James;
Glover, Sanders, Jr.; Jamison, V. D.; Jones, Samuel P.; Rumph, David.
0167. Williamsburgh County. John Mathews and William Lester, executors of the estate of Isaac
Mathews seek compensation for a slave who drowned in 1798 while working on the public works
on Black River.
0174. Sumter Parish. Francis Tisdale seeks relief after his slave, Peter, broke both thighs (one of
them in two places) and his left wrist when a tree fell on him while working on a public highway
from Sumpterville to the Black River. Not only did Tisdale pay medical expenses and lose his
slave's labor for a considerable period, but because of the accident Peter's value depreciated
considerably.
0178. The vestry church wardens and parishioners of the Episcopal Church of Saint
Bartholomew's Parish indicate that in 1761 the church sold certain glebe lands to purchase
several slaves for the use of the rector and to be hired out. The slaves and their children were
used until 1812, when the wardens decided that the slaves were “inconvenient, unsuitable, and
unproductive property” and sold most of them at public auction. Now the petitioners seek
legislation allowing the proceeds from the sale and the remaining slaves to be turned over to the
wardens for the use of the church. Petitioners {31}: Boone, Thomas; Broughton, James;
Lowndes, James; Pinckney, C. C., Jr.; Smith, William M.
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0183. Orangeburgh District residents assert that slave men are exhibiting sexual “freedom and
familiarities” with white women. Such behavior is “degrading to them and dangerous to society.”
Among the white people both the “dregs of society” and “reputable families” are “disgraced and
covered with infamy.” Laws are inadequate, they claim, since it defied belief that slaves would be
so presumptuous or white women so degraded. In some neighborhoods, white men were taking
matters into their own hands. The petitioners seek legislation to punish slaves or free people of
color who attempt sexual intercourse with white women. Petitioners {40}: Carmichael, James;
Glover, Sanders, Jr.; Jamison, V. D.; Jones, Samuel P.; Rumph, David.
1813.
0187. Barnwell County. On 8 May 1813, returning from his field through a swamp along the
Savannah River, William B. Villard espied “a Strange Negro Man.” When the man attempted to
run away, Villard chased him. As Villard drew close the black man turned and with a large carving
knife in one hand and a hatchet in the other attacked his pursuer. The white man received a
severe contusion on his forehead and several broken ribs, but he and others who came to his
assistance subdued the fugitive. Villard was confined to bed for an extensive period and unable to
provide for his large family. He seeks “some Reward and Remuneration."
0191. Walter Pool, acting constable for Fairfield District, seeks compensation for four men who
guarded a slave convicted of murder. The guards worked for twelve days in 1811 before the trial
and following the conviction and deserved to be compensated. Petitioner: Pool, Walter.
[2 Petitions.]
0199. Barnwell County. As they guided a number of lumber rafts down the Ashley River towards
Charleston on the night of 11 December 1812, two slaves were swept out to sea by a violent
storm from the northeast. Although they spotted the slaves adrift the next day, the crew of a
guard vessel stationed near Fort Johnson did not attempt a rescue, and the slaves perished in
the cold water. Owner John Murphy states that the timber was worth at least five hundred dollars
and the slaves six or seven hundred dollars each. Murphy also states that he is getting old—
between fifty and sixty years of age—and is a man of modest means. He asks for relief.
Petitioner: Murphy, John. [2 Petitions.]
0206. Beaufort County. St. Helena Parish slave owner William Johnson seeks compensation for
the death of his slave, Abram, who was charged with theft and “upon testimony merely
presumptive” was sentenced to seventy lashes and one hour in the stock. On 27 July 1813, forty
lashes were administered; the next day, the remaining thirty, during which Abram died.
1814.
0214. While attending a committee meeting of the South Carolina House of Representatives
investigating charges against him for official misconduct as clerk and register of ordinary court,
Colleton District, Matthew O’Driscoll learned that two of his slaves had been shot and killed by an
armed patrol under the command of Lieutenant James Moore Ford, later a member of the House
from St. Bartholomew Parish. The killings were justified on the grounds that the two men were
runaways and that, according to a law passed 10 May 1804, patrols had the legal right to kill any
runaway slave who fled from pursuit. At the time his slaves were shot they were in the company
of April, a notorious runaway then at large who was captured, tried, convicted, and executed for
various crimes. If April's owner, Thomas W. Price, was entitled to payment for his loss, O’Driscoll
argues, then O’Driscoll should also be compensated.
0218. Newberry County. Nicholas Summer seeks compensation for his fifteen-year-old slave,
Hannah, who was convicted and executed for house burning. Hannah was appraised at $350.
0223. Fifty-five residents of Sumter District seek a law prohibiting slaves from keeping dogs and
making slave owners liable for “all depredations” committed by their slaves. The current statute
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governing the punishment of noncapital offenses by slaves—corporal punishment as ordered by
a trial before one justice of the peace and two freeholders—is an “inadequate barrier to the
destruction of property by Negroes of an abandoned character.” These slaves and their dogs kill
cattle and other livestock for their own benefit. Petitioners {55}: Anderson, Thomas; Benbow,
Gershon; Bowman, Henry; Byrd, Henry; Neilson, Samuel.
0228. Robert Bradford seeks compensation in the amount of $18.50 for expenses incurred while
apprehending a slave named Ned, who had been accused of assaulting and robbing Charles
Newman of Charleston. A one-hundred-dollar reward was posted by the governor for Ned's
arrest. The petitioner apprehended Ned in Sumter District and transported him to Charleston. He
did so, Bradford explains, “to the great hazzard of health & of his life.” Ned was tried, convicted,
and executed.
0232. Abbeville County. On 22 July 1814, William Ware's slave, Jim, was “barbously stabed &
kiled” while attempting to apprehend a runaway. Ware ordered Jim and several other of his
slaves to capture a runaway who had been “plundering and stealing through the Neighborhood”
for months. He asks to be compensated. Jim was valued at five hundred dollars.
0235. Fifty residents of Sumter District seek a law prohibiting slaves from keeping dogs. The
petitioners want to make masters liable for “all depredations” committed by their slaves. The
current law governing noncapital offenses by slaves—corporal punishment as ordered by a trial
before one justice of the peace and two freeholders—is an “inadequate barrier to the destruction
of property by Negroes.” Slaves “of an abandoned character” and their dogs often kill cattle and
other livestock, causing “considerable inconvenience and the most singular loss.” Petitioners {50}:
Brailsford, Robert; Corbell, James; DuBose, D.; McConnico, Christopher; Sims, William.
0240. Edgefield County. Martin Witt seeks compensation for his slave, Ned, who was convicted of
burglary and executed in July 1812. Witt explains that he is “a very poor Man with a family of
Children to support."
0246. Fairfield County. John Cook of Georgia married Mary Ellen Hampton, daughter of Colonel
Edward Hampton, who was killed during the American Revolution. Cook states that his wife's
maternal grandfather, George Dawkins, bequeathed her a slave named Ellis, who was
accidentally shot and killed by a party of American militia commanded by Colonel James Lyles.
Cook's wife has never received remuneration for this loss and the husband now asks for
compensation.
1815.
0249. Susannah Buzbee, her son, Benjamin Buzbee, and her son-in-law, Lewis Sawyer of
Edgefield District, seek to emancipate the slave Ned in accordance with the last will and
testament of Susannah's late husband, Benjamin Buzbee.
0252. Edgefield County. Nathan Norris, executor of the estate of the late Benjamin Buzbee, asks
that the legislature pass an act emancipating the slave Ned. Buzbee directed in his will that Ned
be freed. Norris explains that Buzbee had neglected to comply with all of the requisites of the law
of 1800, thus making legislative intervention necessary.
0256. Sumter County. Lenora Montgomery seeks to emancipate ten slaves. The slaves were
Sarah and Susan and their children—Milly, age nine; Unity, age seven; Phillis, age five; Billy, age
three; Delia, age eight; Daniel, age six; Lucy, age four; and Amos, two months. Montgomery's
late husband, Henry, requested on his deathbed that she free the slaves.
0259. Union County. Jemima McJunkin seeks compensation for a male slave who was convicted
and executed for murdering her husband. The murder occurred 1 June 1815 and left her with five
small children and in great distress. Since the state did not permit any compensation to owners
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for slaves executed for murder, McJunkin hoped that it would consider her circumstances and
provide her with some assistance. The slave, named Dick and appraised at five hundred dollars,
had been owned by her husband.
0262. Charleston County. In 1811, a runaway slave named Sam, belonging to James Thompson,
was arrested and confined in the Newberry County jail. Some time later the sheriff sold Sam at
public auction. Subtracting for jail expenses, Thompson seeks the balance of the money from the
sale. The money had been sent to the state treasury. Petitioner: Thompson, James. [2 Petitions.]
0290. Abbeville District slave owner William Ware seeks compensation for his slave, Jim, who
was killed while trying to apprehend a runaway slave. Ware states that he had suspected his
neighbor's slave, Sam—a fugitive who had been at large for six months—of stealing food from his
kitchen. Ware instructed his slaves to “take him” if they ever encountered Sam. When Jim
attempted to do so on 22 July 1814, the runaway stabbed him in the heart. Jim was an extremely
valuable slave, Ware laments, and had been purchased only a year or two before for more than
five hundred dollars.
0293. Citizens residing along the Ashepoo and Pon Pon rivers seek the repeal of a 1779 law that
established a cut between the two rivers and required males between the ages of sixteen and
sixty to maintain the cut or pay an assessment or fine. Originally the cut was thirty feet wide and
eight feet deep, but now it was only a few feet wide and in places so shallow that it is “seldom if
ever used but by Runaways and Negroes unlawfully trading from River to River.” The waterway is
surrounded by “an immense Swamp of impregnable and uninhabited Marsh and Ti-Ti” and has
become a thoroughfare for outlaws, they state. During the War of 1812, the runaway problem
became so acute that Governor David R. Williams (1814–1816) called out the militia. The
militiamen captured and executed two of the leaders, Mowby and Dunmore, and hanged several
of their associates. Petitioners {60}: Glover, Francis; Glover, J. Edward; Jenkins, Robert B.;
Lowrey, William; Sanders, Burrell. Petitioners {64}: Glover, Edward; Glover, Francis; Jenkins,
Robert B.; Lowrey, William; Sanders, Burrell.
0303. Union County. Jemima McJunkin seeks compensation for a male slave who was convicted
and executed for murdering her husband. The murder occurred 1 June 1815 and left her with five
small children and in great distress. Since the state did not permit any compensation to owners
for slaves executed for murder, McJunkin hoped that it would consider her circumstances and
provide her with some assistance. The slave, named Dick and appraised at five hundred dollars,
had been owned by her husband.
0306. In March 1814, Joseph Davenport, a cavalry lieutenant, was ordered to begin a threemonth tour of duty. On his way to Camp Alston, however, his slave servant became seriously ill.
Left briefly on the roadside, the black man died. Davenport seeks compensation for his slave,
who was appraised at four hundred dollars. Petitioner: Davenport, Joseph. [2 Petitions.]
0314. Twenty-five citizens of Union County seek compensation on behalf of Jemima McJunkin for
a slave who was convicted and executed for murdering McJunkin's husband. The murder
occurred 1 June 1815 and left the widow in great distress, with five small children. Since the state
did not permit any compensation to owners for slaves executed for murder, the residents hoped
that it would consider her circumstances and provide her with some assistance. The slave,
named Dick and appraised at five hundred dollars, had been owned by her husband. Petitioners
{24}: Beatty, Robert; Darby, James W.; Gist, Francis F.; Green, Caleb; Sims, Reuben, Jr.
0318. Sumter County. Robert McFaddin seeks compensation for his slave, Sharper, who was
convicted of rape but died in jail before the date set for his execution. McFaddin was “thereby
deprived of a Valuable property."
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1816.
0321. Eleven citizens of Amelia Township, Orangeburgh District, seek the passage of a law
prohibiting slave owners from allowing their slaves to raise their own livestock or cotton. The
more privileges given to slaves the less dependent they are on their owners, the petitioners
argue, “& the greater nuisance [they are] likely to be to the public.” Permitting slaves to raise their
own cotton encourages theft; identifying the illicit bales is like “looking for a drop of water lost in a
river.” Petitioners {11}: Barton, Timothy; Dudley, Edward; Glover, Sanders; Hare, Jacob; Nichols,
Jonathan.
0324. Edgefield County. John Ryan, the only surviving executor of the estate of his late brother,
Benjamin Ryan, seeks to free a group of slaves in accordance with his brother's last will and
testament. Benjamin Ryan had arranged for ten slaves to be freed following the death of his wife.
The slaves—Yellow Will (since dead), Ned, Rachel and her three children, and Silvey, Polaski,
Hannah, and Milly—are of good character, Ryan states. He offers security to prevent them from
becoming “chargeable to the State."
0332. Sumter County. Francis Tisdale seeks relief after his slave, Peter, broke both thighs (one of
them in two places) and his left wrist when a tree fell on him while working on a public highway
from Sumpterville to the Black River. Not only did Tisdale pay medical expenses and lose his
slave's labor for a considerable period but because of the accident Peter's value depreciated
considerably.
0338. Fifty-seven citizens of Orange Parish seek modification of the penal laws regarding theft by
slaves. The petitioners argue that while the current laws provide punishment in the form of
“whipping branding or Cropping,” they do not provide compensation for poor white farmers who
suffer a loss of cattle, hogs, sheep, and other property. They ask that slave owners be required to
“make compensation for anything Stolen by their Slaves.” Petitioners {56}: Barr, Jacob; Byrd,
John; Byrd, Nathaniel; Byrd, Nathaniel.
0342. Eleven citizens of Amelia Township, Orangeburgh District, seek the passage of a law
prohibiting slave owners from allowing their slaves to raise their own livestock or cotton. The
more privileges given to slaves the less dependent they are on the slave owners, “& the greater
nuisance [they are] likely to be to the public.” Permitting slaves to raise their own cotton
encourages theft; identifying the illicit bales is like “looking for a drop of water lost in a river.”
Petitioners {11}: Barton, Timothy; Dudley, Edward; Glover, Sanders; Hare, Jacob; Nichols,
Jonathan.
0345. Charleston County. In March 1814, Edward Brailsford hired out two slaves to Captain
Brandt, a planter on Long Island. The slaves—Cyrus, about twenty-two years old, and Absolem,
about twenty-seven—were “stout, prime, healthy and valuable negroes and field hands” who had
never caused any trouble. During the summer, however, the two absconded, returned to the
neighborhood of Brailford's plantation in St. James Goose Creek Parish, and joined a band of
runaway slaves. Absolem visited his wife, who was also owned by Brailsford. After a short time,
however, the two men were hunted down, shot, and killed by members of a patrol. Brailsford asks
for compensation.
0349. Fifty-seven citizens of Orange Parish seek modification of the penal laws regarding theft by
slaves. The petitioners argue that while the current laws provide punishment in the form of
“whipping Branding or cropping,” they do not provide compensation for poor white farmers who
suffer a loss of cattle, hogs, sheep, and other property. They ask that slave owners be required to
“make compensation for anything Stolen by their Slaves.” Petitioners {56}: Barr, Jacob; Byrd,
John; Byrd, Nathaniel; Byrd, Nathaniel.
0353. Kershaw County. Several “valuable slaves” belonging to different masters were executed in
Camden in “July last” after being convicted of involvement in an insurrection conspiracy. The
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owners seek compensation for their lost property. Petitioners {5}: Lang, Sarah; Lang, Thomas;
Levy, Chapman; Martin, Sarah; McRa, Duncan.
0356. Kershaw County. Sarah Martin seeks compensation for a slave who was executed “July
last” in the town of Camden after being convicted of involvement in an insurrection conspiracy.
0359. Citizens of Beaufort District seek a law imposing severe penalties on slave owners who do
not reside on their plantations or “keep some white person” on their plantations throughout a
given year. Between June and October, many planters and overseers in the region leave their
plantations and journey to healthier climes. As a result, slaves kill livestock and steal staple crops
with impunity, and “the greater part of the inhabitants especially on the Sea Coast are materially
injured.” An 1812 law imposes a penalty on planters with at least thirty slaves who leave them
unsupervised, but the law “is almost invariably disregarded.” Petitioners {91}: Buckner, William B.;
Corley, B.; Corley, John A.; Dawson, Richard, Sr.; Taylor, Issac.
1817.
0364. Edgefield County. Charles Hammond purchased a slave named Isaac in April 1816, but
within one month the slave ran away. Isaac was captured and jailed in Surry County, Virginia,
and Hammond seeks permission to bring him back into South Carolina. Petitioner: Hammond,
Charles. [2 Petitions.]
0372. Abbeville County. In 1816, Samuel Linton purchased several young slaves in Maryland for
his own use, but on the way home some of them ran away. Among the absconders was a young
woman, Sawney, who was picked up in Delaware on her way to Philadelphia, taken back to
Maryland, and placed in a jail in Snowhill. Linton journeyed to Maryland, retrieved his property,
and transported her and now her infant child to North Carolina. Returning home, he requests
permission to bring his two slaves into the state. Petitioner: Linton, Samuel. [2 Petitions.]
0378. In July 1817, Benjamin Ellis purchased a female slave in Virginia, but as he was bringing
her home she ran away. Ellis was unable to go after her until after the act prohibiting the
importation of Negroes had been passed. When he did go back to Virginia, he purchased two
other Negro girls and brought them back to near the state line. He asks permission to bring the
two into South Carolina.
0381. Abbeville County. On 21 February 1816, Joseph and James Wardlaw purchased a female
slave, Delph, in North Carolina, but immediately after the purchase she ran away. Joseph
Wardlaw then purchased James Wardlaw's share of the slave and her newborn child. He seeks
permission to bring the two slaves into South Carolina. Petitioner: Wardlaw, Joseph. [2 Petitions.]
0387. John Harris states that he is a resident of York District, near the North Carolina boundary.
He recently purchased two children, the daughters of one of his slaves. He states that he does
not intend to sell the children, but purchased them “through motives of humanity” and with the
“sole intention of making them part of his family.” Harris seeks permission to bring the children
into South Carolina. Petitioner: Harris, John. [2 Petitions.]
0393. In 1816, William Thompson, a planter in Sumter District, turned over five of his slaves—
Sam and Binah and her three children—to a labor agent, Skiles Foster, who carried them to North
Carolina and hired them out by the month. Following Thompson's death, John Perry and Thomas
McCants, executors of his estate, complain that they cannot claim the five slaves because of the
passage of the anti–slave importation law (December 1816). They seek to honor Thompson's
wish to divide the slaves among heirs and ask permission to bring them back to South Carolina.
0398. Prior to the passage of an act prohibiting the importation of slaves, James Ellis had hired
three slaves out in North Carolina. He asks to bring them back to South Carolina.
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0402. Edgefield County. Prior to the passage of the South Carolina act prohibiting the importation
of slaves, Daniel Nail purchased a slave in Georgia. At the time of the purchase, the slave was
hired out, and by the time the hiring contract expired, the South Carolina nonimportation law had
gone into effect. Nail owned the slave’s wife and children, and he asks for permission to bring
them into the state.
0405. In 1816, William Thompson, a planter in Sumter District, turned over five of his slaves—
Sam and Binah and her three children—to a labor agent, Skiles Foster, who carried them to North
Carolina and hired them out by the month. Following Thompson's death, John Perry and Thomas
McCants, executors of his estate, complain that they cannot claim the five slaves because of the
passage of the anti–slave importation law (December 1816). They seek to honor Thompson's
wish to divide the slaves among heirs and ask permission to bring them back to South Carolina.
0409. Kershaw County. In 1810, Israel Mathis purchased three slaves—Sawney, Sarah, and
Annaky—from Matthew Sims of Virginia. The next year one of the slaves, Sawney, murdered
Annaky. Sawney was executed. Mathis asks for compensation for both slaves.
0412. Beaufort County. William Wigg purchased a number of slaves but failed to record the sale
within six months as required by law. He then recorded it in “an improper office.” Now he seeks
time to record the sale in the proper place, the secretary of state's office in Charleston.
0415. Prior to the passage of an act prohibiting the importation of slaves, James Ellis had hired
three slaves out in North Carolina. He asks to bring them back to South Carolina.
0419. As caretaker of his father's estate, Marlboro District resident James A. Harrington hires out
slaves from year to year in Richmond County, North Carolina. Residing only a short distance from
the state line, he asks for an exemption from the South Carolina law prohibiting the importation of
slaves. His father's estate provides a livelihood for his widowed mother, as well as his two
widowed sisters and “their orphan Children."
0422. Pendleton County. In June 1816, Andrew Knight's wife died, leaving him with eight small
children. On his modest earnings as a mechanic, he could not afford to hire a nurse, cook, or
seamstress, but he had saved enough to purchase a female slave. In late November and
December he journeyed to Virginia, purchased a housekeeper, and began his trip home. Upon
his arrival at the state line in January 1817, however, he learned that he could not bring the slave
into the state. In great need of assistance, but forced to leave her behind in North Carolina,
Knight asks permission to bring his recently purchased slave into the state. Petitioner: Knight,
Andrew. [2 Petitions.]
0430. Charleston County. According his father's will, Joseph Woodruff is entitled to fifteen
Georgia slaves. They include Nero, Smart, Sharper, Sylvia, Phoebe and her five children, and
Cate and her four children. Woodruff seeks permission to bring them into South Carolina and
employ them on his plantation.
0433. Charleston County. Fleeing from British oppression in Guadeloupe, Felix Herminier arrived
in Charleston in the summer of 1816, bringing with him a large collection “of the most interesting
objects of natural history.” Having now sent for his wife and eight children, he asks to import two
slaves “who are absolutely necessary” to attend upon his family.
0436. Prior to moving to Lancaster District, South Carolina, George D. Wilfong acquired through
his marriage a North Carolina slave named Matilda. He seeks to bring this “valuable slave” into
the state and asks permission to do so.
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0439. Spartanburgh County. Wyett and Robert Lipscomb purchased a tract of land and plan to
settle in South Carolina. They seek permission to bring twenty slaves into the state, including
“some Excellent Tanners,” for the purpose of cultivating the land and establishing a tanyard.
0442. Charleston County. Former Georgia resident Joseph Woodruff inherited fifteen slaves by
his father's will. They include Nero, Smart, Sharper, Sylvia, Phoebe and her five children, and
Cate and her four children. Now married to a South Carolina woman, he plans to settle
permanently in the state. Woodruff asks to bring his slaves into South Carolina to work them on
his plantation.
0445. Free people of color Morris Brown, Henry Drayton, Charles Corr, and others, supported by
several white pastors, including Benjamin M. Palmer of the Congregational Church and George
Reid of the First Presbyterian Church, seek permission to worship in their new building in
Charleston Neck. As members of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, called
Zion, the free people of color promise that no slave would become a member without the owner's
permission. They promise to inform on “all evilly designed persons of color” and bring them to
justice. Petitioners {60}: Brown, Morris; Bull, Harry; Corr, Charles; Cruikshanks, Amos; Drayton,
Henry.
1818.
0453. Richland County. Slave owner Jacob Killingsworth, “poor, infirm and weak in body,” lost his
only slave, Frank, on 24 February 1815, when the black man was publicly executed for burning a
barn. Killingsworth seeks compensation to support his young, large, and helpless family.
0456. Greenville County. In 1817, Archibald Lester's slave was arrested for “a crime of a most
heinous nature.” Lester turned the slave over to sheriff. Later, the slave was tried, and the court
ordered a surgeon “to perform the operation & Inflict the punishment.” Lester and the others
argue that the public should pay for the surgeon's services, and seek relief. Petitioners {15}:
Crymes, William; Garratt, John; Johnson, William; Kilgore, Benjamin; Lester, Archibald.
0460. Pendleton County. Thomas Adams seeks compensation for his female slave, Dol, who was
convicted and executed in 1817 for killing her nine-year-old child. Before her execution, the Court
of Justices and Freeholders valued her at three hundred dollars.
0466. Marion County. William Baker seeks compensation for his slave who was killed by “the
accidental falling of a piece of timber” as he attempted to raise a roof on the new jail. Baker was a
person “whose means are at best very limited,” and the accident was a great loss.
0469. Kershaw County. Inhabitants and storekeepers in Camden complain about the 1817 law
increasing the penalty on persons who trade with slaves. In effect, they argue, the law penalizes
any store owner with integrity who deals with slaves. If one shopkeeper refuses to sell to a slave
because the buyer cannot produce written permission from the owner, the slave simply goes a
few doors away and purchases commodities from a shopkeeper less scrupulous about requiring
the master's written permission. Thus, retailers who refuse to sell liquor to noisy drunkards could
be indicted for selling 12 1/2 cents worth of tobacco to a slave. The store owners suggest that
slaves be permitted to purchase a small number of items for their own use, not costing, for
example, more than five dollars, and paid for in cash. Petitioners {48}: Abbott, Henry; Clark,
James; Matheson, C.; McCall, Hugh; Trapp, William. Petitioners {49}: Clark, James; Matheson,
C.; Matheson, William; McCall, Hugh; Workman, John.
0479. Newberry County. John O'Neall and John B. O'Neall, executors of the will of John Kelly Sr.,
seek to free a “negro fellow named Nathaniel” in accordance with Kelly's will. They are advised
that all manumissions must be made by the owner and by a deed, otherwise the slave might be
“seized and made private property under provisions of the [law]."
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1819.
0482. Following an attempt on his life by his slave, Spencer, St. Mathews Parish slaveholder
Martin Peagler notified authorities. Spencer was tried, convicted, and, in August 1819, executed.
The master seeks more than the usual compensation because Spencer was the only slave he
had to support his family. Petitioner: Peagler, Martin. [2 Petitions.]
0488. Colleton County. Edwin Chipman states that Judy, a free woman of color, died intestate in
1817, leaving personal property and two illegitimate children, Trim, a slave, and Isaac Field, a
twenty-one-year-old free person of color. Chipman, Field’s guardian, asks that Field be permitted
to inherit the property.
0491. Abbeville County. Dabney Pucket seeks compensation for a slave named Sampson who
was executed.
0494. Richland County. Seventy-one white working men in Columbia seek legislation prohibiting
slave owners from allowing skilled slaves to hire their own time. First, they contend, slaves do not
have to honor their “contracts” to complete a job; second, slave jobbers can live on very little and
are thus able to “work cheaper”; third, most of the wages slaves earn are spent “in the indulgence
of vicious habits.” In addition, self-hired slaves not only take on various jobs, but hire black
apprentices; in both instances they deprive white artisans of employment in their respective
trades. Petitioners {71}: Bynum, John; Creyon, John; Goodwyn, James; Guirey, S.; Young,
James.
0500. Sumter County. Carrying twelve slaves to the Alabama Territory, William Vaughan arrived
in December 1818. He left his son, a minor, behind in South Carolina to act as his agent, but the
son failed to make “a return” to the tax collector. As a result Vaughan was double taxed in South
Carolina on the twelve slaves. Including the payments in Alabama, Vaughan paid taxes on the
same slaves three times. He seeks relief of seventeen dollars and thirty-five cents. Petitioner:
Vaughan, William. [2 Petitions.]
0506. Charleston County. While attending a committee meeting of the South Carolina House of
Representatives investigating charges of official misconduct as clerk and register of ordinary
court, Colleton District in 1813, Matthew O’Driscoll learned that two of his slaves had been shot
and killed by a patrol under the command of Lieutenant James Moore Ford, later a member of the
House from St. Bartholomew Parish. The killings were justified on the grounds that the slaves
were runaways, and according to a law passed 10 May 1794, patrols had the legal right to kill any
slave who absented himself from the service of his owner and fled from pursuit. At the time his
slaves were shot they were in the company of April, owned by Thomas W. Price, a notorious
runaway. April was captured, tried, convicted, and executed for crimes he had committed; his
owner was compensated. O’Driscoll argues that since he too was deprived of his property, he
should also be compensated. In 1819, he brought a civil suit against “the parties implicated,” but
lost: “We [the jury] find that the negroes Brister and Gabriel the property of Dr Mathew O’Driscoll
were lawfully killed, by a party of Militia, assembled under the proper officers, and acting
according to the provision of the act of one thousand seven hundred and ninety four and we
therefore find a Verdict for the Defendants.” Brister was worth six hundred dollars, and Gabriel
four hundred.
0518. In June 1819, William Washington sent a number of slaves to work for the civil and military
engineer of the state. In July, one of his slaves was killed by “a stone which was projected to a
distance much greater than usual.” Washington seeks compensation.
0521. Abbeville County. Dabney Pucket seeks compensation for a slave, Boston, who was
convicted and executed for burglary.
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0531. Colleton County. Edwin Chipman states that Judy, a free woman of color, died intestate in
1817, leaving personal property and two illegitimate children, Trim, a slave, and Isaac Field, a
twenty-one-year-old free person of color. Chipman, Field’s guardian, asks that Field be permitted
to inherit the property.
1820.
0534. On 26 December 1818, Kershaw District jailer William Love incarcerated a runaway slave
who called himself Jim. Every effort was made to determine Jim’s owner, letters were sent,
advertisements were placed in the Camden Gazette, but his owner could not be located.
Meanwhile, Jim became very ill, required medical attention, and after one hundred and seventy
days in jail, died. Love asks for reimbursement for medicine, food, and burial expenses, which he
“is now informed are legal.” In the account, one of the expenses included the following: “1818 Dec
26th To Boarding a Negro Man who Calld his name Jim and was Committed to gaol as a runaway
and never told his right owners name he took sick and died in the Gaol To 170 days Board at 25
Cents per day $42.50."
0540. On 26 December 1818, Kershaw District jailer William Love incarcerated a runaway slave
who called himself Jim. Every effort was made to determine Jim's owner. Letters were sent, and
advertisements were placed in the Camden Gazette, but his owner could not be located.
Meanwhile, Jim became very ill, required medical attention, and after one hundred and seventy
days in jail, died. Love asks for reimbursement for medicine, food, and burial expenses, which he
“is now informed are legal."
0544. Williamsburgh County. John Mathews, executor of the estate of Isaac Mathews, seeks
compensation for a Negro slave, Sam, who drowned in 1798 or 1799 while clearing debris from
the Black River. Petitioner: Mathews, John. [2 Petitions.]
0552. Beaufort County. Residents of St. Helena Parish seek to force free blacks out of the state.
They complain about “indolence and vice” among free persons, setting a bad example for slaves.
They also complain that white artisans are leaving because they cannot compete with their black
counterparts. Free blacks can live on much less than the whites, they argue, and if a free black
man were married to a slave he did not have to provide for his family. Petitioners {64}: Elliott,
George P.; Elliott, Stephen; Grayson, William; Neville, Richard D.; Verdier, James R.
0556. During the summer of 1819, the militia was called out in Williamsburgh District to quell a
“rebellion” among a gang of seven slaves who were “committing depredations of various kinds.”
In an ensuing confrontation, David P. Rogers's slave was shot and killed. The black man,
between age forty and forty-five, was “a good Boat hand, a very prime field hand; a good sawyer;
And was quite handy in the use of Mechanical Tools.” He had a good reputation, except he had
run away once or twice. He was worth at least nine hundred dollars. Rogers asks for
compensation. Petitioner: Rogers, David P. [2 Petitions.]
0567. Edisto Island residents pray that all people of color—bond and free—be prevented from
entering the state. They also seek a law to end emancipations. They object to the establishment
of a church in Charleston for the exclusive worship of black people, a measure they believe to be
“highly impolitic & dangerous.” Such a church is “altogether unnecessary as much as ample
accommodation has allways been provided & afforded the negroes & Coloured people in the
numerous Churches & places of worship in the City of Charleston & its neighbourhood.” Free
persons of color who frequent this church, the petitioners assert, should be banished from the
state. Further, they argue, allowing free persons of color to visit eastern states for ordination is a
“grievous evil.” The newly ordained ministers return to preach doctrines of rebellion. Lastly, the
residents complain about schools for people of color, both those taught by colored people and
those taught by eastern missionaries, who, they say, should be arrested and banished.
Petitioners {26}: Bailey, Benjamin; Baynard, E. M.; Meggett, William C.; Mitchell, John C.;
Whaley, Benjamin.
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0572. Richland County. The mechanics and undertakers of Columbia seek legislation prohibiting
slave owners and overseers from allowing skilled slaves to hire their own time. Self-hired slaves
not only became contractors, or “undertakers” of jobs, the petitioners complain, but also hired
black apprentices. As a result, white artisans are deprived of jobs and employment in their
respective trades. The petitioners seek a law with “certain and heavy penalties” to constrain
owners or managers from permitting slaves to hire their own time; they also seek to penalize
those who hire such slaves and halt the practice of slaves hiring apprentices. Petitioners {86}:
Douglass, James; Glover, John; Hilliard, W.; Parr, John; Strickling, Michael. [2 Petitions.]
0582. Charleston County. Rebecca Drayton seeks to emancipate a slave named Abba, inherited
from a “near connection” twenty years before with the promise that the she would be freed at the
time of Drayton's death. Drayton is now “old and helpless.” Abba is without children and “rather
advanced in life.” Petitioner: Drayton, Rebecca. [2 Petitions.]
0588. In his will, dated 23 September 1822, Thomas Brown bequeathed John Irvin ten thousand
dollars on condition that Irvin emancipate a mulatto slave named William, about thirteen years of
age, within two years after Brown's death. Irvin “endeavored in the adjacent States, to get the
said Mulatoe boy emancipated,” but failed. He asks the legislature to emancipate William.
0591. Citizens of Kershaw District seek to prevent slaves and free people of color from being
present at military reviews or musters. In addition, they wish to prohibit slaves and free people of
color from serving as musicians for military corps. The petitioners argue that these practices allow
blacks to become acquainted with firearms and war tactics. Petitioners {29}: Barnet, Michael;
Barnett, John; Davis, Joshua; Meyer, John; Spradley, Bryan.
0595. Laurens County. In 1822, John Garlington purchased a slave, Tom, a house carpenter, for
$850. He agreed to manumit Tom if the slave repaid him the purchase price, plus interest. Tom
has now paid for his freedom, and Garlington asks that he be emancipated.
0599. Citizens of the “most thickly inhabited part” of Sumter District, near the James Ville Post
Office, demand a law requiring that all boats on the Santee River be commanded by “some
respectable white person in whom Confidence can be placed.” Presently, they state, many boats
are “commanded by negroe patroons,” who trade with the slaves and carry off cattle, hogs, and
“other articles of considerable value” from the plantations. Petitioners {79}: Brock, Richard T.;
Nixon, Francis B., Jr.; Ragin, Charles C.; Ragin, Richard; Thames, Robert.
0604. Colleton County. Citizens of St. George Dorchester seek to halt the practice of allowing
slaves to hire their own time. In their area, slaves obtain monthly tickets, or tickets for a longer
duration; they travel, often by horseback, from one parish or district to another; and they “are not
Subject to the Patrol Laws, as they have no fixed residence or place to work.” Masters should not
permit slaves to hire themselves out in such a manner except in incorporated towns or cities.
Petitioners {14}: Harrison, William; Hill, Francis; Murray, William, Jr.; Utsey, Daniel; Utsey, John.
[2 Petitions.]
0612. Charleston residents seek to halt the immigration of free blacks into South Carolina and to
banish those who have entered the state within the past five years. They also request that slave
owners be prohibited from emancipating slaves unless the freed black leaves the state within
twelve months. In addition, the petitioners oppose the establishment of churches for “the
exclusive worship of Negroes and coloured people.” They argue that this is unnecessary for there
has always been ample accommodation for them in Charleston churches. They oppose
permitting free people of color to “visit the Eastern States for Ordination and other religious
pretenses.” They ask that all free people of color who leave the state under any circumstance be
prohibited from returning. Finally, they are concerned about schools established for the purpose
of educating slaves. Although the present law prohibits slaves from being taught to write, the law
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should also forbid teaching them to read. Petitioners {105}: Dawson, Charles P.; Dawson, W.;
Elliot, B.; Jenkins, Micah; Lowndes, James.
0619. Union County. Henry Littlejohn seeks to emancipate Milly, about fifty years of age, and
Spencer, her son, about thirty years of age, both of whom he describes as having dark
complexions. Littlejohn says the slaves are honest and industrious and capable of supporting
themselves.
1821.
0622. Charleston County. William Ashley seeks compensation for his slave, Emanuel, who was
convicted and executed for assaulting the petitioner’s wife with an axe. The slave was valued by
the Court of Magistrates and Freeholders at $450. Ashley noted that the attack took place in
January 1821, that he is “a very poor man,” and that Emanuel was his only slave.
0627. Charleston County. Joshua Lockwood Jr., administrator of the estate of Susan Lockwood,
who died in October 1821, asks to emancipate Hester, in accordance with Susan's will written “on
or about the Year 1812.” Hester is now about twenty years old, of good character, and capable of
earning her own living, Lockwood says.
0630. Charleston County. Before the Act of 1820, forbidding the manumission of slaves, Mary
Washam consented to manumit her slave on grounds of his “faithful services and general good
conduct” if he paid her four hundred dollars. She notes that Simon has paid her that amount and
asks that he be freed.
0634. Charleston County. Shortly before he was to be sold, the slave John, owned by Mr. Wigfall,
begged John Warren to accept a sum of money he had saved, put up some money of his own,
and purchase “Said Slave, with a View to his Manumission.” Knowing the “good character” of the
slave, Warren consented and now petitions the legislature to pass an act of emancipation.
0637. Jacob Myers seeks permission to manumit his slave, Louisa, and her children, Albert and
Georgiana. He praises Louisa's “fidelity and good conduct."
0640. Charleston County. Ann Ferguson seeks to emancipate her slave, Annette, and Annette's
two children, Joseph and Mary Bampfield. Annette had always lived “under the eye” of her
mistress. The children, ages fourteen and five, could easily pass for white, Ferguson says, and
the mother, a quadroon, has an “excellent Character, exhibiting on every occasion the utmost
fidelity and affection toward her mistress."
0644. Charleston County. In 1816, Frederick Kohne purchased the slave Will, promising to give
him his freedom if he would pay Kohne three hundred dollars and remain his slave for four years
and two months. In July 1820, when the contract expired, Kohne was absent from the state, and
when he returned he could not comply because of the law of December 1820, prohibiting the
emancipation of slaves “except under the special sanction of the Legislature.” Kohne requests
that the “said Servant Will” be emancipated because of his “good Character & Industry.”
0648. Laurens County. The blacksmith Allen Kelley, a free person of color, purchased his slave
son, George, in 1821 and now seeks to set him free.
0652. Charleston County. John Renauld seeks the emancipation of his slave, Janette, for her
“faithful and affectionate conduct.” Although aware of the “apprehensions” among whites
concerning free blacks, Renauld argues that “the unexpected passing of the act of last year has
deprived many of the blessings” of freedom. Janette is a person of integrity, industry, and “able
by her personal labour to obtain a decent and comfortable livelihood."
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0657. Sumter County. Francis Tisdale seeks relief after his slave, Peter, broke both thighs (one of
them in two places) and his left wrist when a tree fell on him while working on a public highway
stretching from Sumpterville to the Black River. Not only did Tisdale pay medical expenses and
forgo his slave’s labor for a considerable period, but because of the accident Peter’s value
depreciated considerably, Tisdale asserts.
0660. In March 1814, Edward Brailsford hired out two slaves, Cyrus, about twenty-two years old,
and Absolem (also spelled Absolum), about twenty-seven, to Captain Brandt, a planter on Long
Island. They were “stout, prime, healthy and valuable negroes and field hands” who had never
caused Brailsford any trouble. During the summer, however, the two absconded, returned to the
neighborhood of Brailsford's plantation in St. James' Parish, Goose Creek, about sixteen miles
from Charleston, and joined a band of runaway slaves. Absolem visited his wife, who was also
owned by Brailsford. After a short time, however, the two men were hunted down and, within a
few days of each other, shot and killed by members of a patrol. Brailsford asks for compensation.
0667. Sumter County. Francis Tisdale seeks relief after his slave, Peter, broke both thighs (one of
them in two places) and his left wrist when a tree fell on him while working on a public highway
stretching from Sumpterville to the Black River. Not only did Tisdale pay medical expenses and
forgo his slave's labor for a considerable period, but because of the accident Peter's value
depreciated considerably, Tisdale says.
0670. Beaufort County. Mary MacKee seeks an act to emancipate her slave, Tom, a faithful
servant of “good character,” at some future time. A sailor by occupation, Tom is capable of
earning a living.
0673. Pendleton County. Wyat Smith seeks compensation for his female slave, Cela, who was
executed on 22 April 1820 for killing one of his children.
0676. Sumter County. Francis Tisdale seeks relief after his slave, Peter, broke both thighs (one of
them in two places) and his left wrist when a tree fell on him while working on a public highway
stretching from Sumpterville to the Black River. Not only did Tisdale pay medical expenses and
forgo his slave's labor for a considerable period, but because of the accident Peter's value
depreciated considerably, Tisdale says.
0686. Pendleton County. Wyat Smith seeks compensation for his female slave, Cela, who was
executed on 22 April 1820 for killing one of his children.
0691. Charleston County. Edward Brailsford seeks compensation for two runaway slaves, Cyrus
and Absolum, who were shot and killed in St. James Parish during an attempt by a slave patrol to
apprehend a group of runaways near St. James's Goose Creek. The runaways were “becoming
daily more and more offensive to all in the vicinity of that place,” repeatedly committing
depredations. The two slaves were “young, and athletic, and truly valuable fellows."
0694. Berkeley County. In January 1820, Paul Ravenel of St. John's Parish died, bequeathing his
nephew, Henry Ravenel Jr., seven slaves: Else and her five children, Beck, Harry, John, James,
and Nancy, and Beck's son, William. The slaves were left “in Special confidence” that they would
be emancipated. But the law passed at the previous session of the legislature forbidding future
emancipations “greatly embarrassed” Ravenel, who had delayed executing the wishes of his
uncle because of questions he had about an earlier 1800 law. That act required emancipations to
be made by deed and that the freed slaves be able to earn their own livelihood “by honest
means.” Did the latter section apply to children? The recent 1820 law, he continued, “attended
with peculiar hardship and impolicy” on his uncle's slaves. In fact, he argues, in the case of Else
and her children and grandchild the law seemed to operate in a “decidedly retroactive” manner, at
variance with the spirit of the Constitution, which prohibits ex post facto laws.
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0699. Charleston County. As “proprietor” of a female slave named Sophia, French-born Augustus
Gentry asks that she be emancipated. Sophia is industrious, of good moral character, and
capable of earning her own living. Moreover, he had become “greatly attached” to her because of
“her faithful and affectionate conduct towards him.” When he had purchased her in 1808, he
believed he could emancipate her at any time. He promises to provide her with assistance.
0704. Charleston County. Isaac Frazier seeks to free his slave, Richard, who is between eight
and nine years old. Frazier describes Richard as “so white as with difficulty to be known as a
person of color."
0707. Dorchester County. Phillip Bessellen asks permission to free a twenty-five-year-old slave
woman and a slave infant. The woman is “of good character honest and industrious and capable
of providing for the maintenance of herself and the other slave."
0710. Charleston County. John Carmille developed a “domestic connection” with his twenty-sixyear-old slave, Henrietta, who has borne him three children: Charlotte, age eleven, Francis, age
five, and Nancy, age three. Promising to maintain his family in a comfortable manner, Carmille
seeks their emancipation.
0714. Charleston County. Illiterate slave owner Rene Peter David seeks to free his three slave
children, ages six, four, and five months, promising to secure their financial independence in the
future. He is well aware of the apprehensions many feel about the inability of free blacks to
support themselves, but in his case this will not be a problem, he says.
0718. Phillipe Stanislaus Noisette, “Botanist of Charleston,” states that “under peculiar
circumstances” he became “the Father of Six children, begotten upon his faithful Slave named
Celestine.” For many years it had been his intention to free his family, but the “passage of the late
Law upon this subject” prompted him to seek their freedom now by the passage of a legislative
act.
0723. Newberry County. John B. O'Neall, executor of the last will and testament of John Kelly Sr.,
seeks to free a “negro man named Nathan” in accordance with Kelly's will.
0726. During the winter of 1820, James Hamilton Jr., induced by the solicitations of Robert, one
of his father's slaves, promised to assist Robert in purchasing and emancipating Robert's son,
William, owned by a Charleston man named Hall. Robert was a bricklayer and had saved enough
to buy his son, but the law passed at the last session prevented his emancipation except by the
legislature. Hamilton asks for an act to emancipate fourteen-year-old William.
Reel 10
South Carolina (cont.)
0001. Descriptive material.
1822.
[November 1822 petition out of chronological order, see reel 8, frame 0209.]
0007. Charleston County. As “assignees” of Robinson and Carter, Samuel Davenport and
Dodridge Crocker, “proprietors of a negro Slave named Billy,” seek compensation for the slave.
Convicted of involvement in the 1822 insurrection conspiracy, Billy was sentenced to death, but
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the governor commuted his sentence to transportation beyond the limits of the United States. Billy
was worth seven hundred dollars.
0012. James Evans states that his slave, George, was sentenced to transportation beyond the
state by the Court of Magistrates and Freeholders: “That the Prisoner George remain in the WorkHouse of Charleston untill his master under the direction of the City Council of Charleston shall
send him out of the limits of the United States into which he is not to return Under penalty of
death.” But Evans is at a loss as to how to proceed. He states that his thirty-five-year-old slave,
implicated in the 1822 conspiracy, is worth eight hundred dollars.
0016. On 26 December 1818, Kershaw District jailer William Love incarcerated a runaway slave
who called himself Jim. Every effort was made to determine Jim's owner. Letters were sent and
advertisements were placed in the Camden Gazette, but his owner could not be located. Jim said
he belonged to James Wade of Georgia, but no James Wade answered letters sent by the jailer.
Meanwhile, Jim became very ill, required medical attention, and after one hundred and seventy
days in jail, he died. Love asks to be reimbursed for medicine, food, and burial expenses.
0021. Charleston County. C. G. Morris seeks compensation for the slave Dublin, who was
convicted of involvement in the 1822 insurrection conspiracy. Dublin was sentenced to death, but
the governor commuted his sentence to transportation beyond the limits of the United States.
Dublin was worth seven hundred dollars.
0025. Laurens County. Daniel Cook states that his slave, Phill, was convicted in July 1821 and
sentenced to be hanged for poisoning members of the Cook family. Before the sentence could be
carried out, however, Phill hanged himself in the dungeon of the jail. Cook asks for compensation
for Phill, who he says is worth four hundred dollars. Petitioner: Cook, Daniel.
[2 Petitions.]
0031. Jane Thompson seeks compensation for a slave, Pharaoh, who was convicted and
executed for attempting to incite the 1822 insurrection in Charleston. Pharaoh was her only slave,
she asserts, and being deprived of him will expose her to “want and suffering in extreme old age.”
Moreover, he was “the victim of a wicked combination among his accusers and if he ever entered
at all into the views of the conspirators it was done at the express Suggestion of the Person under
whose controul he was and with the Laudable Intention to expose their machinations.” The
principal witnesses against him, she adds, were “convicts and Felons."
0035. Charleston slave owner David Haig seeks compensation for two slaves convicted of
attempting to raise an insurrection and sentenced to transportation beyond the limits of the state.
The two were “much beyond the ordinary value of Negroes,” Haig writes, about thirty-five years of
age, and among the best, most experienced coopers in the city of Charleston. They were worth
eight hundred dollars apiece.
0040. John Sarvis seeks compensation for his slave, Toney, who was convicted and executed in
Horry District for attempting to raise an insurrection. The petitioner states “that all private
property, taken for Publick uses, or public benefits, should be paid for by the Publick.” Toney was
tried in July 1822 and executed; he was worth $450. As a man in “low circumstances,” Sarvis
asks for relief.
0044. Beaufort County. On 27 May 1822, a male slave named Carolina, owned by Lewis R.
Sams, was tried in the town of Beaufort for striking James Bobinson, a white man. Found guilty,
he was sentenced to death, and on 2 August 1822, Carolina was hanged. The owner, a resident
of St. Helena Parish, seeks compensation for his slave who was valued at six hundred dollars by
a Court of Magistrates and Freeholders.
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0048. In November 1821, a slave in the neighborhood of Coosawhatchie, Beaufort District, was
found dead. Unable to determine the cause of death, the coroner called in a physician, Francis
Porcher, who performed a “surgical operation.” The coroner and later a grand jury determined
that the “negro came to his death by the cruelty & violence of his master.” The operation was very
disagreeable, Porcher said, because putrefaction had commenced and “the body was
approaching fast to decay.” Porcher seeks compensation.
0053. Charleston County. The owners of slaves convicted and executed for attempted
insurrection seek compensation for their slaves. “There is no principle better established both in
law and morality than this, that if one man take the property of another he should give him in
return the value of said property.” The petitioners argue that every person has the right to
absolute control over his own property and should not be forced to part with it against his will or
without compensation. They had no quarrel with the verdicts or the execution of their slaves;
indeed, many of the petitioners had brought their slaves in for trial “without the intervention of any
civil authority.” Petitioners {12}: Billing, John; Harth, William; Lankester, Jacob; Robertson, John;
Scott, William M.
0065. Chester County. Serving in Wade Hampton's Regiment of South Carolina troops during the
American Revolution, Shadrack Jacobs was entitled to a slave or eighty pounds for his services.
In 1793, Jacobs sold his claim to Hugh Knox “for a valuable consideration.” Now Knox's widow
seeks payment of a claim made to the legislature on numerous previous occasions. Petitioner:
Knox, Jennet. [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on reel 8, frames 0222–0223.]
0066. John Sarvis seeks compensation for his slave, Toney, who was convicted and executed in
Horry District for attempting to raise an insurrection. The petitioner states “that all private
property, taken for Publick uses, or public benefits, should be paid for by the Publick.” Toney was
tried in July 1822 and executed; he was worth $450. As a man in “low circumstances,” Sarvis
asks for relief.
0069. Charleston County. Purchased for $450 only three months prior to his arrest and conviction
of conspiracy to revolt, William Kunhard's slave, Seymour, was at first sentenced to death, then
resentenced to be transported. Kunhard seeks reimbursement for his “healthy strong and robust
Negro.” He does not wish to pay expenses of transportation.
0073. Citizens of Richland District seek legislation preventing owners from allowing their slaves to
hire their own time. Skilled slaves, trained in various mechanical pursuits, “are enabled to labor at
cheaper rates than the free white population of the same employments, and thus monopolize, in a
great measure, the different mechanical trades.” These slaves forced white mechanics out of
work. Moreover, they argue, self-hired blacks had organized the recent slave insurrection plot in
Charleston. Petitioners {289}: Hall, Tinsley; Hampton, W.; Harrison, B., Sr.; Johnson, William B.;
Taylor, Thomas, Sr.
0081. In response to the discovery of a slave conspiracy, the Charleston City Council
recommends the passage of a law compelling free blacks who had come into the state within the
past ten years to be forced to leave. The council seeks to prohibit slaves and free persons of
color who visit nonslaveholding states from returning and to reduce the number of male slaves
who are hired out or hire themselves out. The council further recommends the erection of a
building to afford protection in case of attack and the organization of a military force of no fewer
than two hundred men commanded by experienced officers. In addition, slaves or free people of
color who had revealed the insurrection plot should be liberally remunerated. To this end, the
petitioners recommend that Peter, a slave owned by John C. Prioleau, and two free people of
color, Pencel and Scott, be given rewards. Petitioner: Hamilton, James.
0089. Officers and members of the South Carolina Association seek a law prohibiting free
persons of color from visiting the North. They also seek to prevent slaves from going with their
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owners to the West Indies, Europe, or north of the Potomac or Susquehanna rivers and returning
to South Carolina. The laws governing free blacks and slaves need to be brought up to date, they
say. Petitioners {334}: Deas, Henry; Elliott, Stephen; Pinckney, Thomas; Prileau, John C.;
Simons, Keating.
0092. Charleston County. In July 1821, Samuel Venning died in Christ Church Parish. In his will,
dated 1818, he instructed his sons and executors, Nicholas and Robert Venning, to free his
slaves, Sue and her two children, Mark and Sue; John; Ned; and Rachel. Unable to perform their
duties because of the 1820 law prohibiting future emancipations, the executors ask that the
slaves be freed. They also seek to free Luke, a slave child in the same family whose name was
inadvertently omitted from their father’s will. A fund is provided for the care of those to be freed.
Petitioners {5}: Venning, A.; Venning, E.; Venning, Josiah M.; Venning, Nicholas; Venning,
Robert.
0097. Newberry County. John O’Neall and John B. O’Neall, executors of the last will and
testament of John Kelly Sr., seek exemption from the law prohibiting manumission. They request
permission to free a “negro fellow named Nathaniel” in accordance with Kelly's will.
0100. Appointed by the Court of Common Pleas as the guardian of “a Negroe wench named
Catherine who claims her freedom,” J. E. Holmes asks that the slave be emancipated. Owned by
Peter Catanet, a Charleston merchant, Catherine was purchased by Dr. Plumeau with the
understanding that she could purchase her freedom for three hundred dollars, a sum far below
her value. A contract was entered into between the owner and slave in the presence of Catanet
and his wife. Catherine fulfilled her part of the bargain, but when Dr. Plumeau died his heirs
denied any knowledge of the agreement. In a court case it was shown that the doctor had been
“in the habit of inducing Masters of Slaves to sell them for a less price than the Value—under
pretense of emancipating them—and then defrauding the Slaves themselves.” It was also proved
that Catherine had been “working out and carrying in Wages—for a period sufficiently long to
have pd double the sum,” and she had paid the interest on her purchase price. By civil law, the
petitioner explained, slaves could make contracts with permission of their masters. When the
case was appealed, the judge ruled that the guardian should petition the state legislature, “as by
a late law they were constituted the proper Tribunal to decide upon Cases of this nature."
0105. Union County. William Farr seeks to free Fanny, a mulatto woman aged twenty-three or
twenty-four, and Fanny's six-year-old son, Henry. Fanny is upright, honest, and perfectly capable
of earning her own support, Farr says.
0108. Laurens County. Daniel Cook seeks compensation for his slave who was convicted for
administering poison to Cook's family. The slave was sentenced to be executed in August but
“put an end to his own existence” while in jail.
0111. Charleston County. Ann Drayton Perry states that her slave, Agrippa, has been
condemned to “Transportation, by the Court, organised for the Trial of Slaves and others,
charged with attempting to raise an Insurrection.” But Agrippa, she argues, was convicted on
insufficient evidence. His name was never written on any of the lists made out by the
conspirators; indeed, he only came before the court because he was asked to appear in behalf of
fellow slave Scipio. It was then that Perault, one of the rebels, accused Agrippa of complicity in
the plot. Perault was a fellow possessing high intelligence and understanding, “glorying in the part
he was to act, and boasting he would do it again, if an opportunity offered.” In bargaining to rent
a horse from Perault, Agrippa had said that he planned to use the horse “to do a thing good for
you and good for me.” Perault said this meant Agrippa planned “to go to raise men for the
Insurrection.” This statement, Perry says, is hardly enough to condemn Agrippa to transportation.
The slave is worth one thousand dollars, and Perry seeks relief.
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1823.
0116. Richland County. South Carolina Governor John L. Wilson, guardian of Jehu Jones, a free
person of color, praises Jones as a person of “irreproachable character,” a respected member of
society. Jones's wife and family are now in New York, and the recent South Carolina law prohibits
them from returning to the state. Wilson seeks permission for Jones to travel to New York, visit
his family, and return to South Carolina.
0119. Formed for the purpose of “better governing and managing Negroes and other persons of
colour,” the Black Swamp Association seeks corporate status. Petitioners {13}: Lawton, Joseph;
Lawton, William H.; Maner, John; Norton, Robert; Robert, J. J.
0123. Richland County. John L. Wilson, guardian of Jehu Jones, a free person of color, praises
Jones as a person of “irreproachable character,” a respected member of society. Jones's wife
and family are now in New York, and the recent South Carolina law prohibits them from returning
to the state. Wilson seeks permission for Jones to travel to New York, visit his family, and return
to South Carolina.
0126. Charleston County. In 1820, James Powell, a free black man in St. John Berkeley Parish,
dictated his last will and testament. He requested that his slave son, also named James, be freed
at the time of his death. Powell's former owner, William Mitchell, seeks to implement the father's
wishes, explaining that Powell had purchased his son and now the younger James “is the Slave
of nobody and at the same time is not a freed negro."
0131. Horry County. Joshua Norman seeks four dollars for provisions taken by the militia during
the insurrection panic in 1822.
0135. Horry County. John Anderson seeks compensation of $6.50 for powder, shot, and flints,
taken from him by a militia captain during the 1822 insurrection panic. The militia was seeking to
prevent “the Negros makeing attempt to Rise a ginst the Cittions."
0140. Edgefield County. John Frazier seeks to emancipate his slave, Isaac, as a reward for his
“long and faithful services” and his “unexceptionable character."
0143. Edgefield County. John Ryan seeks to emancipate his elderly slave, Sophia, mother of
eleven children—nine of whom “are at this time field Hands"—for her faithful services and “Many
Good Offices performed.” He promises to provide her with a comfortable maintenance during the
remainder of her life. He will also serve as her guardian.
0146. Charleston County. On behalf of the officers and men of the James Island Boat Company,
John Girardeau seeks reimbursement for expenses incurred when Governor Thomas Bennett put
them on standby to help quell a slave insurrection. They remained on call from 20 to 27
November 1822 and spent $141.96.
0152. Charleston County. Mrs. Clements, a widow of slender means, seeks compensation for a
slave named Jemmy executed for involvement in the 1822 insurrection conspiracy. He was worth
one thousand dollars.
0156. A resident of Charleston for twenty-five years, foreign-born Izidor Labatut suffered from a
“painful disease” for nearly half that time and is deaf. During his illness he was cared for by his
faithful slave, Louiza, who twice rescued him from being burned alive. He seeks to emancipate
Louiza and her four young children.
0159. Union County. William Farr seeks permission to manumit his mulatto slave, Fanny, about
twenty-four years old, and her son, Henry, about seven years old.
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0164. Beaufort County. Francis Porcher seeks compensation for his slave, Welcome, who died
while working on a public road leading from Savannah to Coosawhatchee. There was a spirited
competition among the slaves, and in consequence of the heat, and Welcome’s great exertions
wielding an axe, Porcher explains, Welcome “died on the spot."
0168. To control the black population, residents on Edisto Island seek to incorporate the “Edisto
Island Auxiliary Association.” With the black population exceeding the white by a ratio of fifteen to
one and with arsons escaping unpunished, the residents wish to assist authorities in maintaining
order. In addition, the petitioners argue, the “ties of consanguinity and interest are insufficient to
prevent even our Neighbors from publicly thundering their anathemas against the holders of
Slaves; neither moral considerations or political motives can restrain their demagogues from
infusing into the bosoms of our credulous and superstitious coloured people, the most dangerous
and revolting doctrines.” Petitioners {5}: Bailey, Benjamin; Edings, William; Mathews, John R.;
Seabrook, Whitemarsh; Seabrook, William, Sr.
0172. Charleston County. Martha Garner seeks compensation for her slave, William, who was
convicted and executed for being involved in the 1822 insurrection conspiracy. William was “a
very valuable Negro man” whose “character as a Slave had not only been unimpeachable, but
highly meritorious.” She was shocked to discover his involvement and says that the slave was her
principal means of support. Moreover, she had turned down fifteen hundred dollars for William,
she says, and the members of the court “appraised him as high as the Law allows."
0175. George Haltiwanger, sheriff of the Lexington District, seeks compensation for “dieting”
Peter, a slave convicted in August 1823 of burglary, with intent to rape, and sentenced to
“corporal punishment imprisonment and to be transported beyond the limits of this State in thirty
days.” Peter, however, remained in jail until December, when his transportation was “remitted” by
the governor of South Carolina. Haltiwanger asks for $27.50, or twenty-five cents a day for one
hundred and ten days, plus fifty-three cents for committing and releasing the slave.
0178. Charleston County. Jean Raoul seeks compensation for his slave, Stephon, who ran away
and was convicted and executed for “divers felonies.” The petitioner also seeks compensation for
a slave woman, who was kidnapped by the “famous outlaw Joe,” also called Forest, and severely
wounded when a patrol fired into Joe's camp. The black woman was rendered “of no value."
0182. Suffering from wounds inflicted during the American Revolution, free black John Chavis
seeks a soldier's pension. Chavis had enlisted in 1780, served until “near the close of the war,”
and is now unable to support himself.
0185. Beaufort County. Francis Porcher seeks compensation for the slave Welcome, who died
while working on a public road leading from Savannah to Coosawhatchee. There was a spirited
competition among the slaves, and in consequence of the heat, and his great exertions wielding
an axe, Welcome “died on the spot,” Porcher states.
0190. A resident of Charleston for twenty-five years, foreign-born Izidor Labatut suffered from a
“painful disease” for nearly half that time and is deaf. During his illness he was cared for by his
faithful slave, Louiza, who twice rescued him from being burned alive. He seeks to emancipate
Louiza and her four young children.
1824.
0193. Pendleton County. Margaret Dickson, a widow about one hundred years old, migrated to
South Carolina from Ireland prior to the American Revolution. She seeks to emancipate her slave,
Dick, who has always “maintained the Charector of an honest Humble and faithfull Slave."
0196. Charleston County. Lewis Henry Stevens and Lionel Kennedy, executors of Lydia Keown's
last will and testament, dated 28 January 1824, seek to emancipate two “black Girls,” Missey and
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Aimey, and a “Mulatto Girl,” Lydia, as specified in Keown's will. Petitioners {2}: Kennedy, Lionel;
Stevens, Lewis. [2 Petitions.]
0202. In 1824, a slave named Peter was charged, tried, and convicted of burglary by a court of
magistrates and freeholders in Newberry District and sentenced to death. The owner immediately
gave notice that he would appeal the verdict, and upon application to Judge Abraham Nott, he
received “a prohibition,” which was later made absolute. A second slave, Lawrence, was found
guilty of the same burglary—breaking into the store of James Caldwell and taking “sundry
articles.” He, too, received the death penalty but was reprieved when his owner obtained a
prohibition from Judge David Johnson. The petitioners, justices of the peace and freeholders who
served on the court, ask to be reimbursed for their costs for “applications for Prohibition.”
Petitioners {7}: Bowers, G. M.; Harris, Taplow; Hatton, Robert; Smyly, John; Suber, William.
0207. Fairfield County. William Mason seeks compensation for his “mulatto” slave, Ellick, who
was tried, convicted, and executed for burglary. Petitioner: Mason, William. [2 Petitions.]
0231. Union County. Ellis Palmer writes that among his five slaves was a mother who killed her
two children. When the mother was tried, convicted, and executed for the crime, Palmer lost a
substantial amount of his wealth, he states. Palmer seeks such relief as the legislature, in its
wisdom, “may deem meet.”
0236. A Charleston “Committee” seeks to repeal a portion of the fifth section of the 1822 act
requiring owners of houses inhabited by persons of color to pay a ten dollar tax to maintain the
city guard. The Committee objects to the tax on the grounds that they are forced to pay for a
municipal guard that benefits the entire city. “This law does not affect the rich,” the petitioners
assert, “who by keeping a superfluous number of slaves in the metropolis endanger its
tranquility.” Rather, it falls almost “exclusively upon the poor, the widow, and the Orphan and
leave them in many instances almost destitute.” Petitioners {14}: Carrere, Charles; Greenland,
B. R.; Greenland, William P.; Lehre, Thomas; McVhee, John.
0241. York County. Susannah Thatcher states that she was raped by a slave, Jesse, belonging to
a neighbor. The slave was convicted and executed. Thatcher explains that the Court of
Magistrates and Freeholders ordered that one-half of the slave's value should be paid to her, and
she seeks payment.
0244. Residents of Clarendon, Claremont, and Richland districts and St. John's and St. Steven's
parishes seek a reward for a slave named Royal, who gave whites information about the location
of the camp of a runaway gang leader named Joe, or Forest. During the administration of
Governor Thomas Bennett (1820–1822), the executive branch offered a reward, as did the
relatives of a white man named Ford who had been murdered by Joe. But the runaway was “so
cunning and artful as to elude pursuit.” Emboldened by his success, he “plunged deeper and
deeper in to Crime, until neither fear nor danger could deter him first from threatening and then
from executing a train of mischief.” It was unprecedented, the petitioners said; a number of
“runaways flew to his Camp, and he soon became their head and their life.” Joe inspired his
followers with the “most Wild and dangerous enthusiasm.” He continued as leader of his band for
four years, inculcating among his fellow slaves “the most dangerous notions” of “insubordination
and insurrections.” His activities kept whites in “a constant state of uneasiness and alarm.” In
October 1823, residents organized several infantry companies and scoured various sections
along the Santee River and its tributaries, but the distances (sixty miles by land) and extremely
hot weather wore them down. About to give up, they were surprised when the location of Joe's
camp was revealed by a slave named Royal, who belonged to a woman in Richland District. The
militia surprised the runaways, who had a boat and muskets but failed to escape; Joe and three
of his followers were shot and killed on the spot, and the others were dispersed. Most of them
were either hunted down and killed or captured and hanged. Petitioners {80}: China, John, Jr.;
Magrant, John, Jr.; Mason, Warner; Moore, Richard; Norton, Isaac.
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0253. Richland County. John Romanstine seeks compensation for his “negro man” who was
executed for house breaking. Petitioner: Romanstine, John. [2 Petitions.]
0259. On or about 10 August 1822, George Clark formed a patrol and “went in search of horses
belonging to Negroes, which were liable to condemnation under the Act of Assembly.” The patrol
sought to “prevent the danger and horrid consequences of insurrection.” Arriving at the plantation
of D. Blake they confiscated four horses, which were “Negro property,” and took them away.
Drake then sued Clark and the others for trespass and won a judgment for $220. Clark seeks to
recover the amount of the judgment from the treasury.
0262. John Wilson, guardian of Jehu Jones, a free person of color, seeks exemption on behalf of
Jones from the 1821 and 1822 laws “restraining the ingress & egress of persons of color into &
from the State of South Carolina.” Jones, an innkeeper, had planned to leave the state and join
his family, who had emigrated, as soon as he could sell his valuable property in Charleston, but
so far he had not been able to dispose of his estate. Wilson states that Jones is a man of good
character who is attached to the laws of South Carolina. He asks permission for Jones to leave
and return.
0265. In his will, dated 23 September 1822, Thomas Brown bequeathed John Irvin an estate
worth six or eight thousand dollars on condition that Irvin emancipate a “mulatto” slave named
William, about thirteen years of age, within two years after Brown's death. Irvin asks the
legislature to emancipate William. Petitioner: Brown, Thomas. [2 Petitions.]
1825.
0271. Free man of color John Chavis submitted in 1823 a petition to secure a pension for his
service during the Revolutionary War. Although the petition was denied, it was only because
Chavis did not have a white guardian. It was highly likely that at the next session Chavis would be
granted a pension, the petitioner states. Meanwhile, John Streable, though impoverished himself,
signed a security for Chavis to “save the poor old man” from starvation. Chavis was killed when a
tree fell on him, and now Streable seeks compensation “for his charity to one so deserving your
support as the aforesaid John Chavis."
0274. Charleston County. John Walker seeks to emancipate the slave Hannah and her three
children. Hannah was promised her freedom when she belonged to a previous owner, but the
change in the law “rendered the proposed emancipated impracticable without the consent of the
Legislature.” Walker now asks for the consent of the legislature. He offers an indemnity to keep
Hannah from becoming a burden to the parish and states that she is “not a bad character; nor
likely in case of emancipation to be chargeable or mischievous."
0278. Newberry County. On 27 August 1825, Frederick Shumpert made an agreement with his
“negroe man Jim,” or James Wilson, permitting the slave to purchase his freedom for five
hundred dollars. Wilson has paid the purchase price and promises to leave South Carolina “within
a reasonable time,” the petitioner states. Shumpert asks for an act of manumission. Petitioner:
Shumpert, Frederick. [2 Petitions.]
0284. Charleston County. John Walker seeks to emancipate the slave Hannah and her three
children. Hannah was promised her freedom when she belonged to a previous owner, but the
change in the law “rendered the proposed emancipated impracticable without the consent of the
Legislature.” Walker now asks for the consent of the legislature. He offers an indemnity to keep
Hannah from becoming a burden to the parish and states that she is “not a bad character; nor
likely in case of emancipation to be chargeable or mischievous."
0288. Colleton County. In March 1821 James McKenny lost “a very valuable Negro fellow” when
the slave ran away and was shot and killed two weeks later by “a youth” out hunting.
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0293. Union County. Dr. Hugh Davitt seeks twenty-six dollars compensation for treating Joel
Foster, a wounded prisoner accused of horse theft and slave stealing. Foster eventually was
taken to Abbeville and executed.
0300. Charleston Sheriff Nathaniel Cleary proposes reforms in his office and in the judicial
system. “Our Criminal Code stands before you a patched, rusty and uncouth edifice, in most of
the feudal tyranny, superstitious cruelty, and sombrous ignorance of its remote origin.” For
example, he states, fifty-one crimes can result in capital punishment, and branding is still a
punishment listed on the books. The laws should undergo “a radical, thorough and instantaneous
reformation.” In addition, Cleary seeks larger appropriations to prevent the “ingress and return of
negroes and persons of color into this state.” This job requires the “utmost vigilance and activity
among his deputies.” Unless he commits more resources to it, the problem will persist. Cleary
also seeks to improve the fee structure, speed of the legal process, compensation for sheriffs
who testify before grand or petit juries, and jail allowances. The 37 1/2 cents a day allowance for
each prisoner, for example, is barely enough to provide food, much less blankets or clothing.
Moreover, allowances for imprisoned debtors should be granted from the time of their arrest.
Recently, the time in jail for insolvent debtors was extended, he states, but “there is not regulation
of any avail for the support, from any quarter whatever, of an insolvent while in prison, even on
mense process, before it is proven that he is at all in debt."
0324. The attorneys representing John Parker Jr., who emigrated with the fourteen-year-old slave
Elizabeth to Great Britain, ask that the slave be allowed to return to South Carolina. Attorneys
Robert Bentham, Joseph Winthrop, and Arthur Parker argue that Elizabeth accompanied Parker
only because she had been brought up in the family and “Knew all the little propensities & wants
of his Children.” Now she is exceedingly anxious to return to members of her own family, who
also are owned by John Parker and live on his lands in Charleston District and St. George
Dorchester Parish. The lawyers pray that a special act be passed in her behalf.
0330. Pendleton County. Margaret Dickson, a widow about one hundred years old, migrated to
South Carolina from Ireland before the American Revolution. She seeks to emancipate her slave,
Dick, who is honest, humble, and inoffensive.
0333. Greenville District slaveholder Jeremiah Forester seeks compensation for his slave, Jack,
who was executed after breaking into the store of Philip C. Lester and stealing “sundry goods.”
Describing himself as “poor and in extreme bad health,” Forester explains that Jack was the only
slave he owned.
0339. Sheriff Samuel Cannon seeks reimbursement for $40.20 expended while serving notices
and performing other duties in the case of a slave convicted of burglary but spared the death
penalty. In 1824, a slave named Peter was charged, tried, and convicted of burglary by the Court
of Magistrates and Freeholders in Newberry District. Peter was sentenced to death. The owner
immediately gave notice that he would appeal the verdict and upon application to Judge Abraham
Nott received “a prohibition,” which was later made absolute.
0345. Charleston County. Free people of color and their guardians complain about taxes imposed
in 1822 to raise money to pay the municipal guard. A new tax was levied on all property within the
municipality; a ten dollar tax was imposed on all houses “inhabited by negroes or persons of color
either as Tenants or owners”; and a ten dollar tax was required of every free men of color who
worked as a mechanic. The tax system, the petitioners state, holds “certain landowners liable
who had already paid their General Tax” and is thus inequitable. The petitioners seek relief.
Petitioners {26}: Barreau, Hiliare; Burk, John; Hyams, Catharine; Robertson, Elizabeth;
Williamson, Mary.
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0350. Sheriff Samuel Cannon seeks reimbursement for $40.20 expended while serving notices
and performing other duties in the case of a slave convicted of burglary but spared the death
penalty. In 1824, a slave named Peter was charged, tried, and convicted of burglary by the Court
of Magistrates and Freeholders in Newberry District. Peter was sentenced to death. The owner
immediately gave notice that he would appeal the verdict and upon application to Judge Abraham
Nott received “a prohibition,” which was later made absolute.
1826.
0355. Charleston slave owner David Haig seeks compensation for his slave, Harry, who was
convicted of being involved in the thwarted 1822 slave insurrection and sentenced to
transportation beyond the limits of the state. Harry died in the workhouse before he could be sent
out of the country.
0362. Members of the Charleston Chamber of Commerce seek to repeal an 1823 act regarding
persons of color who arrive in port as cooks or stewards on vessels from Europe, the West
Indies, Mexico, South America, states north of the Potomac River, and the District of Columbia.
This act requires sheriffs to apprehend black crew members and retain them in custody until their
ships leave port. The captain is required to pay for the expense of keeping them in custody. Any
captain refusing to pay the costs can be fined one thousand dollars and imprisoned for six
months. Petitioners {159}: Alexander, David; Haskell, J.; Pezant, John; Ross, Flemming; Street,
Timothy.
0375. Williamsburgh County. Peter Gourdin seeks compensation for the slave Jack, who was
shot by a white man attempting to apprehend another slave convicted of highway robbery. Jack
was killed “Either thro agitation or mistake."
0380. Edgefield County. Edward B. Hibbler seeks compensation for a slave, Hampton, who was
convicted and executed for rape.
0387. In December 1822, the legislature appropriated fifteen thousand dollars to open a
passage—Walls Cut—for first-class steamboats and coastal vessels to enter the river systems in
Beaufort District. Winning the contract from the state, John Norton began digging with mostly
slave labor, including a number of hired slaves. The work continued until a violent storm washed
away much of what had been accomplished. Norton also had difficulties hiring slaves because
masters feared putting slaves in jeopardy. After several years, however, he completed the work.
Norton now seeks payment for his efforts. He writes that he and his family have been “immersed
at Walls Cut” for two-and-a-half years, suffering “loss & deprivation of almost every comfort in
life.” He states that his resources are exhausted, he is in debt, his laborers have not been paid,
and he hopes the legislature “will not suffer him to be a loser."
0393. Lancaster County. Samuel Love seeks compensation for his slave, Moses, who was
convicted and executed for house burning. The Court of Magistrates and Freeholders valued
Moses at $122.
0398. John Porter Jr. seeks compensation for his slave, Stephen, appraised at $433 and
convicted of “Sundry offences” by the Court of Magistrates and Freeholders in Williamsburgh
District. Stephen was granted a “respite” by the governor until 28 July 1826. Under a mistaken
impression of the expiration date, Stephen was executed the day before the “respite” ended.
While the execution “may be regretted on the score of humanity,” Porter states, it should make no
difference with regard to his case for remuneration as the governor had already refused to extend
the reprieve.
0403. Charleston County. In 1817, Thomas Rivers agreed to free the slave, Henry, for a certain
amount of money paid to him by Henry's parents, who are “persons of color.” The emancipation
was delayed because Henry was still very young. Following the 1820 law, however, Rivers could
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not fulfill his part of the bargain without petitioning the legislature. Rivers is growing old and
“desirous of arranging his affairs in a fair and Honorable manner.” He wants to do justice to Henry
and his parents. Petitioner: Rivers, Thomas. [2 Petitions.]
0411. Lincoln and Georgia County. Georgia slaveholder David Murray seeks compensation for
the slave Sandy, who was tried and executed for “grievously beating a white man by the name of
Philip Slagle.” The attack occurred in Lancaster District, South Carolina, on 30 November 1825;
Sandy was hanged exactly one month later.
0421. Richland County. Thomas Briggs asks permission for his slave, Edmond, to return to South
Carolina. Edmond was sentenced to be hanged but then reprieved by the governor on condition
that the slave be sent out of the state. Briggs states that since his trial Edmond had conducted
himself in a most favorable manner.
0425. York County. In May 1826, the slave Jesse, owned by James L. Boyd, was charged with
raping Susannah Hatcher. He was quickly tried, convicted, and executed. Boyd asks for
compensation.
1827.
0428. The intendant and wardens of Columbia argue that the number of self-hired slaves—those
“having very much the control of their time and movements"—had increased to such an extent
that “they should be better known to the Police, and more under their control than they now are.”
Town officials recommend that owners be required to register and obtain an identification badge
for each hired slave. Petitioner: DeSaussure, W. F.
0433. John McFaddin, executor of the estate of Thomas Cubbage, requests the manumission of
Amelia. In his will, Cubbage bequeathed to his “aged and faithful servant” property and her
freedom as a reward for her “kind and unwearied care and attention” during his final illness.
0436. David Martin of Barnwell District seeks to emancipate his two slave daughters so that they
may enjoy his property. Eliza was born in 1812; Martha was born in 1817. Petitioner: Martin,
David. [2 Petitions.]
0442. In 1823, Abigail Jones, a free woman of color, moved from Charleston to New York City
with her daughter, Ann Deas, her two grandchildren, Abigail Jones Lee and John Lee, and a
slave. Her husband, Jehu Jones, however, had remained behind in Charleston. Suffering illhealth, Abigail Jones, age about fifty-five, wishes to return to be with her husband, who is fiftyeight. They both are honest, industrious, and decent people, William Lance writes in a petition in
their behalf. Lance requests that the free black family be permitted to reunite in South Carolina.
0447. Charleston grocers seek relief from an 1815 city ordinance prohibiting the sale of liquor to
any “Negro or person of Color” and their entry into a store after 8:00 p.m. during the fall and
winter and 9:00 p.m. during the spring and summer. Slaves and free persons of color were not
required to be off the streets at these hours, the grocers argue, and losing this clientele
represents a substantial loss. The ordinance, coupled with the depressed economy, is causing
substantial hardship to their business, they state. Petitioners {42}: Henry, Bernard; Jacobs,
George; Koster, Casper; Kriete, F.
1828.
0451. Richland County. Carpenter James Patterson, a free man of color who had lived all his life
in Columbia, purchased his wife, Sally, and his son, George. His daughter, Candice, was born
after he had purchased his wife. Married eighteen years, Patterson seeks to emancipate his wife
and family.
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0456. David Haig states that his slave, Harry, was convicted of involvement in a “projected
insurrection” and was sentenced to death. The court reconsidered its decision and changed the
sentence to transportation beyond the limits of the state. While awaiting the execution of his
sentence, Harry died in the Charleston workhouse. The petitioner seeks compensation on the
grounds that if Harry had been executed as originally intended, he would have been remunerated
by the state for his loss of property. Petitioner: Haig, David. [2 Petitions.]
0466. In December 1827, Neptune was convicted of a murder that occurred near the Strawberry
Ferry, St. John Berkeley Parish, Charleston District, and was subsequently executed according to
law. Neptune's owner, William Read, seeks compensation, arguing that his slave was a “full task
hand and of the value of a prime able bodied Slave."
0469. St. Matthews Parish slaveholder George Zeigler seeks compensation for his slave,
America, who was charged and executed for burning a neighbor's mill. Convicted 28 August
1828, America was executed on 19 September 1828.
0472. Abbeville County. Physician John Reid seeks payment of thirty dollars for services he
rendered to an inquest jury. He examined the body of Phillida, a hired slave, owned by Lucretia
Finney, who may have died from excessive punishment.
0475. The Charleston City Council seeks to enforce the law prohibiting slaves from being taught
to read and write. Literate slaves could more easily carry on illicit traffic, communicate among
themselves, and evade regulations designed to prevent slave gatherings, the petition states. In
addition, the council seeks to halt the practice of slaves and free persons of color being employed
by their owners and others as salesmen in stores and shops or as “clerks to traders of different
descriptions.” Petitioner: Johnson, Joseph. [2 Petitions.]
0492. Abbeville County. Richard M. Todd seeks compensation for his runaway slave, Ambrose,
who was arrested and jailed in Chester District in 1826. After being held for more than a year, as
required by law, Ambrose was sold to William Hallsel. The sale price exceeded jail fees and other
expenses by about $192, and Todd asks that this amount, paid into the state treasury, be
refunded to him to help cover his losses.
0496. Lancaster County. Sheriff John Sims of Lancaster District seeks compensation of $18.37
for advertising the sale of a runaway slave named Jack, who sold for one hundred dollars.
0499. Fairfield County. James Cason seeks compensation for the loss of his two slaves, George
and Huldah, executed in Chester District for the murder of a white man named O'Bannon. The
slaves were worth fourteen hundred dollars.
0502. Suffering from a lack of trade, unemployment, and unfair competition from “Negro and
Colored Workmen,” white mechanics in Charleston suggest that the 1822 statute outlawing slave
self-hire be amended so that it is more effective. They also ask for permission to incorporate into
“The Charleston Mechanics' Association.” The petitioners lament that the trades of carpentry,
bricklaying, plastering, wheelwrighting, painting, shoemaking, and others “are beginning to be
engrossed by Black & Colored workmen.” If the situation is not corrected, they argue, Charleston
will become like towns in the West Indies. Slaves in the city are becoming “more Licentious than if
they were Free,” they state. Petitioners {111}: Barton, Aaron; Biggs, Henry S.; Egan, Henry J.;
McKewn, William; Munday, Thomas.
1829.
0507. All Saints Parish militia commander William Vaught seeks compensation for a horse injured
during the “supposed insurrection of the negroe slaves” on 23 July 1829. With rumors of a revolt
in the vicinity of Georgetown and All Saints Parish, Vaught turned his mare over to his sergeant,
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Joseph Peak, who rode so hard spreading the word that the mare “has not been able to do one
days work Since.” The horse was worth one hundred dollars.
0510. Colleton County. In January or February 1829, John Inabinet, also spelled Inabnet, hired
out several slaves to Colonel B. F. Whitner, superintendent of the public works, to work on the
state road from Providence Swamp to Charleston. According to the contract the slaves were not
to be taken more than three miles above Providence Swamp. In the summer, however, without
the owner's knowledge or consent, the slaves were taken about twenty miles above the swamp,
where Jesse, a slave working on the road, killed Caesar, a slave belonging to Inabinet. The
owner seeks compensation.
0513. Barnwell County. Joining the militia in 1779, John Busby, a free person of color, served as
a baggage and provision handler during campaigns in South Carolina and Georgia. He was
present at the siege of Augusta and served until the end of the war. He never shrank from his
duty, and now, old and infirm, he seeks a pension.
0518. Colleton County. In February 1829, John Inabinet, also spelled Inabnet, hired out several
slaves to Colonel B. F. Whitner, superintendent of the public works, to work on the state road
from Providence Swamp to Charleston. According to the contract the slaves were not to be taken
more than three miles above Providence Swamp. In July, however, without the owner's
knowledge or consent, the slaves were taken seventeen miles above the swamp, where Jesse, a
slave working on the road, killed Caesar, a slave belonging to Inabinet. The owner seeks six
hundred dollars in compensation.
0522. Barnwell County. Joining the militia in 1779, John Busby, a free person of color, served as
a baggage and provision handler during campaigns in South Carolina and Georgia. He was
present at the siege of Augusta and served until the end of the war. He never shrank from his
duty, and now, old and infirm, he seeks a pension.
0527. Georgetown District residents seek compensation for Ann Paisley of Prince George's
Parish, whose slave, Henrietta, betrayed an insurrection plot. On or about 20 July 1829, Henrietta
overheard a slave named Charles, “one of the Ring leaders in the late conspiracy,” make
“threatening expressions.” She immediately informed Paisley. Charles was quickly taken up,
confessed, and implicated others. Slaves were “very generally excited” against Henrietta. She
was attacked by a slave named Joe, who was captured, tried, and executed. The petitioners ask
that Henrietta and her child be emancipated. In addition, Ann Paisley should be granted an
annual stipend since she is a woman of little means and Henrietta “constituted at present almost
her sole support.” Petitioners {6}: Allston, Robert F.; Coggeshall, J. C.; Dozier, A. W.; Pringle,
William B.; Wilson, John.
0532. Georgetown County. Francis Kinlock seeks compensation for his slave, Mood, executed on
26 August 1829 for “attempt at Insurrection."
0536. Georgetown County. Francis Kinlock seeks compensation for his slave, Mood, executed on
26 August 1829 for “attempt at Insurrection.” The slave was appraised as the law directs for
$122.45, “the highest sum allowed for any negro charged with the crime of which he was
convicted."
0539. Georgetown County. Francis Kinlock seeks compensation for his slave, Mood, executed on
26 August 1829 for “attempt at Insurrection."
0544. The Georgetown Town Council seeks compensation for an officer and ten privates who
remained on duty several months following the discovery in July of a slave insurrection plot.
Rumors spread that on the day the slave conspirators were to be hanged, a Charleston slave
connected with the 1822 Denmark Vesey plot stood ready to incite his fellow slaves to revolt. The
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council borrowed from the local bank to pay the expenses, which amounted to $1,669. The
council is too poor to pay the money back. Nor are residents willing to pay additional taxes as
they are subjected to “patrol duty unexampled and oppressive in the extreme.” Petitioners {5}:
Benjamin, Ezra; Chapman, John; King, Benjamin; Lopez, Aaron; Waterman, Eleazer.
0560. Colleton County. Richard Jones seeks compensation for a slave, Eave (also spelled Eve),
who was convicted and executed for administering poison. She was appraised at one hundred
dollars.
0566. Charleston County. Twenty-three planters of Christ Church Parish seek to repeal the 1821
law that imposed the death penalty on whites convicted of killing slaves. The petitioners argue
“that inflicting the punishment of death on a white man for killing a slave, who is a property,
instead of exacting a fine for the loss of that property, was placing the white inhabitants on a
footing which would not be admitted by Juries of our Countrymen, and hence that the penalty
would never be inflicted in any case however enormous.” The law made slaves more aggressive
and thus encouraged ideas of insubordination and emancipation, they state. The planters assert
that the law hindered their ability to put down gangs of runaways. “Such negroes as have in
Consequence of this Combination of fatal circumstances remained out for Years, at length cease
to respect the whites.” Outlying slaves became reckless, launched attacks against plantations,
and plundered stock and goods. The petitioners describe runaway slaves whose death “has been
brought on them by the aggravating circumstances attending their depredations.” In one case, a
slave family joined a group of runaways in the woods, and after the mother and father were killed,
the children (one of whom had been born in the woods) surrendered. The planters seek redress
from “so grievous a state of anarchy” and demand that runaway slaves be considered outlaws
and “deprived of the benefit of the Laws and out of the protection of the State.” Petitioners {23}:
English, Henry; Murrell, John Jonah; Scott, George W.; Steding, Friederick; Whilden, Elisha.
0573. Georgetown County. John Coachman seeks compensation for his slave, Charles Prioleau,
who was convicted of plotting a slave insurrection and was executed on 18 September 1829. The
slave was valued at $122.45 by the Court of Magistrates and Freeholders. Petitioner: Coachman,
John. [3 Petitions.]
0584. Kershaw County. In 1828, Joseph Mickle purchased James Walker, a free person of color,
at auction for a five-year term for $215.37 1/2, signing a note payable to the state of South
Carolina. Walker was sold because he had failed to pay his “acreage taxes.” In 1829, Walker
escaped to North Carolina but was captured and jailed in Fayetteville. Mickle sent an agent to
identify and retrieve Walker, but the jailer refused to turn him over, contending he was “a free
man, and would soon be declared so by a proper authority.” Being thus deprived of the services
of Walker, Mickle seeks to have his note cancelled.
0588. Residents of Kershaw District petition on behalf of Joseph Mickle, who purchased James
Walker, a free person of color, at a state auction for the price of $215.37 1/2. Mickle signed a note
for that amount, paying Walker's taxes and the cost of the sale, but in 1829 Walker ran away to
North Carolina, “where it seems he was liberated and set entirely free by the Authorities of that
state.” Walker was a man of bad character, suspected of “setting fire to houses in the night,
breaking open Stores and meat Houses,” the petition states. He was also “a habitual drunkard,
and we really think him capable of any outrage for which depravity could prepare the human
mind.” The petitioners ask that Mickle's note be cancelled. Petitioners {34}: Cureton, Everard;
Goodman, Joseph; Parker, John L.; Reid, David E.; Warren, Peter.
0592. Charleston County. William Cain, executor of the estate of his late brother, Daniel Cain,
seeks compensation for Frank, a slave belonging to the estate who was executed for attempting
to poison his owner. The Court of Justices and Freeholders of St. John's Berkeley Parish found
Frank guilty.
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0595. Charleston County. Twenty-three planters of Christ Church Parish seek to repeal the 1821
law that imposed the death penalty on whites convicted of killing slaves. The petitioners argue
“that inflicting the punishment of death on a white man for killing a slave, who is a property,
instead of exacting a fine for the loss of that property, was placing the white inhabitants on a
footing which would not be admitted by Juries of our Countrymen, and hence that the penalty
would never be inflicted in any case however enormous.” The law made slaves more aggressive
and thus encouraged ideas of insubordination and emancipation, they state. The planters assert
that the law hindered their ability to put down gangs of runaways. “Such negroes as have in
Consequence of this Combination of fatal circumstances remained out for Years, at length cease
to respect the whites.” Outlying slaves became reckless, launched attacks against plantations,
and plundered stock and goods. The petitioners describe runaway slaves whose death “has been
brought on them by the aggravating circumstances attending their depredations.” In one case, a
slave family joined a group of runaways in the woods, and after the mother and father were killed,
the children (one of whom had been born in the woods) surrendered. The planters seek redress
from “so grievous a state of anarchy” and demand that runaway slaves be considered outlaws
and “deprived of the benefit of the Laws and out of the protection of the State.” Petitioners {23}:
English, Henry; Murrell, John Jonah; Scott, George W.; Steding, Friederick; Whilden, Elisha.
0602. Charleston County. William Cain, executor of the estate of his late brother, Daniel Cain,
seeks compensation for Frank, a slave belonging to the estate who was executed for attempting
to poison his owner. The Court of Justices and Freeholders of St. John's Berkeley Parish found
the slave guilty.
1830.
0607. Lancaster County. Robert Stinson seeks compensation for his slave, Bob, who was
convicted and executed in October 1830 for killing Sabry, a female slave owned by the petitioner.
The execution occurred on 8 October 1830; the court had directed that Stinson receive $122.45
as compensation for his loss.
0612. Lexington County. Michael Sulton seeks compensation for a slave, June, who was
convicted and executed for raping a white woman. June's trial was on 4 January 1830, and he
was executed on 15 January 1830. Prior to his death he was “appraised and Valued” at $122.45.
0617. Horry County. William Bryan, executor of the estate of the late Thomas Livingston, seeks
permission to emancipate a mulatto slave, Harris, in accordance with Livingston's will. According
to the will, Harris is also to receive two hundred dollars to assist in starting a business when he
becomes twenty-one.
0620. Sumter County. James Slanter, a free man of color, died leaving fifty acres of land and
personal property. His guardian, Hardy Stuckey, asserts that before his death Slanter instructed
Stuckey to sell the personal property and, after paying expenses, turn whatever was left over to
his slave children, owned by Edmond Stuckey, the father of the petitioner. In accordance with
Slanter's wishes, the guardian seeks to bequeath the slave children about two hundred dollars.
0625. Residents of Sumter District ask that the estate of the late James Slatter, who was a free
person of color, be used for the erection of an academy at Bishopville. The estate is worth about
three hundred dollars, according to the petition. There are a great many young people in the
district, they state, and as it would escheat to the state anyway, Slatter's money could be used to
great advantage to “facilitate the means of education” for white children. Petitioners {29}:
Cresswell, John; Harris, William; Holleyman, H.; Robertson, J. R.; Rountree, M. Petitioners {32}:
Crosswell, John; Harris, William; Holleyman, H.; Robertson, J. R.; Rountree, M.
0633. James Ross and Holloway Simmons seek compensation for apprehending a runaway
slave, Tom, who was accused of murdering Solomon Coats in 1826. The slave catchers pursued
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Tom into Sumter District, bore their own expenses for a week, and finally captured the fugitive.
They returned to York District, where Tom was tried, convicted, and executed for murder.
0637. Phillip Sligh seeks compensation for his slave, Moses, who was convicted on 17 October
1829 and executed 27 November 1829 for assaulting and attempting to murder a white man
named Andrew Cromer. To stop the hanging Sligh had sought a writ of prohibition from the
Newberry Court of Common Pleas and General Session, but he was unsuccessful.
0642. Greenville District residents seek to hire out free blacks who cannot pay their debts. They
would be hired out by a sheriff, magistrate, or other officer of the civil law, and their wages would
go to pay off the debt until the full amount were discharged. Petitioners {17}: Arnold, Benjamin;
Arnold, William; McCullough, Joseph; Nabers, Martin; Reid, James.
0646. York County. Jeremiah Dickey, a free man of color who purchased his freedom, states that
during his time as a slave, he had married a mulatto woman, the slave of Robert Manning. Before
their marriage, his wife “was delivered of a female child—whose father was a white man.” Dickey
purchased the girl from her owner and now seeks to emancipate his stepdaughter, Jinsey, who is
sixteen years old.
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0001. Descriptive material.
1831.
0007. Convicted of involvement in the 1822 insurrection conspiracy and sentenced to death,
Joseph L. Enslow's slave, John, testified against his fellow slaves, and his sentence was reduced
to banishment. Before he could be sent out of the country, however, John died in the Charleston
Workhouse, and now his owner seeks compensation. Enslow argues that John's death was the
same as if he had been executed—the owner being deprived of his property; further, precedent
had been set in the case of David Haig who lost his slave in the same way and was granted
compensation.
0013. Fairfield County. Along with about forty other hands, James McCants's slave, March, was
ordered to lift a huge timber to rebuild a bridge across the Little River. When a prop gave way,
March was crushed to death. March was about thirty years old and a valuable field hand,
McCants states. McCants seeks compensation for his loss.
0021. Claremont County. John Bradley seeks compensation for a “Prime field hand” named
Moses, who was killed on 19 September 1831 when a tree fell on him while he was working on a
public road. Moses was nineteen or twenty years old and “of good Character."
0031. Richland County. Owned by a man in Chester District, the runaway slave George wreaked
havoc on residents in and about Columbia. He stole horses, broke into houses, and committed
“other offenses,” the petition states. It was “impossible to arrest him.” On one occasion, John
Ross, a white resident, pursued George, but in the fight that followed the slave “cut out your
petitioner's eye with a razor blade.” George was eventually captured, tried, and executed. Ross
seeks compensation for his injury.
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0034. Pendleton County. Seventy-eight-year-old slave owner Benjamin Oliver seeks to
emancipate two slaves, a man named Jacob and a woman named Tuck, whom he had “Raised”
from childhood. They had “allways been faithful Servants."
0037. Abbeville County. Robert Cunningham seeks compensation for his slave, Ned, who was
charged and executed for attempted insurrection. The loss will be considerable, Cunningham
says, at least four hundred and fifty or five hundred dollars.
0041. The officers of the Society of Vigilance near Athens, Edgefield District, request a revision of
the patrol laws. Slaves should not be issued pass and re-pass “tickets” that fail to identify travel
destination or length of absence. Slaves who carry such tickets visit “grog shops and other places
where they would not be willing to be seen by their owners and where their owners are not willing
for them to go.” Petitioners {19}: Allen, John C.; Daniel, W.; Kinnaird, A. P.; Kinnaird, W.; Strother,
William H.
0045. Charleston County. G. S. McLane seeks compensation for his slave, Glasgow, who was
convicted and executed for attempting to poison the petitioner.
0048. Claremont County. John Bradley seeks compensation for a “Prime field hand” named
Moses, who was killed on 19 September 1831 when a tree fell on him while he was working on a
public road. Moses was nineteen or twenty years old and “of good Character,” Bradley states.
0051. At its meeting in Washington, the “American Convention for promoting the Abolition of
Slavery, and improving the condition of the African race” asks the South Carolina General
Assembly to instruct its representatives in Congress to “use their efforts” for the passage of a law
for the gradual abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia. Petitioners {4}: Anderson, Robert
P.; Cope, Charles; Parker, Joseph; Rawle, William.
0054. Abbeville County. At a coroner's inquest into the death of a slave woman named Phillida,
Dr. John Reid performed “the very unpleasant and disagreeable business of opening and
examining the body in the presence of the Jury.” Phillida was owned by Lucretia Finney but was
hired out during 1828. Reid sought to determine whether or not the slave had died from “violence
having been given her” by her employer. Reid seeks $38.75 as compensation.
0061. Sumter County. John Bradley seeks compensation for his slave, Moses, who “was killed by
the top of a tree which was felled upon him” while working on a public road. Bradley states that
Moses was a “prime field hand aged about twenty one years” and valued at five hundred dollars.
0066. Fairfield County. Directed along with about forty other hands to lift a huge timber to rebuild
a bridge across the Little River, the slave March was killed when the prop gave way and the
timber fell on his back. A valuable field hand, March was about thirty years of age. His owner,
James McCants, seeks compensation for his loss.
0069. Considering the terrible apprehensions entertained during the past few months, citizens of
Greenville District seek to curtail the activities of showmen, actors, circus riders, and magicians.
These groups of “sturdy beggars” are infesting the state and are especially frightening
considering the disparity between the white and black populations, the petitioners state.
Petitioners {27}: Davis, John, Sr.; Rice, John, Sr.; Roberts, Isaac; Roberts, Jeremiah; Roberts,
Isaac, Sr. Petitioners {31}: Ashmore, James D.; Ashmore, John, Jr.; Ashmore, John, Sr.; Hix,
William; Rice, Henry.
1832.
0075. Abbeville County. In his will, Matthew Donaldson bequeathed to his wife, Jennet
Donaldson, a life estate in certain slaves. He also stipulated that following her death the slaves
should be emancipated. Some years later after her death, one of the executors of Donaldson's
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will, Alexander Bowie, seized the slaves because under the law they could not be freed and might
be taken up and sold. Bowie emancipated by deed those mentioned in the will, but one of the
female slaves became the object of a property dispute, and during this time she gave birth to a
son. When the boy, named Sam, reached age six in 1817, he was bound out to Bowie until he
reached age twenty-one. Sam is now twenty-one, and Bowie seeks his freedom.
1833.
0079. Edward Roche seeks compensation for his slave, Joe, who was convicted on 23
September 1831 and executed for “grievously wounding, maiming and bruising a white man."
1834.
0082. Ministers from St. Philip and St. Michael's parishes seek revision of the 1800 and 1803
laws requiring “a majority” of whites to be present at religious services for people of color after
sunset. For thirty years, the ministers note, people of color have had the privilege of religious
instruction after sunset, subject only to regulations by the Charleston City Council. Like other
statutes passed during crises, the laws governing white attendance at worship gatherings at night
are “virtually obsolete” in every part of the state. The petitioners ask that religious gatherings of
people of color be governed by the city council, “whose local knowledge, personal interest, and
immediate responsibility, would seem to secure all desirable vigilance and efficiency in the
execution of the laws on this subject.” Petitioners {18}: Bass, Henry; Bowen, C.; Gadsden,
Christopher; Kennedy, William; Palmer, Benjamin M.
0092. Charleston resident Edward Carew seeks leniency for his slave, Isaac, sentenced to twelve
months of solitary confinement and three hundred lashes for striking his slave wife in the head
with a hoe handle and causing her death. The petitioner believes Isaac will not survive and
contends the punishment does not fit the offense. “The Case is not distinguishable from many
others of conflicts between people of this description,” Carew writes. “No such violence was used
by the Prisoner as should have excited an apprehension of fatal consequence,” he states.
0106. The members of the Georgetown Town Council ask that a reward be paid to the owners of
Jack and Tom, who were instrumental in disbanding a gang of runaways who murdered a
plantation owner on his own plantation. In June of 1822, the entire neighborhood had been
“infested” with “a gang of lawless, & desperate runaways,” the petitioners state. Jack and Tom, at
great hazard to themselves, captured one of the runaways, “and it was through their means that
the murderer was taken, brought to trial, and executed—and the whole gang thus dispersed.”
Petitioners {6}: Denison, William; Dozier, A. W.; Farrow, Stephen; Myers, W. C.; Shaw, Henry.
0110. Abbeville County. William Speer, executor of the estate of Daniel Anderson, seeks
compensation for three of Anderson's slaves—Frank, Harry, and Esaw—who were convicted of
murdering Anderson. The execution took place on 8 November 1833, and a petition for
compensation was submitted to the last session of the legislature. The petition and certificate,
however, were lost, and no relief was granted.
0115. Colleton County. Residents of Saint Bartholomew's Parish seek to establish an academy to
educate their children. The petitioners have been unable to establish a school because only a
small number of residents can afford to educate their children, and those who can usually send
them to distant seminaries. The petitioners ask that the escheated property in the parish,
especially the estate of a free woman of color named India, be used to establish the
Walterborough Academy. Petitioners {40}: Burbidge, John W.; Burnet, A. W.; Campbell, A.; Carn,
M. E.; Godfrey, John G.
1835.
0119. Residents of Abbeville District seek legislation to prevent the activities of several Sunday
schools “wherein a Number of Negroes are Instructed to read.” Learning to read places people of
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color “in a Situation (Ultimately) to Sap the foundation of the peace and tranquillity of this & all the
Slave holding States, as they will learn to write (in Spite of all the efforts of those who oppose
them) and by that means convey to each other throughout the different States all their plots.”
Residents state that they fear “the horrors of a General insurrection.” Petitioners {53}: Allen, T.;
Dodson, James; Hodges, John; Moseley, Henry; Scudday, A. E.
0124. Richland County. M. H. DeLeon, intendant of the Town Council of Columbia, states that at
a recent meeting residents asked for the passage of an ordinance that would prevent anyone
from teaching slaves to read or write “under any pretext whatever.” The council concluded that it
did not have the authority to pass such a law. DeLeon asks for the repeal of the present law
preventing slaves from learning to write and the enactment of a new statute to prevent teaching
slaves to read or write. Literacy among slaves would “eventuate in the destruction of that portion
of our property, and ultimately end in discord."
0128. Colleton County. Residents of Saint Bartholomew's Parish seek to establish an academy to
educate their children. The petitioners have been unable to establish a school because only a
small number of residents can afford to educate their children, and those who can usually send
them to distant seminaries. The petitioners ask that the escheated property in the parish,
especially the estate of a free woman of color named India, be used to establish the
Walterborough Academy. Petitioners {38}: Burbidge, John W.; Burnet, A. W.; Campbell, A.;
Carray, M. E.; Godfrey, John G.
0132. Citizens of Society Hill, Darlington District, are aware that a repeal or modification of the
License Law will be considered at the next session of the legislature. They seek to make several
suggestions concerning this subject. First, they request the repeal of the License Law, except
where it prevents selling liquor to slaves. Second, they ask for a referendum on the next ballot,
which would propose the entire prohibition of the liquor trade except for medicinal purposes.
Finally, the citizens suggest that drunkenness be considered a punishable crime. Petitioners {23}:
Brown, James C.; Lide, Thomas P.; Sparks, Alexander; Turnage, Luke; Wilson, John.
0138. Having unsuccessfully petitioned the legislature at the previous session to emancipate two
slaves, Lexington District slaveholder John Lightler resubmits his request. He is “sincerely
desirous to Emancipate two Mulattoe Women,” he writes, and “intends to provide an honest
means of support for the persons Emancipated."
0143. Citizens of Chester District seek the repeal of an 1834 law preventing the practice of
teaching slaves to read the scriptures and other religious books. The petitioners argue that the
law is unenforceable, as “the ability to read exists probably on every plantation in the state; and it
is utterly impossible for even the masters to prevent this:—as is apparent from the cases in which
servants learn to write by stealth, although all masters are very watchful to prevent this.”
Moreover, the law may be unconstitutional as it infringes on the “right of conscience.” The state
had less to fear from intelligent than ignorant slaves; the latter might become followers “of every
Nat Turner who might chance to pass along.” If Imperial Rome could manage slaves who became
soldiers, should “chivalrous South Carolina quail before gangs of cowardly Africans with a Bible in
their hands? Let it not be said!!” Petitioners {123}: Kemphill, David; Lowry, James; McKnight,
George; McKnight, John; Williams, Philip.
0152. Williamsburgh County. Peter Gourdin seeks compensation for his slave, Jack, who was
mistakenly shot by a white man who was attempting to apprehend a runaway slave convicted of
highway robbery. At the time, Gourdin says, there was “considerable disorganization” among the
slaves in the neighborhood, and many slaves were trying to “destroy the peace and safety of the
people.” Even after the runaway, named Abner, had been captured, tried, and sentenced to be
hanged, he escaped “by violence.” Petitioner: Gourdin, Peter. [2 Petitions.]
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0162. Chester County. James, Major, and Samuel Campbell explain that for many years a slave
named Sall had attended their blind mother. Having now inherited the slave, who is about thirtyfive years old, the Campbells ask that she be emancipated for her faithful service. Petitioners {3}:
Campbell, James; Campbell, Major; Campbell, Samuel.
0165. John Bradley seeks compensation for his slave, Moses, who was killed by “the falling of a
tree” while working on a public road between two plantations in Claremont County, Sumter
District. Moses, who was twenty-one or twenty-two, was worth five hundred dollars. Petitioner:
Bradley, John. [2 Petitions.]
0175. The Board of Commissioners of Roads for Saint Andrew's Parish states that the slaves
who were liable to work on the Dorchester Road, eight miles from Charleston, had been hired
away to work on the railroad. The commissioners seek five hundred dollars to repair the
Dorchester Road. Petitioner: Wigfall, Thomas, Jr.
1836.
0178. Clarendon County. Martha Benbow, widow and executrix of the estate of the late Evan
Benbow, seeks to emancipate a slave woman, Duley, about thirty-five years of age, and her child,
Rufus, about seven, as specified in Benbow's will. Duley is of “unexceptionable moral character”
and is able to obtain a livelihood in “an honest & virtuous manner.” In addition, the petitioner
intends to provide for Duley and her child out of her husband's estate. Petitioner: Benbow,
Martha. [2 Petitions.]
0190. Charleston County. Free person of color Moses Irvin, who was emancipated for his “faithful
services” during the Revolutionary War, seeks to purchase his wife. He wants to emancipate his
wife and two children, fearing that after his death they will be seized as “vacant property—and
confiscated for the use of the State."
0198. Spartanburgh County. Mathew Allen requests compensation for damages sustained when
his wagon and driver, a person of color, plunged through the bridge spanning Sandy Run on the
road leading from Charleston to Columbia. The driver was seriously injured, bedridden for two
months, and unable to work for four months. His horses were also damaged, and he lost his
wagon, dry goods, and crockery. His damages totaled two hundred dollars.
0204. Sumter County. John Bradley seeks compensation for his slave, Moses, who was killed in
1831 while working on a public road. Moses was worth six hundred dollars at the time of his
death and would currently be worth one thousand dollars, Bradley states.
1837.
0211. Charleston County. Mary Douglass, a free woman of color, seeks compensation for her
slave, William Irvine, who was convicted and executed for “stabbing, Bruising, and wounding” a
white man named John Cramer.
0215. Barnwell County. William Dunn asks to emancipate a twelve-year-old slave, William, whose
mother is “light yellow” and whose father is white. William “is so very white and of so good a
complexion, as not to create even a suspicion on the mind of the most critical observer” that he is
a person of color. Further, he has always been separated from the “Society of Coloured people”
and consequently has “not imbibed any of the principles or habits peculiar to them.” Dunn seeks
to free William and asks that he be permitted to remain in the state.
1838.
0218. Edgefield County. John Jones seeks compensation for his slave, Jim, who was convicted
and executed for burning a gin house as well as “a parcel” of doors and window frames.
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0228. Orangeburgh County. Gideon Hutto, administrator of the estate of the late John Bonnett,
seeks compensation for a slave named Primus. Primus was convicted and executed as an
accessory to the murder of Bonnett, who was his owner. Prior to the execution, Primus was
appraised at six hundred dollars. Bonnett had owned only one slave, and he left behind six
children, the eldest being thirteen years of age.
0231. Orangeburgh County. On 19 August 1838, Jim, a slave owned by Richard Johnson, killed
another slave who was “committing depredations” on Johnson's property. Arrested for murder
and taken to jail, Jim was being transported eighteen miles to court when he exhibited “in his
language & conduct, strong Evidence of bodily indisposition & severe mental agitation.” During
the trip, Jim died. Describing his slave as a person of “fidelity & usefulness & the general
correctness of his deportment,” Johnson seeks compensation for his loss.
0244. Chester District residents seek to repeal the section of an 1834 act that forbids teaching
slaves to read. They believe that the law is unenforceable and unconstitutional. Literate slaves
could be found on “probably every plantation in the State.” If ancient Rome could manage slaves
to become part of the best trained army in the world, “does chivalrous South Carolina quail before
gangs of cowardly Africans with a Bible in their hands? Let it not be said!” Ignorance would make
slaves the dupes of “every Nat Turner who might chance to pass along.” Petitioners {36}: Lyle,
David; Miller, John; Miller, Robert; Simpson, John; Wylie, John.
0248. Richland County. Through a life of “Care and industry,” free person of color James
Paterson purchased his wife, Sarah, and his two children, George and Mary. Paterson seeks
exemption from the law prohibiting the manumission of slaves and requests permission to free his
family, “so that the honest industry, the unwearied pains and untiring efforts of a Father &
Husband may not be lossed to him entirely."
0252. Chester County. Alexander Crawford, executor of the estate of Agnes Crawford, seeks the
manumission of a slave, Hannah, and her three children, Rebecca, Nancy, and Lylla, in
accordance with Agnes Crawford's will.
0255. Citizens of Abbeville District seek the repeal of an 1834 law forbidding people to teach
slaves to read. They request “the liberty, if we think proper, to teach our Servants to read, with so
much fluency and Correctness, that they will be able to peruse the word of God and other
religious books with pleasure and profit to their Souls.” The law forbidding slaves to read is an
“infringement of the right of conscience.” In addition, the law is unconstitutional as it negates the
Eighth Section of the South Carolina Constitution establishing freedom of religion. “By this article
all mankind within the limits of the State, are allowed the free exercise and enjoyment of religious
profession and worship.” Servants were a part of mankind; they had immortal souls; they had the
right to exercise religious worship. Next, servants who live in religious families and have been
taught to read and understand the word of God are “much more trusty in every respect” than
those who did not know or understand the Bible. Petitioners {61}: Foster, James; Hamphill, W. P.;
Kennedy, A.; Shanks, John; Shanks, Matthew.
1839.
0262. Lancaster County. Elisha Blackmon, executor of the estate of the late Samuel McCorkle,
seeks to emancipate certain slaves: John, Bob, Lund, and Isaac, their mother Lydia, and Lydia's
two younger children, Harriet and Simpson. The four older children were to be hired out until
McCorkle's debts were paid. If the petition were denied, the executor was instructed to transport
the family to the nearest nonslaveholding state or send them to “the Free Colony in Africa.”
Lydia's children should “support their mother, when she is unable to help herself by Infirmity and
her old age.” McCorkle also bequeathed Lydia, and after her death, the children, his Bible.
0269. H. L. Pinckney, mayor of Charleston, on behalf of the city council, seeks a law prohibiting
the public sale of slaves in Charleston except at a “mart” now being established in the city.
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0273. Eight citizens of the Edgefield District request a refund of their poll taxes. Two among them,
Polly Dunn and Bartley Jones, are free people of color, but their ages—sixteen and seventeen
years—exclude them from being taxed. Six others do not qualify under the term “free person of
color” as they are of Indian ancestry. Petitioners {8}: Chavis, Durany; Chavis, Frederick; Chavis,
Lewis; Jones, Bartley; Jones, James.
0276. Spartanburgh District residents complain that “a great many Free Negroes & Couloured
persons” borrow from whites on a promise of future labor. When they fail to perform the work,
whites cannot collect the debts because most free persons of color do not own property. The
petitioners seek legislation “authorizing the Judgment Creditors to levy their Executions on the
persons of said Free Negroes or Mulatoes & sell them at public sale for the shortest period of
time so as to pay of the Executions which may be obtained against them.” Petitioners {4}: Bates,
Anthony; Poole, Elisha; Stovell, Bartholomew; Thornton, Samuel.
1840.
0280. Lexington County. Elizabeth Butler seeks compensation for her slave, Sam, who broke his
leg in 1840 while performing public road work. Ordered to climb a tree and clear out some
branches, Sam fell and severely injured himself. Butler is a widow, the mother of four children,
and “throws herself on the magnanimity & generosity of your Honorable Body for relief."
0284. Stephen Deveaux of St. John Berkeley in Charleston District seeks compensation for a
slave who was convicted and executed for burning a dwelling house in the village of Pine Ville.
0288. Residents of Union District seek the passage of a law to prohibit whites from bequeathing
property, in trust, to slaves. “Money is power,” they assert, “& none need live in Servitude who
can command it.” Petitioners {168}: Bowker, Thomas; Hardy, J. N.; Hendley, George W.; Morgan,
W. B.; Nelson, James. Petitioners {48}: Farr, W. B. R.; Foster, J. J.; Foster, Presley; Mosley,
Lemuel; Spears, J. F.
0300. In 1832, free person of color Jehu Jones, a Charleston tailor, was induced by promises
from the American Colonization Society to leave South Carolina for Liberia. Jones, at age fortyfive, was promised land, the assistant editorship of a newspaper, and a teaching position.
Traveling to Washington and New York, Jones discovered that the promises were false. The
society “abandoned me to my fate—among Strangers Jealous of New comers, without friends,
without funds & without Employment.” He wanted to return home but could not because of the
restrictions against free people of color entering the state. Living in Philadelphia in 1840, Jones
says he longs to return home. He seeks permission to visit the grave of his father and embrace
the friends and associates of his youth.
0306. Charleston residents ask that the petition from Jehu Jones, a free person of color, to return
to South Carolina be granted. They know him as a man of fair character and good deportment.
Petitioners {24}: Bond, Jacob; Gadsden, James; Huger, Alfred; Manigault, Joseph; Rose, James.
[2 Petitions.]
0312. Ten Richland District residents seek the repeal of the law requiring free people of color to
pay a poll tax of two dollars. The tax “bears with great severity” upon free women of color, who
are often “persons in extremely destitute circumstances.” These women have neither fathers,
brothers, nor husbands to care for them, and if they fail to pay the tax, they are subject to be sold
as slaves. Petitioners {10}: Allen, J. D.; English, John; Higgins, Jacob B.; Higgins, William;
Leddingham, John. [2 Petitions.]
0318. Citizens of Charleston Neck complain in an unsigned petition that their proximity to
Charleston makes them a magnet for disorderly houses, unruly people of color, and “wicked and
depraved persons of every class.” Dissolute people of color loiter in crowds about these shops,
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the petition states, and they purchase liquor, drink, and are loud and boisterous on the Sabbath
“when duty to God and man requires that peace and quiet should pervade our streets.” In
addition, the taxes on free people of color in Charleston are so severe that many of them have
moved to Charleston Neck. “Wherever congregated, they have depreciated the value of all
property around them, and have in many instances rendered themselves a complete nuisance to
the neighborhood.” To remedy this situation the petitioners propose a bill for new taxes in the
Neck on land inhabited by a majority of slaves or free persons of color, a capitation tax on free
people of color, and a tax on all persons of color who keep a store or shop. Also, they propose to
organize six hundred patrollers, currently under a single captain, more effectively by a revision in
the patrol laws.
1841.
0323. Lancaster County. In 1839, Jane Horton's slave, Rhoda, was convicted of arson and
sentenced to be hanged. The South Carolina governor commuted the sentence to transportation,
but Rhoda died in jail before she could be sent out of the state. Horton says she is a poor widow
and the loss of such property would be “grievious and oppressive."
0327. Lexington County. Elizabeth Butler seeks compensation for her slave, Sam, who broke his
leg in 1840 while performing public road work. Ordered to climb a tree and clear out some
branches, Sam fell, and he “is now a cripple and must always remain so.” Sam's value is “greatly
reduced,” and Butler has “incurred very considerable expense in the way of the Doctor's bill."
1842.
0332. Abbeville County. Samuel Jordan seeks compensation for his slave, Muphrey, who was
convicted and executed for murdering Sampson, another of Jordan's slaves. Muphrey was tried
12 September 1842 and hanged 2 October 1842. Jordan asks to be paid “the Sum allowed by
law in such cases."
0337. Forty-one citizens seek legislation to remedy the fact that a large portion of the slave
population is “prohibited by those who have the power, from knowing or hearing anything of the
christian religion. Should a government calling itself Christian keep within its borders any group
unconditionally and arbitrarily excluded from a knowledge of the Christian religion? Should a
government that protects its slaves from violence by declaring that masters who murder their
slaves shall forfeit their own lives be so negligent as to deny slaves the truths found in the Bible?”
Petitioners {41}: Brailsford, Theodore W.; Broughton, Edward, Jr.; Manning, R.; Powers, John;
Wigfall, Arthur.
0342. Sumter County residents seek to ensure that slaves are not “arbitrarily excluded” from
practicing Christianity. There is currently “a large body” of the slaves in a “deplorable condition,”
living as heathens. They should be taught the word of God, and no law should prohibit such
teachings. Exposing slaves to Christianity would strip the South's adversaries of “every valid
argument” against slavery. Nor would this be a union of church and state. The petitioners
advocate that slaves be exposed to “any branch of the christian church.” Petitioners {14}:
Brailsford, Theodore W.; Broughton, Edward, Jr.; Manning, R.; Powers, John; Wigfall, Arthur.
0347. Charleston County. John Strohecker and other South Carolina slave owners seek
compensation for their lost slave property. In 1835, the slave ship Enterprize, transporting
between seventy and eighty slaves from the District of Columbia to South Carolina, was blown off
course, landed in Bermuda, and the slaves were seized and freed. Strohecker argues that many
of the owners are “Widows and orphans, who feel the loss very severely.” They had been insured
by the Marine and Fire Insurance Company of Charleston, but the company refused to pay, even
after a court judgment against it for $35,530.
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0351. Lexington County. Elizabeth Butler seeks compensation for her slave, Sam, who broke his
leg in 1840 while performing public road work. Ordered to climb a tree and clear out some
branches, Sam fell, and he “is now a cripple and must always remain so.” Sam's value is “greatly
reduced,” and Butler has “incurred very considerable expense in the way of the Doctor's bill."
1843.
0355. In states to the southwest of South Carolina, laws had been passed prohibiting the
importation of slaves “merely for sale,” Charleston residents explain. As a result, Charleston had
become a mecca for slave dealers from the Upper South who were selling slaves to the
southwest. Many “vicious slaves are palmed upon careless or confiding Citizens among us, and
their mixture with our own, has had a sensible influence upon the docility and usefulness of our
slaves.” The motive of slave dealers was to remove slaves as far from their “old range, & from
notorious bad character as possible.” The citizens seek legislation prohibiting the introduction of
slaves into South Carolina merely for sale. They further request additional sanctions to the Act of
1740, which “prohibits the slave from sleeping or living out of his Master's premise or of those of
some white person appointed by the Master.” Petitioners {97}: Hume, C. Gadsden; Peronneau,
William H.; Ravenel, James; Robinson, S. T.; Stoney, Samuel.
0359. The illicit traffic in stolen goods between slaves and whites is an evil that “strikes at the
vitals of our domestic Institutions,” citizens of Barnwell District state. Slave owners are not only
defrauded of their property but are sometimes deprived of their slaves. Trained to “every
violence,” the slave “too often becomes an assassin or incendiary.” “His mind corrupted, his body
diseased, he either fills a premature grave by the effects of disease or through the administration
of justice, expiates his crime on the gallows, while the promoter and partner of his guilt escapes
with impunity and in defiance of the law.” The dockets are crowded with indictments for trafficking.
The petitioners seek a law imposing corporal punishment on whites for a second conviction for
trafficking with slaves, either selling them liquor or purchasing corn, rice, or cotton, “the three
great staples of the County.” Petitioners {42}: Daniel, Seth; O'Bannon, L.; Sanders, Wilson;
Stansell, M. R.; Williamson, V. J.
1844.
0363. Harman Garrett seeks compensation for his two slaves, Randal and Fanny, who were
executed on 18 August 1843 after being convicted of murder by the Laurens District Court of
Magistrates and Freeholders.
0366. Greenville County. Edmund and Anthony Jones, agents and heirs of the late John Jones,
seek compensation for a slave named Peter. Peter was convicted and executed for the murder of
John Jones, who was his owner.
0371. Charleston County. In 1834, Sarah Reid, a free person of color, died leaving a will and
transferring a house and lot to her slave husband, Ben. After his death, the property was to go to
Sarah Ann Reid and, if she died, to Sarah Ann's children. Now, the mother of Sarah Ann Reid,
Muriah (or Myra) Reid, asks that the property be put in her and Sarah Ann's name. Although Ben
had possessed the property for a number of years, questions were being raised as to whether a
slave could hold an estate in land, even for his owner's use. Myra Reid fears the estate will
escheat to the state.
0376. Barnwell County. Joseph Lawton seeks compensation for his slave, Dick, who was
convicted and executed for arson. Dick was tried 28 June 1844 and executed 6 September 1844;
the Court of Magistrates and Freeholders appraised his value at six hundred dollars.
1845.
0380. Thomas McClintock seeks compensation for his slave, Tom, who was convicted and
executed in July 1838 for burning the house of John Cockrell, a resident of Fairfield District.
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McClintock estimated his loss at about eight hundred dollars. The court described Tom as a
young man “of yellow complexion” who was “likely and sound."
0384. Lancaster County. Elisha Blackmon, executor of the estate of the late Samuel McCorkle,
seeks to emancipate certain slaves: John, Bob, Lund, and Isaac, their mother Lydia, and Lydia's
two younger children, Harriet and Simpson. The four older children were to be hired out until the
deceased owner's debts were paid. If the petition were denied, the executor was instructed to
transport the family to the nearest nonslaveholding state or send them to “the Free Colony in
Africa.” Lydia's children should “support their mother, when she is unable to help herself by
Infirmity and her old age.” McCorkle also bequeathed Lydia and, after her death, the children, his
Bible. Now McCorkle's “Relations and Kindred” are contesting the will. They stand to gain little,
Blackmon contends, and, in any event, Lydia's children are “notoriously the offspring of the body
of the said McCorkle."
0391. Abbeville County. Joseph Burton seeks compensation for a slave, Abel, who was convicted
and executed for raping a white woman, Sally Fife.
0395. Priscilla Jessup, a free woman of color, acquired “considerable property,” including her
husband, John, whom she purchased in 1834 from Nathaniel Marion of Abbeville District. Held in
“nominal servitude,” John had always been “industrious, honest faithfull and obedient.” She seeks
to free him, fearing that after her death he would “fall into other hands in the condition of a slave."
0400. Charleston County. Three South Carolina merchant-shippers seek the repeal of the 1841
law to prevent “citizens of New York from carrying Slaves or persons held to Service out of this
State and to prevent the escape of persons charged with the commission of any crime.”
Expounding on the principles of free trade, they describe the law as extreme and oppressive. It
requires that inspectors come aboard ships and that ship owners pay inspectors a ten dollar
boarding fee. The cost to them alone is about nineteen hundred dollars, they state. In addition,
the law requires ship owners who have a slave or person charged with a crime on board to pay a
fine of five hundred dollars, no matter “how innocent and ignorant the Captain Owners, and all
concerned may be.” Petitioners {3}: Caldwell, J. W.; Smith, W. B.; Street, T.
1847.
0406. Richland County. Robert Adams seeks compensation for his slave, Arthur, who was
convicted and executed for murder. The slave was appraised at seven hundred dollars.
0410. Colleton County. James Perry seeks compensation for a slave, Prince, who was convicted
and executed for poisoning with intent to kill. Perry asserts that “the slave being a prime and
valuable fellow, your Petitioner has consequently experienced great loss.” Prince was appraised
at five hundred dollars.
0419. Kershaw County. Members of the Town Council of Camden request permission to enact
several ordinances regarding slaves: they seek authorization to tax slave owners who hire slaves
out in town for more than a month; they request permission to hire hands to work on the streets,
rather than allow slave owners to “commute” the labor of their hired slaves to a “given sum"; and
they seek permission to keep the money derived from fines levied against those found guilty of
buying the produce of planters from slaves or selling alcohol to slaves. Currently, city officials in
Charleston and Columbia keep this fine money. Further, the law of the state would be better
implemented “in spirit” if cases of this nature were brought before town officials rather than taken
to court, where “technicalities” could get the guilty parties off. Town officials should “hear, &
determine such offences, affix such fines thereto as are now authorized by Law, and receive such
fines into the Treasury of the Town.” Petitioner: DeSaussure, J.
0423. Chester District slave owner George Gill stipulated in his will that following his death his
slave, Andy, should be put under the care of his son, C. S. Gill, and given “as much land as he
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could cultivate.” When George Gill died in 1844, the bequest was instituted. A short time later,
however, C. S. Gill died, and in accordance with the will, Andy was permitted to purchase himself.
Another of Gill's sons, James, now petitions the legislature to free Andy, a “faithful Servant” who
is “now quite old (being 51 years of age).” Petitioner: Gill, James. [2 Petitions.]
0429. Barnwell County. Marmaduke Jones requests a divorce or annulment of his marriage to
Ann Jones, formerly Ann Ross, on the grounds that she gave birth to a “mulatto” child. The
couple married on 13 January 1847. On 24 August 1847, Ann Jones “was brought to bed, and
then and there delivered of a mulatto child."
1848.
0436. Fifty-nine citizens of Sumter District request compensation for James Moore, the owner of
a slave, Isaac, who was executed for allegedly participating in the murder of J. Ervin. Following
the slave's death, the petitioners uncovered new facts. They have “reasonable doubts” whether
Isaac should have been hanged. Moore still owes six hundred dollars for Isaac, he is “a needy
man with a large family to support,” and he would be seriously injured if he were forced to pay the
debt. The petitioners ask that Moore be compensated more than the amount permitted by law.
Petitioners {59}: Chandler, Thomas, Sr.; Hardy, Thomas; Keels, Isaac; McIntosh, James G.;
Player, W. W. [2 Petitions.]
0445. Twenty-nine citizens of Sumter District request compensation for James Moore, the owner
of a slave, Isaac, who was executed for allegedly participating in the murder of J. Ervin. Following
the slave's death, the petitioners uncovered new facts. They have “reasonable doubts” whether
Isaac should have been hanged. Moore still owes six hundred dollars for Isaac, he is “a needy
man with a large family to support,” and he would be seriously injured if he were forced to pay the
debt. The petitioners ask that Moore be compensated more than the amount permitted by law.
Petitioners {29}: Allen, D.; Epps, David; McFaddin, John J.; Welch, N. H.; Welch, R. I.
[2 Petitions.]
0454. Colleton County. St. Paul's Parish resident Joseph Waring seeks compensation for his
slave, Tom, who was convicted and hanged for the murder of John Winningham. The petitioner
asserts that the Court of Magistrates and Freeholders appraised Tom at six hundred dollars.
0458. Baltimore County, Maryland. The Baltimore and Southern Packet Company's president
seeks exemption from a South Carolina law prohibiting the introduction of people of color into
South Carolina from north of the Potomac River. The company plans to run steam packets
between Baltimore and Charleston, and it may be necessary to employ people of color as
stewards, cooks, firemen, engineers, pilots, and mariners. Petitioner: Norris, G. S.
0462. Claremont County. Richard Singleton, executor of the estate of John Singleton, seeks
compensation for a slave, Dick, who was convicted and executed in 1826 in Sumter District. He
also seeks compensation for Paul and Bacchus, who were convicted and executed in 1843 in
Richland District for murdering their overseer.
0469. Colleton County. J. J. Waring seeks compensation for his slave, Tom, who was tried,
convicted, and executed for murdering a mulatto man named John Winningham. Tom was
appraised at six hundred dollars.
0473. Charleston County. A. V. Toomer seeks compensation for his slave, John, who, along with
others, broke out of the Charleston workhouse. John wounded three white men during his escape
and was later executed. Toomer asks for two hundred dollars compensation.
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1850.
0478. York County. J. D. Goore seeks compensation for his slave, Lewis, who was convicted and
executed for assaulting a white woman, Malinda Pollard, with intent to commit rape. Lewis was
tried before a Court of Magistrates and Freeholders on 26 July 1850 and executed 22 August
1850. He was appraised at two hundred dollars.
0482. Barnwell County. Samuel Page seeks compensation for a slave, John, who was convicted
and executed for assault and battery on a white woman with intent to commit rape. The Court of
Magistrates and Freeholders valued the slave at two hundred dollars. At the trial, Margaret Myer
said that a man stepped behind her at about dusk, pulled her bonnet over her face, and “tried to
smother me with his hand.” Margaret's sister, R. J. Myer, walking ahead, yelled for their father
and kicked the assailant with her thick shoes. “He then struck me and called me a devil,” R. J.
Myer testified. “He did not touch her dress as I saw,” the sister continued, and he made no
attempt “either by word or action to commit the deed of which he is accused."
0492. Beaufort County. Dr. R. Fuller requests permission to teach the slaves on his plantations
how to read. He owes an allegiance to South Carolina and its laws, but he owes a higher
allegiance, Fuller asserts, to God. He believes it is necessary that slaves learn to read the Holy
Scriptures. Petitioner: Fuller, R. [3 Petitions.]
0503. Charleston County. St. John's Berkeley Parish slaveholder Thomas Bennett seeks a
pardon for his slave, Peter Blacklock, who accidentally struck and killed another slave with a
board. Peter was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to two years in jail. The petitioner
notes that Peter was well-behaved, but he became an alcoholic and will most likely die while in
jail.
0509. Spartanburgh County. Fifty-four-year-old free mulatto William Jackson, who had lived in the
area his entire life, asks to free his wife, Lucinda, and his six children—Susan, Martha, Mary,
Berryman, Margaret, and one unnamed. His wife “was a slave, though three degrees removed
from the African race."
0512. Colleton County. Free person of color Robert Hopton seeks to have his annual capitation
tax remitted by the state because of his service during the Mexican War. He worked as a servant
in the Palmetto Regiment and remained with the regiment during “all the Battles of the Valley,
rendering every attention to the Sick and wounded.” Whenever possible he shouldered a musket
and fought in the ranks. Now he was “considerably impaired” and unable to earn a living.
0515. Residents of Fairfield District ask for a revision in guardianship law requiring white
guardians to be responsible not only for free adults of color and but also for children of color.
When free children of color reach age twelve, the guardian should “have full and ample power to
appoint a guardian to such children.” Under the authority of the guardian and with approval of a
justice of the peace, the children should be bound out to a useful trade until they reach age
twenty-one. The problem, the petitioners said, was that although free people of color were
required by law to have a white guardian, their children ran around “unbound and unguardianed
among our slave population” to the damage of the owner. Petitioners {54}: Cockrell, Thomas B.;
Coleman, H. A.; Feaster, J. C.; Feaster, John; Myers, John J.
1851.
0518. Barnwell County. Slave owner Charles Carroll requests compensation for his slave, Paul,
who was tried and executed for murdering his overseer, John A. Guess. The Court of Magistrates
and Freeholders, referring to an 1843 law, appraised the slave at two hundred dollars.
0523. Barnwell County. Arthur Stokes seeks compensation for his two slaves, Bob and Isham,
who were convicted and executed for murdering a white man. The Court of Magistrates and
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Freeholders appraised each slave’s value at one thousand dollars. They were executed in April
1851.
0529. Seventy-two-year-old Ephraim Wilson, a free person of color, seeks title to a house and lot
on Henrietta Street in Charleston. He had previously entrusted his marriage certificate and other
valuable documents to his guardian, Oliver M. Smith, a lawyer now deceased, but Smith had lost
or misplaced them. The documents proved that the last persons who owned the Henrietta Street
property were Wilson’s wife, Maria E. Wilson, and his stepson, Felix Bradshaw, both deceased
and leaving no heirs at law. Wilson asks that the law concerning escheats “may be remitted and
the Title to the lot vested in him."
0536. Residents of Barnwell District ask for a law to punish slaveholders whose slaves steal or
damage property. Not only should the slave be punished, as afforded by the current law, but the
owner should be made responsible to pay for the property damaged or stolen. Petitioners {93}:
McCormick, Joseph; Rentz, George; Smoke, James; Smoke, James D.; Smoke, William.
0541. Marion County. Horatio McClenaghan requests compensation for two slaves, Daniel and
Sutton, convicted for grand larceny and sentenced to “receive today (May 21 1851) one hundred
lashes on the bare back.” Further, they were to be incarcerated for four months, and on the first
Monday of each month they were to receive an additional fifty lashes. When they were brought
out for their last whipping they were so “reduced” with fever that they could not stand “& were
insensible to the punishment inflicted.” They both died a few days later.
1852.
0545. Failing to file a tax return, slaveholder Joseph Allen was issued a writ of fieri facias by the
Barnwell District tax office. Forced to pay $207.52 in taxes, double the amount he owed, Allen
argued that he had failed to file his return because the collector was ill. In addition, the
assessment of 1851 was based on his previous year's slaveholding. It did not take into account
that he had sold nineteen slaves and sent another eighty-two or eighty-three out of the state to
the west. He seeks reimbursement.
0553. Laurens County. Gabriel South's slave, Nathan, valued at eight hundred dollars, was
convicted for robbery and sentenced to death. Nathan died in prison before his scheduled
execution. South is concerned that he will not be able to collect the two hundred dollar court
appraisal without an act of the legislature.
0562. Colleton County. Citizens of St. Bartholomew Parish seek legislation to prevent free
persons of color from retailing liquor, especially to slaves. The petitioners “believe it is in the
power of the Legislature to pass an Act, throwing suitable safe guards around the community on
this subject, so as to secure good order, and to protect the rights and morals of the country.”
Petitioners {46}: Burbidge, John W.; Campbell, William L.; Fishburne, J. B.; Fraser, Alexander;
McCants, L. [2 Petitions.]
1853.
0570. Charleston County. Individual and company stockholders of a steamship line seek
exemption from a law entitled “an Act to prevent the Citizens of New York from carrying Slaves
&c &c.” Because a small portion of the stock is owned in New York, the company is subjected to
a tax of ten dollars per departure. For their four ships—5,250 tons each—this adds up to the
“enormous” sum of one thousand dollars a year. The stockholders ask for relief. Petitioners {20}:
Adger, James.
0574. Pursuing a runaway slave named Charles who was accused of robbery, Spartanburgh
constable James A. Graham traveled to Hamburg and back to the lower part of Spartanburgh
District, a distance of about four hundred miles round-trip. He lodged Charles in the Laurens
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District jail, as it was close by. Graham seeks reimbursement of $67.80 for travel expenses (six
cents a mile by railroad, or $24), $35.80 for jail fees in Laurens District, and wages of $8 for eight
days.
1854.
0579. In July 1853, Thomas Motley and William Blackledge of Richland District journeyed through
the backcountry of Colleton District, using a pack of vicious dogs to attack slaves. At Parker’s
ferry, they killed a slave and hid the body. They then set out for Charleston. When authorities
refused to pursue them, J. Malachi Ford, designated special constable, captured the two and
forced them to reveal the location of the slave’s body. Ford carried the men to Walterboro,
Colleton District, where they were later tried, convicted, and executed. According to Ford, the two
murderers inflicted on slaves ”the most outrageous and inhuman barbarities, hitherto without a
parallel in the Civilized Country.” Ford seeks two hundred dollars compensation.
0583. Twenty-two residents of Orangeburgh District seek the passage of a law requiring slaves
who travel off the plantation to carry tickets specifying their destination. The present tickets are “a
Nuisance to the community.” A new law would permit whites to administer “patrol Law” to guilty
slaves. Petitioners {22}: Bobo, J. G. T.; Collier, J. D. W.; Collier, L. P.; Reese, W. P.; Rost, H. S.
0587. Colleton County. Members of a committee of the Agricultural Society of St. Paul's Parish
seek the modification of a law regarding hiring slaves and harboring runaways. The petitioners list
three separate instances in which owners discovered that their runaway slaves had been hired in
Charleston by free people of color. The owners filed suits against the employers. The courts,
however, refused to grant redress because it could not be proved that the employers knew the
slaves were runaways. Masters of vessels along the Pon Pon River were also in the habit of
hiring slaves, against the wishes of their owners, to load vessels. Such activities disturb the
necessary rest time for slaves, the petitioners state, while encouraging “habits of Intemperance
and disorganization.” The petitioners state that these acts are “antagonistic to the Agricultural
Interests of the State and if so continued, will impair all confidence in a Title to this property so
valuable, at least for Taxable purposes.” Petitioners {5}: Brisbane, William; Grinsbale, J. B.;
Mathews, F. Frasier; Mathews, I. Raven, Sr.; Morris, George.
1855.
0592. Clarke County. Edward Ware, a resident of Athens, Georgia, seeks compensation for a
runaway slave, Pressly, who had absconded three-and-a-half years before. Pressly had made his
way to South Carolina but was captured as a fugitive. The slave claimed he was a free man of
color named Joe Brown, but in 1854 he was sold. Ware did not find out about the sale until 1855,
and he seeks payment of the money taken in, minus expenses, at the sheriff's sale—$392.66.
Petitioner: Ware, Edward. [2 Petitions.]
1856.
0609. Abbeville County. The trustees of the estate of Dr. De La Howe and the Lethe School
request permission to purchase four slaves, two married couples, for use at the school and on the
Lethe Farm. The petitioners argue that hired slaves had caused “much difficulty, trouble and loss
of time”; they were so “abandoned” as to be of little value. Purchasing slave couples, on the other
hand, would provide a more stable labor force. Moreover, the cost of interest on money borrowed
to purchase four slaves would be less than yearly hiring costs. Petitioner: Reid, J. S.
0613. The members of the Brotherly Association of Charleston, an organization of free persons of
color, seek an act of incorporation and permission to hold real and personal property worth ten
thousand dollars. The association has acquired a tract of land near Charleston and wishes to use
it as a cemetery. Petitioners {23}: Bennett, Samuel; Mark, Francis; Marshall, James B.; Simmons,
Moses; Smith, Thomas B.
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1857.
0617. Charleston County. Manumitted for his betrayal of the Denmark Vesey plot in 1822, Peter,
now Peter Desverneys, seeks to increase his fifty dollar annuity. He is now old with a large family,
and he is no longer able to work for his own support.
0623. Charleston County. Many years before his death in 1849, Robert Ervin manumitted a slave
named Sye, who “accumulated a small property.” Sye then purchased his slave wife and slave
granddaughter. By law they remained slaves. When Sye died intestate in 1836 or 1837, he left a
small farm in St. John's Parish, where his slave wife lived until her death, and his slave
granddaughter lived until her death. When the granddaughter died in 1851, she left six slave
children, the eldest age eleven, the youngest an infant. William Irvin, a neighbor and the son of
Sye's original owner, was called on to care for the slave youngsters. He did so at considerable
expense. He now asks that he be given the right and title in the land and personal property of Sye
Ervin, property that would escheat to the state.
0635. Berkeley County. St. James's Goose Creek “planter” John Packer seeks fifteen dollars in
compensation for attending to the burial of Peggy Scott, a free person of color who lived on his
“plantation.” She died in April 1857 and had no relatives. Packer states that he is a poor man and
needs to be reimbursed.
0638. Clarendon County. In 1817, Robert W. Ervin, now deceased, freed his slave, Sye. Sye later
purchased his wife, Clarissa. The couple had six children: Becky, Jane, Betsy, Leny, Sarah, and
Isaac. Clarissa is now deceased, and Becky now has a child. When Sye died he owned his six
children, a tract of land, and some cattle and hogs. The estate, however, had no legal heirs and
escheated to the state. In 1850 or 1851, William Ervin, son of Robert Ervin, took possession of
Sye's estate, including the slaves, who until this time were “passing as free.” The petitioners, who
are heirs of Robert Ervin, “some being in very moderate circumstances, and others in
embarrassing circumstances,” have frequently asked William Ervin to secure “the benefit of said
slaves or their value” to Louisa Ervin, mother of William Ervin and widow of Robert Ervin. The
petitioners assert that they are equally entitled to the slaves and ask the legislature to vest the
title of the slaves to Robert Ervin's heirs at law. They request that the sheriff sell the slaves to the
highest bidder and divide the proceeds equally among the heirs. Petitioners {4}: Ervin, Louisa;
Ervin, Richard B.; Lessesne, Marion; Lessesne, Neighbor D.
1858.
0645. Charleston County. The South Carolina Mechanics Association seeks to halt slave selfhire. Although laws had been enacted against the practice, the “baneful evil” continues, and the
statutes are a “dead letter.” New stringent measures are necessary. Such legislation would be in
the best interest of white mechanics, white laborers, self-hired slaves, and slave owners. In
addition, a tax should be placed on free people of color. Petitioners {8}: Bross, B.; Daggett, S.;
Huggins, T.; Petit, Charles P.; Riddell, J. S.
0649. Forty residents of Marion District seek an amendment to the criminal law requiring owners
of slaves convicted of crimes to be liable for “all the costs & expenses of their imprisonment and
trial.” In cases where slaves are acquitted, however, the prosecutor should pay half the expenses.
Petitioners {40}: Carmichael, D. W.; Johnson, H.; Monroe, F. M.; Page, A.; Roberts, James.
0653. Thirty-seven residents of Marion County seek to strengthen the law preventing slaves from
hiring their own time. The petitioners argue that “nothing is so injurious to the institution of slavery
as the loose manner in which some owners maintain their authority and we deem this hiring by
Slaves of their own time, either directly or indirectly, as especially demoralizing to the slaves and
injurious to other owners of slaves.” They assert that the law, which levies a $50 fine as a penalty,
is “ineffectual in remedying the evil.” The fine, they assert, is “trifling,” and it is very difficult to
bring cases to court. The petitioners ask that the penalties be increased and that magistrates try
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the offense “with a jury if any Constitutional difficulties intervene.” Petitioners {37}: Dickson, W. J.;
Evans, C. D.; Godbold, Elly; McDuffie, A.; McMillan, W. C.
0658. Laurens County. William Boyd seeks compensation for an injury he sustained while
attempting to overtake three runaway slaves. Seeing the three pass near his house and
supposing by their appearance that they were runaways, Boyd and several others set out in
pursuit. With the aid of dogs, they chased the slaves ten miles. When they finally caught up with
the fugitives, a desperate struggle ensued, and Boyd was struck by a rock on his right upper arm.
The runaways were finally subdued by a force of about forty-five or fifty men. Boyd says he is
always in pain and his arm is useless.
0664. At a large and enthusiastic meeting on 8 October 1858, white mechanics and working men
in Charleston resolved that a committee be appointed to petition the next legislature to increase
the penalties and more rigidly enforce laws against slaves hiring their own time. The current laws
are “a dead letter.” Petitioners {162}: Jeffery, James; Land, Jacob N.; Long, James; Russell, A.
0669. Lancaster County. Sixteen-year-old Lucy Andrews, a free mulatto, asks to be enslaved.
The descendant of a white woman and a slave, Lucy wanders from place to place unable to find
work except for brief periods. She observes that “Slaves are far more happy, and enjoy
themselves far better, than she does, in her present isolated condition of freedom; and are well
treated, and cared for by their Masters."
1859.
0681. John Stack seeks compensation for his slave, Solomon, who died while working on the
state capitol building. Hired out to James Jones, commissioner of the state capitol, Solomon
became ill, but no physician was called until it was too late.
0684. Abbeville County. “You Can Consider this as a petition,” W. P. Hill writes from Greenwood,
South Carolina, to Samuel McGowan in Columbia, noting that Elizabeth Bug, a free woman of
color, desires to become his slave. She has a child about eleven months old and has been
anxious to become Hill's slave for about a year, he says.
0687. Lancaster County. In 1858, slave owner Marcus Tuttle abandoned his slave, Burrell, who,
at age about seventy-five, was blind and unable to support himself. Burrell wandered off but was
taken in and supported by John Hood, who provided the slave with food, clothing, and shelter.
Hood seeks compensation for his act of humanity.
0690. Charleston County. The president and directors of the North Eastern Rail Road Company
seek exemption for the “Slaves & free persons of Color owned & hired by this company” from
performing “ordinary road duty.” The company is under great pressure to fulfill its contracts “as a
common carrier,” and people of color are transported from place to place, which makes it difficult
if not impossible for them to perform road work. Petitioner: Ravenel, A. F.
0693. Allen Yates of Choctaw County, Alabama, seeks compensation for a runaway slave,
Anthony, who absconded in 1846. Anthony was captured by the sheriff of Union District, South
Carolina, and sold to William Smith, who now retains possession. Yates argues that he was
unaware of the sale and asks for $293.24, plus interest, in compensation—the amount after
expenses collected by the sheriff and turned over to the commissioner of public buildings in Union
District.
0698. Residents of Horry District seek a law forcing free persons of color to leave the state within
a given period of about “twelve months.” If free persons of color fail to leave within the given
period, they should be “subject to Public Sale by the Sheriff of the District,” and the proceeds of
the sale should be placed in the state treasury. As a class, free people of color are indolent,
insolent, and dishonest, residents state, and they carry on a “nefarious traffic with the Slaves.”
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Indeed, the petitioners say, a slave now awaiting execution had been led into a life of crime by a
free woman of color. Petitioners {40}: Beaty, Thomas W.; Bridges, J. C.; Darby, John; Spivey,
R. W.; Waller, W. W.
0702. Residents of Horry District renew their petition sent to the last session of the legislature.
They ask that free persons of color be forced to emigrate within six months or be sold into
slavery. Free persons of color should be given an opportunity to choose a master if they wish to
remain in the state. Petitioners {28}: Derham, I. H.; Enzor, Alva; Gernigan, Alfred; Harrelson,
Isaiah; Norris, Isaac K.
0706. Residents of Chester District seek to remand free persons of color to “a happy state of
bondage.” It is the place “where God designed the African race to be.” Free persons of color are
“indolent, lazy, improvident, destitute of forethought, and totally incapable of self government,”
residents state. Furthermore, their shanties are repositories for stolen property, the petitioners
say. Petitioners {87}: Atkinson, E.; Pagan, R. A.; Smith, L. D.
0711. Abbeville District residents seek a law to return free persons of color to “a happy State of
bondage; the place where God designed the African race to be.” “We of the South understand the
Negroe character,” they assert. “We know that naturally they are indelent, Lazy, improvident,
destitute of forethought, & totally incapable of self government.” They are unable to support
themselves, and their shanties are rendezvous places for ill-disposed slaves who gather to drink,
gamble, barter stolen goods, and “plot mischief,” residents state. Free persons of color have a
“demoralizing effect upon our slave population,” the petitioners write. “Their indolence &
impudence are dilleterious to the young & inexperienced slaves.” Petitioners {113}: Allen,
Stephen, Sr.; Dunn, Robert; Hodges, J. F.; Hodges, James R.; Pelot, Charles M.
0716. Charleston County. White master stevedores object to a bill before the legislature proposed
by the “Committee on Collored Population” granting licenses and badges to slaves to act as
stevedores. Not only would such a law deprive whites of work, but it would put southern slaves in
direct contact with “any emisary the North may think propper to send amongst us.” In addition,
allowing slaves to act as stevedores would contravene laws prohibiting the assemblage of slaves.
“On board ships they Can Collect from 40 to 60 at any time without any White Person among
them.” White stevedores have invested upwards of forty thousand dollars in the business and pay
taxes. They ask the legislature to “place us on equality with Our fellow Citizens the Mechanics,
and not to Class us with Slaves.” Petitioners {8}: Stoddard, G. B.
0719. Charleston County. The “mulatto” children of Philip Stanislas Noisette, a white botanist who
had died in 1835, ask to remain in South Carolina as free persons of color. By his will Noisette
had directed that the children, born of his slave wife, Celeste, be removed to some country where
they would be free. The children, however, are “attached to the laws of the County, and very
unwilling to remove.” Petitioners {2}: Noisette [children].
0724. Sumter District residents seek to force free persons of color out of the state or reduce them
to slavery. Constant difficulties arose “from the association of slaves and free Negroes.”
Petitioners {84}: Bateman, John; Carraway, James H.; Davis, T. B.; Gilbert, A. A.; McElveen,
Phillip.
0728. Residents of York District seek to “reduce the colored population of this state to one
uniform condition.” Free persons of color create a “great evil and mischief” by “mixing and
mingling with the slave population.” This injures the slaves and poses a danger to whites, they
state. Petitioners {57}: Bird, J. M.; Croce, Thomas W.; Green, William H.; McGill, Thomas;
Whisonant, John.
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1860.
0733. Lancaster County. In 1858, slave owner Marcus Tuttle “ran away from” South Carolina,
leaving behind a “Negro Man Slave named Burrell,” who, at age about seventy-five, was blind
and “utterly unable to support himself.” Burrell wandered off but was taken in and “kept, clothed,
and supported” by John Hood from December 1858 to October 1860. Following Burrell's death,
Hood seeks compensation.
0737. Newberry District residents request permission to sell a free woman of color and her
children for a period of time to pay her medical bills. The woman could settle all her debts by
selling herself and her children because she is “Stout of body” and has “Children that are large
enough to assist her in her work.” Her current employer would not pay any of “her debts from the
proceeds of her labor.” Petitioners {38}: Adams, C. B.; Hatton, T.; Howard, John G.; McCalmes,
John M.; Renwick, J. A.
0741. A group of prominent Charleston whites oppose a drafted bill to drive free people of color
from the state. They “find no reason for such severity.” They know many free persons of color
who are good citizens, industrious, and sober. In Charleston alone, free people of color own
property worth a half million dollars, they state. Petitioners {129}: Grayson, William; Harleston,
Olney; Harleston, William; Huger, Benjamin; Rose, James.
0746. Laurens County. Charles O. Lamotte requests sanction of a deed enslaving Lizzie Jones, a
free woman of color, who he says wants to become his slave. Lamotte believes that reenslavement of free people of color would have “a salutary effect” upon slaves and free people of
color.
1861.
0752. Lancaster County. Eighteen-year-old free mulatto Lucy Andrews, the daughter of a slave
and a white woman, requests that she and daughter, Emily, be made the slaves of W. Henry
Duncan. Lucy and Emily had lived on the Duncan farm for four years. “In her present status of
Free person of Color, she is necessarily excluded from the Society, protection, support &
direction of the white class, and at the same time she is deprived of all social intercourse with the
slave population.” She therefore seeks to become Duncan's slave and “thus secure to herself the
benefit of a Master, protector & friend."
1863.
0761. Fairfield District residents seek a limit on the number of “able Bodied Negro men” employed
in the turpentine business. Their labor greatly reduces “the number of Hands, that ought, we
think, be employed in raising such Provisions as the Salvation of our Cause depends upon.” The
petitioners further argue that since cotton is restricted, turpentine should also be limited. In
addition, black turpentine workers “will live by Committing depredations on the Neighbouring
Cribs and Stock while there is not white men enough left in the County to do Patrol duty,” they
state. These “depredations” deprive people of their stock and meat for their families. Petitioners
{13}: Boylston, R. B.; Carlisle, William; Hollis, John; Kennedy, James C.; Stewart, J. T.
0765. Lancaster County. Lucy Andrews petitions the legislature to enact a law making her and
her two children, Emily and Robbin, the slaves of H. H. Duncan. She and her children have lived
on the plantation for six years, and her husband, Robbin, is a slave belonging to Duncan. Before
making her home on the Duncan plantation, Andrews states, she “had no permanent place of
abode being necessitated to shift from place to place, and from time to time, in order to procure a
livelihood…. Your petitioner, in view of the hardships of life that she had to encounter before
coming to the premises of Mr. Duncan, and in view of the threatened difficulties of these times of
scarcity of provisions and clothing and the consequent high prices of the same” petitions to be
enslaved so that she and her family will have “a permanent Home."
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1864.
0770. Richland County. In 1857, brickmakers H. P. and John S. Green signed a contract with the
state to provide bricks for the new capitol building in Columbia. To make and transport the bricks,
they purchased thirty-two slaves for $20,800, to be paid in six annual installments with interest. In
1861, however, the project was halted, and the government refused to pay for future deliveries.
The petitioners sustained heavy losses. They owed $10,700 for the slaves, and being unable to
sell 2,500,000 bricks at $10 per thousand, they lost $25,000. They do not claim the entire amount
but ask that the outstanding debt on their note for the purchase of the slaves be paid by the state.
1865.
0774. Citizens of Colleton District ask for a stronger law concerning “negroes and free persons of
Color” carrying firearms. The current punishment of forfeiting the guns should be changed to an
indictable offense “whether said arms can be seized or not.” Petitioners {13}: May, James P.;
Rumph, Jacob; Stokes, Peter; Stokes, William; Walker, J. N.
1866.
0777. Barnwell County. Seventy-two-year-old former slave George seeks assistance in his old
age. Now infirm, he had served on a privateer in the War of 1812, and he had always been polite
and respectful to whites. No one “more deeply deplores the disastrous termination of the war to
both White and Black,” he explains, “than does your Petitioner."
Reel 12
Tennessee
0001. Descriptive material.
1798.
[December 1798 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0012.]
1799.
0008. Davidson County. Nashville whites complain that “divers Negroes” keep houses of
entertainment and trade with “Negroes in the Country.” The white residents seek to prohibit
people of color from keeping any houses in Nashville and to prohibit owners from allowing slaves
to engage in trade or exercise “any such Liberties.” Petitioners {30}: Able, Ezekiel; Hall, Absalom;
Hooper, A., Jr.; Lyons, Patrick; Mitchell, Moses.
0012. Sullivan County. William Evans requests compensation for his slave, Tom, who was tried,
convicted, and executed in Washington County in 1786 (under the authority of the government of
Franklin) for poisoning John Fuller Lain, a white man. Tom was refused counsel, Evans claims,
and thus the conviction was illegal. A “faithful, industrious, healthy slave, and in the prime of Life,”
Tom was worth “one hundred pounds Virginia Currency.” [Editorial Note: date of petition is
December 1798; petition out of chronological sequence.]
1801.
0020. Davidson County. Nashville residents request the emancipation of Bob, who “by his
industry and economy raised money & purchased himself” but remains legally a slave. Petitioners
{47}: Anderson, John; Bradford, B. J.; Cross, Richard; Deatherage, John; Deatherage, Tho.
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0023. Washington County. Unable to free his slaves without their being “seized upon and Sold by
the Sheriffs of the Respective Counties in which they may be found,” illiterate slave owner William
Nodding requests legislative authority to emancipate his bondspeople.
0025. Cocke County. Elisha Baker asks to emancipate his slave, Will Chambers.
0027. Knox County. Stephen Pate, a man in “low circumstances,” states that his slave, Jack, was
executed in Knoxville “agreeable to the Laws of the State.” Pate had relied on the labor of the
black man to support himself and his family and asks to be compensated for his loss.
0029. Knox County. Eighty-five petitioners ask that Stephen Pate receive compensation for the
slave Jack, who was executed. Pate is a “good honest Citizen” but in “low Circumstance of
Property,” they explain. Without his “Negro Man Jack” he could not support his family. Petitioners
{85}: Adair, John; Davidson, Samuel; Hardin, Amos; Hardin, Joseph; Scarbrough, William.
0032. Landon Carter's widow, Elizabeth Carter, states that her husband died owing about three
thousand dollars. She asks, for the benefit of her children, for permission to sell land rather than
slaves to satisfy the liability. She describes the slaves as either “young and rapidly increasing in
Value” or older and extremely useful as well as profitable to the estate.
1803.
0035. The petitioners request that Gasper Lott, a free black man, be permitted to prove his
accounts. Lott was a man of “great industry and Honesty” who had accumulated “considerable
property.” Not able to bring his debtors to account, the white people argue, “tends to deprive him
of the common benefits of a Citizen.” Petitioners {148}: Bullington, William; Ford, M.; McAlister,
John, Jr.; Rawlings, Moses; Stout, John.
0040. Washington County. William Nodding asks to free his slaves. They are young, he states,
and it will be in their power to acquire a comfortable living. They “ought to have the same
opportunity of doing well that any Person becoming a Citizen & free man of the State at that age
or under would have.” He argues that the “door ought not to be Kept shut against them more than
any other human race."
1806.
0043. Slave owner Gideon Blackburn asks to free the slave Jack, a gifted preacher. The slave
had acquired a “tolerably good education by which he may be qualified in moralizing and
Christianizing his unfortunate black brethren."
0046. Washington County. The petitioners request that Samuel Hamilton, a free man of color, be
allowed to prove his accounts. Petitioners {57}: Brown, Joseph; Crouch, John; Garner, Brice M.;
Nelson, Thomas; Solts, Henry.
1807.
0050. Smith County. Stephen Copland requests compensation for expenses incurred while
capturing and transporting a murder suspect to jail in Carthage, the seat of Smith County. In the
winter of 1807, a black man was killed by a Cherokee Indian man. The suspected murderer was
captured by Stephen Copland and taken to jail in Carthage, the county seat of Smith County.
Copland asks to be compensated.
1808.
[8 October 1808 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0065.]
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1809.
0052. In the winter of 1807, James M. Reynolds and John R. McFarland purchased for $333 a
black man named Moses, about thirty-five years old, from a Montgomery County man. Before the
transfer of the slave was made, Moses was executed for killing a man in Clarksville. When the
petitioners refused to pay for the slave, the seller sued and won. Reynolds and McFarland seek
reimbursement from the legislature.
0060. Davidson County. No man’s property should be taken without his consent, proclaims
Edward Blackman, who lost his only slave when the black man was convicted of a crime and
executed. Blackman seeks compensation.
0065. A memorial from the quarterly meeting of the Society of Friends in Jefferson County asks
the legislature to do away with “some or all” of the state's “peculiar institution.” It is man's natural
right to be free, they argue; in the meantime, they seek more effectual restrictions on the
introduction of slaves into the state, “not only by negro traders, but also by those who may
remove here.” Petitioners {10}: Coppock, Aaron; Coulson, John; Embree, Elihu; Macy, B.;
McNees, Samuel. [Publisher’s Note: petition’s date on Petition Analysis Record is listed as
8 October 1808; petition out of chronological sequence.]
0068. Appointed by Sheriff John Gordon to take over as jailer in Smith County, Basil Shaw was
on duty when two breakouts occurred on or about 21 and 25 October 1808. Shaw states that he
had expended funds on the prisoners, which included a man of color named Bill who escaped
only hours after his incarceration. Shaw asks for reimbursement.
1813.
0072. Montgomery County. Thomas Blackney requests the emancipation of Harriette and her
three children—Frederick, age twelve, John, age seven, and Tobias, age five. The mother, it is
believed, was born free and sold into slavery from Virginia to South Carolina to Tennessee. The
petitioner's father specifically requested that Harriette and her children be freed.
0076. White County. The petitioners request compensation for George W. Sanders for the loss of
the slave Jesse, who was found guilty and executed in Rutherford County for “feloniously stealing
the property” of Samuel Smith. The petitioners believe that Jesse was “entirely innocent of the
crime.” Petitioners {105}: Campbell, Daniel; Edwards, John; Richardson, B.; Sanders, George W.;
Thomas, Samuel.
0081. White County. George Sanders requests compensation for the loss of the slave Jesse, who
was executed in Rutherford County for a theft he did not commit. The owner did not have time to
“make the necessary arrangements for a fair trial,” and the prosecutor later admitted that two
other slaves were guilty of the crime.
0087. Washington County. Free man of color Samuel Hamilton asks that he may be permitted to
prove his accounts; otherwise he might “lose a Considerable Portion of the fruits of his honest
Industry."
0090. The petitioners complain about the numerous tippling shops managed by free people of
color “and others” who cater to slaves. Servants, they contend, cannot be sent on ordinary
business without stopping off at one of the shops, which proliferate along the roads and in towns
throughout the state. Slaves frequently barter stolen goods for whiskey, they claim. In addition,
the Sabbath is “regularly violated.” Memorialists seek laws to suppress this “dangerous and
growing evil.” Petitioners {80}: Moore, D.; Robertson, Jonathan F.; Seales, Joseph; Wharton,
Jessey; Whitsill, James.
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1815.
0095. Free black man Sherwood Brian, a group of Davidson County residents testify, is a person
of good character, industry, and merit. He should be given the same citizenship rights “in every
respect as if he Were a White man.” Petitioners {25}: Anderson, Joel; Carter, Christopher; Carter,
James; Carter, John; Fuger, Joshua.
0098. Five slaveholders and eighteen nonslaveholders seek a law to allow owners who wish to
free their slaves permission to do so without having to promise to ensure for the slaves' future
maintenance. Slaves to be freed, the petitioners state, should be capable of self-sufficiency. The
memorialists also suggest the possibility of passing a law freeing descendants of slaves after a
certain date. By that date whites could teach slaves “some occupation by which they may get an
honest living, & teach them to Read the Holy scriptures and give them reasonable privilege of
attending meeting for divine Worship.” Petitioners {23}: Bailey, John; Bailey, William; Bruner,
Henry; Bruner, Jacob, Sr.; Young, John.
0102. Humphreys County. In the heat of an argument, John Farmer accused Thomas Laneir of
selling “a parcel of free negroes.” Laneir sued for libel and won. Farmer was deprived of “the
privileges of a Free Citizen.” Humphreys County residents ask that these rights be restored. It
was “the general opinion, at that time,” they say, that Laneir was involved in selling free Negroes.
Petitioners {85}: Black, Stephen; Duncan, Elijah; Little, Isaac; Traylor, Hiram; Turner, E.
0106. Matthew Clay seeks payment for the hire of four of his slaves who worked on the
Cumberland Turnpike Road. An agent for the state signed a promissory note for the slaves' hire
on 21 September 1814 for more than four hundred dollars. About the time the slaves completed
the work the agent died, and Clay still holds the note.
0111. Davidson County Sheriff Michael C. Dunn seeks payment for returning slave-stealer John
Rose to Winchester District, Smith County. In 1808, Rose stole a slave named Ralph. The
sheriff's expenses in returning the accused man totaled $24.25.
0118. Knox County residents complain about the immigration of “a great number of free Negroes
and men of colour” from various parts of the United States. Many of the immigrants are without
any visible means of support, the petitioners claim. They ask the legislature to impose “such
terms or conditions” as it might deem appropriate to “secure the good order and peace of
society.” Petitioners {73}: Grant, James; Kain, John; Shell, Christian [replaces “John [illegible]”
listed on PAR as petitioner]; White, C. W.; White, James.
1817.
0125. The Manumission Society of Tennessee seeks to ameliorate the condition of slaves. “We
believe that God has made of one blood all conditions of men to dwell upon the face of the earth,”
the members assert. They ask for laws to prevent the separation of husbands from wives and
parents from children and for laws regulating the material conditions of slavery, including slave
diet, clothing, lodging, labor, and punishment. They ask that owners who wish to emancipate their
slaves be permitted to do so “without restraint or hazard of any kind.” Petitioners {11}: Anderson,
Isaac; Cappock, Aaron; Hartt, William; Pendleton, Joseph; Young, Jonathan.
0134. Claiborne County. The petitioners argue that slave owners should be permitted to free their
slaves on “terms which will not involve them, nor their estates,” in the future maintenance of the
emancipated black people. The legislature should pass a law making slaves born after a certain
date free after they reach a certain age. Emancipated blacks should be taught occupational skills
and to read the Bible, they argue. Petitioners {102}: Donaldson, Joseph; Rogers, Reuben;
Shetter, George; Surry, Daniel; Walker, James.
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0138. Free man of color Joshua Hall paid taxes, performed military duty, participated in the war
with Britain, and is an upright and honest man, a group of Greene County residents explain. He
should therefore be permitted to prove his accounts “by his own Oath, when he cant by any other
person.” Petitioners {86}: Alexander, George; Alexander, Lorenzo D.; Alexander, Thomas;
Alexander, George, Jr.; House, George.
0142. Sullivan County. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, white residents
argue for gradual emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making slaves born after a
certain date free when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in accordance with the
ideals put forth in the Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, and Constitution. In addition,
slave owners who wish to free their slaves should be able to do so without having to promise to
maintain the slaves in the future. Masters should teach their blacks useful occupations, permit
them to attend church, and teach them to read the Bible, the petitioners assert. Petitioners {29}:
Foust, John; Freeman, Thompson; Hicks, James G.; Obrien, James; Pendleton, Joseph.
Petitioners {7}: Canaday, Benjamin; Coffman, Richard; Dick, Jac[o]b; Fosdick, John; Morgan,
William, Jr. Petitioners {9}: Archer, Joseph; Bacon, Jonathan; Mulkey, Isaac; Warren, John.
Petitioners {151}: Daughery, Josiah; Hazelwood, Thomas; Millikan, Elihu; Stubelfield, Martin;
Willson, Abram. Petitioners {32}: Breeden, Joseph; Brooks, William; Fife, John; Shelley, Jacob;
Sterling, Thomas. Petitioners {25}: Norwood, Nicholas; Roberts, Jacob; Roberts, James; Roberts,
William; Williams, Abel L. Petitioners {7}: Baker, William; Bales, John; Mills, Jesse; Mills,
Jonathan; Woodward, Abraham. Petitioners {33}: Adamson, John A.; Hutson, Richard; Jarkins,
David; McMahan, William; Williams, Isaac. Petitioners {19}: Johns[on], Samuel; Magot, J. William;
Mowery, Moses; Mowery, Sammuel; Walker, James. Petitioners {20}: Routh, Jacob; Routh, John;
Routh, Stephen; Stanley, Joseph; Wilhight, James. Petitioners {37}: Hunt, William; Morrisset,
Mary; Robinson, John; Smith, Robert; Willeford, Henedy. Petitioners {42}: Bagle, Hugh; Logan,
David; Rhea, A.; Russom, John; Upton, James. Petitioners {38}: Braselton, Samuel; Goodman,
Tobias; Hammonds, Willis; Haworth, Richard; Haworth, William. Petitioners {95}: Briton, Daniel;
Dyche, Emmanuel; Quols, Rollin; Weston, John; Weston, William. Petitioners {215}: Adams, M.;
Embree, Eli; Laws, Ephraim; Lusk, John; Lusk, Joseph. Petitioners {77}: Caldwell, Anthony;
Hammer, Elisha; Hammer, Isaac; Haworth, James; Talbot, Williston.
0204. The petitioners, white residents of Davidson and Williamson counties, state that they would
never suggest anything “so unreasonable” as a general plan of emancipation, but they ask that
slave owners who wish to free their slaves be given the opportunity to do so. The petitioners
propose that owners be allowed to petition a county court to free their slaves and that the owners
provide emancipated people of color with “a lease on lands for years, free from rent charges &
taxes,” provisions “adequate for the first year,” and livestock and “articles of husbandry.”
Petitioners {11}: DePriest, John; Jordan, Archer; Price, John; Russwurm, John T.; Tankersby,
John R.
0208. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, white residents argue for gradual
emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making slaves born after a certain date free
when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in accordance with the ideals put forth in
the Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, and Constitution. In addition, slave owners who
wish to free their slaves should be able to do so without having to promise to maintain the slaves
in the future. Masters should teach their blacks useful occupations, permit them to attend church,
and teach them to read the Bible, the petitioners assert. Petitioners {52}: Cope, George; McNabb,
Absalom; Strain, James. Petitioners {19}: Boatwright, Chesley H.; Byles, David; Goad, William;
Martin, William; Winstead, Francis. Petitioners {189}: Earnest, Wesley; Hise, James; McClain,
Joseph M.; Seton, Jacob; Wilhite, John. Petitioners {245}: Bewly, Anthony; Doan, David; Doan,
John; Doan, Thomas; Oliphant, Thomas. Petitioners {31}: Hicks, Charles; Saffell, John; Warren,
Charles H.; Warren, Thomas S.; Zuker, William. Petitioners {48}: Greene, James; Hare, Isaac;
Lee, Ephraim; Lee, William; Matthews, Harlon. Petitioners {56}: Dickey, Samuel; Eakin, Samuel;
Gilmore, James; Thewaart, Alexander; Wayne, Josiah. Petitioners {46}: Debzell, David; Houston,
Amuel; Houston, John; McGinly, John A.; McReynolds, James. Petitioners {268}: Carter, Bazil;
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Hatcher, William; Parkins, Levi; Parkins, Simon; Short, William. Petitioners {42}: Culverhouse,
William; Hunes, Alexander; Kearns, James; Smith, Robert; Wilkerson, Thomas. Petitioners {35}:
Cook, George; Matthews, John; Mitchell, Jesse; Mitchell, John; Stevenson, Nicholas. Petitioners
{49}: Caldwell, Anthony; Campbell, John H.; Rankin, Thomas; Thornberry, Amos; Williams,
Richard. Petitioners {16}: Ball, William; Hall, Joseph; Vance, John; Watkins, William; Williams,
Abel.
0260. Knox County. Residents of Knoxville are deeply concerned about the “inconsistency of
Slavery with republican principles and the natural rights of man.” They seek to prevent slaves
from entering the state. Also owners should be permitted to free their slaves by wills without
putting up a security bond, while slave traders and others should be prohibited from selling family
members away from one another. It would be a “great advantage” for everyone concerned—slave
and master alike—if emancipated slaves returned to Africa, the petitioners assert. Petitioners
{95}: King, James; Morgan, Rufus; Nelson, Thomas H.; Park, James; Strong, Joseph C.
0266. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, white residents argue for gradual
emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making slaves born after a certain date free
when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in accordance with the ideals put forth in
the Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, and Constitution. In addition, slave owners who
wish to free their slaves should be able to do so without having to promise to maintain the slaves
in the future. Masters should teach their blacks useful occupations, permit them to attend church,
and teach them to read the Bible, the petitioners assert. Petitioners {126}: Coulson, Enoch; Harre,
Isaac; Loyd, Abel; McCasidell, Phillip; Murphey, Elijah. Petitioners {11}: Green, James H.; Green,
Jesse; Green, Samuel; Hawthorn, Jesse; Hawthorn, John. Petitioners {14}: Caldwell, James;
Ewing, William; Hooke, Robert; Street, Aaron; Wallace, M. Petitioners {41}: Adamson, John;
Hudson, Richard; Moore, John M.; Pierce, Robert; Williams, Isaac. Petitioners {169}: Canaday,
John, Sr.; Millikan, William; Mills, Asa; Simmons, William; Talbott, Parry.
1819.
0288. “I think that it is not possible for the present legislature to pass any one act that would do
more honour to this state, and to the Members of the present legislature than one that would
provide to protect this suffering race of beings from the cruelties they are exposed to,” Isaac
Hammer said, seeking some action of “humanity” in behalf of the enslaved “African race.”
Hammer cites among other examples of the horror of the institution an incident in which a slave
mother drowned her two children rather than see her family separated on the auction block as her
master vowed to do despite her pleas.
0293. Benjamin Ingram of Lauderdale County, Alabama, requests permission to transport
seventeen or eighteen slaves from Alabama to Tennessee. Ingram is the guardian of five girls
ages sixteen and younger whose father, Jesse Westmoreland, left them the slaves. The girls live
with their mother in Giles County, Tennessee; the slaves are in Alabama.
0297. James Jones, president of the Manumission Society of Tennessee, asks that slaves be
gradually manumitted. To protect the property of whites, the legislature should pass a law that all
slaves born after a certain date be freed at a certain age. The society calls for an end to the
“Barbarous practice of trading in human flesh” and the breaking up of black families.
0301. The petitioners ask that “some effectual preparatory steps” be taken to abolish slavery.
They believe that all men “are created equally free and independent; and are endowed by their
Creator, with certain natural and unalienable rights.” Petitioners {70}: Edmonson, William;
McCampbell, Isaac; McCampbell, James; McCampbell, Robert; McCampbell, Samuel.
0304. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, white residents argue for gradual
emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making slaves born after a certain date free
when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in accordance with the ideals put forth in
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the Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, and Constitution. In addition, slave owners who
wish to free their slaves should be able to do so without having to promise to maintain the slaves
in the future. Masters should teach their blacks useful occupations, permit them to attend church,
and teach them to read the Bible, the petitioners assert. Petitioners {137}: Canaday, Henry;
Douglass, Alexander; Elliott, Israel; Lewis, Richard; White, Solomon. Petitioners {11}: Bayles,
Daniel; Brown, John; Patten, John; Thompson, Jesse M.; Young, Jonathan.
0311. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, whites argue for gradual
emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making the descendants of slaves born after a
certain date free when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in accordance with the
ideals put forth in the Constitution. In addition, slave owners who wish to free their slaves should
be able to do so without having to promise possible maintenance for the slaves in the future.
Masters should teach their blacks useful occupations, permit them to attend church, and teach
them to read the Bible. Petitioners {47}: French, George; Hardiman, Benjamin; Howser, Henry;
Reid, Abraham.
0314. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, white residents argue for gradual
emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making slaves born after a certain date free
when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in accordance with the ideals put forth in
the Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, and Constitution. In addition, slave owners who
wish to free their slaves should be able to do so without having to promise to maintain the slaves
in the future. Masters should teach their blacks useful occupations, permit them to attend church,
and teach them to read the Bible, the petitioners assert. Petitioners {67}: Babb, Abner;
Harrison, Isaiah; Moore, John; Stanberry, Solomon; Wells, George. Petitioners {66}: Boyd,
James; Brown, William; Cradick, John; Hains, Abraham; Pickering, Samuel. Petitioners {171}:
Grills, Josiah; Harmer, Isaac; Hunter, Thomas; McAmish, Robert; Treshour, Jacob. Petitioners
{17}: Alton, Isaac; Bayles, Samuel; Bayles, William; Helm, Henry. Petitioners {225}: Brown,
Moses; Fisher, Jacob; King, Ellis; McCurry, James; McCurry, Joseph. Petitioners {85}: Barnes,
Nathan; Helm, John C.; Helm, William B.; Payne, Jesse, Jr.; Taylor, Leroy. Petitioners {121}:
McBath, James; McBath, Russell R.; Snow, James; Story, Isaac; Vance, Joseph. Petitioners {95}:
Adamson, Abraham; Herndon, Ellet; Mills, Henry; Morgan, Thomas; Pierce, George. Petitioners
{77}: Graham, Charles; Graham, Samuel; Humphreys, Samuel; Jackson, Gillum; Tilson, Stephen.
0354. The white petitioners seek to ameliorate the condition of slaves. They suggest that masters
who free their blacks give them “a lease on lands for years, free of rent, charge and taxes, with
provisions adequate for the first year, with a limited portion of stock and articles of husbandry.”
The petitioners propose that any “unprincipled and designing” men who attempt to deprive former
slaves of their freedom should be indicted for a felony. The western country might provide a
suitable location for former slaves who gain self-sufficiency. Petitioners {45}: Barkley, William;
Daily, James; Gap, James; Jones, Joseph; Newman, Cornelius.
0357. The petitioners ask that “some effectual preparatory steps” be taken to abolish slavery.
They believe that all men “are created equally free and independent; and are endowed by their
Creator, with certain natural and unalienable rights.” Petitioners {60}: Bogue, Samuel; Jordan,
Thomas; Lenning, Isaac; Mulvany, John; Rector, Ludwel L.
0360. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, white residents argue for gradual
emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making slaves born after a certain date free
when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in accordance with the ideals put forth in
the Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, and Constitution. In addition, slave owners who
wish to free their slaves should be able to do so without having to promise to maintain the slaves
in the future. Masters should teach their blacks useful occupations, permit them to attend church,
and teach them to read the Bible, the petitioners assert. Petitioners {2}: Hammer, Isaac; White,
James.
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0363. The white petitioners seek to ameliorate the condition of slaves. They suggest that masters
who free their blacks give them “a lease on lands for years, free of rent, charge and taxes, with
provisions adequate for the first year, with a limited portion of stock and articles of husbandry.”
The petitioners propose that any “unprincipled and designing” men who attempt to deprive former
slaves of their freedom should be indicted for a felony. The western country might provide a
suitable location for former slaves who gain self-sufficiency. Petitioners {42}: Caldwell, Alexander;
Caldwell, Antony; Caldwell, John; Tucker, James, Sr.; Turrell, Joseph. Petitioners {46}: Brooks,
Stephen; Ellis, Jesse; Macnees, Samuel; Stanfield, Samuel; Ward, John, Jr.
0369. The petitioners ask that “some effectual preparatory steps” be taken to abolish slavery.
They believe that all men “are created equally free and independent; and are endowed by their
Creator, with certain natural and unalienable rights.” Petitioners {30}: Anderson, Robert W.;
Browning, James; Cliborn, John; Hawks, Luke; Murphy, John.
0371. The white petitioners seek to ameliorate the condition of slaves. They suggest that masters
who free their blacks give them “a lease on lands for years, free of rent, charge and taxes, with
provisions adequate for the first year, with a limited portion of stock and articles of husbandry.”
The petitioners propose that any “unprincipled and designing” men who attempt to deprive former
slaves of their freedom should be indicted for a felony. The western country might provide a
suitable location for former slaves who gain self-sufficiency. Petitioners {292}: Earnest, Lawrance;
Pain, Henry; Seaton, James; Wells, George; Wright, John.
0383. A group of Tennessee residents ask that “some effectual preparatory steps” be taken to
abolish slavery. They believe that all men “are created equally free and independent; and are
endowed by their Creator, with certain natural and unalienable rights.” Petitioners {148}:
Anderson, Isaac; Ewing, John; Ewing, William; Houston, John; McNutt, James. Petitioners {54}:
Biddle, John; Craft, Elias; Scott, Wiley; Walton, James; Warren, Thomas T.
0393. Norfleet Perry of Davidson County seeks a divorce from his wife, Rachael, because she
was “delivered of a mulatto child.” Perry could produce testimony from several “respectable
persons.” He states that the law (granting the circuit court jurisdiction in divorce cases) was
“silent, and deficient” in a case such as his own.
0401. Cocke County free man of color Obadiah Going seeks “the privileges of a citizen.” He
states that it is his misfortune to be the descendant of persons of mixed race.
0405. Twenty-seven citizens ask the legislature to destroy the unfair advantage that hawkers and
peddlers enjoyed over merchants. Itinerant sellers of goods paid no taxes on land or slaves, while
merchants paid state and county taxes, the petitioners state. The petitioners would like to see a
law enacted that would tax hawkers and peddlers the same as merchants. Petitioners {27}:
Baker, Thomas; Brazelton, William; Cate, William; Fain, John; Reese, William B.
0410. The petitioners ask that “some effectual preparatory steps” be taken to abolish slavery.
They believe that all men “are created equally free and independent; and are endowed by their
Creator, with certain natural and unalienable rights.” Petitioners {112}: Brewer, Benjamin;
Crouch, Joseph; Mitchell, Adam; Nelson, Henry; Travis, John.
0414. Franklin County. Hardy Doyle asks for divorce from his wife, Betsy, a violent, profane, and
angry woman who became “the companion of whores & whoremongers of the most abandoned
character.” Among them were “free negroes and mulattoes (I blush to tell it)” whom she invited
into her house against Doyle's specific instructions. On one occasion, with a pistol in one hand
and a butcher knife in the other, she went up and down the streets of Winchester cursing “some
person” who had angered her. Now shunned in respectable society, Betsy was not qualified to
take care of his family.
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1820.
0436. Grainger County. Free black man Claborn Gowen complains that he cannot “prove his
accounts by his own oath.” White men have this privilege, but he cannot act “against a white
man.” Consequently, he suffers when he is not paid for his work.
0438. Harriet H. Gibson of Stewart County seeks a divorce from her husband, Henry Gibson, who
abused her and kicked her out of the house. He frequently cohabited with other women. Later, he
emigrated to Kentucky, taking his horses and ten slaves.
0441. Isaac Hammer argues that slavery is inconsistent with the principles of the Declaration of
Independence, the Constitution of the United States, and the Holy Scriptures. Why is it, he
wonders, that black people are not entitled to American liberties? He wants a law enacted to
abolish slavery gradually.
1821.
[1821 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0513.]
[1821 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0522.]
0446. John Cockrill asks that the slaves Sam and Harry be emancipated. The slaves had
belonged to Thomas Malloy of Davidson County, who died about 1800. Their sister, a former
“mulatto” slave woman named Sophy, persuaded the executors of Malloy's estate to free Sam
and Harry on condition that the slaves find a benefactor to pay the estate $900 and that they work
off the debt to the benefactor. Cockrill put up the money and acknowledges that he was
“completely reimbursed."
0450. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, white residents argue for gradual
emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making slaves born after a certain date free
when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in accordance with the ideals put forth in
the Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, and Constitution. In addition, slave owners who
wish to free their slaves should be able to do so without having to promise to maintain the slaves
in the future. Masters should teach their blacks useful occupations, permit them to attend church,
and teach them to read the Bible, the petitioners assert. Petitioners {14}: Chambers, John;
Chambers, William; Early, Samuel; Hill, Joseph; Weese, James.
0453. The committee appointed by the Seventh Annual Convention of the Manumission Society
of Tennessee calls for the gradual abolition of slavery. The society suggests that a law be passed
that “would secure a free birth to all children of colour born after a certain date.” Petitioners {2}:
Caldwell, John; Lockhert, Jesse H.
0458. Williamson County. Catherine Smith asks for a divorce from her husband, John P. Smith, a
violent, “dissolute & dissipated” man who engages in sexual intercourse with other women,
including his own slaves.
0466. Sumner County. Illiterate Elizabeth Street asks for a divorce from her husband, James
Street, who “sold a negroe, the only one we had, and then went off and left.” Meanwhile, his
creditors have taken other property, and the petitioner is left to support her children.
0472. Grainger County. Teenager Kimble E. Midkiff was induced by an older woman named
Nancy, age thirty or more, to leave his family and marry her in an adjacent county. He was acting
more out of passion than reason, he states, and soon learned that the woman was sleeping with
“a man of colour.” He asks for a divorce.
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0480. Mary Logue seeks a divorce from her husband, David Logue, who accosted her and
violated her trust by going to bed with a black woman. “Very frequently,” she reports, he dragged
her through the house by the hair and threatened her life.
0483. Carter County. Mary Humphreys and her husband, Jesse, possessed a substantial amount
of property, including a farm, mill, livestock, and “stock of Negro's.” Jesse suffers from a
“melancholy state of mind,” she states, and neglects his affairs. She asks that she be appointed
Jesse's guardian until he regains his sanity.
0488. Robertson County. Henry Gardner requests a divorce from his wife, Mary, who abandoned
him without cause. Later, she returned “& took away her Negroes.” Since that time, she has
refused to return.
0496. David Beaty directed in his will that following his death his slaves should be taken to
Indiana and set free. The slaves to be emancipated were George, Landon, Isaac, Lewis, and
Emma and her children—"each and all of them with their increase.” Emma's children include
Sophia, Celia, and Edmond; her grandchildren include William, Henry, Charles, Albert, Eliza,
Nancy, Martilla, Cynthia, Matilda, and Angelina. Beaty died in November 1816. Shortly thereafter,
his sister, Ann Hope, contested the will in the Davidson County Circuit Court. The executor of the
will, Robert Johnston, states that he was unable to carry out Beaty's wishes because of the suit;
eventually the case went to the Supreme Court of Errors and Appeals. That court gave Johnston
twelve months to carry out Beaty's wishes. Ill-health and other problems prevented Johnston from
doing so in the time allotted. He petitions the legislature to provide the slaves with “that measure
of Justice which you would have others measured unto you."
1822.
0502. Smith County. Jacob Stone, a free person of color, accumulated a large amount of
property. A group of white residents ask that Stone be allowed to prove his accounts to protect
himself from white men who refuse to pay their debts. Petitioners {116}: Browner, John; Days,
Thomas B.; Parrish, J.; Ray, George, Sr.; Taylor, David L. [replaces “A. C. F.” listed on PAR as
petitioner].
0507. Montgomery County. Slaveholder William McClure states that his wife, Rebecca, engaged
in “carnal intercourse with a certain Negro fellow slave by the name of Taff,” formerly one of
McClure's slaves. Rebecca, McClure claims, brought Taff into their house. When McClure
accused her of having sex with Taff, she confessed. A short time later, she left for Illinois.
McClure seeks a divorce.
0510. Robertson County. Elizabeth Saunders, widow of Edward Saunders, asks for permission to
sell land rather than slaves to settle the debts of the estate. She would prefer to retain the slaves,
at least in part, to prevent the separation of their families. “The personal property consists mostly
in young Negros belonging to families, which your memorialist would wish not to seperate, and
knowing that land enough may be sold to satisfy the debts."
0513. David Beaty directed in his will that following his death his slaves should be taken to
Indiana and set free. The slaves to be emancipated were George, Landon, Isaac, Lewis, and
Emma and her children—"each and all of them with their increase.” Emma's children include
Sophia, Celia, and Edmond; her grandchildren include William, Henry, Charles, Albert, Eliza,
Nancy, Martilla, Cynthia, Matilda, and Angelina. Beaty died in November 1816. Shortly thereafter,
his sister, Ann Hope, contested the will in the Davidson County Circuit Court. The executor of the
will, Robert Johnston, states that he was unable to carry out Beaty's wishes because of the suit;
eventually the case went to the Supreme Court of Errors and Appeals. That court gave Johnston
twelve months to carry out Beaty's wishes. Ill-health and other problems prevented Johnston from
doing so in the time allotted. He petitions the legislature to provide the slaves with “that measure
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of Justice which you would have others measured unto you.” [Editorial Note: date of petition is
1821; petition out of chronological sequence.]
0522. Ann Hope asks the legislature to prevent the emancipation of the former slaves of her
brother, David Beaty. In 1815 Beaty provided in his will that they be moved to Indiana and set
free. After Beaty's death in November 1816, Hope contested the will in the Davidson County
Circuit Court. The case eventually went to the Supreme Court of Errors and Appeals. The court
ruled that Johnston had twelve months to carry out Beaty's wishes. Ill-health and other problems
prevented Johnston from complying with the court's instructions, and he then petitioned the
legislature to provide the slaves with “justice.” Hope now asks that the legislature pass no law
freeing the slaves “but permit the question to be determined by the laws now in force.” She
argues that “the cause of humanity will not be furthered by their emancipation; without a guardian
and Master most of them would become a nuisance to the community and the others would be
unable to provide for themselves.” [Editorial Note: date of petition is 1821; petition out of
chronological sequence.]
1823.
0527. Williamson County residents ask that John Ragsdale receive a “small remuneration” for the
loss of his slave, Jim, who was convicted of burglary and executed. Ragsdale, they state, also
suffered the loss of his home by an accidental fire. Ragsdale is a “poor labouring man with a wife
and family of six helpless Children,” they said; Jim had been his means of support. Petitioners
{179}: Bond, M. L.; Edney, John; Foster, Robert C., Jr.; Olmsted, C. G.; Smith, J.
0534. Carter County. By an act of the legislature, Mary Humphreys was appointed guardian for
her insane husband. She now asks to retain her husband's property without giving bond or
security. Specifically “her husband is possessed of four very aged Negros” whom she would like
to avoid selling.
1824.
0543. Members of the Manumission Society of Tennessee, at their tenth annual convention, call
for the gradual abolition of slavery. In a democratic society, they argue, slavery creates “alarming
inconsistency.” They propose that all children of color born after a certain date be born free and
that the inhumane separation of husband and wife be eliminated by law. Petitioner: Jones,
James.
1825.
0546. Jefferson County. A blacksmith of “good moral Character,” free man of color Allen Williams
suffered “serious losses” when he was unable to collect his debts. A group of whites asks that
Williams be permitted to prove his accounts and be entitled to vote at elections for his militia
company and field officers. Petitioners {24}: Anderson, James; Austin, Joseph; Hodges, John;
Johnson, Thomas L.; Neal, James L.
0549. Members of the Manumission Society of Tennessee, at their eleventh annual convention,
call for the gradual abolition of slavery. They ask for the amelioration of the condition of “Our
degraded Slave population.” They propose that all children of color born after a certain date be
born free, that the practice of separating husband and wife be eliminated by law, and that masters
be permitted to emancipate their slaves easily and without financial obligations for the future of
the slave. Petitioner: Jones, John.
0552. White County. Free man of color Simon Hiot “is Honest, Industrious and Well behaved,” a
group of whites write, but is having difficulty “making Collections” because of his color. Hiot
“Deals in Cakes.” They ask for an act authorizing him to collect “Debts & accounts.” Petitioners
{75}: Eastland, Thomas; Ford, John W.; Haggard, Nathan; Lincoln, Jesse; Montgomery, Robert.
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0557. Rutherford County. Residents ask for relief from “a large group of free negroes” who
“control Company elections” for militia officers and are rude and insolent towards whites. In every
respect they are “hurtful to Society and especially to the rising generation.” Petitioners {32}: Bett,
William; Glaze, John; Goodwin, Jeremiah; Oakes, Jeremiah; Sum[m]ers, Hiram.
0560. The petitioners accuse twenty to thirty families of people of color in Rutherford County of
encouraging slaves to steal and of instilling “into their minds views of liberty.” At elections for
militia officers, free men of color united behind a favorite candidate “and thereby controal as they
please all elections where they have a stake.” Moreover, they are insolent toward whites. The
petitioners ask for a law compelling free blacks to leave the county and move “in some State
beyond the Ohio.” Petitioners {94}: Ashbrook, Moses; Crews, Squire; Johnson, William; Walker,
Robert; White, B. T.
0565. Campbell County. In 1803, Benjamin Bratcher's father gave him and his wife a slave
named Cloe and her children, “except for one Girl called Aggy,” on the condition that the couple
would move with the father from Virginia to Tennessee. On his deathbed many years later the
father “fraudulently gave a bill of sale” for the slaves to another of his sons. Bratcher seeks relief.
0568. Lamenting the deplorable condition of people of color and citing rights promised in the
Constitution, the petitioners seek a gradual end to slavery. The petitioners argue that
slaveholders should be permitted to free their slaves on terms that will not involve their estates so
long as the emancipated slaves can maintain themselves. They also argue that descendants of
slaves born after the passage of an emancipation law should be freed when they reach a certain
age. Black people to be freed should be taught a useful occupation and to read the Scriptures.
Lastly, a law should be passed prohibiting within the state the inhumane practice of separating
husbands and wives. Petitioners {233}: Bowman, Daniel; Crouch, Jesse; Hammer, Isaac; Jinkins,
George, Sr.; Lewis, Samuel. Petitioners {403}: Bickwell, Samuel; Eckel, Peter; Gentry, Charles;
Hays, Alexander; McDowel, William.
0583. In his will, John Akin ordered his heirs to free his female servant, Esanah, at the time of his
death and his male servant, Lott, three years after his death. The “heirs and Legal
representatives” seek to fulfill the wishes of the owner. It had been three years, and they ask to
emancipate Lott. Petitioners {7}: Akin, Samuel W.; Akin, W.; Biffle, Jacob; Grimes, William; Smith,
Moses.
0585. Lamenting the deplorable condition of people of color and citing rights promised in the
Constitution, the petitioners seek a gradual end to slavery. The petitioners argue that
slaveholders should be permitted to free their slaves on terms that will not involve their estates so
long as the emancipated slaves can maintain themselves. They also argue that descendants of
slaves born after the passage of an emancipation law should be freed when they reach a certain
age. Black people to be freed should be taught a useful occupation and to read the Scriptures.
Lastly, a law should be passed prohibiting within the state the inhumane practice of separating
husbands and wives. Petitioners {212}: Adamson, Simon; Fra[zi]er, William; McDaniel, James;
McDaniel, John; Wilhite, John. Petitioners {361}: Mathews, John; Rees, Moses; Wright, Jacob;
Wright, Jesse; Wright, John. Petitioners {495}: McFarland, Benjamin F.; Payne, Nathaniel;
Shelton, John M.; Shelton, Noah T.; Willson, Abram. Petitioners {9}: Brazelton, William; Golden,
Richard; Golden, William; Haworth, Isaac; Haworth, William. Petitioners {176}: Catching, John;
Cryan, John; Glascock, John; Haun, Christopher, Sr.; Rippto, George W.
0617. Two men ask the legislature to curtail the privileges of free people of color, who, they
argue, should not be permitted to serve in the militia or vote “in any election whatever.” They also
argue that free black people should “be taxed as high as a slave” and be required to have a
guardian “to direct their Conduct, &c.” Petitioners {2}: Miller, Robert; White, Burrel G.
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0619. Jabez Mitchell committed a man named David to the White County jail as a runaway slave.
David claimed he was a free man of color and had lost his papers. Mitchell is dubious whether he
should keep the slave incarcerated; if he were in fact a free man “it would operate oppressively
and Unjustly on him to be confined a lifetime in Jail.” The jailer asks for payment of his expenses.
0624. Lamenting the deplorable condition of people of color and citing rights promised in the
Constitution, the petitioners seek a gradual end to slavery. The petitioners argue that
slaveholders should be permitted to free their slaves on terms that will not involve their estates so
long as the emancipated slaves can maintain themselves. They also argue that descendants of
slaves born after the passage of an emancipation law should be freed when they reach a certain
age. Black people to be freed should be taught a useful occupation and to read the Scriptures.
Lastly, a law should be passed prohibiting within the state the inhumane practice of separating
husbands and wives. Petitioners {201}: Frazier, John; Hurt, Burgess; Mills, Samuel; Shelley,
Charles; Woodward, Abraham, Jr. Petitioners {295}: Beal, Solomon; Ries, Jonathan; Ries,
William, Jr.; Thompson, James; Wright, Jacob.
1826.
0638. A group of Humphreys County residents ask the legislature to grant free people of color
Sampson and Nancy the right to use the surname Black and “a right of distribution of property.”
Sampson, the petitioners state, bought himself and his wife, and the couple had two children—
Wilson and Nancy Ann. The former slaves acquired a “sufficient stock of property” to support
themselves and are described by the petitioners as “respectable citizens.” Petitioners {40}:
Adams, J.; Barton, John H., Sr.; Craig, James; Parker, John; Powers, L. B.
0641. Washington County. Free man of color Phillip Bell, age about twenty-two, complains of
“many inconveniences & disadvantages,” particularly his inability to “prove his accounts by his
own oath.” As a result he cannot collect debts owed him by whites. He seeks permission to prove
his accounts against whites in court.
0646. Lamenting the deplorable condition of people of color and citing rights promised in the
Constitution, the petitioners seek a gradual end to slavery. The petitioners argue that
slaveholders should be permitted to free their slaves on terms that will not involve their estates so
long as the emancipated slaves can maintain themselves. They also argue that descendants of
slaves born after the passage of an emancipation law should be freed when they reach a certain
age. Black people to be freed should be taught a useful occupation and to read the Scriptures.
Lastly, a law should be passed prohibiting within the state the inhumane practice of separating
husbands and wives. Petitioners {25}: Bible, Adam; Bible, George; Frey, John; Menkel, Samuel;
Stulls, John.
0648. Elizabeth Wilson of Sumner County asks for a divorce from her husband, Joseph P.
Wilson, who had left for parts unknown. When they married in 1822, she possessed fifty-three
acres of land and two slaves valued at six hundred dollars. During the next two years, the
husband engaged in every type of dissipation and extravagance, she states, and the entire estate
was lost to pay debts. Not only had he treated her in a “most brutal manner” but she now had a
baby and was forced to gain sustenance from relatives.
0651. Henderson County. Elizabeth Collier, widow of John R. Collier, asks permission to sell a
house and lot rather than slaves to raise money. She states that she owned Cintha and Cintha's
daughter before her marriage and needs them to help raise her own child.
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0001. Descriptive material.
1827.
0007. Free man of color Alfred Harris asks for an exemption from the law proscribing interracial
marriage and requests permission to marry Rachel Grimes, a white woman who, he notes, is
older than age twenty-one.
0010. Humphreys County. Former slaves Sampson and Nancy ask permission to take the
surname Black for themselves and their children. Sampson was emancipated by Thomas Black in
1816; Nancy, by Anderson White about 1823. Sampson states that he is an “industrious, honest,
peaceable, and Quiet Citizen.” [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames 0046–0047].
0011. Revolutionary War veteran Joshua Hadley asks that seven of his slaves be emancipated
rather than go to his six “ungrateful and cruel” children. Only one of his six children would even
speak to him, he states. He asks that Stephen, Phil, Silvey, and Catherine be freed after his
death and that Clinton, Nelly, and Washington be freed after the death of his wife, Hannah
Hadley.
0014. Whites in Smith County ask the legislature to compensate Edward Settle for the loss of the
slave Daniel, who was executed in conformity with the judgment of a special court under the
“provision of an act of Assembly passed in the year 1819.” Petitioners {254}: Branch, P.; Dixon,
Thomas; Hogg, Harvey; Lucas, George A.; Taney, Elijah.
0022. Davidson County Sheriff Michael C. Dunn seeks reimbursement for expenses incurred in
1808 while transporting John Rose—accused of stealing slaves—from Nashville to Carthage,
Tennessee. He paid the expenses for four men and four horses on the trip to Carthage and for
three men and four horses on the return trip. He also paid for a pair of “hand-cuffs and other
means for securing said criminal."
0031. Overton County. Simpson purchased “Two neagores, to geather with Several other
Species of property,” but the bill of sale was not registered within the time prescribed by law.
Worried about possible ramifications of this failure, Simpson asks for an act by the legislature to
register the deed. Petitioner: Simpson, Thomas.
0034. Williamson County. Miram Porter, widow of John Porter, asks permission to sell “such
perishable property belonging to said estate as may be thought necessary for the benefit of the
estate.” Her husband had died intestate 19 October 1827 but the court did not convene until
January of the following year. Among the widow's property was “a large stock on the plantation as
well as a considerable number of Slaves."
0038. John Dale of White County became crippled in an accident two years before. He states that
he is old and must care for his family “without the aid of slaves, servants, or sons.” He states that
he was a soldier during the American Revolution but never filed a declaration that would have
entitled him to a pension. He is asking for permission to sell liquor in Tennessee without a
license.
0044. A group of white citizens in Humphreys County support the petition of the former slaves
Sampson and Nancy, who are petitioning the legislature to use Black as a surname. The
petitioners had been acquainted with the couple “a great many years, and know them to be
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Industrious, Quiet, and good Citizens.” Petitioners {14}: Black, Peter; Morrison, N.; Thompson,
John. [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frame 0047.]
0045. Humphreys County. Former slaves Sampson and Nancy ask permission to take the
surname Black for themselves and their children. Sampson was emancipated by Thomas Black in
1816; Nancy, by Anderson White about 1823. Sampson states that he is an “industrious, honest,
peaceable, and Quiet Citizen.” [Editorial Note: corresponding petition is on frames 0046–0047.]
1829.
0050. Sevier County. The petitioners seek repeal of the 1825 act excluding nonslaveholders from
serving as jurors in slave trials. Petitioners {31}: Lyon, A. M.; McCroskey, John; McCroskey,
William; Patterson, James; Pickle, David.
0054. Greene County. The petitioners seek repeal of the 1825 act excluding nonslaveholders
from serving as jurors in slave trials. If the act were not repealed it would “ultimately destroy the
Spirit of our free institutions and build an aristocracy upon the ruins of public liberty.” Petitioners
{45}: Babb, Abner; Babb, Samuel; Dodd, John; Dodd, Thomas; Morrison, Elijah.
0058. Washington County. Two free people of color ask to “keep accounts for their work & labour,
& articles sold” with whites. They state that they had been defrauded by dishonest white men who
did not pay them for their goods and services. Petitioners {2}: Broyle, Philip; Jones, Elias C.
0061. Hardeman County. Free man of color Joshua Thuman states that he was experiencing
considerable difficulty in proving his accounts. It was a matter of some “delicacy” for a black man
to make an oath against a white man, and magistrates were reluctant to attempt to collect such
debts. He asks the legislature to pass an act “making it lawful for Judges Magistrates &c to allow
him the privilege as referred to aforesaid."
0064. Greene County. Free black carpenter and joiner Hensey Wade worked at a very great
disadvantage “not Being allowed to prove his accounts by his oath,” a group of whites explains.
They request that he be permitted to do so. Petitioners {13}: Ball, Thomas L.; Houston, William;
Jones, George; Lintz, George; Tillery, Isaac.
0067. Smith County residents write in behalf of Edward Settles, a veteran of the American
Revolution whose slave Daniel was executed in 1825 for committing a rape. Unless he receives
compensation from the state, they claim, Settles would “be left destitute in his old age.” The
petitioners request that the “old man” be compensated for his loss. Petitioners {174}: Cornwell,
Silas C.; Herod, Peter; Holladay, Allen; Sloan, John L.; Sloan, M. W. Petitioners {27}: Gregory,
Joseph B.; Gregory, William, Jr.; Gregory, William, Sr.; Porter, Thomas; Woods, William.
Petitioners {131}: Allison, Andrew; Hart, William; Linch, G.; Lyon, John; Watters, Jesse.
0088. In July 1829, Caroline Hill received a proposal of marriage from Bennet Hill, who claimed
that he was about to receive ten slaves from an uncle and owned other property. Shortly after
their marriage, however, she discovered that he had lied about his property. In addition, she
states that he was “far gone” with heart trouble. She asks for a divorce.
0092. White County. John Dale requests a license of sell liquor. He had served as a soldier
during the American Revolution but received no pension. Dale states that he is forced by
disability to use crutches and has “neither Slave, nor son, to cultivate his farm."
0097. Williamson County. Martha Smith Green seeks the privilege of a feme sole as to the right of
property. Green states that she was abused and beaten by her husband and accused of having
an illicit relationship with a slave man named Jim. She fled her husband's home, but he pursued
and overtook her. Taken to her father's house, Green remained “Dangerously ill [for] Eighteen
weeks.” She states that her husband admitted having a relationship with one of his female slaves.
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On one occasion, she alleges, a slave woman came into the house and Green’s husband
“Commenced Playing with and handling Said Negro Girl—in an indecent manner."
0105. John Rich of Maury County seeks a divorce from Susanah Moore on the grounds that she
gave birth to a “mulatto” child four months after their marriage. He cannot afford an attorney to
bring his case to court and therefore asks the legislature to dissolve his marriage.
0108. Greene County residents seek to repeal the 1825 Act forbidding nonslaveholders from
serving on juries in slave trials. The law will ultimately destroy “free institutions,” they assert, “and
build an Aristocracy upon the ruins of public liberty.” Petitioners {109}: Clark, Jesse; Collins,
Uriah; Small, Knight; Thanks, Holden; Williams, Benjamin.
0111. Roane County residents ask the legislature to allow Samuel Bassil, a free man of color, to
prove his accounts. Bassil is a blacksmith by trade. They argue that “no mischief” can result from
“granting the said Bassil the priviledge.” Petitioners {62}: Smith, John Y.
0115. Greene County. The petitioners seek the repeal of the 1825 act excluding nonslaveholders
from juries in slave trials. They argue that if the law is not repealed it will “ultimately destroy the
Spirit of our free Constitution & build an aristocracy upon the ruins of public liberty.” Petitioners
{32}: Dillon, Garret; Dillon, James; Price, Williamson; Rees, John; Stanfield, John. Petitioners
{53}: Barkley, William; Frieze, Jacob; Gray, Benjamin; Henderson, Joseph, Jr.; Johnson, Thomas.
1831.
0122. Henry County. William Bailey requests compensation for a male slave killed when a tree
fell on him while working on a public road. The black man was twenty-three years old and worth
about five hundred dollars. Bailey is seventy years old, and the loss has left him in indigent
circumstances with a family to support.
0127. White residents of Washington County state that they have been long acquainted with
seventy-seven-year-old free man of color Elias Jones, a “peaceable Industrious and Honest” man
known for his honesty and integrity. They believe he should be permitted to prove his accounts.
Petitioners {88}: Chester, William P., Jr.; Jackson, A. E.; Johnston, James S.; McAlister, James;
Ryland, John.
0134. Peter Fisher, described as an imbecile, died in 1827 in Sumner County. In his will Fisher
emancipated his slaves. James Dabbs was appointed to carry out the provisions of the will, and it
was expected that Dabbs would apply to the county court to have the slaves emancipated. He
refused do so because the slaves were of “bad Character.” Other interested parties, however,
successfully applied to the legislature to have the jurisdiction of the case transferred to the
chancery courts. Now, Sumner County residents petition the legislature to have the transference
of jurisdiction repealed. “Legislating for particular Cases,” they assert “is partial and oppressive”
to others. They argue that “all such laws should be repealed.” Petitioners {99}: Douglass, J. C.;
Franklin, James; Graham, Alexander; Hadly, J. H.; Smith, George.
0139. Washington County. Subject to “great hardship & sometimes to manifest injustice” because
of his “legal disability in establishing his accounts against those citizens whose colour is fairer
than his own,” free man of color Elias Cray Jones seeks the privilege of proving his accounts.
Other free people of color, he argues, have been granted such a privilege by previous
legislatures.
0144. Roane County. Blacksmith Robert Bush, a free man of color who operates a business in
the town of Montgomery, “sustains Great loss by reason of not being a competent witness to
prove his book accounts against his customers.” Bush asks for a special act to allow him to prove
his accounts.
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0151. Residents of White County support free black man Stephen Hill’s desire to prove his own
accounts. “Being deprived of so great a privilege subjects him to considerable loss,” they
contend, “in his line of business.” Hill is a tanner, they state, who had purchased his own
freedom. Petitioners {103}: Anderson, John H.; Ford, John; Holman, James T.; Long, M. A.;
Nelson, Robert.
0156. Citizens of Montgomery County fear insurrectionary movements among the slave
population. They seek the appointment of “vigilant patrols,” chosen by justices of the peace. The
patrols should be compensated for their time and service. Petitioners {108}: Carter, John;
Garrison, D. L.; Minor, Charles; Poston, John H.; Wheatley, James.
0161. Citizens of Maury County ask for more efficient laws concerning slave patrols. Citizens
should be required to serve on a patrol for one year and receive compensation. The payment
should come from a tax on slaves. Moreover, patrollers should receive fifty cents for each slave
they punish or capture and return to an owner. Finally, a law should be enacted to prevent the
importation of slaves from any location where an insurrectionary spirit prevailed. Petitioners {27}:
Craig, John; Griffin, Joseph; Knight, C. W.; Macon, John; Stockard, William.
0165. Williamson County. Austin Grisham, administrator of Henry A. Burge's estate and now the
husband of Burge's widow, asks to sell a slave named Nathan. Grisham states that Nathan is a
habitual runaway. At the time of the petition, Nathan was eleven years old and had run away
repeatedly since the age of seven or eight.
0171. The heirs of Burwell Snead state that they purchased land in Davidson County in 1815,
which they assumed to be exempt from taxes for ninety-nine years. The lots were improved while
the heirs came of age, and some of the property was annexed by the city of Nashville. Without
the heirs’ consent and “Greatly to their Injury,” the lots were taxed. When the taxes were not paid,
the lots were advertised for sale even though the heirs possessed chattel and slaves on the lots
to satisfy the taxes, they state. They seek relief “from the Tax already assessed as well as all
others in future.” Originally the land was donated by an act of the North Carolina Assembly for the
college that eventually became Nashville University. Petitioners {6}: Bradfute, Robert; Snead, B.
B.; Snead, M. D.; Snead, Susan H.; Willis, William L.
0176. Lincoln County. On 25 March 1831, John Isaacs was indicted for shooting one of his
father's slaves. At the time of the incident Isaacs was very drunk, the petitioner states. The black
man recovered, and John's father, Samuel Isaacs, requests that his son be released from further
prosecution. Petitioners {30}: Isaacs, Samuel; Johnson, Dudley; Pulley, G. N.; Pulley, Georg;
Taylor, John H.
0180. Haywood County. Hannah Stone asks for a divorce. Her husband left her two years before
without warning and was probably in Mississippi or Louisiana. She was in “verry indigent
circumstances, having no slaves or any one else to work for her."
0185. James Scott of Williamson County purchased land and three slaves on credit, paying
annual installments on the debt. Later, he mortgaged six other slaves. He died without paying his
debts. The administrator of Scott's estate asks to sell the land and mortgaged slaves so that the
widow will not be left with her children “friendless and Hopeless and pennyless.” Petitioners {3}:
McClellon, William B.; Scott, Polley; Smith, Peter N.
1832.
0192. Greene County. Henry Ripley seeks permission to emancipate his father's former slave,
Bill, who had been in the Ripley family for many years. Before the elder Ripley died he made
arrangements for Bill to purchase himself if the slave saved the money for the purchase price. Bill
saved $550. He was thus entitled to his liberty. The petitioner also asks that Bill be allowed to
remain in Tennessee with his slave wife and children.
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0196. Sixty-seven-year-old free man of color, Benjamin James, a blacksmith, moved from Halifax
County, North Carolina, to Hawkins County, Tennessee. Residents ask that he be permitted to
remain in the area as “a man of his trade will be of great importance in the Section of the Country
where we live.” Petitioners {51}: McCarty, James P.; McManis, W.; Roberts, Joseph; Starnes,
John; Willis, Armstead.
0199. Washington County. Subject to “great inconvenience & frequent losses” by being unable to
prove his accounts, free man of color Elias Jones asks for relief. He wants to be paid for “work &
labour done.”
0202. Deeming free man of color Zachariah Robinson “one of the most worthy and industrious &
respectable among that Class of people,” white citizens ask that Robinson and his family be
granted residency in Tennessee. A recent law prohibiting the immigration of free people of color
caught Robinson and his family by surprise; while he took up residence in the state, his family—
daughters Nancy and Sally, sons William and Elbert—remained in North Carolina with their
families. Robinson plans to stay in Tennessee or remove to Liberia. Petitioners {21}: Brockham,
Benjamin; Hogg, John B.; Jones, William B.; Lea, William W.; Tate, Thomas.
0205. Sullivan County. Thomas Rockhold requests permission to emancipate a slave family and
legislative approval for them to remain in the state. In 1828, Rockhold agreed to free one of his
slaves, Emley, after her husband, free man of color Edward Cook, had paid off a $250 note as
her purchase price. Meanwhile, the couple had two children, Thomas and William. Rockhold
seeks permission to present an emancipation petition to the county court to “cause the said
Emley and said two Children Thomas & William to be emancipated.” He also asks that he not be
“Bound for them to leave the state.” They are, he states, “honest and industrious and
respectable.” Rockhold also seeks to free several other slaves.
0208. Carter County. Mary Humphreys requests the emancipation of “a Family of yellow
Slaves"—the mother Lucy, or Lucia, and her children—as stipulated in the will of her late
husband. The slaves, with the exception of the mother, had been “raised up from their Infancy”
with the white family. During her husband's decade-long affliction they attended him “most
affectionately until his death,” and during the widow's infirmities they ran the farm and dairy with
“Judgment and Economy.” She also asks permission for them to remain in the state.
0218. According to a group of Davidson County residents, the 1832 law forbidding grocers and
“house” keepers from selling liquor to slaves without a written permit should be repealed. It was
an unnecessary restriction. Some retailers did not even apply for a license because they did not
want to sign the oath promising not to sell to slaves. Such evasion of the law resulted in a loss of
tax revenue. Petitioners {7}: Beaty, John; Cameron, Daniel; Finn, Robert; Graham, George;
Graham, Thomas.
0221. Residents of Maury, Bedford, Giles, Hickman, Williamson, and Lincoln counties ask that Dr.
Jack, a slave physician with remarkable healing powers, be permitted to go about the countryside
practicing medicine. Petitioners {121}: Craig, Johnston; Durham, Milledge; Hoggs, Ezekiel;
Prickard, A. L.; Reynolds, Reuben.
0240. Madison County. Free man of color Richard Matthews seeks permission to marry a white
woman. Matthews says he is “of the Portuguese Blood."
0245. Smith County residents support residency for free people of color John and Linsey
Pinchum, formerly slaves owned by Ellery Risen and Dr. J. M. Luckey. The Pinchums had
purchased their freedom and do not wish to leave their slave children behind in Tennessee as
they would be forced to do to comply with the 1831 law requiring free people of color to leave the
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state. Petitioners {29}: Douglass, I. L.; Flippen, Tilman B.; Freeman, M.; Hardwick, J. W.; Roe,
John, Jr.
0249. Citizens of Smith County write in behalf of former slaves John and Linsey, husband and
wife, who purchased their freedom. The petitioners would like to see a law enacted to allow them
to remain in the state because the former slaves had been “faithful servants” and were people of
honesty and integrity. Petitioners {31}: Coffee, J.; Davis, John H.; Floyd, William; McCrabb,
Joseph F.
0252. Jackson County. The heirs of deceased slave owner William Locke seek to settle his debts.
He had owned fifteen slaves. Five of them were either old and infirm or could not work; ten were
youngsters incapable of labor. None of the ten “would sell for their value.” Locke had owned 962
acres, divided into ten tracts, and lots in the town of Gainesboro. The petitioners ask that the land
rather than the slaves be sold. If the slaves were sold they would be “Draged a way by Traders to
the lower country,” leaving the widow “without any persons to releave her from the burden of hard
labour” in her old age. Moreover, the young slaves are “fast increasing in Value and in a few
years will be worth more to the Heirs than the whole of the land.” Petitioners {4}: Lock, Mary Ann;
Locke, Elizabeth; Locke, James W.; Scanland, William.
0263. Bedford County. Accused in 1831 of stealing a watch, Thomas C. Moore was sued by the
owner of the watch. Fearing the penitentiary, he posted a $500 bond, which he lost after a court
judgment. Later, it was discovered that a slave had committed the theft. He asks the legislature
for relief.
1833.
0273. Washington County. In his will, John Gates directed that two of his slaves be emancipated.
The slaves are older and can support themselves. Gates, nevertheless, provided them with some
property. The executors seek to emancipate Gates's “Negro woman Chaine” and Moses.
Petitioners {2}: Crouch, George; Ellis, Jacob.
0278. These white petitioners lament the deplorable condition of slaves and urge the legislature
to provide for gradual emancipation. Lawmakers should enact legislation making the slaves born
after a certain date free when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in accordance with
the ideals put forth in the Constitution. In addition, slave owners who wish to free their slaves
should be able to do so without having to promise to maintain indigent slaves in the future.
Slaveholders should teach slaves to be freed useful occupations, permit them to attend church,
and teach them to read the Bible. Petitioners {99}: Milburn, John; Morrison, John; Pickering, John;
Vestal, Jay; Wooton, Jehu.
0282. White County. In February 1833, slave owner Edward Holmes died and directed in his will
that “a certain negro woman slave named Lydia” be freed. Lydia was between forty and fifty years
of age and was a “faithful, humble and obedient servant.” The petitioners, executors of Holmes's
will, state that Lydia has children in Tennessee and does not want to leave the state. They
request that she be freed and allowed to remain in Tennessee.
0286. Greene County. In 1827, an anonymous black woman bought her daughter, Delfy, or Delfe,
for three hundred dollars from John Mcfee. The mother cannot emancipate her daughter “owing
to an act of the General assembly prohibiting the amancipation of Slaves.” The petitioners include
Mcfee's father-in-law, William Hendry, who once owned Delfy. They ask the legislature to
authorize the county court to free Delfy, “a garl of good Charactor.” Petitioners {25}: Babb,
Samuel; Dobson, Silas; Dodd, John; Dodd, Thomas; Hendry, William.
0289. Greene County. The petitioners argue for the emancipation of Charles, a slave who
purchased his freedom for $350, “a part of which Sum he has already paid.” The 1831 act
prohibiting the emancipation of slaves means that Charles cannot consummate his bargain. The
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petitioners, including Charles’s owner, Samuel Robinson, ask that the county court be instructed
to free Charles. Petitioners {35}: Haworth, Nathaniel; Marsh, James; McGaughy, John; Robinson,
Samuel; Robinson, William B.
0293. The Tennessee Colonization Society recommends that because of their degraded
condition, the state’s free people of color should be returned to Africa. The free black man should
be “conveyed to the home of his fathers.” Only then would free people of color be liberated from
their “anomalous and humiliating” position in society. Petitioners {168}: Brown, George; Hamilton,
James; Lindsley, Philip; McEwen, R. H.; Shelley, John.
0301. The Auxiliary Colonization Society of Franklin County supports the removal of free black
people from Tennessee to Liberia. In America, free people of color would never be able to
improve their “moral conduct.” In addition, they corrupted slaves, “until, if this state of things
continue[s], the worst of consequences may be reasonably apprehended."
0306. Davidson County. David Morris Harding seeks to emancipate Major, a slave belonging to
his brother, William Harding, who died intestate. Major had purchased himself for four hundred
dollars and had always been a “most valuable and faithful slave."
0310. Two slave-owning women in Sullivan County seek to emancipate six slaves—Ned, Rachel,
Rebecca, Emily, David, and Rhody. The two women are old and infirm and have no heirs. The
slaves are industrious and honest. The women also request that the slaves be permitted to
remain in the state and that they be permitted to forgo the posting of a security bond. Petitioners
{2}: Morrell, Abba; Morrell, Phebe.
0313. Sullivan County. Neighbors and relatives of Abigail and Phebe Morrell oppose their freeing
six slaves, arguing that the black people unduly influenced the elderly women. The slaves, the
petitioners explain, not only desired their freedom but the “premises on which they now live and
all the personal property of the Estate.” Petitioners [7}: Megarry, John; Morrell, Caleb; Morrell,
Jesse; Odell, Thomas; Odell, William.
0317. Residents of Roane County request the emancipation of Peter Hawkins, a black man who
bought his own freedom for one hundred dollars. Hawkins is an old man, a tailor by trade,
industrious and honest. Petitioners {51}: Clark, William B.; Clark, Thomas N., Sr.; Duppee, John;
Fain, James A.; Hamilton, John.
0320. Greene County. The slave Hiram entered a “Contract” with his former owner and
purchased his freedom. He had always been a man of “most excellent moral character,” a group
of whites testify, “distinguished for his honesty, industry, and inoffensive course of conduct.” They
ask that he be freed and permitted to remain near his relatives and former owner, John Weems,
“to whom he is much attached.” Petitioners {20}: Carter, Ellis; Hawkins, William; Kenney, George;
Weems, John; Williams, Alexander.
0324. Blount County. The petitioners, including executors of the estate of William Boyd, request
that the slave Hardy be emancipated. Boyd, who died in 1826, stipulated in his will that Hardy
should be taught to read the Scriptures and be freed when he reached age twenty-one. Hardy is
now and has been for some time over that age, the petitioners state. In addition, he is humble
and inoffensive and does not wish to emigrate from the state as required by the 1831 law. They
ask that Hardy be freed and permitted to remain in Tennessee. Petitioners {38}: Bogle, M. H.;
Boyd, William; Murrin, Andrew; Thompson, Matthew W.; Tipton, John.
0328. Roane County. Residents request that free man of color Samuel Bassil, a blacksmith, be
allowed to prove his accounts. If the legislature is unwilling to allow him the same privileges as
white men, the petitioners suggest, they might permit him at least to prove his accounts up to
“Ten or twenty dollars” in his trade. Petitioners {101}: Fitts, William; Vaughn, Jesse.
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0333. Emancipated by Nathaniel Husketh in Logan County, Kentucky, Abraham and Nelly
Husketh followed their children to Tennessee. The children had been sold as “term slaves,”
requiring them to remain in bondage until they reached age twenty-five. The petitioners ask if the
black married couple can remain in Tennessee to be near their children. Petitioners {88}: Biggs,
Elijah; Davis, Henry; Edwards, Jesse J.; Edwards, Oliver; Edwards, William.
0338. Residents of Gibson County request that Zachariah Roberson, a free man of color, be
permitted to bring part of his family from North Carolina into Tennessee. “We state that he & his
family have behaved them selves with propriety, industry & honesty.” Petitioners {47}: Caruthers,
Thomas J.; Gee, John P.; Neilson, H. D.; Till, Thomas; Wood, M., Jr.
0345. Free black Zachariah Roberson asks that members of his family living in North Carolina be
permitted to immigrate to Tennessee. In April 1831, Roberson had purchased a tract of land in
Gibson County for $960, but a short time later the legislature passed a law prohibiting free blacks
from entering the state.
0350. Grainger County. Emancipated in the will of William Hawkins, Samuel, age about forty-one
years, asks to remain in Tennessee with his family. His owner had given him fifteen acres of land
close to the residence of his wife and children so he could “live in quiet and peace near his
family."
0357. Hardeman County. In 1831, Joshua Thurman purchased his sister, Harriett, with the
intention of emancipating her as soon as possible. Indeed, Harriett's owner required a contract to
that effect. Thurman asks that his sister be allowed to remain in the state. She had already paid a
good portion of her purchase price, he states, and he could post a security bond to the county
court for her good behavior.
0362. Davidson County. Free man of color Stephen Lytle requests permission for himself and for
his family to remain in Tennessee. Lytle purchased himself for four hundred dollars from his
owner, William Lytle of Nashville. He then purchased his wife, Charity. The couple had a
daughter, Mary Shepherd Lytle, and acquired two city lots. On 17 April 1832, Stephen Lytle
discovered that he was not by law a free man and that his wife and child were slaves of his
master. “He is informed that the second section of the act of 1831, Session acts, page 121.2
prohibits his emancipation & that of his wife & child, 'except on the express Condition,' that he &
they shall immediately remove from the state of Tennessee, and unless his master & the master
of his wife & child, shall before their 'emancipation enter into bond with good and sufficient
security, in a sum equal to their respective values, Conditioned that they'…shall forthwith remove
from the State of Tennessee.” He had enough money to post bond for himself but not enough for
his wife and four-year-old daughter. Lytle states that he faces the dilemma of leaving them behind
or remaining in Tennessee and facing possible re-enslavement. He asks for relief.
0369. Davidson County. The slave Charles arranged with his owner, John Beaty, to purchase
himself for $450. When the new emancipation law passed on 16 December 1831, he had paid
$126.25; since then, he had paid the outstanding balance. Charles wishes to remain in
Tennessee with his wife and children. His owner asks that Charles be permitted to do so.
0372. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, approximately 1,155 whites petition
the legislature to provide for gradual emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making
slaves born after a certain date free when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in
accordance with the Constitution. In addition, slave owners who wish to free their slaves should
be able to do so without having to promise to maintain former slaves who become indigent.
Slaveholders should teach slaves who will be freed useful occupations, permit them to attend
church, and teach them to read the Bible. Petitioners {999}: Alexander, George; Alexander,
James R.; Farnsworth, T. M.; Ross, Akin N.; Shelton, Nathaniel.
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0395. The Sumner County Colonization Society recommends the removal of free black people to
Africa. Free people of color are forbidden to obtain an education, are denied political rights, and
are confronted with prejudices “which are quite natural, and which will probably never be
removed,” the petitioners state. In addition, their intercourse with certain whites produced “serious
evils.” Petitioners {2}: Boyers, R. M.; Robb, Joseph.
0399. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, approximately 1,155 whites petition
the legislature to provide for gradual emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making
slaves born after a certain date free when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in
accordance with the Constitution. In addition, slave owners who wish to free their slaves should
be able to do so without having to promise to maintain former slaves who become indigent.
Slaveholders should teach slaves who will be freed useful occupations, permit them to attend
church, and teach them to read the Bible. Petitioners {152}: Bales, John; Hinshaw, Uriah;
Morgan, William, Jr.; Peirce, Georg; Willison, Eli.
0404. White residents of Davidson County praise Loo, a black man who purchased himself and
his wife and child. Formerly owned by W. B. Lewis, Loo is a man of “correct deportment,” humble
and respectful. They ask that Loo “may be liberated without being compelled to leave the State.”
Petitioners {72}: Bradford, Simon; Gibson, Joseph F.; Love, Charles; Scruggs, Oglesby; Williams,
John.
0410. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, approximately 1,155 whites petition
the legislature to provide for gradual emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making
slaves born after a certain date free when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in
accordance with the Constitution. In addition, slave owners who wish to free their slaves should
be able to do so without having to promise to maintain former slaves who become indigent.
Slaveholders should teach slaves who will be freed useful occupations, permit them to attend
church, and teach them to read the Bible. Petitioners {120}: Collard, Jamee; Harrison, James.
0414. David Shropshire, the Madison County jailer, seeks reimbursement for keeping a runaway
slave named Jacob. The jailer calculated his costs at 37 1/2 cents per day for 395 days from 10
June 1826 to 10 July 1827. The total was $148.12. The slave brought only $82.50 at auction.
Shropshire asks the legislature to pay the difference—$65.62—to cover his expenses.
0418. Franklin County. Susan Doolin seeks a divorce from her husband, Thomas Doolin, who,
she states, is “guilty of Adultry With indecent & lewd women.” Moreover, he “kept & made use of
a Negro girl that belongd to me,—the Negro says the same.” He abandoned his wife, she states,
and vowed never to return.
0430. Sumner County. Rebecca Blakemore and Henry Vaughan, administrators of the estate of
Fielding Blakemore, who died intestate, ask to pay his debts by selling forty acres of land rather
than slaves. The widow is averse to selling the slaves because she could not provide for or
educate her children “without their assistance."
0436. Davidson County. William G. Harding, the guardian of the infant Elizabeth Harding, asks
permission to sell a slave woman and her six children to Texas-bound Daniel Maurice Harding,
owner of the black woman's husband. William G. Harding states that he can get a good price for
the slaves in his ward's estate even though two of the children are afflicted with a “white swelling”
and a third with scrofula.
1835.
0443. Joseph Harris, a free man of color, asks permission to remain in Tennessee. Harris states
that when in 1832 the owner of his wife and children moved from Goochland County, Virginia, to
Shelby County, Tennessee, he followed and purchased a small tract of land near his family. He
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states that he can live “by his own labor and industry” and should be allowed to remain in the
state.
0449. Charles B. Hodges states that the slave Dave lives with Hodges in Jefferson County and
plans to continue to do so in the future. Dave was emancipated in the will of Samuel Todd, late of
Knox County. Hodges petitions the legislature for Dave's freedom, promising to post a good
behavior bond.
0454. Franklin County. The petitioners support the request of George Gillespie for compensation
for his “young and likely” slave. Gillespie's slave was executed in 1833 for a capital crime.
Gillespie is old, in moderate circumstances, and has a large family to support, the petitioners
state. Petitioners {168}: Estill, W., Jr.; Hutchins, Mark; Jackson, M. K.; Moore, James H.; Sharp,
Richard.
0461. Jefferson County. Before migrating to Missouri, slave owner Benjamin McFarland granted a
friend power of attorney to emancipate two elderly slaves, Solomon and Abby, who had rendered
“faithful services” in rearing him and other members of his family. The slaves were about sixty
years old. The petitioners ask that Solomon and Abby be freed. Petitioners {49}: McFarland,
Andrew B.; McFarland, John; McFarland, Robert; Rice, Augustus; Snoddy, Thomas.
0466. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, approximately 1,155 whites petition
the legislature to provide for gradual emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making
slaves born after a certain date free when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in
accordance with the Constitution. In addition, slave owners who wish to free their slaves should
be able to do so without having to promise to maintain former slaves who become indigent.
Slaveholders should teach slaves who will be freed useful occupations, permit them to attend
church, and teach them to read the Bible. Petitioners {42}: Fraker, George; French, Henry;
French, John; French, William L.; Monday, Robert. Petitioners {59}: Beals, David; Straine, John,
Jr.; Straine, John, Sr.; Straine, Robert; Straine, William B. Petitioners {50}: Ball, Leaven L.;
Earnest, Felix; George, William; McLemore, Peter; Wells, George. Petitioners {18}: Borden,
Archibald; Harold, Jonathan; Harrote, Uriah; Math[ews], John; Mathews, William. Petitioners {9}:
Jean, Joseph P.; Jean, Wiley; Thomason, John; Vance, John; Williams, Samuel. Petitioners {28}:
Coulson, John; Henderson, Thomas; Lee, Nathan; Warren, Charles H. Petitioners {70}: Browning,
James; Hanks, Luke; Johnson, Robert; Murphy, John; Wolfenbarger, Peter. Petitioners {48}:
Browder, Josiah; Lewis, Isaac; Roberts, William; Rubel, Peter; Slaughter, William, Jr. Petitioners
{157}: Allon, John; Parker, Mark; Roberts, Jacob; Scott, Thomas; Scott, Wiley. Petitioners {49}:
Clark, John; Payne, Jesse, Sr. Petitioners {19}: Bowman, Joseph. Petitioners {41}: Johnson,
James; McCroskey, John; McCroskey, John, Jr.; McMurray, Joseph; Sheddan, Alexander.
Petitioners {37}: Harnes, Isaac; Hinshaw, Ezra; Hinshaw, Uriah; Morgan, William; Pierce, George.
Petitioners {212}: Cottrell, Gilbert; Rinshaw, Moses; Stowell, Alexander; Stowell, John; Tindell,
Nathan. Petitioners {11}: Beals, Joseph H.; Cox, William. Petitioners {193}: Bell, George; Bell,
Samuel; Henderson, Francis; Mulkey, Jonathan; Squibb, John. Petitioners {35}: Easterly, Isaac;
Easterly, Jacob; Harned, David; Harned, Samuel; Parrott, George. Petitioners {11}: Binyard,
Richard; Brazelton, Isaac; Frazier, John; Jennings, John; King, John. Petitioners {32}: Brazelton,
Alexander; Mills, B.; Mills, David; Swain, Elihu; Williams, Abel L. Petitioners {111}: Hinshaw, Ezra;
Mills, William, Jr.; Mills, William, Sr.; Shelley, William P.; Woodward, Abraham. Petitioners {82}:
Bogle, George; Frazer, William; Roberts, Jacob; Roberts, William; Williams, Abel L.
0533. Roane County Deputy Sheriff Joseph Byrd asks for $57.20 in compensation for expenses
he incurred while escorting a witness in a slave stealing case. In 1829, C. F. Keith, judge of the
Seventh Judicial Circuit Court, ordered Byrd to transport the witness from Kingston in Roane
County to Winchester in Franklin County, Tennessee, to testify against Charles Neighbors “&
others.” Byrd and two guards traveled 260 miles. Byrd asks to be compensated at the rate of ten
cents a mile for himself and six cents for the others.
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0536. Davidson County. John Broughton seeks compensation for expenses incurred in the
pursuit of a free man of color suspected in the murder of a slave. Broughton caught the suspect,
Henry Ransom, in Reynoldsburg and brought him back to Nashville. Ransom was indicted, tried,
convicted, and sentenced to twenty years in prison.
1837.
0539. Sullivan County. James Rhea requests permission to emancipate the slave Maurice and
requests permission for Maurice to remain in Tennessee once freed. James Rhea’s father,
William Rhea, had reared Maurice and frequently said he wanted the “mulatto” slave to be
liberated after he died. Maurice is honest, industrious, and intelligent, Rhea states, and is a man
of “good moral character.” Maurice has several children in east Tennessee and wishes to remain
near them as well as near his friends.
0542. Davidson County. Samuel Seay seeks to free Peter Lowry, a slave about twenty-seven
years of age who was well-known for his “fidelity and industry.” Lowry had grown up in the area,
operated a hack driving business, and had saved enough money to purchase his freedom.
0546. In his 1829 will, Sullivan County slaveholder Joseph Wallace arranged for his slave,
Rebecca, to be emancipated. Wallace died in February 1835, and his will was probated.
Rebecca's children, with one exception, were sold. Rebecca now asks for permission to remain in
the state to be with her husband and child.
0550. Davidson County residents request the emancipation of Davy, a slave known for his
sobriety, industry, and honesty. Davy had purchased himself. Petitioners {42}: Erwin, John P.;
Haines, E. M.; Norvell, Joseph; Temple, L. E.; Woods, James.
0554. Hardeman County. As “a free Citizen of Color,” J. H. Thurman requests that his father and
mother-in-law be permitted to come to Tennessee from Limestone County, Alabama. If permitted
to do so they will live with him and never become “inconvenient to Society."
0557. Davidson County. Citizens of Nashville ask the legislature to grant Temperance, a female
slave owned by Thomas Crutcher, residency as a free person of color. Among the petitioners are
former owners of the slave who testify to Temperance's “good Character, for honesty, industry &
fidelity.” Petitioners {20}: Creighead, Mary; Fogg, Mary R.; Graham, Maria G.; Steel, Edward G.;
Williams, Eliza.
0560. Citizens complain about tippling houses “found, in numbers greatly disproportionate to the
wants of any sober community.” They note that slaves often “resort thither to expend their little
earnings.” This results in great injury to their morals, the petitioners state. Indeed, nearly every
crime committed in the state can be traced to these “low haunts of dissipation and idleness.” The
petitioners ask that a joint committee of the legislature investigate the problem. Shelby County
Petitioners {31}: Akin, William; Blue, James; McCallen, H.; Patrick, Joseph H.; Wren, Hervey.
Shelby County Petitioners {57}: Holmes, George L.; Johnson, Thomas G.; Mason, Richard; Pope,
John; White, John D.
0567. Williamson County. Citizens complain about tippling houses, where idlers and drunkards
congregate. Slaves are permitted to frequent these shops, the petitioners claim, and are thus able
to secure liquor that otherwise they would not be able to obtain. The houses are centers of vice,
immorality, and lewdness. Petitioners {419}: Hall, John G.; Hughes, M. N.; Jordan, H. P.; McCord,
Allen N.; Moore, Wm. C.
0581. Williamson County residents ask the legislature to repeal the laws of 1831 and 1835
authorizing tippling houses. Petitioners {74}: Bailey, S. H.; Clemm, John; Otey, J. H.; Park,
William; Weller, Christian. [Editorial Note: date of petition is 8 January 1838; petition out of
chronological sequence].
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0585. Citizens complain about tippling houses “found, in numbers greatly disproportionate to the
wants of any sober community.” They note that slaves often “resort thither to expend their little
earnings.” This results in great injury to their morals, the petitioners state. Indeed, nearly every
crime committed in the state can be traced to these “low haunts of dissipation and idleness.” The
petitioners ask that a joint committee of the legislature investigate the problem. Hardeman County
Petitioners {62}: Averill, T. W.; Hardaway, L.; Hardwick, Lenard; Howard, Wardlaw; McCaller, A.
Wilson County Petitioners {106}: Campbell, Robert M.; Davis, Philander; Kirkpatrick, J.;
Kirkpatrick, W. A.; Vaughan, Melkijah. Sumner County Petitioners {88}: Chapman, Benjamin;
May, William C.; Morris, Walter B.; Wallis, James; Wallis, Samuel. Sumner County Petitioners
{110}: Bate, H.; Crump, William H.; Parker, William P.; Perry, Jeremiah; Staley, Oscar. Sumner
County Petitioners {95}: Baldridge, J. W.; Howard, B. R.; Odom, Harris; Turner, John G.; Walton,
William. Madison County Petitioners {113}: Campbell, A. A.; Campbell, E. S.; McClanahan,
Samuel; McLemore, Lugors; Taylor, William. Robertson County Petitioners {30}: Allen, N. H.;
Bradley, Joseph; Caruthers, Ab; Hutchinson, John; Jones, Anthony. Franklin County Petitioners
{91}: Brazelton, J. G.; Buchanan, William; Green, Nathan; Robinson, James; Sharp, James, Sr.
0626. Davidson County. Citizens of Nashville ask the legislature to repeal an act passed in 1829
prohibiting those who do not pay corporation taxes from voting in city elections. The right to vote
is guaranteed to every free white man age twenty-one years and over who is a citizen of the
United States, the petitioners assert, and the poll tax should be eliminated. Petitioners {482}:
Anderson, Andrew; Brown, B. H.; Hollingsworth, H.; Hunt, W. Hasell; Morgan, James.
0642. Davidson County. Citizens complain about tippling houses “found, in numbers greatly
disproportionate to the wants of any sober community.” They note that slaves often “resort thither
to expend their little earnings.” This results in great injury to their morals, the petitioners state.
Indeed, nearly every crime committed in the state can be traced to these “low haunts of
dissipation and idleness.” The petitioners ask that a joint committee of the legislature investigate
the problem. Petitioners {42}: Erwin, A.; Kelly, John D.; Norvell, Joseph; Woods, Joseph.
0647. Citizens of Sumner County complain about the evils of tippling houses. Petitioners {74}:
Hall, J. B.; Russell, H.; Turner, J.; White, Samuel D.; Willis, N. B.
0650. Davidson County. Having purchased her freedom, Temperance Crutcher asks permission
to remain in Tennessee. She states that she does not wish to seek a home “in the land of
Strangers,” as required by law, but desires to remain near “kindred and friends."
0653. Davidson County. Thomas Crutcher asks that the slave Temperance, also spelled
Temprance, be freed and be permitted to remain in Tennessee. Crutcher purchased Temperance
and allowed her to buy her freedom. She has now paid her purchase price.
0655. Women of Williamson County seek the repeal of the 1835 act granting licenses to retailers
of “ardent Spirits.” Petitioners {121}: Atkinson, Jane; Atkinson, Sarah; Grehan, Maryan; Hood,
Elizabeth; Mangum, Fransis.
0660. Davidson County. Slaveholding and nonslaveholding “Ladies of Nashville” ask for a law to
suppress tippling houses. “By Nature as well as the customs of Society, woman is Chiefly
dependant on man for support and protection,” they write. “The punishment of his vices and
crimes falls not singly or alone upon him; his misdeeds are visited with unrelenting and unsparing
hand upon the helpless—unoffending wife and children—His vices—his crimes, fill up the bitter
cup which they must drain to the dregs.” Petitioners {374}: Craighead, Mary; Littlefield, Cornelia;
McNairy, Anna Maria; Minnick, Ann; Pugsley, Mrs.
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1838.
[8 January 1838 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0581.]
Reel 14
Tennessee (cont.)
0001. Descriptive material.
1839.
0007. Sumner County residents ask that free black people coming into the county under labor
contracts be permitted to remain in the state during the period of the contract. Petitioners {48}:
Brassell, H. T.; Dabbs, James; Fleming, J.; Wallace, A. E.; White, Hordy C.
0011. Zipporah England seeks to emancipate her faithful servant, Charles, who had been with the
family many years. Charles was five years old when England’s father gave him to her on the
condition that she free Charles at or before her death.
0014. As a youngster, Tennessee free man of color James Tuppence was bound by his father to
a man in Granville County, North Carolina. The boy spent his youth and early manhood in North
Carolina. In 1837, he returned to Tennessee to assist his aging father, who lived in Sumner
County “upwards of Thirty Years.” White residents of the area ask that the son be permitted to
stay. Not only was the younger Tuppence a man of “irreproachable character,” but members of
his family were “all remarkable for their habits of industry and general good conduct.” Petitioners
{59}: Boyers, R. M.; Duval, Arch B.; Hall, J. W.; Hamilton, D. D.; Miller, Joseph.
0018. Greene County. The petitioners seek to emancipate their slave, Gilbert, who was about
thirty-five years old. The Henshaws permitted Gilbert to hire his own time and retain his wages.
As a result he was able to purchase his freedom. Gilbert's wife, Lucy, was freed by the Reverend
Samuel W. Doak, and the couple had lived “in their own hired tenement, without restraint upon
their liberty.” The Henshaws also ask that Gilbert be permitted to remain in Tennessee.
Petitioners {2}: Henshaw, Jane; Henshaw, Washington.
0023. Davidson County. Samuel Seay asks that free man of color Peter Lowery be permitted to
remain in Tennessee. Lowery lived in Nashville for many years and had gained the “confidence,
friendship and esteem” of many residents. He purchased his freedom from his original owner but
because of the law expelling free people of color from the state had become the slave of Samuel
Seay. If anything were to happen to Seay, however, Lowery might be sold into slavery.
0028. Blount County. The executors and legatees of the estate of George Bell and other
interested citizens seek to emancipate one of Bell's slaves, James Bell, as stipulated in the
owner's will. They also ask that James Bell be permitted to remain in Tennessee. Petitioners {55}:
Duncan, Andrew; Endsley, James; Greer, Arthur; Tedford, Robert; Tedford, Robert A.
0033. Greene County. Samuel W. Doak asks to free the slave Lucy and asks that she be
permitted to remain in Tennessee. Lucy was a “family servant” from childhood and is now about
twenty-five years of age. She has a “good disposition” and an understanding of “the subordinate
station she occupies,” Doak states.
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1841.
[November 1841 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0089.]
0036. Hamilton County residents ask that residency laws concerning free people of color be
strictly enforced and that any free people of color remaining in the state illegally be sold as
slaves. The petitioners demand that authorities enforce the act “passed in respect to the free
persons of Color to have them Sold if they do not leave the State in a given time or [that a] a Bill
of Sale [be given] to some good man who may apply.” Petitioners {5}: Anderson, John; Curton,
Georg.
0039. Freed by the will of the late William Graham of Claiborne County, Lewis asks to remain in
Tennessee. Lewis states that he is getting old and does not want to leave his wife and children.
0044. Complaining about the deplorable condition of slaves, approximately 1,155 whites petition
the legislature to provide for gradual emancipation. The legislature should pass a law making
slaves born after a certain date free when they reach a certain age. Such a plan would be in
accordance with the Constitution. In addition, slave owners who wish to free their slaves should
be able to do so without having to promise to maintain former slaves who become indigent.
Slaveholders should teach slaves who will be freed useful occupations, permit them to attend
church, and teach them to read the Bible. Petitioners {31}: Harrison, Isaiah; Henshaw,
Washington; Hopton, Aron; Kerr, James; Kerr, Moses E.
0047. District of Columbia residents petition the Tennessee legislature to direct Tennessee
representatives in Congress to support a redrafting of the district's charter to give greater
attention to the activities of people of color. A bill was drawn for the charter that did not mention
slaves, the petitioners explain, and thus did not prohibit the meetings of bondsmen and
bondswomen at night. Fortunately, they state, a southern senator offered a motion to lay the bill
on the table, and the bill was tabled. The residents ask the Tennessee legislature to assist them
in opposing the misrule of the majority in Congress. Petitioners {2}: Brent, Henry J.; Jones,
Walter.
1842.
0064. Madison County residents seek to repeal the 1831 law prohibiting free blacks from entering
the state. Free people of color who broke the law did so out of ignorance, the petitioners believe,
and to enforce its provisions against “an inoffensive class of human creatures” was “cruel
oppressive and unjust.” Petitioners {16}: Barnett, G. B.; Kyle, George H.; McKnight, James;
Means, Thomas C.; Read, John.
0067. Monroe County. Slavery is opposed to “the Law of God,” the rights of man, and the
principles of a democratic society, the petitioners state. They ask the legislature to bring about a
“speedy and final abolition” by amending the state's constitution. Petitioners {69}: Edwards,
James M.; Kendall, Thomas S.; Moore, Elizabeth; Moore, L. M.; Moore, Mary Ann.
0072. White County. Dividing his estate among many heirs would give each “but Verry little,” John
Gipson explains. He therefore seeks to emancipate his six slaves and promises to provide
security. The slaves are Eliza, age about forty; Chesley, age about fourteen; Milley, age about
twenty-seven; and Milley's three children, ages four, two-and-a-half, and one.
0077. Williamson County. Four citizens of middle Tennessee seek a revision of the patrol law to
render it “effective & operative.” Patrollers need to be more active, they state. A petty court
martial should have the same investigative powers as grand juries. County commissioners, like
town commissioners, should be able to appoint “domestic police.” Petitioners {4}: Walton,
Edward W.
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0089. With between eight and ten runaways confined in the Shelby County jail at any given time,
Memphis officials ask to use them in a chain gang to clean and repair streets. The exercise would
do them good as their health is impaired the by constant confinement. The number of runaways
captured in Memphis, the petitioners assert, is greater than at any other location in the state.
Petitioners {3}: Shanks, Lewis; Stanton, F. P.; Trigg, John. [Editorial Note: date of petition is
November 1841; petition out of chronological sequence.]
1843.
0093. Haywood County. The petitioners request that a law be passed to compensate owners of
slaves executed by the state. A small tax on “all slaves of certain ages” could provide funding. No
owner should receive less than two-thirds of the value of an executed black person. Petitioners
{81}: Brantly, John; Conner, William; Tanner, John H.; Waddell, James; Whitelaw, David.
0098. Residents of various counties request that the slave Jack, owned by William Macon of
Fayette County, be allowed to practice medicine. Jack was an accomplished doctor, they state,
and possessed “great medical skill, particularly in obstinate diseases of long standing.” At age
about sixty, he had been a public practitioner for sixteen years. Petitioners {114}: Boyd, Whitfield;
Henderson, B. H.; Henderson, D.; Lacy, William L.; Williams, Duke.
0103. “Ladies” of Tennessee ask that the slave Jack be exempted from the law prohibiting slaves
from practicing medicine. Owned by William H. Macon of Fayette County, Doctor Jack was
honest and skillful, “especially in obstinate cases of long standing.” Petitioners {67}: Ballard, Mary
F.; Boyd, Lockey M.; Henderson, Lucinda; Henderson, Mary J.; Williams, Mary M.
0107. McMinn County. George Sherman arrived in the state in 1839 and now asks permission to
remain in Tennessee. A certificate signed by a notary public in New York states that he is of
“mulatto” complexion with wooly hair and is “an indian, one of the Narragansett tribe."
0111. Williamson County. The petitioners request the repeal of the 1842 act allowing county
courts to decide the residency status of free people of color. This act greatly alters the 1831 law
that prohibited emancipated slaves from remaining in the state, they note. In the near future, the
petitioners argue, “by the operation of the Laws as they now stand, the State will be reduced to
the same condition, it would be at present be reduced to, were Slavery immediately abolished.”
Petitioners {38}: Alexander, R.; Andrews, M. L.; Bailey, A. H.; Perkins, Nicholas; Venable,
Simeon.
0116. McMinn County. Residents request that George H. Sherman, a free person of color, be
allowed to remain in Tennessee. Since arriving from New York several years before, Sherman
had led a quiet, orderly, industrious life, “blameless of harm,” they state. Petitioners {18}: Ballew,
A. J.; Boyd, F.; Jackson, R. C.; Jordan, Samuel H.; Stover, A.
1844.
0118. Blount County. In July 1840, David Vance emancipated the slaves Thomas, his wife, Dolly,
and their son, Alexander. The slaves had contracted for their freedom before the passage of the
1831 law requiring emancipated blacks to emigrate. Vance also owns the couple's four other
children—Polly, Melinda, Caroline, and one other. Vance is “verry Aged” and has no living
relatives, he states. The slave family had added much to his comfort over the years, and Vance
and other petitioners ask that the family be permitted to remain in Tennessee. Petitioners {87}:
Davis, James A.; Johnson, Robert; Kounts, Michael; Murrin, Samuel; Vance, David.
1845.
0123. Residents of Hamilton County seek permission for Parlour Washington and his wife,
Celicia, to remain in Tennessee. Washington, emancipated in Virginia, is a tanner, and the couple
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boasted a “good name, fame and reputation, as moral religious and upright persons.” Petitioners
{161}: Rawlings, Asahel; Rawlings, N. N.; Rawlings, P. T.; Roy, Robert C.
0131. Anderson County. Mary Hookins asks for a divorce. She charges that her husband,
William, for virtually no reason whipped her. When she protested he told her that according to
common law a man had the right to whip his wife any time he pleased and that he would whip her
“every day of her life if he wanted to.” Eventually, he deserted her, Hookins states, and was now
living with a “mulatto” woman and had fathered two of her children.
0136. Madison County. Free man of color Morrison Artis (also called Morris Artist) was bound as
an infant to John Mooring until he attained age twenty-one, which occurred in 1844. Artis, who
was born in North Carolina, moved with Mooring to Tennessee, where he was tried and convicted
for a “malicious shooting” and sentenced to three years in the penitentiary. Mooring seeks
compensation.
1846.
0145. The widow of slaveholder Spencer T. Hunt seeks to nullify a provision in his will giving a
large portion of his estate to the common schools in Humphreys and Dickson counties. Mary
Larkins, formerly Mary Hunt, had married Spencer about 1820. At the time of their marriage he
was indigent. It was through their joint economy and industry that the estate was built up to such
an extent. The subscribers are citizens in the two counties who support her petition.
1847.
0166. The petitioners request that slaves be prohibited from trading and selling meats, chickens,
fruits, etc., “upon public days, at public places.” The petitioners, members of a Bedford County
grand jury and others, claim that they suffer from petty thefts. They suggest that any white person
who catches a black person trading goods without permission from the owner should be
permitted to take the guilty party to a magistrate for a public whipping. Petitioners {13}: Chandler,
William C.; Dean, Harvey; Dixon, Hilliard; Green, David; McFarlin, W. R.
0169. “[T]here are large droves of Negroes being brought into our County for sale Contrary to
law,” Shelby County residents observe; the law should be amended to force local authorities to
prosecute “any and every person” guilty of such a transgression. Petitioners {21}: Dubose, A. B.;
Dunken, Benjamin; Gift, W. W.; Goldsby, M. W.; Rembert, L. C.
0173. Citizens of Carter County seek an amendment to the laws governing interracial
cohabitation. The current fine of five hundred dollars levied against any white person living with a
person of color, whether slave or free, was ineffective because those involved usually had only
small estates and could not pay. The law would be more effective if the fine targeted slave
owners who permitted their slaves “to live with or cohabit with any white person” and if an
additional fine of five hundred dollars were levied against the landowner who permitted
cohabitation on his or her property. The petitioners believe that one-half of the fine should go to
the state and the other half to the informer. Petitioners {101}: Bishop, David; Bishop, Tennessee;
Lane, Edward; Lippes, Jonathan; Williams, Alfred C.
0178. Montgomery County. Residents of Clarksville, located at the junction of the Red and
Cumberland rivers, seek to build two free bridges to replace two toll bridges. They suggest that
new corporate taxes be levied to finance their venture. Among other taxes, they request a
.5 percent yearly tax on hired slaves. Petitioners {6}: M'Culloch, Thomas; McKoin, J. G.; Roberts,
C. H.; Thomas, T. A.; Wheeless, Wesley; Williams, L. G.
0181. Residents ask the legislature to allow the county court to “appoint Overseers and assign
hands” to repair the turnpike road between Coffee and Marion counties. Petitioners {90}: Bibb,
George; Gilliam, Thomas; Harris, Samuel; Jackson, Joseph; Thompson, W.
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1848.
0186. Citizens from Tipton, Lauderdale, Madison, and Haywood counties request that slave
owners be compensated for slaves condemned for capital offenses. “Slaves who are dissatisfied
with their homes,” the petitioners observe, “frequently commit capital offences with a view to
compel their masters to send them from the state.” If slaves were punished and owners
compensated, the petitioners argue, blacks would be less likely to engage in this type of
resistance. Petitioners {122}: Connally, George A.; Irvin, John; Lancaster, Samuel; Tidwell, W. M.;
Turner, James A.
0191. Fayette County. Merchants and others complain about excessive taxation. On sales of
$200,000 worth of merchandise, wholesalers pay the enormous sum of $2,000, not including
corporation or city taxes. “If this tax is persisted in,” the petitioners say, “it will destroy the
Wholesale business, which it has already seriously crippled.” To this is added another $2,000 in
taxes at the retail level. At the same time, land owners and slave owners pay one-tenth this
amount. The petitioners ask that “no species of property, from which a tax may be collected, shall
be taxed higher than any other species of property of equal value.” Petitioners {64}: Beasley,
James W.; Beasley, Merril; Collins, Quinton; Pate, Pinckney; Rochelle, John.
0195. Citizens of Bedford County seek compensation for James P. Couch, whose slave, Thomas,
was executed for the murder of “a free white woman.” Couch owned very little property and “is
now left by the hanging of said boy without any help by which to make a living except his own
labour.” Petitioners {52}: Dickerson, J. W.; Steele, John P.; West, Solomon; Whitthouse, W. J.;
Young, William.
0199. Fayette County. Martha Carpenter, a widow with nine children, owned one slave, Rice, who
murdered her eldest son. Rice was convicted of murder in June 1847 and was hanged. With little
other property “she was thus left by a Calamity distressing to her self and disastrous to her young
family.” Her neighbors and friends ask that she be compensated for the loss of her slave.
Petitioners {134}: Burton, William; Koonce, J.; Loving, W. C.; Potts, John J.; Walker, Simon N.
1849.
0204. Bradley County. The petitioners, nonslaveholding poor whites, request that the revenue law
be amended to tax slaves under age twelve and over age fifty. The “the Rich Slave holder is
Raising young Negros and Speculating on his old ones free of taxation,” they contend, while the
farmer pays taxes “for every Acre of Land he owns.” Petitioners {34}: Cully, D. G. M.; Miller, E. E.;
Mitchell, William D.; Perry, Alexander; Whitmore, John H.
0208. Blount County. The petitioners request that Charles and his wife, Hannah, who recently
purchased their freedom from the estate of their deceased owner, be allowed to remain in the
state. The slaves are old and wish to remain where they have always lived. Petitioners {40}:
Bogle, Hugh; McTier, William; Porter, W. S.; Toole, William, Sr.; Wallace, Will.
0213. Haywood County. Merchants and others complain about excessive taxation. On sales of
$200,000 worth of merchandise, wholesalers pay $2,000, not including corporation or city taxes.
“If this tax is persisted in,” the petitioners say, “it will destroy the Wholesale business, which it has
already seriously crippled.” To this is added another $2,000 in taxes at the retail level. At the
same time, land owners and slave owners pay one-tenth this amount. Petitioners ask that “no
species of property, from which a tax may be collected, shall be taxed higher than any other
species of property of equal value.” Petitioners {58}: Buck, P.; Coleman, J.; Greenwald, Nathan.
0217. Rutherford County. Citizens ask for the repeal of laws legalizing the sale of “ardent sprits in
tippling houses, or elsewhere.” Liquor perverted the morals of slaves and tempted the master to
“debasement,” they contend. There is no doubt that slaves can and do easily procure “ardent
spirits.” If they partake of drink too much “what is to restrain besotted slavery from filling the land
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with blood and conflagration?” Petitioners {106}: Ellis, R. G.; Fletcher, Gaines F.; Jones, John;
Leiper, John; Ready, Charles.
0223. Maury County. Merchants and others complain about excessive taxation. On sales of
$200,000 worth of merchandise, wholesalers pay $2,000, not including corporation or city taxes.
“If this tax is persisted in,” the petitioners say, “it will destroy the Wholesale business, which it has
already seriously crippled.” To this is added another $2,000 in taxes at the retail level. At the
same time, land owners and slave owners pay one-tenth this amount. Petitioners ask that “no
species of property, from which a tax may be collected, shall be taxed higher than any other
species of property of equal value.” Petitioners {93}: Butler, Francis; Green, John B.; Kelly,
Thomas J.; Philips, E. W.; Phillips, L.
0228. The slave Jim was committed to the Marion County jail in March 1849 as a runaway. After
some months, the governor of Alabama requested that Jim be extradited to stand trial for “a
Criminal offense, of a high character against the laws of Alabama.” The governor of Tennessee
obliged, ordering the sheriff to release Jim, who was later tried, convicted, and executed.
Residents of Marion County complain that it cost the county $85 to retain Jim and ask that jailer
Joseph P. Kelly be reimbursed. Petitioners {98}: Griffith, W. S.; Maxwell, David; Mitchell, P. A.;
Rankin, D.; Rice, George W.
0233. Women petitioners from Fayette County ask the legislature to amend the laws regarding
inheritances. They ask that “personal estates of females be placed upon a similar basis as their
Real estate, & so protected & secured that it cannot be sold, & taken from them.” Under current
laws, unless a father put his daughter's share of property in a separate trust, husbands could do
as they pleased with their wives' personal holdings. If a father died intestate, the daughter had
“no protection nor security of her personal estate only as she may be successful or unsuccessful
in her marriage, as her husband may be provident or improvident.” In the South, with its unique
institutions, manners, and customs, the petitioners explain, it is a “much greater privation &
inconvenience” for married women to be deprived of their slaves than of their land. Petitioners
{65}: Burford, F. B.; Hervey, R. C.; Parks, H.; Robertson, A. M.; Walker, M. T.
0237. Merchants and others complain about excessive taxation. On sales of $200,000 worth of
merchandise, wholesalers pay $2,000, not including corporation or city taxes. “If this tax is
persisted in,” the petitioners say, “it will destroy the Wholesale business, which it has already
seriously crippled.” To this is added another $2,000 in taxes at the retail level. At the same time,
land owners and slave owners pay one-tenth this amount. Petitioners ask that “no species of
property, from which a tax may be collected, shall be taxed higher than any other species of
property of equal value.” De Kalb County Petitioners {19}: Foster, William G.; Jones, F.; Vick, E.;
Whaley, T.; Woodsides, W. B. E. Wilson County Petitioners {31}: Anderson, P.; Ashworth, F. R.,
Jr.; Coles, V. T.; Sypert, William C.; Webb, G. W. Wilson County Petitioners {34}: Carter, W. W.;
Evans, R. J.; Lankford, Thomas R.; Raney, J. C. Williamson County Petitioners {47}: Bradley,
Graham; Carter, John C.; Davis, John; Perkins, Powhatan; Richardson, John W. Giles County
Petitioners {17}: Brown, W. P.; Dougherty, W. C.; McCord, E. H.; Moore, John R.; Shields,
James. Tipton County Petitioners {26}: Brown, J.; Quistor, W. N. M.; Rice, H.; Stevens, Daniel;
Vincent, W. B. Tipton County Petitioners {21}: Deakins & Woods; Davenport, David; Hogue,
Septha; Mariner, E. J.; Steele, J. Shelby County Petitioners {27}: Baley, James; Kortrecht,
Charles; Lapsley, S. M.; Miller, David L.; Smith, Joseph L. Campbell County Petitioners {28}:
Graves, A. P.; Markham, S.; Shepherd, G. T. W.; Temple, Wyatt; Thompson, George. Shelby
County Petitioners {24}: Cleaves, C. C.; Currin, J. E.; Mead, John R.; Warner, J.; Wilkinson,
Thomas W. Shelby County Petitioners {96}: Clark, T. H.; Dougherty, Street; Goff, James; Miller,
W. B.; Robertson, Tate.
0272. Maury County residents seek a law to protect from seizure homesteads and dwellings—
valued up to six hundred dollars—of every free white man or woman with a family. They oppose
the proposal to protect the personal property of married women. Protecting large estates handed
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down through female heirs, they claim, creates an “Oppressive monopoly of wealth.” Petitioners
{62}: Brewer, George W.; Cross, E. O.; Nixon, Wesley; Reaves, James V.; Roberts, Solomon.
0277. Merchants and others complain about excessive taxation. On sales of $200,000 worth of
merchandise, wholesalers pay $2,000, not including corporation or city taxes. “If this tax is
persisted in,” the petitioners say, “it will destroy the Wholesale business, which it has already
seriously crippled.” To this is added another $2,000 in taxes at the retail level. At the same time,
land owners and slave owners pay one-tenth this amount. Petitioners ask that “no species of
property, from which a tax may be collected, shall be taxed higher than any other species of
property of equal value.” White County Petitioners {69}: Dibrell, M. C.; Gipson, John; Leftwich &
Dibrel; Polk, William; Snodgrass, David. Williamson County Petitioners {46}: Crutcher, Thomas
S.; Crutcher, W. H.; Tenison, A. M.; Tullop, John E. Lincoln County Petitioners {83}: Holman,
H. C.; Kelso, Henry; Shapard, R. T.; Thomson, J. S.; Wallace, N. O. Bledsoe County Petitioners
{19}: McReynolds, Samuel; Paine, John R.; Roberson, Jesse C.; Rogers, D. J.; Wilson, I. J.
Maury County Petitioners {40}: Burke, F. A.; Graves, John M.; Hicks, Milton C.; Hurt, Jonathan;
Walker, J. H. Maury County Petitioners {111}: Brown, W. H.; Clark, Thomas M.; Groves, John R.;
Looney, A. M.; Spencer, John M. Robertson County Petitioners {126}: Clark, J. C.; Ford, James
H.; Shelby, W.; Watson, J.; Wells, S. H. Smith, Jackson, and Macon County Petitioners {46}:
Cornwell, John S.; Graves, Octavus; Hogg, D.; Smith, James D.; Young, Ichabod. Smith County
Petitioners {51}: Bains, A. L.; Barton, Joseph; Carter, H. R.; Harrison, E.; Satterfield, George.
0312. Wholesale or commission merchants and others complain about excessive taxation. On
sales of $200,000 worth of merchandise, wholesalers pay $2,000, not including corporation or city
taxes. “If this tax is persisted in,” the petitioners say, “it will destroy the Wholesale business,
which it has already seriously crippled.” To this is added another $2,000 in taxes at the retail
level. At the same time, land owners and slave owners pay one-tenth this amount. Petitioners ask
that “no species of property, from which a tax may be collected, shall be taxed higher than any
other species of property of equal value.” Smith County Petitioners {72}: McClarin, Hugh;
McClarin, James M.; Perry, Winston; Thornton, N.; Watkins, Allen S. [replaces “Jamison” listed on
PAR as petitioner]. Hardeman County Petitioners {33}: Averill, T. W.; Bomar, Richard M.; McNeal,
S.; Paine, James A.; Shaw, F. T. Coffee County Petitioners {91}: Brantley, H. W.; Brantley, J. A.;
Gardner, John R.; McFadden & [Moore]; Walterson, William B. Marshall County Petitioners {21}:
Anderson, W.; Davis, C. B.; Long, Thomas; Ramsey, John; Reid, James L. Wilson County
Petitioners {50}: Gannaway, G. G.; Golladay, Sam; Peyton, J. M.; Stratton, Thomas J.; Vick,
A. W. Bedford County Petitioners {81}: Brame & [Lett]; Doak, Samuel; Terry, T. R.; Thompson,
J. H.
0334. Bedford County. Merchants and others complain about excessive taxation. On sales of
$200,000 worth of merchandise, wholesalers pay $2,000, not including corporation or city taxes.
“If this tax is persisted in,” the petitioners say, “it will destroy the Wholesale business, which it has
already seriously crippled.” To this is added another $2,000 in taxes at the retail level. At the
same time, land owners and slave owners pay one-tenth this amount. Petitioners ask that “no
species of property, from which a tax may be collected, shall be taxed higher than any other
species of property of equal value.” Petitioners {34}: Clagett, Horatio; Cochran, William J.;
Cullom, G.; Moffat, Robert; Nevins, John.
0338. Wholesale or commission merchants and others complain about excessive taxation. On
sales of $200,000 worth of merchandise, wholesalers pay $2,000, not including corporation or city
taxes. “If this tax is persisted in,” the petitioners say, “it will destroy the Wholesale business,
which it has already seriously crippled.” To this is added another $2,000 in taxes at the retail
level. At the same time, land owners and slave owners pay one-tenth this amount. Petitioners ask
that “no species of property, from which a tax may be collected, shall be taxed higher than any
other species of property of equal value.” Franklin County Petitioners {66}: Anderson, E. P.; Estill,
J. W.; Henderson, Alfred; Porter, B. F.; Shook, G. A. Sumner County Petitioners {94}: Day, Isach;
Hank, John; Smith, James H.; Towson, Jacob; Towson, John. Giles County Petitioners {22}:
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Abernathy, Charles C. [replaces “May” listed on PAR as petitioner]; Gilmer, William; Rhea, Martin;
Shapard, B.; Voorhees, J. Cannon County Petitioners {146}: Beech, A. C.; Brevard, Z. L.; Fisher,
A. N.; Hale, J. H.; Shackleford, D. P. Fayette County Petitioners {83}: Cooper, John C.;
Lansberry, A. J.; McClellan, Samuel A.; Rhea, M.; Williams, Duke. Fayette County Petitioners
{35}: Brown, R. A.; Cole, S. E.; Donoho, R. A.; Farish, L. B.; Garrett, George W. Coffee County
Petitioners {25}: Hollins, Benjamin F.; Pulley, Bartly; Willis, Peter; Winford, John. Shelby County
Petitioners {34}: Anderson, Thomas; James, John; Jones, H. T.; Miller, T. H.; Thomson, J. W.
Marshall County Petitioners {65}: Black, J. B.; Cochran, Levi; Hughes, Gid; Williams, John;
Yowell, James. Montgomery County Petitioners {71}: Broaddus, William; Collins, John D.;
Farmer, T. T.; Moore, R. S.; Pendleton, J. T. Petitioners {19}: Hodge, J. W.; Marshall, James;
Moss, Robert P.; Otey, P. H.; Parks, Andrew. Marshall County Petitioners {37}: Allen, M. A.;
Brockwell, T. N.; Cleaton, T. C.; Humphrey, R. B.; Thompson, W. W. Maury County Petitioners
{101}: Bingham, J. J.; Gordon, G. C.; Pollard, Joseph H.; Rucker, J. H.; Walker, A. W. Fayette
County Petitioners {36}: Buck, J. H.; Gloster, Thomas B.; Holcombe, B. L.; Young, Thomas P.
Shelby County Petitioners {36}: Dennis, A. G.; Dennis, John S.; Jett, W. C.; Murdaugh, Joseph
C.; Rhodes, L. A.
0390. Wayne County. In 1842, Charles Signer died intestate, leaving an estate of land, personal
holdings, and three slaves. His only living relative was his wife, Susan. Except for her right of
dower in the real estate, she could claim no other part of the estate. The remainder of the
property escheated to the state. Indeed, the attorney general in the fourteenth judicial chancery
circuit had filed a motion to confiscate the property. Petitioners ask that Susan, who helped
accumulate the property, be given title to both the real and personal holdings. Petitioners {130}:
Hill, Robert A.; Jones, D. J.; Jones, William; McLean, Cavel B.; Montague, A.
0395. At a convention held in Greenville, Greene County, in September 1849, a group of
businessmen asked for additional state aid for the East Tennessee and Virginia Railroad. Among
various arguments, they explain that the revenues of the state came mainly from assessments of
real and slave property. With the completion of the railroad, land values in the east would at least
double, bringing in additional revenues to the state. Petitioners {3}: Foute, George W.;
McGaughey, John; Sevier, David.
1851.
0404. Hawkins County. The executors of William Keele's will ask that the slave Archibald be
emancipated and permitted to remain in Tennessee. The specific instructions were that he should
be freed “on the Demise of his Consort Livy Anne Keele.” Archibald is honest, faithful, and of
“good Moral Character.” He has a large family and wishes to remain near loved ones. Petitioners
{20}: Grigsby, A.; Grigsby, William; Keele, A. B.; Keele, Jesse; Walker, James H.
0408. Hamilton County. Residents complain that free people of color refuse to respect white
property rights. Whenever a controversy arises, free people of color have a “disposition to
encourage litigation,” they state. This not only ties up the courts but adds to public expense “in
paying the costs of State prosecutors.” The residents recommend that Tennessee levy a tax on
free people of color similar to the ones levied in Alabama and Georgia. Petitioners {27}: Bunyard,
J. P.
0410. Residents of Murfreesboro and Rutherford County deplore the “great evils growing out of
the residence of the free colored population in our midst.” Free colored people are generally
thieves who induce slaves to “steal everything that comes in their way,” they state. As a result
slaves are “less valuable and more ungovernable.” They seek “whatever remedy” the legislature
might deem proper. Petitioners {265}: Brooks, C. M.; Huggins, W. S.; Jones, Albert; Ransom,
Robert N.; Spence, William.
0418. Magistrates and constables ask for greater compensation for duties they perform. “The
expenses of living are much heavier than formerly,” they note, “and to this must be added the
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cost of office rent.” The largest proposed increase for constables includes an increase from thirtythree cents to one dollar for “Whipping Slave by order of Court or Justice.” Sullivan County
Petitioners {12}: Depew, John; Hawley, William; Laudermilk, John; Rhea, John; Woff, John.
Shelby County Petitioners {46}: Davis, William; Eanes, William P.; Hodges, J. B.; Holloway,
George G.; Smith, Ferdinand. Hardeman County Petitioners {83}: Joy, Christ; Murrell, William;
Robertson, A. T.; Shaw, A. G.; Taylor, W. W. Hamilton County Petitioners {14}: Anderson, John;
Guthrie, L.; Lewis, W. H.; Thomas, J. G.; Varmel, William. Williamson County Petitioners {33}:
Bond, W. W.; Davis, C. W.; Marshall, G.; Nichols, John; Swanson, Richard. McNairy County
Petitioners {26}: Cawthers, F. W.; Pace, S. D.; Sanders, Benjamin; Sweat, D.; Williams, R. J.
Maury County Petitioners {46}: Baker, R.; Bingham, J. J.; Webb, William H.; White, James M.;
Witherspoon, Thomas. Shelby County Petitioners {51}: Davis, William; Eanes, William; Halloway,
George G.; Hodges, J. B.; Smith, Ferdinand. Polk County Petitioners {20}: Corsey, John B.;
Ferguson, M. C.; Grady, William; McConnell, Robert H.; Swan, J. N.
0455. Maury County. President of the Duck River Slack-Water Navigation Company Robert
Campbell requests a loan of $150,000 to complete his project to make the river navigable for
steamboats. He proposes that the loan “be secured by a mortgage upon the works of the
Company—upon the negroes now owned, and upon those it designs purchasing.” He planned to
use funds from the sale of bonds to buy additional laborers. The company owns eighty-two ablebodied men and four women as cooks. Petitioners {2}: Campbell, Robert; Kelly, Thomas J.
0456. Maury County. Forty-three stockholders of the Duck River Slack-Water Navigation
Company ask the legislature not to grant the loan sought by the company's president. They
contend the project is not feasible. At present, the approximately eighty slaves and a number of
white mechanics had not completed the first lock and dam. It would take at least a decade to
complete the proposed waterway, and the cost would far exceed projections. Petitioners {44}:
Morgan, John F.; Polk, Andrew J.; Polk, Lucius J.; Polk, Will; Watkins, F. H.
0467. Four Hawkins County residents “became the security for James Bradley,” a deputy sheriff
who absconded to Texas. Bradley had failed to return a list of insolvents, and the residents who
had posted his security were sued and forced to pay $242.75 to the state. Now with the “removal
of negroes change of land owners &c” it was not possible to collect the taxes owed to those who
had put up sheriff's bond. They ask for compensation. Petitioners {4}: Hutchisson, William;
Spears, Jesse; Willis, James.
0472. Shelby County. Citizens of Memphis ask for a system of education for “all the white
children of the City over six years of age, without any TAX or FEE whatever, and, without any
sectarian influence or teaching.” Petitioners {304}: Grenninger, George. Petitioners {11}: Akin,
W. A.; Baum, T.; Campbell, D. C.; Christy, L.; Werner, William. Petitioners {77}: Cooper, E.;
Harris, A. O.; Massey, E. D.; Miller, W.; Watkins, H. W.
0484. Fayette County men and women seek to prohibit the sale of liquor. The use of intoxicating
beverages, they assert, is corrosive to society. It is especially injurious to slaves, who have easy
access to tippling houses. Liquor should be used only for medical purposes or church
communions. Petitioners {121}: Bullock, H. G.; Irby, Henry; Johnston, W. S.; Kalb, Newton; Parks,
J. M.
0489. Residents of Lewis County ask the legislature to halt “the trafficking in spiritous liquors to
slaves and free persons of color.” This practice leads directly to crime, they assert. Under existing
law an “unprincipled liquor vender may now by closing his doors, ruin a whole neighborhood of
slaves because no white man may see him sell.” The passing of intoxicating liquors to slaves
should be permitted only at an owner's discretion. Petitioners {44}: Cooper, A. G.; Edmiston,
S. D.; Mitchell, W. N.; Smith, Robert; White, R.
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0493. Hamilton County. Residents complain that free people of color refuse to respect the
property rights of whites. Whenever a controversy arises, free people of color have a “disposition
to encourage litigation.” This ties up the courts and adds to public expense “in paying the costs of
State prosecutors.” The residents recommend that Tennessee levy a tax on free people of color
similar to the ones levied in Alabama and Georgia. Petitioners {53}: Blare, Lamar; Butler, Lewis;
Glover, Daniel; Rogers, William; Watkins, Finly T. Petitioners {36}: Finley, James; Irwin, George;
Laws, John A.; Rimbrugh, D. H.; Wright, C. D. Petitioners {50}: Anderson, John; Berton, J.;
Matthews, W.; Runyan, William; Sutton, James. Petitioners {104}: Clift, William; Harper, Caswell;
Moon, J. H.; Moon, J. P.; Watson, J. M.
0506. Shelby County. Magistrates and constables ask for greater compensation for duties they
perform. “The expenses of living are much heavier than formerly,” they note, “and to this must be
added the cost of office rent.” The largest proposed increase for constables includes an increase
from thirty-three cents to one dollar for “Whipping Slave by order of Court or Justice.” Petitioners
{47}: Davis, William; Eanes, William H.; Halloway, George G.; Hodges, J. B.; Smith, Ferdinand.
1853.
0509. Montgomery County. Ben Moore, a free person of color, died intestate. Subscribers request
that Moore's property, valued at three hundred dollars, be distributed among his seven slave
children. Petitioners {23}: Easly, James; Moody, Robert; Moore, W.; Wall, W. B.; Yarbrough, S.
0512. Sheep raisers in Davidson County seek protection against dogs killing their stock. They
propose a tax “on all bitches over the age of six months” and a double tax if a person kept more
than one dog. If slave-owned dogs killed sheep, masters should be held responsible. Petitioners
{53}: Chudwell, Thomas; Compton, Harvey; Kingston, S. M.; Petway, H., Sr.; Trigg, John S.
0517. Talladega County, Alabama. In 1846, William B. Downs, a free person of color who lived in
Nashville, died intestate. His closest kin were slaves and thus incapable of inheriting his property,
including a lot on College Street in the capital. Free person of color Delilah Sumner claimed the
property as a relative and traded it to Henry McKenzie of Alabama for her husband. The slave
owner then learned that there was “some pretence” that the property should escheat to the state.
He asks that this not be the case.
1854.
0521. Fayette County. Freed by his owner, Joseph Coe, in July 1853, Stephen was forced to
leave the state and his slave wife and children. Stephen had always been an “honest, industrious
and faithful” slave, and now, the petitioners contend, he should be permitted to return to
Tennessee and live with his family. Petitioner: Rivers, Thomas.
1855.
0525. Henry Currier and others lost between one thousand and five thousand dollars when their
cotton gins were burned down by persons of color. Such crimes, they claimed, were “on the
increase to an alarming extent.” Petitioners ask that the punishment for the burning of the gins be
changed from thirty-nine lashes to “the same punishment that is inflicted for the burning of
dwellings and other out Houses.” Petitioners {124}: Cobb, J. H.; Currier, Henry; Rogers, James
A.; Taliaferro, Lyne S.; Tuggle, Thomas R.
0530. Wilson County. Petitioners request that free people of color be denied permission to act as
peddlers. Bartering their goods about the county, the whites assert, they incite slaves to steal,
traffic, and “indulge in other vicious practices.” Petitioners {16}: Galladay, E. J.; Green, N., Jr.;
Harvey, B.; Lester, H. D.; Williamson, W. H.
0533. Petitioners Benjamin Murrell and Martha Ann Murrell, both minors, request permission to
sell Ann, “a diseased and afflicted creature” belonging to the estate of the late Isaac Murrell. The
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two owners planned to move out of the state and could sell the slave “to a good advantage.”
Petitioners {50}: Carlin, John H. D.; Murrell, Benjamin F.; Murrell, J. B.; Murrell, Martha Ann;
Murrell, Richard.
0536. Stewart County. Owned by William Crouse of Stewart County, seven slaves—mother Lizy
and children Bob, Susan, Violet, Reynolds, Jacob, and Ellie—were promised their freedom, but
shortly before Crouse's death in 1848 they fell into the hands of “false and pretended friends” who
kept them in bondage. Able to institute a suit in chancery court in 1852, they were eventually
declared free, but now, according to the new law passed 24 February 1854, they were forced to
emigrate to West Africa. They ask to remain in Tennessee. The mother is about sixty-five years
old and “very infirm.” She needs the constant care of her sons “in the decrepitude of age.” Bob,
age about forty five, is in very bad health and needs constant care. Susan has needed the
assistance of her brothers “for many years.” Petitioners {7}: Bob; Lizy; Reynolds; Susan; Violet.
0540. The petitioners ask for the repeal of the law “in relation to the introduction and sale of
Negroes from other states” into Tennessee. Petitioners {32}: Armstrong, Samuel; Cass, William
M.; Horton, W. G.; King, C.; Phillips, M. L.
0543. Williamson County residents seek to improve the patrol system to make it more effective.
They state that they suffer constantly from “petty robbery carried on by the slaves,” despite
locking and bolting their corn cribs, wheat granaries, poultry houses, and dairies. Patrols should
be required to inspect “a specified number of times every week.” They believe this would reduce
the extensive theft. Petitioners {170}: Briggs, J. W.; Burnett, John D.; Edmondson, John; Hicks,
Stephen; Shannon, S. R. Petitioners {33}: Cuningham, H. W.; Cuningham, James M.; Jamison,
John B.; Owen, J. W.; Wilson, Joseph.
0552. The petitioners, former slaves of William Crouse of Stewart County, request permission to
remain in Tennessee. Crouse had promised the petitioners their freedom, but after he died in
1848 the slaves fell into the hands of “false and pretended friends” who kept them in bondage.
They instituted a suit in chancery court in 1852 and won their freedom, but according to the law
passed 24 February 1854 they must migrate to West Africa. Lizy, the mother of the other
petitioners, is about sixty-five years old and “very infirm.” She states that she needs the constant
care of her sons “in the decrepitude of age.” Bob, age about forty five, is in very bad health and
needs constant care. Susan has needed the assistance of her brothers “for many years.”
Petitioners {7}: Bob; Ellie; Jacob; Lizy; Reynolds.
1857.
0558. In 1851 free black man Ben McCutchen died. In his will he directed his executor, David
Sayers, to pay his debts, to provide for his aged mother during her life, and to divide the
remainder of his estate among his eleven children. McCutchen owned thirty-one acres of land
worth about twenty dollars per acre and personal property. His children, however, are slaves
“without any existing right to emancipation,” Sayers states. The executor “is advised” that the land
therefore escheats to the state. He asks, however, for permission to sell the land and distribute
the proceeds as outlined in McCutchen's will.
0562. Hardeman County. The petitioners ask that the legislature pass a law to prevent people of
color from preaching. The words of such preachers are “dangerous to the public weal & safety,
injurious to the great mass of Negroes who attend such worship,” the petitioners claim.
Petitioners {34}: Anderson, C. H.; Cox, Asa; Fowler, J. C. H.; Hancock, T. H.; Southall, Holman.
0566. Maury County. The petitioners seek a law to prohibit slaves from owning dogs and to tax
dogs owned by anyone else. Petitioners {24}: Buttler, W. R.; Fleming, Joseph A.; Frierson, Elias
C.; Leftwich, T. A.; McRady, Joseph.
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0570. McMinn County. The petitioners request that slave owners be “in some proper way”
compensated for slaves executed for committing capital offenses. Petitioners {88}: Crawford,
John; King, C. L.; Phillips, M. L.; Reynolds, Humphrey; Zimmerman, C.
0575. Slave owner Joseph Hunter seeks to emancipate the slave Bill and requests that Bill be
permitted to remain in Tennessee with his wife. Bill does not wish to emigrate to Africa as
required by law.
0578. William Ledbetter of Rutherford County and Hardin P. Bostick of Davidson County seek tax
relief. In 1856, they employed at their Stewart County iron works about seventy slaves, paying
taxes on the bondsmen in November when the tax list was compiled. In 1857, the assessor used
the same list but the slaves, hired from different owners in various counties, had been sent home
in December 1856 and had not been rehired. The two iron masters sought relief from county
officials but were unsuccessful.
1858.
0585. Monroe and Roane Counties. The petitioners request that Aaron Griffith, a black minister
who purchased his freedom, be freed and be permitted to remain in Tennessee. “Aaron does not
wish to be emancipated & sent off,” the petitioners explain, “on account of his wife and children
who are slaves & reside here.” Petitioners {95}: Brown, W. N.; Dyer, William; Griffith, John;
Henderson, G. L.; Taylor, G. R.
0590. Anderson County. The petitioners state that Milton Tate expressed his desire to free the
slaves John, a “man of years,” Rose (John's wife), and a girl named Hester. He had a “deep
attachment” to the three blacks, the petitioners aver, and was determined that they would “not be
forced to Serve another.” Tate's sudden illness and death, however, prevented him from writing a
formal will though he had given a nuncupative will. Fearing that the oral emancipations might not
stand up, S. B. and William T. Tate ask to emancipate the slaves in behalf of their “much beloved
brother."
1859.
0594. Residents of Maury County argue that the traffic and sale of liquor to slaves will have “fatal
consequences” and will result in ruin for “the Citizens and slave holders of the country.” The
petitioners recommend a one- to three-year jail or penitentiary term for anyone found guilty of
selling, bartering, or distributing spirits to slaves without the owner's permission. Petitioners {108}:
Estes, John; Estes, P. J.; Harris, Jesse S.; Porter, Nimrod; Thomas, P. W. B.
1860.
0599. Wilson County. The petitioners seek to remove free people of color from the state. They
believe that no slaves should be emancipated unless funds are provided for their immediate
removal to Liberia. The free black population of Tennessee, the petitioners contend, is generally
“lazy, worthless, and engaged in trading with the slave race & thereby injuring their morals & the
property of the master.” Petitioners {93}: Anderson, P. H.; Faust, W. E.; Hare, R. B.; Tubble,
Peter; Webb, LeRoy B.
0603. Faculty members of the University of Nashville ask the legislature “to reject the bill
concerning the State Hospital of Tennessee.” They contend that this bill, which would close the
state hospital and sell the land on which it was situated, would not only be a disservice to the
public but also would adversely affect the medical college. The medical college, which they
contend is “far in advance of any…in the slaveholding States,” benefits from the practical
experience students gain at the hospital. Petitioners {8}: Bowling, W. K.; Jennings, Thomas R.;
Lindsley, J. Berrien; Watson, John M.; Winston, C. K.
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0606. In 1856, a group of Tipton County men, including A. McGregor and William H. Murphy,
underwrote securities for Tax Collector Thomas Hamilton, who failed to pay the state the taxes he
collected. The security holders petitioned the legislature, and an act was passed 4 December
1858, whereby notes were executed for $5,915.12, the amount claimed to be owed to the state. A
short time later, A. McGregor died. He left a wife and ten children, and debts amounting to
$10,000 or $12,000. The only way to pay the debt was to sell property. Then William Murphy died
and left a widow and five children. The heirs were forced to sell all of his slaves except one infirm
woman. It now appears that the widow of A. McGregor will be forced to sell her slaves and
perhaps her house, “leaving the widow & children as it were pennyless.” The petitioners,
executors and administrators for the two estates, seek relief for the widows. Petitioners {3}:
Bledsoe, J. R.; Munford, R. H.; Richardson, Thomas R.
0611. Petitioners from Wilson County request that all free people of color be removed from the
state. They suggest giving free people of color the choice of remanding themselves to slavery or
being hired out. If free black people choose to be hired out, a fund should be created to transport
them “beyond the limits of any Southern State.”
0612. Wilson County. The petitioners seek to remove free people of color from the state. They
believe that no slaves should be emancipated unless funds are provided for their immediate
removal to Liberia. The free black population in Tennessee, the signers contend, is generally
“lazy worthless, and engaged in trading with the slave race & injuring their morals & the property
of the master.” Petitioners {81}: Bull, W.; Goldston, William B.; Lester, Thomas D.; Patterson,
A. J.; Perkins, John.
1861.
0617. Officers in the Marshall Rangers and the Marion Dragoons ask that three free men of color
be hired as cooks at a salary not exceeding the pay of a soldier. The cooks would “be held
responsible by the Captain for provisions placed in their charge.” This would save provisions—the
meals being cooked “in bulk"—and the soldiers would not be kept away from drill while preparing
meals.
0627. Davidson County. Having consulted the seventy-six men in his company, Captain F. M. McNairy of
the Tennessee Rangers asks that one servant be assigned to cook for every eight men and that officers be
permitted to hire servants “as they may think proper.” If necessary a bill should be passed authorizing the
governor to impress free men of color to perform menial service, McNairy stat
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Texas
0001. Descriptive material.
1836.
0008. Fort Bend County. Samuel B. Dickinson asks for $320 in compensation for expenses he
incurred during a journey through the northern states seeking volunteers to fight for Texas
independence. Dickinson, appointed by the late commissioners of Texas, notes that he
continually encountered “prejudices gotten up by the fanaticks of the Non Slave holding States."
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0011. Nacogdoches County. Eleven citizens seek a law prohibiting “Negroes from Carrying
arms.” Petitioners {11}: Gibson, Absalom; McDonald, W. L.; Porter, J. J.; Rollins, Eliphalet;
Whitcomb, J.
1837.
0014. Travis County. Lewis Jones, a man of color, emigrated to Texas in 1826. He was “received
by the Empressario Stephen F. Austin as a Colonist” and therefore was entitled to a “League of
Land.” Jones selected a tract and has been living on it for three years but has not yet received the
title. He seeks the title to his land.
0017. Brazoria County. Kentucky slave Greenberry Logan was emancipated by his father, David
Logan, and in 1831 emigrated to Texas. He fought in the war for Texas independence. He fought
at the battle of Concepcion under James Fannin and was severely wounded in the right arm
when Texans under Ben Milam captured San Antonio in December 1835. The petitioner has been
living with his wife, Caroline, a free woman of color, in Brazoria, where they keep a boarding
house. Logan avers that his right arm is virtually useless and that he “had hoped that after the
zeal and patriotism evinced by him, in fighting for the liberty of his adopted Country, and his
willingness to shed his blood in a cause so glorious, he might be allowed the privilege of spending
the remainder of his days in quiet and peace, but your [petitioner] has been informed that the
Constitution contains a clause which prohibits all free persons of color from coming to or
remaining in the country, unless by the consent of Congress.” Logan asks permission for himself
and his wife to remain in Texas.
0022. Jackson County. Free man of color Samuel McCulluck, also spelled McCulloch, states that
he fought in the war for Texas independence and was severely wounded in his right shoulder at
the battle of Goliad. He seeks land he is entitled to as a free citizen and “also Such Bounty
Lands” due him for his service in the army.
1838.
0026. Houston County. Joseph Walling states that he emigrated to Texas with the belief that he
could emancipate three slaves: a “woman of yellow complection,” Moriah, about twenty-three or
twenty-four years old, and her two children, four-year-old Hariet and one-year-old Thomas.
Walling seeks permission to emancipate his slaves.
0029. Harris County. Nelson Kavanaugh, a freed slave from Kentucky who emigrated to Texas in
1837, states that he has always been “humble honest and industrious. Kavanaugh seeks
exemption from the law requiring free people of color to emigrate. He asserts that he is “no friend
to the abolitionists who he is well aware more than even the ill conduct of some of his colour and
condition have drawn down upon us the ban of the Republic."
0034. Nacogdoches County. William Goyens states that he is “unfortunately a man of color” who
emigrated to Texas in 1830. Since then, he has “ever been identified with the feelings and
interests of the Anglo American population.” For the last five years he worked “in publick Services
connected with the Indians,” and for the past two years he served as “a regular Indian Agent—for
the Cherokee Tribe.” During the war with Mexico, he furnished “horses, provisions, and money—
small as may have been these services they were at least equal to his ability.” He notes that
under the Colonization Law he is entitled to land; he seeks a “League & Labor of Land” to support
himself and his family.
0039. Nacogdoches County. Juan Baptiste Maturin, “a free person, and one-fourth African,”
received a grant in 1828 from “the then existing government of Texas” for “one sitio of land” four
leagues from the town of Nacogdoches. He lived on the land with his family ever since, though it
was never surveyed. Maturin and his neighbors argue that he should be granted the land; it would
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be an injustice if he were not. They ask for a “full and perfect title in fee simple.” Petitioners {26}:
Corbin, A. G.; Maturin, Juan B.; Phillips, T. T.; Roberts, J.; Sterne, Adolphus.
0043. Fort Bend County. Robert Handy states that his indentured “negro boy,” James Robinson,
journeyed with him to Texas in March 1836. The two joined the army and saw action at the battle
of San Jacinto. When a pass was offered Robinson to return home, he refused “and begged
permission to remain and share the fate of those who met the Enemy.” The petitioner further
states that “while thousands of our citizens were retreating in panic and confusion to the United
States, this single minded negro boy, though unacknowledged as a patriot, and bound by no ties
of interest; still rose superior to every selfish consideration, and bravely breasted the storm of
Mexican invasion at the gloomiest hour of our fortunes.” Handy asks the legislature to
compensate Robinson for his bravery and services.
0049. Residents of Red River County support the application of Emanuel Carter, a free-born
person of color from Tennessee, to remain in Texas and have his property protected. Carter is
industrious, well-disposed, and honest. Petitioners {22}: Arrington, Noel; Graham, James;
Langford, Eli; Witter, Charles K; Young, W. C.
0052. Houston County. Nelson Kavanaugh, a free man of color, seeks permanent residency in
the Republic of Texas and asks for protection of any property he might acquire.
0056. Arriving in Texas in December 1835, Carter took up residence in Red River County. He
states that he can prove that he emigrated “at the time above” and that he is a free man of color.
He is faithful and well-disposed to the laws of the Republic. He asks for an act to permit him “to
enjoy, unmolested, the privileges of a citisen so far as to be protected by the laws of the country,
and to hold land and other property in his own name.” Petitioner: Carter, Emanuel.
0057. Red River County. Edmund J. Carter, a free man of color, arrived in Texas in January
1837. He asks to “enjoy unmolested the privileges of a citizen” and to hold land and other
property in his own name.
0061. Red River County. The petitioners ask that Edmund J. Carter be granted “the privalege of
Citizen-Ship.” He is a free-born man of color. Petitioners {47}: Benton, Elijah; Matthews, Joseph;
Matthews, Robert E.; Matthews, William; Watson, John M.
0065. Red River County. Residents support the request for citizenship of Edmund J. Carter, a
free-born man of color who is honest, industrious, and “manfully Competent to discharge faithfully
any of the privileges of citisenShip.” Carter had emigrated from Tennessee. Petitioners {55}:
Bingham, Takly; Blevans, Luke; Hockens, William; Meek, Wistley; Musick, John.
0069. Houston County. The officers of the Texas Steam Mill Company ask permission to increase
their capital stock from fifty to one hundred thousand dollars. They found that the cost of slaves
necessary to complete the project exceeded their original estimates. Petitioners {5}: Ambrus, N.
H.; Andrews, Ezekiel; Belden, E.; Douglass, H. H.; Parker, Luman F.
1839.
[1839 petition out of chronological order, see frame 0153.]
0074. Fort Bend County. Wyly Martin seeks permission to emancipate his slave, Peter, who had
served him “from his boyhood.” Martin is now between sixty and seventy years old, and since the
Constitution forbids slaveholders from emancipating their slaves “without the consent of
Congress,” he asks to free his honest and faithful slave.
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0079. San Augustine County. Following the death of his wife many years before, Edward Teal
turned his children over to his slave, Fanny. She acted more “in the character of a Mother than
that of a Servant.” Teal asks that she be emancipated.
0082. Harris County. Residents of Houston seek a law permitting Henry Tucker, a free man of
color, to remain in Texas. They recommend him “as having always demeaned himself as a
peacible and useful individual in this community.” A barber by trade, Tucker gives complete
satisfaction to “a respectable and numerous patronage.” Petitioners {34}: Allen, A. C.; Baker,
William R.; Barr, R.; Fisher, George; Hookley, John W.
0086. Jasper County. Joseph Tate, a free man of color who served in the Texas army, seeks
permission to remain in the state and requests the land entitled to him “under the former
government."
0091. Fort Bend County. Wyly Martin seeks permission to emancipate his slave, Peter, who had
served him “from his boyhood.” Martin is now between sixty and seventy years old. Since the
Constitution forbids slaveholders from emancipating their slaves “without the consent of
Congress,” he asks to free his honest and faithful slave.
1840.
0096. Residents of Brazoria County seek an exemption from the laws prohibiting the residence of
free persons of color in the republic. Philadelphia-born James Richardson, a free black man who
operated an oyster house and rest stop between Velasco and San Louis, is “useful to the public
in a situation suitable to his class and at a locality where a white person equally serviceable could
not be expected to reside.” A man of “industry, sobriety, and correct deportment,” Richardson
served under John Bell during the war for independence. In addition, Richards is sixty years of
age and not likely to promote “any of the evils” contemplated by lawmakers when they enacted
the prohibition laws. Petitioners {23}: Greer, Thomas P.; Lyon, L. C.; Potter, Reuben; Underwood,
A.; Walker, D. R.
0100. Citizens of Nacogdoches County ask the legislature to exempt William Goyens, a free man
of color, from the law requiring free people of color to emigrate. Goyens had conducted himself
“as an honest industrious citizen,” had accumulated considerable real estate, and had been “of
great Service to the Country in our Indian difficulties.” Petitioners {53}: Chevaillier, Charles; Hija,
F. [?]; Rusk, Thomas J.; Sterne, Adolphus; Worley, Z.
0104. Citizens of Jefferson County ask the legislature to exempt Elisha Thomas, a free man of
color, from the law requiring free people of color to emigrate. Thomas lived in Texas before the
Texas Declaration of Independence and “has ever been a peacable and respectable citizens.”
Petitioners {62}: Applewhite, Isaac; Clark, John; Simmons, Daniel; Sloan, William; Stephenson,
William.
0107. Citizens of Jefferson County seek an exemption for four people of color—the brothers
Joshua, Aaron, David, and William Ashworth—from the law requiring them to emigrate. The
brothers had resided in the county for two years and are “peaceable and Respectable Citizens.”
The law “will operate oppressively” on them, the petitioners argue, and they should be granted
the privilege of living in the republic. Petitioners {57}: Garner, David; Hatton, William E.; Johnson,
Thomas; Sloan, William; Stephenson, William.
0110. Citizens of Harris County request an exemption for free people of color Zeliah Husk and
her daughter, Emily, from the law requiring them to emigrate. Husk emigrated to Texas in 1835,
before the Declaration of Independence, and has worked as a laundress in Houston for the past
two years. She is “a good and industrious Woman peacebly earning her own livelihood, and that
she has not the means of removing with her child beyond the limits of the Republic.” Petitioners
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{61}: Dankworth, William [replaces “William Duckworth” listed on PAR as petitioner]; Kelley, G. S.;
Miller, G. W. [replaces “H. Jordan [?]” listed on PAR as petitioner]; Rukmann, E.; Tomkins, A. M.
0115. Harris County. Fanny McFarland, a free woman of color, was brought to Texas as a slave
in 1827. In return for her “long and faithful services,” her owner, William McFarland, emancipated
her in 1835. At the time of the Mexican invasion she was living in San Felipe De Austin and lost
her property. In 1837, she moved to Houston and acquired some “little property.” She has four
slave children, and now, as she grows old, “all her hopes and prospects in this life lies here.” She
seeks permission “to spend the few reminding days of her life as a resident and Citizen of this
republic."
0119. Bastrop County. In his last will and testament, Bartholamew Manlove arranged for the
emancipation of his mulatto slave, Rosine, and her five children in return for their “faithful
conduct.” The will was filed, but “in consequence of an act passed by the last Congress he is
prevented from accomplishing his intended purpose.” Manlove asks for permission to emancipate
Rosine and her children.
0122. Nacogdoches County. The nine children of Sophia Towns, a free woman of color, now
deceased, seek exemption from the law requiring free people of color to emigrate. Their parents,
David and Sophia Towns, emigrated to Texas in 1827 with their six children. Three other children
were born in Texas. Sophia died in Nacogdoches County in 1838. The petitioners state that the
two eldest children, Louisa and Eliza, are married and have five children between them. The
petitioners “endeavoured with what scanty means have been at their command to improve their
condition by the acquisition of some little personal property, and their most strenuous efforts have
ever been to Demean themselves in a proper and becoming manner.” Petitioners {9}: Towns,
Delila; Towns, Eliza; Towns, Louisa; Towns, Matilda; Towns, Peter.
0126. Nacogdoches County. Andrew Bell, a free man of color, emigrated to Texas in 1837 with
his family. Now, with the recent enactment by the Congress of the republic, he is being forced to
emigrate. He seeks an exemption from the law requiring him and his family to leave Texas.
0130. Nacogdoches County. Allen Dimery was living in Texas at the time of the Declaration of
Independence on 2 March 1836. Dimery notes that “a joint resolution of the Congress of 1836
authorized all free persons of color who were residing here on the day of the declaration of
Independence to remain permanently in the Republic.” He seeks an act permitting him to reside
in Texas.
0134. Austin County. Henry Lynch, a free man of color, petitions for permission to remain in the
republic. Lynch notes that he is “an honest & industrious citizen” who emigrated to Texas “nearly
two years since.” Lynch seeks exemption from the act passed at the last session requiring free
people of color to leave the country on or before 1 January 1842. Lynch explains he “has a wife in
the Country as well as many other ties which endear the Country to him."
0137. Citizens of Jefferson County ask that free people of color William and Abner Ashworth be
permitted to remain in the republic. They had “contributed generously to the advancement of the
Revolution.” Petitioners {72}: Applewhite, Isaac; Stephenson, George; Stephenson, Gilbert;
Stephenson, William; Turner, John.
0141. Montgomery County. Free man of color Robert Thompson asks to remain in the republic.
He arrived in Texas in 1831 and though he did not fight in 1836 he contributed a valuable mare
and rifle to the army of Texas.
0145. Residents of Red River County ask that C. Grubbs, a free man of color, be permitted to
remain in the republic. Grubbs is “notorious for his good Reputation & is strictly and perfectly
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honest truthful and not in any way evil disposed.” Petitioners {66}: Fowler, B. C.; Pangburn, G. A.;
Savage, Daniel; St. Cloud, Samuel; Wright, T. G.
0149. Residents of Washington County ask that Jordan Artis, a free man of color, be permitted to
remain in the republic. He is “a verry aged man,” about seventy-three, and had “universally
maintained a good character.” Petitioners {26}: Belew, John; Cawley, Thomas; Lansom, W. Z.;
Sewel, Charlton; Williams, Stephen.
0153. Residents of Harris County asks that free woman of color Diana Leonard and her child be
permitted to remain in the republic. She had served Colonel James Morgan for a year and worked
as a laundress in Houston for two years. She was “a good and industrious woman.” Petitioners
{13}: Clark, John H.; Evans, William G.; Fitzgerald, John; Moreland, J. M.; Thompson, Algernon
P. [Editorial Note: date of petition is 1839; petition out of chronological sequence.]
0155. Residents of Brazoria County ask that free people of color Samuel H. Harden and his wife,
Tamar Morgan, be permitted to remain in the republic. Harden arrived in Texas as early as 1822;
she arrived in 1832, purchasing her freedom “with the proceeds of her own labor” two years later.
They were people of “industrious habits, and general good conduct,” and owned considerable
property. Petitioners {64}: Bennet, F.; Calder, R. J.; Purcell, Edward; Scott, William P.; Townes,
R. J.
0161. Caroline Johnson's late husband, Amos Johnson, died in Texas, owning a league of land,
three hundred head of cattle, and seven slaves that were appraised at eighteen hundred dollars
but valued at only half that amount. She now lives in South Carolina and asks as trust guardian
for her two minor children to transfer the slaves from Texas to South Carolina.
1841.
0166. Free man of color Pleasant Bious emigrated to Texas and fought in the war for Texas
independence. Bious states that he has resided in Texas for three years and that his wife and
children are slaves. He seeks exemption from the law requiring free people of color to emigrate
and asks for protection “by the Laws of the Country from the many wrongs and abuses which he
has heretofore Suffered, from those who is disposed to use the power of the Law, or abuse your
petitioner because he is Black and of the African Race (Tho free)—"
0169. Montgomery County. Eighty-six-year-old Peggy Rankin, a widow, seeks permission to
emancipate her mulatto slave, Siney, and Siney's three children. Rankin had owned Siney's
mother, and Siney “has been taught such labor as are generally performed by free white
females.” Siney is “faithful and obedient,” and had been “remarkable kind and attentive.”
Moreover, in accordance with her late husband Robert Rankin's will, Siney was to be
emancipated at the petitioner's death, which she believes will be soon. Rankin's heirs have
consented to the emancipation, and the estate is not in debt.
0173. John Thomas migrated to Fayette County in the spring of 1838. The following year, he
applied to the Board of Land Commissioners for the county and received 640 acres of land. After
“a more particular examination,” however, he believes he is only entitled to a head right of 320
acres, having no family except grown children and a slave family. He asks for “relief."
0176. Harris County. Originally from Richmond County, Georgia, Zylpha Husk, a twenty-sevenyear-old free woman of color, moved to Texas about five years before filing the petition. She
states that she has always conducted herself in an “obedient and respectful” manner and that she
has a thirteen-year-old daughter. She asks permission to remain in the republic.
0181. Before the Declaration of Independence, Samuel McCulloch migrated to Texas with his
“two Coloured Women Peggy & Rose.” McCulloch freed the two women. He now seeks
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permission to enter a deed of emancipation in their behalf at Jackson County court as well as an
act granting them permission to remain in the republic.
0184. Citizens in Shelby and San Augustine counties seek protection from “Armed bands of self
styled Regulators [who,] assuming and arrogating to themselves the right and power to distribute
Justice to whom it belongs, have assembled now in daily action, governed and influenced by the
worst feelings of man's nature, loosing sight of all that is human and Just, pursuing their victims to
the Grave proscribing others—laying the finest farms in the country waste driving from their
houses and useful pursuits honest Citizens spreading terror abroad [i]n the land and sapping the
foundation of all that is peaceful and social.” In the related document, N. B. Garner states that a
band of thirteen “ruffians” carried off his slaves after he made “a frank and independent
expression of my opinion against the principle of Regulating.” Petitioners {18}: Garner, N. B.;
Legrand, E. O.; Rains, E.; St. Lucas, John; Wood, Charles.
0189. Citizens of San Augustine County ask that a group of free people of color be permitted to
remain in the republic. The group comprised John Bird; his wife, Charity; their children; Bird's
son-in-law, Edward Smith; and Smith's children. They had lived in the county before the
Declaration of Independence and were “good citizens supporting a good moral character and
several of them have served several campaigns with the army during our struggle for
independence.” Petitioners {59}: Brooks, Sam; Loyd, E. A. [replaces “J. Rankin [?]” listed on PAR
as petitioner]; Mabbitt, L.; Martin, R. H.; Tabos, James.
0197. Montgomery County. Charged with stealing a slave belonging to the estate of James
Darwin, John F. Martin was taken before Austin County Chief Justice John H. Money. He was
released after two men, including John Darwin, a relative of the deceased, signed security for a
three thousand dollar bond. Martin fled to Louisiana and failed to appear at the next court
session. John Darwin, a man in “moderate Circumstances” and head of a family, asks to be
relieved from the liability of the bond.
0201. Six residents of Rutersville request permission for “the old Free Black Wooman Patsy” to
remain in the country. Patsy “is honest and minds hur own bisanes She is about sixty years of
Age and we believe She will do no harm by being purmited to remain in the Republick.”
Petitioners {6}: Calhoon, J. C.; Crownover, John; Ingram, John; Rabb, John; Rodamel, L. M.
[replaces “L. M. Prodamel [?]” listed on PAR as petitioner].
0204. Austin County. Henry Lynch, a free person of color, migrated from Alabama to Texas in
1838. He states that he has acquired the “good opinion of the citizens” and wishes to remain in
Texas and “promises to behave himself as becomes his condition in life.” If the legislature denies
him permission to remain indefinitely, he asks that in order to collect his debts he be permitted to
stay for a year. He promises “to enter into bond for his good behavior and to comply with the
requisitions of the law."
0209. Bastrop County. Thomas Hardeman states that he dutifully pays his taxes and asks the
Congress to devise a means “to compell all others who does not pay their proportionable part of
Tax to do so.” He proposes tax reform, “something that will be plain and easy for every body to
understand.” First class land should be taxed one dollar for each one hundred acres, and slaves
over age ten and under age sixty should be taxed two dollars.
1842.
0214. Houston County. Migrating to the republic during the struggle for independence, Henry
Tucker, a free man of color, was promised residency under the existing laws. He now owns a
home and if forced to leave would be “totally ruined.” He asks to remain in the republic.
0218. The Board of Land Commissioners and other citizens of Jefferson County commend free
people of color William, Abner, and Aaron Ashworth, Elisha and Eliza Thomas—heirs of Moses
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Ashworth—and Henry and John Bird as well as Aaron Nelson as “worthy families.” Not only did
they do their duty during the struggle with Mexico but were “industrious and orderly Citizens.” Yet
doubts existed whether or not they might claim the land they had homesteaded. They had come
to Texas to secure the land. The petitioners state that they “view with strong feelings of sympathy
the situation of these worthy families” and ask the legislature to grant the free people of color a
right or patent for the headrights “that would have accrued to them had there been no taint of
blood in their veins.” The petitions also ask that the land controlled by them be protected against
various claimants. Petitioners {75}: Grigsby, Joseph; Halbert, Nathan; Littlefield, H. B.; Smith,
Robert W.; Williams, H. H.
0223. A group of Houston residents request an exemption for Henry Tucker, a free person of
color, to the recently enacted law requiring all free people of color to leave the republic by 1
January 1842. They state that Tucker, a barber, who practices “habits of Sobriety, Industry, and
Honesty,” and “displays uniformily correct deportment residents testify,” is an industrious, sober,
and honest man. While heartily agreeing with the law compelling free persons of color to
emigrate, they hope Congress will grant an exception in Tucker's case. Petitioners {39}: Allen,
George; Gagley[?], George; Robinson, J. M.; Stansbury, John; Teague, Thomas M.
1844.
0226. Immigrating to Texas about 1842, Lavinia Mansel, a free woman of color, did not know
about the law prohibiting free blacks from remaining in the republic. It would be a great
inconvenience if she and her three children—Laura, Cecil, and Trinity—were forced to emigrate.
She requests permission to remain.
1846.
0229. Some citizens of Red River County and the town of Clarksville ask that Ingles Oliver, a free
man of color, be permitted to remain in Texas. The petitioners state that “By his orderly and
respectful deportment, by his industry and enterprise, he has made himself a welcome and useful
Citizen.” He earned a living by baking and barbering. Petitioners {28}: Harrison, William M.; Little,
Henry; Martin, B. H.; Montgomery, J. I.; Sharp, James M.
1847.
0234. Smith County. When free woman of color Nancy Flournay moved to Texas from Louisiana
with “her advisers and particular friends,” she was unaware that she could be taken up and sold
as a slave. She requests permission for herself and her twenty-year-old son, Thomas Jefferson
Flournay, to remain in Texas. If compelled to emigrate, her son would be “deprived of the
protection and guardianship of those who heretofore have acted in these relations toward him."
0238. Harris County. Petitioners state that the “the Colored Woman Liley,” a five-year resident of
Houston, has “by her industry and good Conduct…has been enabled to realize sufficient of
means to purchase her Freedom.” They ask that the legislature emancipate Liley, also called
Delila, and permit her to remain in Texas. Petitioners {89}: Bagby, Thomas M.; Ewing, Cynthia;
Ewing, Thomas; Shepherd, B. A.; Wheeler, Daniel G.
1848.
0243. Guadalupe County. William E. Jones and eighteen other citizens of the town of Seguin ask
that Charity Sandlin and her three children—Matilda, John, and Antnet, free persons of color—be
allowed to remain in Texas. The mother is “honest prudent industrous & inoffensive.” Petitioners
{19}: Baxter, William C.; Gordon, William H.; Hollamon, J. H.; Jones, William E.; Park, John E.
0247. Matagorda County. In November 1847, Henry Gibson's slave was executed. Gibson seeks
compensation from the state, arguing that planters should be protected from losing property
through no fault of their own. For many years it had been the custom in neighboring slave states
to pay all or half the value for an executed slave—Georgia pays the whole value, Alabama up to
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five hundred dollars of the value, Mississippi and Louisiana up to three hundred dollars of the
value.
1849.
0252. Sabine County. Daniel Kaufman asks permission to change his name to Daniel Kaufman
Richardson because his slave-owning grandfather, Daniel Long Richardson, left him one-twelfth
of his estate with the stipulation that he change his name. Petitioners {2}: Kaufman, Daniel S.;
Kaufman, Jane B.
0260. Sabine County. The executors of Daniel L. Richardson’s estate seek to emancipate
Marcellus, age twenty, and Clara, age four. Richardson provided for the emancipation of the
slaves, children of the slave of Laura, in his will. The petitioners note that they are compelled to
ask the legislature permission to free the two slaves because the First Section, Article Eight, of
the Constitution of Texas forbids emancipations without the consent of the legislature. Petitioners
{3}: Faircloth, Wiley; Hines, Elbert; Kaufman, David S.
1850.
0268. Fannin County. William Grinder seeks compensation for his slave, Jess, executed for the
murder of Morgan Meeks in 1846. Grinder states that without Jess, worth about eight hundred
dollars, he will be compelled to labor for a living in his old age.
0275. Harris County. From “meritorious motives” James Cocke emancipated his nine-year-old
mulatto slave, Thomas Jefferson. He asks the legislature to pass an act confirming the
manumission.
0278. Thomas Cox requests that his slave children—Lotty, Commodore, Perry, and Frederick—
be manumitted. He hopes that his children will not be penalized for the “improper action of the
authors of their existence."
0281. Bowie County. At age twenty, petitioner seeks to take charge of his large estate, consisting
of land, money, and slaves. He inherited the property from his deceased father. He contends that
his guardian, Eli H. Moore, is charging too much to manage the estate. Petitioner: Janes,
Massack H.
0285. Gonzales County. William Wallace Gordon, in his twentieth year, seeks an act permitting
him to take charge of and manage his estate, which consists of real estate, “some negroes &
personal property.” The petitioner states that he is a person of good character and that his
parents and many near relatives are dead.
1851.
0292. San Jacinto County. During the war for Texas independence, David G. Burnet, a
Magistrate, sustained substantial losses during the battle at San Jacinto. His house was
ransacked, his personal property taken, and he sustained a loss of fifteen hundred dollars. To
make ends meet he was forced to sell two slaves—a woman and a boy. He seeks
compensation.
0298. Bexar County. Residents complain that it is only a misdemeanor for someone to “advise or
attempt to induce a slave to leave his master.” The law that includes the death penalty is
applicable only in cases where a person actually entices a slave away. They ask for harsher
penalties for anyone who attempts to help a slave escape. Petitioners {49}: Alsbury, H.; Beck,
V. H.; Judson, George H.; Lockwood, A. A.; McClellan, John S.
0303. Polk County. In compliance with the law, slave owners William Williamson, William Maxey,
and John D. Turner sent three slaves—Thomas, age twenty-five, Charles, and Goodwin, age
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twenty-one—to work on the public road. They all accidentally drowned in the Trinity River in July
1848 while working on the road. The owners seek reasonable compensation.
0307. Galveston County. City residents ask that Mary Madison, a free woman of color about fortytwo years old, be permitted to remain in Texas. She is honest, sober, and industrious; she owns a
small amount of property; and she has demonstrated “many good qualities,” especially as a
nurse. The law of 1840 prohibiting the “emigration and residence of free negroes in the state”
should not apply in her case. Petitioners {84}: Crow, William F.; Johnson, Matilda C.; White,
Charles T.; White, J.; White, Mary E.
0312. Burleson County. The “negro man slave by the name of Lucky” absconded from his master,
John M. Story. When a white man named Baker captured Lucky near Austin, Lucky killed the
man and his wife and continued his flight. The slave was subsequently recaptured near Austin
and hanged by “the people of Travis county.” Story states that Lucky was worth as much as one
thousand dollars. He seeks compensation.
0317. Cherokee County. The heirs of George Doherty of Nacogdoches County seek to
emancipate Greenbury Taylor, a body servant who saved the lives of two of the heirs. It was
George Taylor's dying wish that the slave, age about thirty-five years and “of yellow complexion,”
be freed. Petitioners {8}: Doherty, George M.; Doherty, James M.; Doherty, Jeremiah M.; Doherty,
John; Doherty, Philip B.
0321. Estate administrator John R. Garnett asks for “clemency” from having to pay a one
thousand dollar security bond. In 1845, the Fannin County Court served a judgment against
Garnett's intestate, Jabez Fitzgerald, and another man for securities they held on a bond given by
Francis Williams, the sheriff, for payment to the state of taxes collected by the sheriff. When
Williams absconded with a valuable slave, Fitzgerald pursued him three hundred miles into the
Cherokee Nation and captured him, but on their way back the slave was “by the devices of said
Williams retaken from” Fitzgerald, and now, after a trial and appeal, the estate administrator asks
the state for “clemency” in the judgment against the intestate's estate.
0327. Free man of color Thomas Sevolla asks to remain in Texas. He arrived in the state in 1836,
served under General Zachary Taylor during the Mexican War, and was “Connected with the
Army” in several expeditions against the Indians and Mexicans. He was seriously wounded in
1842 fighting against the Mexicans.
0330. The chief justice, court clerk, and other officials in De Witt County ask that eighteen-yearold James W. Steen, a young man of “sprightly intellect,” be permitted to manage his own affairs.
His property consisted of a slave woman, four slave children, and a few hundred dollars. The
property could not be governed by Steen's guardian without waste, and “it would be a sacrafice to
sell.” Petitioners {9}: Baker, James M.; Blair, William A.; Reid, G. M.; Smith, James; Stevens,
Joseph.
0334. Jackson H. Griffin emigrated to Texas in 1830 with his brother, who died in 1832. Jackson
Griffin, though only eighteen, became at his brother's death the “head of a family—said family
consisting of Negro Slaves—left by his brother to petitioner.” Griffin fought “in the campaign of
1836” and later received “one League and Labor of land” from the Board of Land Commissioners
for Liberty County. His land was then declared “fraudulent” by a special commission established
by an 1840 law to investigate land grants. Griffin asks the legislature to validate his land
certificate.
1852.
0342. Residents of Tyler County recommend that free man of color Moses Bryant be permitted to
remain in the state “under such restrictions as you may see proper.” Bryant had followed his slave
wife from Mississippi to Texas when his wife's owner, petitioner William Harrison, migrated.
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Bryant, the petitioners state, can give “good Security for his good behavior.” Petitioners {49}:
Cauble, John; Enloe, D. C.; Graham, Anthony; Harrison, William; Sterling, J. M.
0346. Tennessee-born free man of color George Tucker asks permission to remain in Texas. He
had arrived “bound to T. W. Templeton.” He now has a wife at C. B. Bacon's in Rusk County, the
petitioners state, and has always “demeaned himself honestly and in a manner suitable to his
station in life.” Petitioners {36}: Burnett, John; Hammonds, G.; South, G. B.; Tucker, George;
Wood, J. L.
0350. Walker County. The guardians of the minor heirs of James J. Harrison ask to purchase
land for their wards. The two minors, James S. Harrison, age about thirteen, and Keturah A.
Harrison, age about eleven, owned thirty-five slaves and possessed several thousand dollars in
cash as well as “claims” by the estate. The petitioners state that the money should be invested in
“good lands at the present low prices.” Such an investment strategy, they argue, would “yield a
far larger & safer interest than by lending the money out.” Petitioners {2}: Evans, J. M.;
Smith, J. C.
0353. Lamar County. The petitioners request that Bob, a free man of color, be allowed to remain
in the state. Bob's wife and children are slaves belonging to the estate of Elisha Owens. The heirs
of the estate are children and are “not prepared to take Management” of the family, while Bob
provides for his loved ones. Petitioners {36}: Bauer, G. S.; Burres, W. W.; Cashen, Jame;
Harman, John T.; Ringo, Benjamin.
1853.
0357. Residents, including public officials, of Brownsville in Cameron County ask that Edward
Webster, a free person of color, be permitted to remain in Texas. Webster, the petitioners state, is
“an honest useful and industrious man.” Petitioners {37}: Anderson, E. M.; Arrington, A. W.; Fry,
Budd H.; Harrison, W. H.; Powers, J.
0361. Residents of Dallas County ask that Lewis Edmondson, a free man of color, be permitted to
remain in Texas. While the slave of Peter Singleton of Tennessee, Edmondson married a slave
belonging to William Edmondson. In his will, Singleton emancipated Lewis Edmondson and
appointed William Edmondson as Lewis's guardian. About 1849, William Edmondson migrated to
Texas with his slaves, including Lewis Edmondson's wife and children, and Lewis. Lewis, the
petitioners assert, “is well Known & respected as an honest industrious and a useful man in the
Community.” Petitioners {87}: Edmondson, William T.; Ellard, Jackson; Horton, Enoch; Lanier,
John; Shelton, Clark.
0373. Harrison County. Freed in Tennessee in 1836, David journeyed to Texas with Williamson
Wortham and James Wortham, two white men, in 1843. The Worthams state that David had lived
with them for twenty years and that “Said Boy is fearful that unless the Legislature interposes he
will have to leave the State and be separated from his Sire and relatives."
0377. Fayette County. Edward Mauton asks that the legislature permit free woman of color
Harriet Newell Sands and her children to remain in Texas. The petitioner states that he knew
Sands in Michigan before she came to Texas with his father in 1834. She was a resident at the
time of the Texas Revolution. She now has three children, Letitia, Martha, and Jordan. “The girls
are Mulattoes & Jordan is black."
0380. Smith County. On 22 July 1853, a “Negro Boy” worth fourteen or fifteen hundred dollars
committed an act in the town of Canton “that would have forfeited his Life under the Laws of the
Land.” The same day, however, six hundred outraged citizens executed the black man. The
slave belonged to Dr. D. P. Fowler, a poor man who should be compensated, residents argue, in
the same manner as if his property were legally taken. Petitioners {109}: Barcroft, F.; Curl, H. H.;
Fowler, D. P.; Holden, Jamy; Starr, Joshua.
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0386. Citizens of Harrison County ask that Henry Moore, who purchased himself from his owner,
Joseph McDonald, be emancipated and permitted to remain in Texas. About forty years of age,
Henry is a man “of fixed honesty,” integrity, industry, and good deportment; he is humble in the
presence of whites; and he is obedient and faithful. Petitioners {22}: Beuzley, E. C.; Frazer, C. C.;
Key, H.; McDonald, Joseph; Penye, S. R.
0391. Austin County. Samuel William Shields, a minor, asks that he be released from being a
ward and be permitted to transport his slaves to live with his uncle in Falls County. Shields
inherited land and slaves from his father, John T. Shields, who died in 1839. He wants to avoid
the expenses of guardianship and the “evils growing out of promiscuous Hiring [of slaves] to the
highest bidder as required by Law.” He wants to put them on a plantation under the joint
supervision of himself and his uncle.
0395. Red River County. In 1845 James Ward's slave murdered a man, was convicted in the
district court, and was executed. Ward seeks compensation for his lost property. The petitioner
states that the “value of said negro was as great as of any other good negro man, not possessed
of mechanical genius.” The slave was worth one thousand dollars.
0399. Liberty County. Jacob Winfree asks the legislature to free his eight-year-old mulatto slave,
Warren, the son of a “negro Woman Slave called Betty."
0402. Polk County. Eighty-two-year-old slave owner Daniel Wofford seeks to emancipate his
slave, Susan, and her five children—Jim, George, Alzaid, Eliza, and Henry. They had been
“raised to habits of industry, and are well Known as being Slaves of good Character & Correct
habits."
0406. Residents of Guadalupe County ask that Daniel, a free mulatto, be permitted to remain in
the state. “Daniel was brought to the county from Mexico, in Peonage, by a Mr. Joseph L. Gould.”
When Gould died Daniel was placed under the guardianship of Z. M. Anderson, the administrator
of Gould's estate. Petitioners {9}: Anderson, Z. M.; Douglass, W. P. H.; Dunn, William; Houchin,
J. D.; King, John R.
0410. Fayette County. Edward Mauton and Socrates Darling ask that the legislature permit free
woman of color Harriet Newell Sands and her children to remain in Texas. The petitioners state
that they knew Sands in Michigan before she came to Texas with Mauton's father in 1834. She
was a resident at the time of the Texas Revolution. She now has three children, Letitia, Martha,
and Jordan. “The girls are Mulattoes & Jordan is black."
1854.
0413. Residents of Hopkins County request that Europe, a “Collered Boy” about seventeen years
old, be permitted to remain in Texas. The petitioners state that Europe is peaceful, good
tempered, and orderly. Furthermore, they claim, “it is commonly reported that he was born of free
white woman.” Petitioners {11}: Crowder, G. H.; Cullum, John H.; French, A. O.; Russell, H. C.;
Veal, W. G.
0418. Panola County. In 1844 Edward P. Black married Rebecca A. Jarnegan in DeSoto County,
Mississippi, and the couple moved to Texas. They soon received eleven slaves, valued at $4,500,
as part of an inheritance from Rebecca's deceased father. A short time later, Rebecca died in
childbirth. In 1847 three of Rebecca's brothers carried the slaves off and kidnapped Edward
Black's son, Asa. Edward “opposed force to force” and was indicted for murder. In December
1850 he was acquitted. He then sued to recover the slaves and won in the district court. When
another nine slaves and $2,700 were awarded to his son from the same estate, Edward P. Black,
as his son's guardian, was sued. He seeks to pay legal expenses amounting to $3,380 from the
estate.
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1855.
0424. Harrison County. On 27 July 1846 Ann and Joseph Mason's slave, Jim, “of Yellow
complexion, age twenty two years and of the value of seven hundred dollars,” was arrested for
raping a white woman. Held in jail for trial, Jim was shot and killed “by some person unknown” in
February 1847. The owners charge that their property should have been protected while in the
hands of the law and seek restitution for their loss.
0437. Gonzales County. When his father died in 1839, John H. White was given part of his
father's business. He became the ward of his brother, Thomas White. Now, at age nineteen,
married and the head of a family, Thomas asks to manage his own affairs. He lives on a
plantation with ten slaves.
1856.
0443. Louisiana resident Henry Michael Thibodeaux seeks to bring his thirty-five slaves and five
free persons of color into Texas. The free persons of color include Marguarite, who cared for his
wife during her final illness, and Marguarite's two children, as well as two other children. It was at
the request of his dying wife that he freed Marguarite, who remained with the family.
0447. Galveston County residents ask the legislature to enact a law allowing the elderly free
woman of color Betsy, in her mid-sixties or older, to remain in the state. Betsy, they state, is quiet,
orderly, and respectful; she had been freed in the will of her late master, David Webster.
Petitioners {29}: Crawford, A. C.; Handin, M. B.; Martin, H. B.; McNair, Daniel; Whiting, F. B.
1857.
0450. Jackson County. Samuel McCulloch the elder immigrated to Texas in 1835. At the outset of
the war for independence, he enlisted in the Matagorda Volunteer Company, commanded by
Captain James Collinsworth, and during the storming of the fort at Goliad was severely wounded.
“He was the only one of the Texan Troops wounded in that action, and the first whose blood was
shed in the War of Independence.” McCulloch's son, Samuel McCulloch Jr., who arrived with his
father in 1835, states that while Texas was part of the Republic of Mexico, he was entitled to
lands as a settler. He never applied for these lands until recently, when he married and decided
to settle with his family. McCulloch notes that under the laws of Texas, he is deprived of “the
privileges of citizenship by reason of an unfortunate admixture of African blood, which he is said,
without any fault of his, to inherit from a remote maternal ancestor.” McCulloch seeks the
“quantum of land that is allowed to other persons, who were citizens of the Country before the
declaration of Independence,” and asks that he and his children be granted the rights of
citizenship.
1859.
0456. Galveston County. In 1858, Joseph Dougherty's slave, Lucy, was tried and executed for
the murder of Maria Dougherty. The jury verdict, however, did not indicate the value of the slave
and thus did not conform to the requirements of the law. Joseph Dougherty asks the legislature to
provide him with compensation. Lucy was worth four hundred and sixty dollars.
0462. Residents of Hopkins County seek relief for Wiley S. Ferrell whose slave, Jim, worth five
hundred dollars, was lynched after committing a “high crime.” Petitioners {66}: Ewing, William M.;
Kelly, V. M.; King, L. D.; Oxford, B. H. [replaces “S. S. Weems [?]” listed on PAR as petitioner];
Russell, M.
0468. Walker County. W. E. Price states that his slave, Cuggoe, escaped from him in Alabama in
1835. More than two decades later, in 1856, Price came across Cuggoe in Texas. The owner
charges that James Davis, a white man in Polk County, conspired with Cuggoe by filing a petition
for his freedom on the grounds that the black man was in Texas under the Mexican government
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and before the Texas Declaration of Independence. Price argues that this is “holy contrary to the
Constitution of the Republic of Texas” and that Cuggoe should be returned to bondage.
0471. The grand jurors of Hays County seek a law prohibiting slaves from owning “in their own
name and for their own use, as property, Horses, Cattle, Land and Stock of every description: as
we see daily the baneful influence and effects on the Slave population.” Petitioners {20}: Cocks,
John H.; Harris, James; Malone, James M.; Malone, William L.; Watkins, J. C.
0474. Residents of Waco and McClennan County note “that one of the great operating causes in
corrupting the minds of the people by infusing sentiments hostile to the institution of Slavery is
free and unlicensed circulation of incendiary documents and antislavery newspapers through the
post offices of the state.” Furthermore, the state needed to stop the intercourse of slaves with
“vagarants or temporary sojourners, who in many cases are voluntary or hired emissaries of
northern associations; or individuals laboring to destroy slavery in the Southern States.” They
seek general relief as the legislature may see fit. Petitioners {141}: Chenoweth, B. D.; Coke,
Richard; Harrison, Thomas; Puckett, L. F.; Smith, J. M.
1860.
0480. Gonzales County. Nineteen-year-old slave owner John Blackwell petitions to control his
own affairs. He wants to secure a better return for his investment—higher wages, a better
location, and a higher rate of interest on his money. As to his slaves, some of them are old,
others are “little children that require the fostering hand of a good Master instead of the abuse
and neglect to which a hired condition subjects them."
0492. On 22 July 1853, a “Negro Boy” worth fifteen hundred dollars committed an act in the town
of Canton “that would have forfeited his Life under the Laws of the Land.” The same day,
however, five or six hundred persons executed the black man. The slave belonged to Dr. D. D.
Fowler, a poor man who should be compensated, residents of Smith and Rusk counties argue, in
the same manner as if his property were legally taken. Petitioners {73}: Atkinson, Arthur; Fowler,
D. D.; McClain, J. E.; Moore, L. J. H.; Overton, Samuel.
1861.
0502. White mechanics in Harrison County complain about skilled slaves who underbid them for
contracts to build “houses Churches and other Buildings.” They state that they are not opposed to
slavery, just to slaves as competitors: “Negroes forever but Negroes in their places.” They ask for
a law to require black mechanics to work under white supervision. Petitioners {32}: Curtis, J. C.;
Henderson, L. A.; Slater, C. W.; Smith, W. T.; Stevens, J. M.
1863.
0506. Montgomery County. John Dean and his brother, George, were partners in a plantation
enterprise until George's death in 1859. John became executor of his brother's estate. George's
widow remarried the next year, but her new husband was so poor a manager of the “Planting Copartnership” that John Dean dissolved the partnership and divided the slaves. Dean believes,
however, that he can “only get a legal title to the Testators moiety or half part” of the property by a
special act of the legislature. He asks for an act to settle the estate under the direction of the
county court.
0513. Harris County. Houston barber Peter Allen, a forty-nine-year-old free man of color, asks to
remain in Texas. He has secured the “good opinion of all who know him” and is well-known for his
honesty, sobriety, and industry. For the past eight months he has been in the service of an officer
attached to Terry's Texas Regiment and “has been repeatedly complimented for the good and
efficient service rendered his country upon the Battle-fields of Woodsonville and Shiloh, of which
his modesty forbids him to speak."
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0518. Cook County. Fearing the slaughter of residents by a secret group of Union sympathizers,
a militia brigadier, William Hudson, led a band of six or seven hundred men to round up the
traitors. Since the town of Gainesville could not house the prisoners—supporters of “the abolition
Administration of Abraham Lincoln"—it was necessary to post guards. Hudson, who used his own
money to pay for provisions, seeks forty-five hundred dollars in compensation.
1865.
0522. With the “abnormal condition of free negroes,” white residents of De Witt County could not
hope to make freedmen and freedwomen “useful in the absence of white laborers & managers.”
They therefore seek to attract white artisans and workers (nonforeigners) from former
slaveholding states. They could do this by offering land grants. In this way whites could control
the black labor force. They note that “our agricultural interest must…materially suffer from the
destruction of our patriarchal system; and it is only by a diversification of labor that we can hope
to establish a healthful system of labor.…To this end we should encourage the increase of forges,
spindles, looms, Tanneries & work shops of every grade & character of mechanism.” Petitioners
{63}: Dow, James M.; Heard, J. B.; Meader, James W.; Mitchell, A. G.; Wofford, R. B.
0527. In view of the many black orphans in the aftermath of the Civil War, Wharton County
citizens ask for a charter of incorporation to establish an orphan's asylum and manual laboring
institute. Petitioners {19}: Callaway, Lemuel; Daniel, W. H.; Drane, R. A.; McConaughey, James
W.; Wesson, James C.
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0001. Descriptive material.
1777.
0008. Cumberland County. A slave belonging to William Anderson was executed in 1777 for
murdering a fellow slave. He was a very valuable shoemaker and cooper. The court's appraisal of
ninety-five pounds was “insufficient to purchase another of equal value.” Anderson asks for a
greater allowance “as will be adequate to the Loss he has sustained."
0010. Norfolk County. In December 1775, Africa, a slave owned by Charles Sayer, was captured
in the service of Lord Dunmore by a group of patriots and taken to Williamsburg. The Committee
of Safety ordered Africa to the lead mines. Sayer says that he “doth now stand in great need of
the said Slave.” He asks for Africa's return and reimbursement for his hire from the time he was
sent to the mines.
0013. Bedford County. Edmond Ruffin Jr.'s slave, Dick, was apprehended attempting to board
one of Lord Dunmore's ships. The Committee of Safety decided to send Dick, who displayed an
“insolent and seditious Disposition,” to the West Indies or to the lead mines as an example to
other disloyal blacks. Dick, however, died before the example could be set, and the owner seeks
compensation.
1778.
0018. Williamsburg City. In May 1776, Charles Lynch contracted with the government to
manufacture saltpeter and gunpowder with labor performed by slaves hired from jail. He was to
keep the slaves until November 1778 and would be paid from the sale of the gunpowder,
deducting the cost of hiring the slaves up to five hundred pounds. In April 1778, however, the
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governor ordered the black laborers taken to the lead mines, six months before the agreed-upon
release date. As a result, and due to the incursions of American Indians, he could not make “any
considerable Quantity of Salt Petre or Powder” and asks that the contract be adjusted
accordingly.
0021. Nansemond County. When John Goodrich died, the Committee of Safety assigned the
widow's slaves to work in the mines but promised to give her forty pounds annually to hire slaves
to work on her two plantations. The widow, Margaret Goodrich, contends that she cannot retain
any hired slaves except for short intervals. Either from “inclination or seduction,” they have
absconded “from their duty” and left the crop “in a condition which precludes all hope of its being
sufficient to supply the wants of her family.” She asks that her own slaves be returned. Their
“affection” for her and the authority she could exert over them, she writes, would give her a stable
labor force. The nine slaves listed were Aberdeen, age twenty-one; Glasgow; York; Phyllis, age
sixty-five; Michael, age forty-five; Sarah, age fifty-five; Kary, age forty; Davey, age forty; and
Ringsail, “w,th one foot."
0027. The slave Aaron was captured attempting to escape to Lord Dunmore's fleet in
Chesapeake Bay and sentenced to labor in the lead mines by the Committee of Safety. Aaron's
owner, Thomas Paramour, asks to be compensated for the services of his slave.
0030. Nathaniel Henderson lost a “valuable negro” during a battle against American Indians at
Fort Boon in Kentucky County on 11 September 1778. The slave was ordered to take a gun, post
himself to guard the fort, and “fire on the Indians which he accordingly did and was kill'd.” The
owner seeks compensation for the value of the slave.
0033. Goochland County. Arrested for poisoning a fellow slave, Sambo broke jail with another
prisoner and hid in the woods, committing many “Hostilitys, Break[in]g open Houses, kill[in]g
Hoggs &c.” After an extensive search, the two men were “routed at or near their [hideout, a] cave
in the Ground.” Sambo was shot and killed. The owner asks for compensation. Petitioner: Payne,
Archer.
0036. Cumberland County. Members of the Anglican Church seek to control dissenters who
minister to slave gatherings at night. They produce “nothing but Deeds of darkness,” the
petitioners contend; they encourage slaves to show “disobedience & insolence to Masters.” The
petitioners ask that the nightly meetings be prohibited and ministers be required to preach only at
established meeting houses. Petitioners {12}: Griffin, John; Hendrick, John; Hendrick, Zachariah;
Pollard, George; Woodroof, Clifford.
1779.
0041. Essex County. The petitioners oppose a bill for religious freedom, asserting that it would be
injurious to the Christian religion. They ask that “Licentious and Itinerant Preachers” be forbidden
from holding meetings with slaves, that all ministers be required to have a place of worship, and
that ministers be protected against insults and interruptions during church services. Only
Protestants should be allowed to hold public office. Petitioners {165}: Booker, James; Covington,
Luke; Edmondson, William; Purkins, William; Young, H.
0046. Albemarle County. The petitioner requests permission to emancipate William Beck. Beck, a
“mulatto” slave formerly owned by Major Thomas Meriwether, served in several military
campaigns. Walker states that Beck had behaved “in a most exemplary manner” and had paid his
owner for his freedom. Petitioner: Walker, Thomas, Jr.
0049. Lancaster County. The petitioners complain about the “indiscriminate Tax on Negroes.”
They would prefer a tax on “titheables” or on brick and stone hearths. In the low country, the
petitioners contend, “young Negroes & useless Slaves are equal in number to the Labourers” and
should not be taxed at the same rate as more productive slaves. The petitioners state that while
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they back the glorious cause of the Revolution, the cause must be supported by a just and
equitable system of taxation. Petitioners {49}: Bailey, John; Ball, James; Ball, James, Jr.; Ewell,
James; Tydnor, William.
1780.
0053. Richmond County. Benjamin Bilberry traded land for his wife, Kata, a slave owned by
Abraham Cowley. This did not free her, however; it simply made him a new owner. Even to his
“uncultivated Mind it is irksome to know that he himself, by the Laws of this, now independent
CommonWealth, is forced to hold his own Wife in a Slavish Bondage,” he writes. He asks for her
freedom.
0056. Anne Bennet, a minor, asks that the assembly reject an emancipation petition for the slave
Will, the property of her grandmother, Ann Colvin. In her will, her grandmother had emancipated
Will for “Meritorious Service,” but she actually did so, Bennet says, out of fear that if she did not
he might harm her. She asks that Will's petition for freedom be rejected because he is
undeserving of freedom.
0059. Southampton County. The petitioners are the widow and children of John Meacoms, who
was convicted of murdering one of his slaves. The county court confiscated Meacoms's estate to
pay his debts. The petitioners ask that the estate be restored to them so that they may escape
“the horrors of the most abject poverty.” Petitioners {6}: Meacoms, Ann; Meacoms, John;
Meacoms, Samuel; Meacoms, Sylvia; Meacoms, Thomas.
0062. James Ladd writes on behalf of the Quaker community that “Freedom was the natural Right
of all mankind.” The Society of Friends protests a law forbidding the emancipation of slaves and
requests that the assembly prohibit executors of estates from keeping slaves freed by their
masters' wills in bondage.
0066. Middlesex County. The petitioners request that the assembly order the return of their
slaves, Juba and Gilbert, who were captured trying to escape to Lord Dunmore's fleet and
consequently were sentenced to labor in the lead mines. The petitioners argue that the slaves
have suffered sufficient punishment to deter future escape attempts and that further service in the
mines will be “of little value to the owners.” They also request compensation for the time the
slaves worked in the mines. Petitioners {3}: Daniel, George; Montague, Philip; Smith, Maurice.
0071. Nansemond County. James Murdaugh requests compensation for a slave who was killed
by a detachment of cavalry reconnoitering British lines during the American Revolution.
Murdaugh states that his slave was “casually passing from the House of your Petitioner to one of
his Neighbors” when the cavalry detachment rode up and, attempting to obtain information about
the British, demanded the slave stop and answer their questions. The slave, Murdaugh believes,
thought that the men were British soldiers, who had been seen in the area recently, and so fled
from them. The soldiers thought the slave was trying to escape to the British, pursued him, and
shot him.
1781.
0075. Brunswick County. John Patrick's slave, Charles, absconded, was declared an outlaw, and
was shot and killed. Patrick seeks compensation.
1782.
0079. Henrico County. The petitioners ask the legislature to prohibit masters from allowing slaves
to hire out their own time. Such slaves are “Idle and disorderly,” the petitioners claim, steal to
support themselves, encourage other slaves to steal from their masters, traffic in stolen goods,
and rarely provide the labor for which they were hired in the first place. Petitioners {33}: Craig,
Adam; Gathright, William; Mayo, John, Jr.; Owen, Hebron; Prosser, Thomas.
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0083. Accomack County. The petitioners are “much alarmed at several applications” coming
before the assembly “for passing acts for the manumission of all Slaves the property of certain
persons within this county.” They argue that “however desirable an object that of universal Liberty
in this country may be; however religious or upright the intentions of their owners may be,” there
are four reasons why such applications should be rejected. First, the homes of free persons of
color will serve as harbors for slaves sympathetic to the British. Second, slave property would be
greatly depreciated and tax revenues on slaves would decline accordingly. Third, such acts of
emancipation have been previously passed for “Meritorious Services rendered by the
slaves…which is not the case in the present instance.” Fourth, men, women, and children
indiscriminately set at liberty without proper funds “would likely become chargeable and increase
the demand on the people who are already highly taxed for other purposes.” Petitioners {62}:
Gibb, William; Giles, Gilbert; Joyner, Wm.; Parker, Thomas; Williams, Wm.
0088. Essex County. George McCall and Elizabeth Flood, mother-in-law of Archibald McCall,
petition the court to stop legal proceedings to confiscate Archibald McCall's estate. Archibald
McCall, the petitioners state, sent his two daughters to school in England in 1775 and shortly
thereafter traveled abroad himself. When the American Revolution began, McCall found it difficult
to return to America owing to English legal prohibitions and his fear of taking his daughters on a
sea voyage during wartime, but he insisted in letters to his relatives that he considered himself an
American and hoped to return as soon as possible. In the meantime, however, his estate, plus
land and slaves lent him by his father-in-law, were seized by the Virginia assembly. One of his
daughters died in England, and the petitioners ask that the escheat proceedings against
Archibald's estate cease until the surviving daughter, Catherine, can return to defend her claim to
the estate. Furthermore, they state that the land and slaves lent to Archibald by his father-in-law,
which were to make up Catherine's inheritance from her grandfather, were illegally seized. They
also ask that Archibald McCall be allowed to return to America.
0096. Drury Wood and Barret Price ask to be released from a contract to construct a jail for the
town of Richmond. The two had contracted in 1780 to build the jail and had received half of their
fee at the signing of the contract with the rest payable when work was completed. During the
course of construction, however, building materials were seized for the war effort, subcontractors
failed to fulfill their obligations, and “Several of the negro Workmen went off with the Enemy
during the time of Arnold's Invasion.” These events made it impossible to fulfill their obligations.
0100. Ann Rose and her daughter, Margaret, request that the assembly grant them acts of
emancipation. They had been the slaves of Walter Robertson, who freed them in his will. They
possessed court documents proving their freedom, but one of Robertson's heirs is “laying claim”
to them as slaves.
0106. Nansemond County. George Parker states that Richard Bennet, the petitioner's cousin,
bequeathed to him land, slaves, and livestock. These assets were to be sold, and the proceeds
were to be used to pay an annual indemnity to Virginia Mosey and to provide clothing for the
poor. Some years previously, the petitioner states, he received permission of the assembly to sell
the property and the slaves for six hundred pounds and to loan the money out at interest. The
debt and the interest, however, were paid off in paper currency that had depreciated by half. The
petitioner therefore asks for relief for the county's poor.
0112. In 1775, Middlesex County slave owner Thomas Hadden devised that when he died his
“negroes and the increase of them except the one already given away,” along with his livestock
and plantation, would be loaned to his wife during her widowhood. If she remarried or died the
property was to be loaned to her daughter, Mary Pamplin, as long as she remained single; if
Pamplin married or died the property was to go to Pamplin's daughter, Elizabeth. Hadden and his
wife died, Mary Pamplin married, Elizabeth died, and the estate escheated to the state. Hadden's
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sister and brother-in-law seek to obtain the estate. Petitioners {2}: Aldridge, Jane; Aldridge,
Robert.
0117. James City County. Eager to become a resident of Virginia, Henry Martin, of Tortola Island,
purchased a large estate near Williamsburg. He now seeks to import slaves, but discovered that
a law prohibits the importation of slaves “from any place or places whatsoever.” Martin asks to
import twelve slaves “for domestic purposes."
0121. Greenbrier County. Patrick Davies asks the assembly for compensation for a “Negro man
slave” who was convicted and executed for an attempted rape of Mary Gray. The slave was
appraised at twenty pounds “Virginia currency."
1784.
0126. Northampton County. A six-hundred-acre Native American reservation has become “an
Asylum for free Negro & other disorderly persons, who build Hutts thereon & pilage & destroy the
Timber without controul.” There were only five or six of the Gingaskin tribe left on the land. The
petitioners request that trustees be appointed to lay off “a convenient part of the said Land” for
the Indians while leasing out and taxing the remainder. The rents would be divided among the
Gingaskin. Petitioners {21}: Armistead, E.; Avery, Isaac; Godwin, D.; Savage, Litt; Upshur, John.
0129. Diverse residents and freeholders in Hanover County complain about the “many Evils”
arising from the “partial emancipation” of slaves. Free people of color act as agents for slaves,
distributing and selling property stolen from their masters. In addition, a “Great number” of slaves
taken by the British Army “are now passing in this Country as free men.” Petitioners request that
free persons of color be required to obtain freedom papers signed by a county clerk, and that
some mode be adopted to prevent free black people from trading with slaves. Petitioners {112}:
Blackwell, A.; Blair, James; Bowls, Hezekiah; Green, Thomas; Thilman, Paul.
0134. Fairfax County. Sarah Greene and her two children were promised their freedom by their
master, Charles Greene, who died before he could execute his promise. The law at the time did
not permit emancipation by will. Before he died, he extracted a promise from his wife, also named
Sarah Greene, that she would free the slaves. The widow married Dr. William Savage before
freeing the slaves, however, and Savage carried her to Ireland and left her while he returned to
Virginia. Sarah Greene and her children, now numbering four, were allowed to “enjoy their Liberty
for many years” until a relative of Dr. Savage named Rice kidnapped two of her children, carried
them to “Carolina,” and was now attempting to “carry off your petitioner” and her other two
children. She asks for emancipation for herself and her children.
0139. Elizabeth City County. The “Negro Fellow named Tom,” age about nineteen years, ran
away to British lines in 1775 but was soon taken by patriot forces and ordered by the Committee
of Safety to work in the lead mines. In 1776, Tom was sent to the West Indies and sold to pay for
powder and ammunition. Tom's owner asks for compensation. Petitioner: Armistead, Moss.
1785.
0144. Amelia County. The widow Mary Ford seeks compensation for the loss of three slaves
executed by the state for the murder of her husband, John Ford. The three slaves included Old
Bristol, age about fifty-five years, Young Bristol, age about twenty years, and Simon, age about
eighteen.
0148. Halifax County. The petitioners warn against a “very subtle and daring Attempt [which] is on
Foot to deprive us of a very important Part of our Property.” This effort is being “carried on by the
Enemies of our Country, Tools of the British Administration, and supported by a Number of
deluded Men among us.” The petitioners assert that a general emancipation “will be ruinous to
Individuals and to the Public.” Such action, they maintain, is not sanctioned by the “Word of God.”
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Indeed, in the Old Testament, slavery is permitted by “the Deity himself.” When the British
Parliament sought to “dispose of our Property without our Consent,” Americans revolted. The
petitioners instruct the legislature to reject any proposal for emancipation. Petitioners {260}:
Cobbs, John; Coleman, John; Moss, Frederick; Scott, John B.; Terry, William.
0156. Pittsylvania County. The petitioners request that the legislature reject the arguments of the
“Enemies of our Country, Tools of the British Administration;…and certain deluded Men among
us” who demand a general emancipation under the “Veil of Piety and Liberality of Sentiment.”
Such arguments, the petitioners contend, are unsupported by the “Word of God, and Productive
of Ruin to this State.” Indeed, they declare that in the Old Testament slavery is permitted by “the
Deity himself.” When the British Parliament sought to “dispose of our property without our
Consent,” Americans revolted. The petitioners instruct the legislature to reject any proposal for
emancipation. Petitioners {144}: Morgan, Haynes; Rowland, Nathan; Shelton, Crispin; Taylor,
Edmund; Taylor, James.
0163. Brunswick County. Slave owners and other citizens declare, “We have a right to retain such
Slaves as We have justly and legally in possession.” They pray, therefore, that no act would ever
pass the General Assembly for the general emancipation of slaves. They cite the Bible to support
their argument: Genesis 21:9–13; Genesis 27:29, 38–40; Leviticus 25:44–46; and Ecclesiastes
2:7. The petitioners further warn against opposing petitions “secretly handed about...by persons
We may reasonably suppose disaffected to our State & Government.” Petitioners {138}: Birdsong,
Truman; Brown, James; Connelly, John; Hawthorn, Peter; Parham, Nicholas.
0173. Williamsburg City. Arguing that he had served his master, Thomas Bentley, as a clerk and
assistant, Abraham Peyton Skipwith, who describes himself as a “most faithful, assiduous and
affectionate” slave, petitions for his freedom. Skipwith argues that shortly before his master died
he promised the slave his freedom.
0188. Frederick County. “Liberty,” the petitioners assert, “is the Birthright of Mankind.” They argue
for the immediate or gradual end to slavery, citing religious, political, and moral arguments. The
“deep Debasement of Spirit which is the necessary Consequence of Slavery,” they say,
“incapacitates the human mind.” Petitioners {17}: Milburn, John, Jr.; Milburn, John, Sr.; Wren,
John.
0191. Mecklenburg County. Defenders of slavery argue that the enemies of the country are
attempting to deny Americans their right to own property. Hidden behind a veil of piety and
liberality, antislavery advocates seek to strip slaveholders of their slaves by a general act of
emancipation. In the Old Testament, the petitioners argue, slavery is “permitted by the Deity
himself.” Petitioners {192}: Baptist, William G.; Oliver, Asa; Terry, George; Vaughan, Reuben;
Walker, Henry.
0199. Jefferson County. Convicted of “Burglary & Felony” and sentenced to death, the slave
Peter, owned by Francis Vigo, escaped and crossed the Ohio River but was killed by Indians. For
a “Valuable consideration” Peter Rezaro de Nouves Darges purchased the slave's certificate.
When Darges went to collect, however, the auditor of public accounts refused to pay because the
slave had not been executed. The petitioner asks for relief.
1786.
0203. New Kent County. The petitioner, a slave named James, owned by Will Armistead, spied
on the British during the American Revolution for the French general the Marquis de Lafayette.
For these services he seeks his freedom, noting that his master would “receive compensation for
the loss of a valuable workman."
0207. James City County. In 1774 and 1775, John Pierce hired to Lord Dunmore a slave for ten
pounds each year. When Dunmore “abdicate[d] his government,” as Pierce put it, he “never paid
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a shilling for those two years service of that Slave.” Now Dunmore's property had been
confiscated and sold and the money had gone into the state treasury. Pierce asks for his twenty
pounds.
0210. In 1779, with the opening of the land office, John Todd of Fayette County invested in land
warrants, settlement claims, and preemption claims in “the Kentucky District.” But before he could
obtain titles, he was killed by Indians. The widow, Jane Todd, and daughter, Mary Owen Todd,
ask to sell some of the lands to pay debts and purchase “two likely young Negro fellows and one
Wench.” Petitioners {2}: Todd, Jane; Todd, Robert.
0215. Hampshire County. “Liberty,” the petitioners assert, “is the Birthright of Mankind.” They
argue for the immediate or gradual end to slavery, citing religious, political, and moral arguments.
The “deep debasement of spirit which is the necessary consequence of Slavery,” they say,
“incapacitates the human mind.” Petitioners {8}: Engle, William; Harris, John; Parke, Amos;
Parke, John; Parke, John.
1787.
0218. Westmoreland County. In February 1785, the slave Toney, owned by John Pratt
Hungerford, was arrested and jailed on the charge of breaking and entering. Twice during the
following weeks, his trial was scheduled and twice it was postponed because of frigid weather.
When he was tried, on 29 March 1785, he suffered severe frostbite, having been left for weeks in
the coldest cell in the jail. Declared not guilty, he was taken home by his master but died as a
result of overexposure and infection. Petitioner seeks “an Allowance for his said Slave adequate
to his Value.”
1789.
0221. Halifax County. James Wimbish's slave, Toby, absconded in 1773 and later, in 1778, under
the alias William Ferguson, joined the 14th Virginia Regiment as a U.S. soldier. In 1785, Wimbish
discovered Toby, who had married a white woman and had several children. Wimbish decided,
however, not to re-enslave him but rather, for his “faithful and meritorious Services to the Public,”
to offer him his freedom. Several gentlemen have helped Wimbish bear the financial loss in
emancipating his slave. Wimbish requests Toby's unpaid back pay as a soldier.
0225. Kentucky District County. Moving into Virginia in 1787, Maryland slaveholder Benjamin
Stevenson brought with him a few slaves. He learned about the nonimportation law too late,
however, and now “by law his Negroes were entitled to freedom.” This would be ruinous. Without
slaves, neither he nor his family could escape destitution. He asks the legislature for relief.
1790.
0228. Mecklenburg County. The habitual runaway Jupiter was “a pest to the neighbourhood
where he lurked & lie out hid.” Declared an outlaw, he was shot and killed “in consequence of his
refusal to surrender.” The owner, Robert Wilson, seeks compensation.
1791.
0231. Lunenburg County. In May 1790, justices of the peace in Mecklenburg County issued a
Proclamation of Outlawry for the slave Jupiter, owned by Robert Wilson, for various crimes. It was
valid until 5 June 1790, but before a new document could be issued Jupiter was killed after that
date by a slave. The owner claims that he did not know it was necessary to have a second
publication “to render the killing Lawful.” He seeks relief.
1792.
0236. Prince William County. John Crittendon and Luke Cannon, officers in the 15th Virginia
Regiment, recruited an indentured mulatto man named Jesse Kelly to serve in the army. Kelly's
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master, Lewis Lee, brought suit for the loss of his servant. The petitioners explain that they
consulted Lieutenant Colonel Henry Lee as well as the eminent attorney Thompson Mason, both
of whom said that they had every right to recruit Kelly. But nearly nine years later a jury found for
the master, a judgment of more than thirty-five pounds. The officers ask for reimbursement,
arguing that Kelly was in the service of the county.
0239. Norfolk County. The slave Saul states that during the American Revolution he spied on the
British and served his country with distinction. His spying “rendered essential service to his
Country,” at least until he was betrayed in 1781 by another black man. Additionally, he fought in
numerous campaigns. He asks that the legislature “not suffer him any longer to remain a
transferable property."
1793.
0243. In his will Robert Wilson bequeathed to his grandson of the same name “a Negroe Man
Slave called Ben.” He also stipulated that if his grandson should die before he reached age
twenty-one, Ben should be given his freedom. Following the testator's death and the death of the
grandson in 1791 during an Indian fight, the executor of the will seeks Ben's freedom. Petitioner:
White, Alexander.
0248. Halifax County. In 1767, Reverend James Fowlis wrote his will, emancipating two slaves,
Molly and John. Three years later, he appointed Thomas Finny trustee of his estate and then “set
off southward, & has never yet returned.” In 1779, Finny wrote his will, putting the trust in the
hands of Stephen Dickson and James McCraw, and a short time later Finny died. It was not until
1792 that Fowlis's will was finally made public. It was then discovered that the two slaves were
the children of the master. Thirty-two-year-old Molly had borne five children—Abba, age thirteen,
Fleming, ten, Liza, eight, Allan, five, and Mary, one—and John was twenty-four. McCraw says the
slaves are unjustly kept in bondage and should be released.
1794.
0252. In 1781, the slave David (alias David Baker) was “delivered up as a free man,” a substitute
for his master, Lawrence Baker, to serve on the vessel Patriot. After the war, on an execution,
David was put up for sale. He explained his plight to Captain Mallory Todd, who purchased him;
now David asks for his freedom.
1795.
0255. Petitioners feel obligated to petition the legislature about the evils of slavery. The institution
is “not only a moral, but a political evil.” Slavery, they contend, “is an outragious violation, and an
odious degradation of human nature; tending to weaken the bonds of Society, discourage trades
and manufactures, endanger the peace, and obstruct the prosperity of the Country.” They quote
the Declaration of Independence, noting that “those unalienable rights of human nature, to life,
Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, have been so clearly defined.” While the petitioners believe
that social chaos would result from immediate emancipation, they suggest a law that would free
children of current slaves and those born after the legislation was passed. Moreover, they want
laws to “restrain” owners from cruel punishment of those who would remain slaves. Petitioners
{396}: Cringan, John; Jones, Edmund; Meade, David; Tumbell, Robert; Wythe, George.
0262. At the Henrico County Court, an unnamed white man was convicted of misdemeanor
forgery—providing a “certain runaway Negro” with freedom papers—and fined ten dollars.
Nathaniel Wilkinson noted that the same man had “emancipated four other Negroes” in the same
manner. The legislature should amend the current law, he said, to protect slave owners.
0265. Inhabitants of Halifax County complain about the sale of glebe lands of the Episcopal
Church, under a 1784 act of the General Assembly. The profits went to purchase another glebe
and sundry slaves. The Revolution should have ended the involuntary contributions by Christian
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sects to a single church, the petitioners assert; they ask that the money be used for the general
benefit of the county’s inhabitants. Petitioners {426}: Chandler, Hart; Hall, William, Jr.; Roberts,
Thomas; Stephens, William; Yeates, John.
0272. Inhabitants of Halifax County complain about the sale of glebe lands of the Episcopal
Church, under a 1784 act of the General Assembly. The profits went to purchase another glebe
and sundry slaves. The Revolution should have ended the involuntary contributions by Christian
sects to a single church, the petitioners assert; they ask that the money be used for the general
benefit of the county’s inhabitants. Petitioners {100}: Boyd, Harrison; Bragg, Hugh; Carr, Thomas;
Irby, Charles; Williams, J. Petitioners {54}: Adkison, John; Carmical, John; Collins, William;
Faulkner, Jacob; Pickett, Reuben. Petitioners {29}: Comer, M.; Ligon, Obadiah; Lyon, James;
Walden, William; White, Elias. Petitioners {68}: Bates, David; Dodson, Calass, Jr.; Echols, John,
Jr.; Echols, Moses, Jr.; Echols, Moses, Sr. Petitioners {41}: Clark, H.; Dickson, Thomas; Hamlett,
William; Lampkin, Richard; Landon, John. Petitioners {12}: Cox, William; Elliott, John; Hunt,
William H.; Tribble, James; Trible, Peter. Petitioners {21}: Cheatham, Joel; Glass, James; Gutrey,
Travas; Tompkins, James; Wealkley, Robert. Petitioners {12}: Burrow, William; East, William;
East, John, Jr.; McRay, John; Thaxton, William. Petitioners {27}: Douglass, Alexander; Jones,
David; Moore, Macknes; Sullins, Nathan; Sullins, Richard.
1796.
0305. Away from home on business, Louisa County slave owner Henry Lawrence did not receive
word that his slave had been captured and jailed in Hanover County in March 1795 as a runaway.
A fire then consumed the jail and this slave burned to death. Lawrence seeks compensation.
1797.
0309. A resident of the “south Western Territory,” Richard White moved to Washington County in
1793, bringing a number of slaves. He intended the slaves for his “own use,” and within a few
days after arriving, according to the law, he applied to a magistrate for a certificate to bring the
slaves into the state. The certificate, as it turned out, was too vague and indefinite, and now he
might lose his slaves. He seeks redress.
1799.
0312. Williamsburg City. Littleton Tazwell writes that his slave, James, alias Blue Jim, was
charged with a felony and committed to jail. It was bitterly cold and when he was taken to trial on
13 December 1796, his legs and feet were “destroyed by the frost.” James was “burned in the
hand” as punishment for his crime, but, as Tazwell relates, the frostbite resulted in the amputation
of both legs. He survived, but the owner seeks compensation.
0329. Bedford County. Describing himself as “old & infirm and in Indigent Circumstances,”
Zachariah Neal seeks relief for having purchased as a slave a woman who was in fact free. Neal
acquired Amey from Lewis Davis and “raised” a number of her children, paying a “considerable
sum of money into your Treasury for the Tax on the supposed Slaves.” But Amey Jones instituted
a suit and won her freedom.
0332. Halifax County residents ask for the appointment of group of trustees to sell the glebe
lands, slaves, and other public property, as required by an act of the Assembly, 24 January 1799.
Secured by a public levy on all the “Tythes of this County under the Laws of the Regal
Government Imposed,” the property now belonged to the county. Petitioners {64}: Abbott, William;
Hubbard, Samuel; Ligon, William; Palmer, Elisha.
0337. Halifax County residents ask for the appointment of group of trustees to sell the glebe
lands, slaves, and other public property, as required by an act of the Assembly, 24 January 1799.
Secured by a public levy on all the “Tythes of this County under the Laws of the Regal
Government Imposed,” the property now belonged to the county. Petitioners {39}: Atkinson,
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Samuel; Dodson, Allen; Dodson, Timothy; Haley, Lewis; Sluyden, Stokley. Petitioners {361}:
Buckner, Elisha; Haydon, David; Oliver, William; Robertson, Allen; Robertson, Henry.
1800.
0351. In 1799, James Gordon died intestate, leaving a widow and seven children, five of whom
were underage. Gordon owned land in Culpeper, Orange, and Spotsylvania counties, as well as
slaves. To pay the legal claims against the estate, the widow asks to sell the land in Spotsylvania,
rather than the slaves. Petitioners {4}: Gordon, Elizabeth; Gordon, John; Gordon, John C.;
Gordon, Lucy H.
0354. Maryland slaveholder Dekar Thompson asks to bring slaves into Virginia. He had recently
been awarded land in Fauquier County by the executors of the estate of a relative with the same
name. He could sell his Maryland slaves and purchase new ones in Virginia, but as a person who
had “raised and brought them up,” he was “attached to them and they to him."
0358. White citizens of King and Queen County argue that the law emancipating slaves created a
“disturbed & Distressed Situation.” True liberty, they contend, consists of “doing as we please”
except when “our actings and doings prejudice others.” They suggest that slaves be emancipated
only for “meritorious services.” Petitioners {30}: Braxton, Carter; Fleet, B.; Hill, Robert B.; Lyne,
D.; Price, Robert.
0362. Henrico County. As state prosecutor, George W. Smith attended fifty-nine sessions of court
beginning in September “upon the trials of negroes or Slaves charged with conspiracy and
insurrection.” Smith believes it is “unjust” for Henrico County to bear the burden of prosecution to
such an extent and seeks compensation.
0367. Suspected of being involved in the “late insurrection of the slaves,” Jacob was taken up by
a magistrate in Gloucester County. As he was being transported in a boat, he stabbed and killed
himself. He was an inoffensive slave and a valuable waterman, his owner William Wilson writes,
and since he was “in the custody of the law when he Killed himself” the master deserved
compensation. Petitioner: Wilson, William.
1801.
0370. In 1801, Edmund Grady was prosecuted in the Richmond District Court, found guilty of
stealing a slave belonging to Paul Thilman, and fined fifty pounds plus court costs. In fact, Grady
asserts, he owned the slave woman and had a bill of sale from James H. Lynch to prove it. Lynch
had owed Thilman money, and Thilman had confiscated the slave as payment. Learning of this,
Grady secured a warrant to search Thilman's house and recovered the black woman. Grady
seeks to have the fine remitted. [Editorial Note: part of petition is missing.]
0374. Greenbrier County. In February 1801, John G. Brown and William Morris purchased a
number of slaves convicted as “actors and abettors of the late insurrection.” Two of the slaves
escaped to the Northwest Territory, but were recaptured and returned after wounding a guard.
Taken down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers to the Spanish Territory, they could not be sold
because of their involvement in the insurrection plot. The two men had signed a bond to transport
and sell the slaves. The bond is now due and they ask for relief.
0377. Greenbrier County. John Brown and William Morris petition the assembly for further credit
on bonds obtained by them from the state for the purchase and transportation outside of the
United States of several slaves who had been convicted of participating in the “late insurrection.”
The petitioners state that two of the slaves escaped into the territory beyond the Ohio River
despite their precautions and were recaptured only at great expense (one of the slaves was
wounded; the guard hired by the petitioners to capture the slaves was imprisoned for inflicting the
wound). Furthermore, once the petitioners reached Spanish Louisiana they were forced to sell the
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slaves below market value and on credit because the slaves were known to have participated in
the rebellion.
1802.
0381. Free black Sally Brown asks that she be allowed to inherit her deceased brother’s estate.
Both she and her brother, Billy Brown, had been emancipated by Dr. Robert Brown, a Richmond
physician, but when her brother died the great portion of the estate given him by his master was
“vested by right of escheat in the commonwealth."
0393. Quakers lament the problems faced by freed blacks. Children who are freed through their
master's will but carried out of the state are likely to be sold as slaves, while adults are kidnapped
and taken away and enslaved. The law should be revised to halt these practices. Petitioners {5}:
Bates, Benjamin, Jr.; Copeland, Jesse; Crew, Micajah; Ladd, James; Parsons, Samuel.
0398. Among whites and blacks in various sections of Virginia, fish is an important part of the
diet. Residents of Amherst and Campbell counties complain that the erection of traps, dams, and
“other devices” along the James River has depleted the fish population to such an extent that in
the future there might be none left. Petitioners seek to strengthen the law regulating mills, mill
dams, and other obstructions along the river. Petitioners {79}: Brown, William; Couch, Daniel;
Norvell, Reuben; Scott, Samuel; Wills, Elias, Jr.
0404. Nottoway County. John Royall seeks compensation for his slave, Bob, who was
condemned and executed “under a charge of conspiracy or insurrection.” The slave was
appraised at ninety-five pounds, but this amount was “greatly short of his real value.” Not
exceeding age forty, Bob was a good blacksmith, carpenter, and wheelwright, an “able strong
fellow.” Royall seeks additional compensation.
0420. Chesterfield County. In the summer of 1799, Sheriff Henry Winfree jailed Billy as a runaway
slave. He advertised the slave for three months in the Virginia Gazette, and when no one
responded, he hired him out. Later, Billy absconded again. Winfree asks for reimbursement for
his expenses. He also seeks a revision of the law to prevent similar situations from occurring in
the future.
0425. Fluvanna County. Married in 1801 to Elizabeth Morris, Dabney Pettus, to his “great
astonishment & inexpressible mortification,” discovered that his wife was “deliver'd of a Mulatto
Child.” It was “begotten by a negro man slave in the Neighborhood.” Pettus seeks a divorce.
0439. The Society of Friends seeks the eradication of the domestic slave trade—"purchasing
numbers of those unfortunate Persons, and carrying them out of the limits of this state; often to
places, where the rigors of Slavery are multiplied, and the bitterness of their unhappy Situation
increased.” The society also asks for an end to the separation of black families. Petitioner:
Pretlow, Thomas.
0444. Halifax County residents seek to dispossess the “Incumbent of Antrim Parish” of glebe
lands and personal property belonging to the parish. The “present incumbent,” Alexander Hay,
who possessed slaves, refuses to give them up, claiming legal title after “five years peaceable
possession.” The residents ask that Hay be dispossessed of this property. Petitioners {267}:
Coleman, Henry E.; Coles, Isaac H.; Green, Benjamin; Martin, Richard; Terry, Nathaniel.
0455. Halifax County residents defend Alexander Hay and say he has every right to the
“possession, use, and benefit” of the property, including slaves, he holds as minister of Antrim
Parish. They recommend that the petition calling for Hay to turn over the property be rejected.
Petitioners {31}: Hay, Alexander; Hewell, Joseph; Hewell, Joseph, Jr.; Ragland, Evan; Torian,
Peter.
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0463. John Yates bequeathed his land and slaves to support poor people and to establish a free
school in the lower parish of Nansemond County. The vestry of the Protestant Episcopal Church
controlled this bequest. Yates, they contend, “perhaps had no Idea of the great Revolution in
church as well as state.” The petitioners ask that a new district be formed. Freeholders—men age
twenty-one or more—in this district would elect twelve discrete men to act as trustees for the
management and distribution of property donations relating to schools and the poor. Petitioners
{74}: Buxton, James; Dinley, Edward; Lightfoot, Samuel; Radwell, Thomas; Wright, David.
1803.
0471. Norfolk County. Married in 1802 to Lydia Bright, Benjamin Butt Jr. was absent on business
when his wife gave birth to a baby. To his “inexpressible Grief and astonishment” the infant
“proved to be a mulatto.” Lydia admitted her relationship with a “negro Man Slave named Robin”
belonging to the estate of Charles Stewart, deceased. The husband seeks a divorce.
1804.
0479. Lancaster County. Catharine Bond seeks compensation for her slave, Daniel, executed for
murdering William Mitchell, a white man. The court allowed only $78 for Daniel, a “very strong
healthy young man,” an amount she deemed “very inadequate."
0487. Spotsylvania County. In 1802, overseer Vincent Fortune was summoned as a witness in a
trial against William Scott, “a negro Criminal charged with petty-Larceny.” Fortune signed a one
hundred dollars recognizance to appear, but was informed by his employer that the trial had been
postponed. Later, he learned that the trial had taken place and he was still responsible for paying
the one hundred dollars. He asks for relief from this “wretched Situation."
0492. White residents in Richmond complain that captains of northern trading vessels trade and
barter with slaves, corrupting their morals. In some cases captains “inculcate in their weak minds
a spirit of discontent, tending to insurrection.” In other cases, they encourage slaves to steal from
their owners to pay for their passage out of the South. The petitioners ask for stricter laws to curb
these practices. Petitioners {54}: Duval, Benjamin; Harris, Henry; Leslie, John; Prichard, William;
Tompkins, Harry.
1805.
0497. Petersburg free mulatto Graham Bell posted $500 security when his son was accused of
forging a bond in Greenville County. When a true bill was handed down by the grand jury, the son
absconded and the father was left with a substantial debt. Bell contends that if he is forced to pay
the bond he would lose everything. He asks for relief.
0500. Petersburg free mulatto Graham Bell posted $500 security when his son was accused of
forging a bond in Greenville County. When a true bill was handed down by the grand jury, the son
absconded and the father was left with a substantial debt. Bell contends that if he is forced to pay,
he would lose everything. Local white residents support Bell's petition. Although not “mixing in the
more polished circles of Society,” they write, Bell is humble, quiet, and reputable. Petitioners {59}:
Bolling, Robert; Brown, Alexander; Byrne, James; Prentis, William; Thweat, Archibald.
0505. Accomack County. Married for twelve years, Ayres Tatham felt shame and confusion when
his wife, Tabitha, gave birth to a mulatto child “obviously the issue of an illicit intercourse with a
black man.” In 1804, she then ran off to Philadelphia. Tatham asks for the dissolution of their
marriage contract.
0511. Washington County. Virginia native Richard White moved to the territory south and west of
the Ohio River, later Tennessee, and then moved back into Virginia. Upon his return he left some
of the slaves on his Tennessee plantation, which he later deeded to one of his sons. Having
promised not to “sell or dispose of the Slaves,” he asks permission to bring them into Virginia.
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0514. Middlesex County. On 29 April 1803, William Steptoe died, leaving a tract of land in
Westmoreland County, personal property, and “Negroes.” To pay the estate's debts it was
necessary to sell the land and slaves. The deceased had eight children, and the widow asks that
the land not be divided in nine parts, including her dower, but sold “together.” Petitioners {2}:
Steptoe, Elizabeth; Steptoe, Thomas L.
0518. In March 1804, Norfolk County Sheriff James Browne delivered a summons to Mathew
Whiting, instructing him to appear in court and answer charges that he enslaved a number of free
blacks. When Whiting ignored the summons, Browne took possession of twenty-six blacks. He
provided for them until October 1804, when he was paid by the county. But he continues to care
for them as their freedom suit awaits resolution and asks the legislature for “suitable relief."
0523. Petersburg City. The mayor and other city officials seek to slow the rapid growth of the free
black population by suspending the emancipation laws. They also seek to slow the urban
migration of free blacks, asking that the group be restricted to the counties where they had been
born or liberated. At the same time the growth of the slave population presented problems that
could result, quoting Jefferson, in “a revolution of the wheel of fortune.” Petitioners {11}: Bolling,
Robert; Hammon, Jack; Harris, Nathaniell; Moore, William; Prentis, William.
0528. In 1802, Henry Ashton, a magistrate in Mecklenburg County, issued an arrest warrant for
several slaves charged with “plotting and Conspiring the Murder of some Citizens of this County
by mixing a Certain Mortal poison with their food.” One of the captured slaves, Frank, belonged to
Thomas Reekes. Frank died in captivity because of the “Cruel rigor of his Confinement,” and
Reekes seeks compensation.
0539. Stafford County. William Fitzhugh writes that on 2 January 1805, there was a “general
insurrection of the Slaves” on his plantation. One of the slaves, Philip, was killed and another,
James, drowned while attempting to swim across the Rappahannock River. Fitzhugh asks for
compensation.
1806.
0543. Norfolk Borough County. Residents ask that the mayor's nonrenewable, one-year term be
extended to renewable terms of up to four years. The extension is needed, they contend, to deal
with the daily arrival of strangers from various parts of the world. The newcomers include a
“formidable accession from the island of St. Domingo,” and sailors who “infest the wharves by
day, and raise riots in the streets by night.” The mayor needs time to mold an effective police
force to deal with these problems. Petitioners {270}: Catlett, Charles; Fisk, Martin; Higgins,
Eugene; Newton, Thomas; Sims, John.
0549. Residents of Prince William County testify that Daniel Rose is a man of “good character.”
His misfortune was to marry Henrietta White, who after eight months of marriage gave birth to a
mulatto child. The father was a slave owned by Henrietta's grandfather. The petitioners ask that
Rose be released from his “unfortunate connection.” Petitioners {71}: Kinker, Wm., Jr.; Lawson,
J.; Peyton, John H.; Washington, W. J.; Washington, Henry, Sr.
0554. King William County. In 1802, Samuel Catlett took sixteen slaves with him to Georgia, to
visit his brother and to possibly settle. In June 1805, he returned to Virginia, but left his slaves
under hire with his brother to work through the 1806 harvest season. The law that was passed in
1806 now prevents him from retrieving his slaves. He requests permission to bring his slaves
back into Virginia.
0559. Town residents discuss the problems connected with “efficient organization of the militia.” It
is too easy to neglect militia duty, they contend, as a yearly exemption can be purchased for
$7.50, the largest amount of a possible fine. The petitioners also note that in towns where a
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military presence would be greatly needed during an insurrection, “some are too idle, some too
wealthy, some too proud, and many too industrious to attend a muster.” To create “citizensoldiers,” they propose for Petersburg monthly musters during the mild seasons (instead of every
two months) and fining delinquents $5 for each missed muster. Petitioners {559}: Bott, John B.;
Epes, Daniel; Jones, Christopher T.; Lanier, Robert; McRae, Richard.
0566. Kanawha County. Petitioners seek a revision of the 1806 law prohibiting importation of
slaves. People inheriting slaves cannot bring them into Virginia; out-of-state-slave residents who
purchase land in Virginia cannot transport their blacks to their plantations; and citizens of Virginia
who own land in adjacent states—even adjoining tracts—cannot move their slaves back and
forth. Moreover, the law has little effect in preventing insurrections. Petitioners {67}: Bostick,
Manoah; Hilyard, Joseph; Morris, William; Morris, John, Jr.; Morris, John, Sr.
0575. Culpeper County. In 1800, slave owner Charlotte Ball married William Ball, who possessed
property “very adequate with care and industry to their decent support.” Within a short while,
however, he began to strike and beat her and threatened to kill her. In the past, she learned, he
had had sexual encounters with black women. Charlotte returned to her father and lived with him
for four years. Discovering that William Ball planned to confiscate her property, she seeks a
divorce.
0591. Brunswick County. Mary Peebles worked her slaves primarily on her own plantation but
sometimes sent “such of them as were then considered as supernumeraries” to her son in
“Carolina.” By an “act of providence,” however, she lost virtually all of her male slaves and now
needs the slaves in her son's possession. Without them she will be forced to abandon her land.
She asks from an exemption from the amended law passed 25 January 1806.
1807.
0594. Culpeper County. John Cooke asks the legislature for an exemption from the law
prohibiting the transportation of slaves into Virginia. He was formerly a Maryland resident. His
wife's father bequeathed his wife “certain Negroes.” His wife is attached to the slaves and does
“not wish them sold if she can enjoy them otherwise."
0597. In 1787, planter Ambrose Walden married Betsey Taylor of Fauquier County, who in 1798
had an affair with a man in the neighborhood. He seeks a divorce. At stake in the settlement are
slaves Tom, Betsey, Eliza, Ishmael, Suckey, Lucy, and Nancy.
1808.
0608. Richmond City. Sarah DePass asks the legislature to permit her to hold a slave that she
transported from South Carolina. Her husband is in Jamaica for health reasons and she came to
Virginia to be with her family. She was not aware of the law against bringing slaves into Virginia,
but she contends that she needs her slave, Eliza, to be with her.
0612. Berkeley County. In March 1806, James Stephenson's brother, Benjamin, and his wife and
family moved from Virginia to Kentucky. As the wife was in delicate health, James sent along a
“favorite Negro Girl slave named Sarah” to care for the ailing white woman. Sarah was born and
reared in his family, and Stephenson owned her mother, brothers, and sisters. He asks to bring
her back into Virginia.
0616. Frederick County. Accused of attempted rape “on the body of Nancy Mitchell a free white
Woman,” the slave Joseph was tried, convicted, and castrated. A short time later, he died of
tetanus. The owner seeks compensation for his once healthy, twenty-six-year-old black man.
Petitioner: Kerfott, Samuel.
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0623. Loudoun County. Marrying a Maryland slaveholding woman, Joseph Beard asks to bring
five of her slaves into Virginia.
0626. Loudoun County. Marrying a Maryland slaveholder, William L. Lewis seeks permission to
bring four of his wife’s slaves into Virginia. He says he will use the slaves himself and does not
wish “to part with them on any terms whatever."
0629. Loudoun County. Married in 1802, Isaac Fouch lived with his wife, Elizabeth, for several
years “in the strictest Love, Friendship and happiness.” Then he discovered she possessed a
“Lewd, incontinent, profligate disposition,” sleeping with, among others, James Watt, a man of
color. He seeks a divorce.
0635. Nansemond County. Following his marriage to a woman from North Carolina, David Parker
asks to bring his wife's slaves into the state. His purpose is to employ them on his farm, not to
engage in trafficking or speculation.
0638. Having recently purchased land in Nansemond County, Maryland slaveholder Arthur
Woolford, a physician, asks to bring his slaves into Virginia. His sole objective is to have them
work on his farm. The slaves were attached to him, he said, and a separation would produce
“mutual distress, inconvenience, and loss."
0642. Dinwiddie County. In his will, Samuel Major's father loaned a slave named Nancy to his
daughter, Nancy Major, until the daughter died. The will stipulated that if the daughter died
childless, Nancy the slave was to be passed on to his other children. The daughter moved to
North Carolina and died without issue. One of the brothers seeks to bring Nancy back into
Virginia, asking for an exemption from the nonimportation law.
0645. When George Claiborne moved to North Carolina, he took with him four slaves—Jim, Jerry,
Jane, and Dinah. Since then Floretta, another slave, had been born. Having now come into
possession of land in Brunswick County, Claiborne asks to transport his slaves back to Virginia.
0649. Berkeley County. Given to him by his father with the stipulation that they should never be
sold or hired out, three slaves—Paris, Letty, and Daniel—were left behind when physician John
S. Harrison moved from Maryland to Virginia in 1806. He had already lost their services “at that
period of life when alone they can be of any advantage or real use to him.” He asks for
permission to bring them into Virginia.
1809.
0651. Petersburg City. Called to testify as a witness in the Prince Edward County case involving
William Nealy—accused of having stolen and offered for sale a “Negro Boy"—Nathaniel Harris
failed to appear. It was due to the shortness of the notice and inclement weather, Harris said. He
was fined, paid his fine, and now asks to be reimbursed.
0656. Stafford County. Thomas Fristoe owns a slave—given him by his father-in-law—who
resides in Kentucky. Fristoe claims to have “a particular regard & affection” for the “negroe Boy
named Lewis” and asks to bring him into Virginia.
0659. Accomack County. In April 1808, Virginia slaveholder Thomas Bayly died leaving his
daughter, Margaret Ker Robins, a resident of Maryland, six slaves—Jack, Peter, Ladock, Rachel,
Agnes, and an infant, Letty. The daughter's husband, Boudoin Robins, took into his possession
Jack and Rachel, both house servants, and after the crop was finished in the fall, received the
others. Their farm was on the boundary line between Virginia and Maryland. In February 1809,
Boudoin Robins died, and the slaves went to Margaret Ker Robins. She continued to work the
family lands, moving slaves across the state line, not knowing that she was violating the state
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law. When she discovered that the slaves might be “taken from her by the overseers of the poor
and sold,” she petitioned the legislature to retain the slaves.
0663. Virginia resident George Chapman Jr. owns several slaves in Maryland and asks
permission to put them on his estate in Fauquier County.
0666. About 1798 or 1799, Travers Daniel Sr. of Stafford County purchased a young slave,
George Simmons, at the behest of the boy's father, William Simmons, a freeman. Daniel
promised Simmons to free George after the boy had earned his purchase price. George set out to
pay for himself, but before he could, his father died. Without his father's protection, George feared
he would be robbed of any possible liberty he might obtain. Since Daniel was satisfied with regard
to the “services already rendered,” and since William Simmons had an unsigned will (written by
John Ford, clerk of Stafford County) freeing him, George Simmons seeks his freedom and
permission to remain in Virginia.
0682. Amherst County. Married to Elizabeth Dean in January 1806, William Howard discovered
within a year that she was engaged in “brutal and licentious connections” with a variety of men.
When he came home and found her undressed and in bed with C. A. Evans, a man of color, he
ordered her out. They had been separated ever since. Howard seeks a divorce.
0687. Pittsylvania County. In 1790, John Abston's uncle died in Wilkes County, Georgia, leaving
him a slave named Nutty and half her increase following the death of Abston’s aunt. In 1805, the
aunt died and Abston went to Georgia to claim his property, but Nutty was in an advanced state
of pregnancy. He returned with her oldest boy, leaving the mother and two younger children
behind. With the passage of the 1806 law, the slave family was separated. Abston writes that he
remains “attached particularly to the whole of the Slaves” and values greatly the mother's fidelity,
honesty, and integrity. He wants to keep the older boy and asks to bring the boy's mother and
siblings into Virginia.
0692. Prince William County. In 1809, Thomas Stone of Charles County, Maryland, died,
bequeathing his daughter, Mary Duffy, a “Certain Negro girl slave named Jenny about ten years
of age.” The husband, Moses Duffy, asks to bring the girl into Virginia. She was the only legacy
left to his wife by her father and the only slave owned by the Duffys.
0695. Loudoun County. William L. Lewis asks that his wife's slaves—Joseph, Stephen, Syntha,
and Peter—who reside in Maryland, be allowed to come into Virginia.
0698. Thomas Johnson Jr.'s father, a resident of Maryland, died and left him a moiety of the
lands and mills in Loudoun County along the Potomac River as well as a forge and lands across
the river in Frederick County, Maryland. Johnson asks if he can transport slaves back and forth
between his properties. He now owns a family of house servants bequeathed to his wife and two
forge hands given him by his father. It would be “to the Interest and greatly to the Accomodation
of your Petitioner,” he said, if he were permitted to “remove and employ some of the said
slaves—from the one to the other of the said places."
0702. Prince William County. In 1805, John Smith moved from Maryland into Virginia. During the
move one of his slaves, Jack, absconded. Despite diligent efforts, he did not recover Jack until
the summer of 1809. He now asks for an exemption from the Virginia law prohibiting the
importation of slaves so he might keep Jack in Virginia.
0706. Possessing a life estate of two slaves—Henny and her child, Julia—Maryland resident
Jane Gettings grants her son-in-law, John Talbot of Jefferson County, Virginia, permission to take
the two slaves into Virginia. Talbot seeks legislative permission.
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0709. Amherst County. Joseph Kennerly explains that he owns a slave whose wife and children
are owned by William Hansard in Tennessee. Hansard, meanwhile, owns a young slave, George,
whose mother is owned by Kennerly. The two white men agree to an exchange so “that the said
Negroes may be accommodated.” Kennerly requests permission to bring George into Virginia.
0712. Norfolk Borough County. Free blacks complain about not being able to “prove our accounts
against white people.” They are able to collect debt payments from “the Better Order of Men,” but
are unable to do so from whites who are “wanton & malignant in their disposition.” Petitioners
{12}: Bailey, William; Sparrow, John; Ventus, John; Wells, John; Wiley, Armistead.
0718. Fluvanna County. In 1800, Samuel Ferguson, a native of Culpeper County, Virginia, moved
to Jefferson County, Kentucky, taking with him a slave named Jonas. When Samuel Ferguson Jr.
came of age he was to receive Jonas as a gift. In December 1808, the son retrieved Jonas and
brought him into Virginia. He was soon informed by the clerk of Fluvanna County Court, however,
that he had to turn Jonas over to authorities because he had been brought into the state
“Contrary to Law.” Ferguson asks to keep the slave in his possession.
0722. Culpeper County. John Smoot's father, a Maryland resident, bequeathed him “nine or ten
slaves.” Smoot explains that owning slaves in another state is not to his advantage. They are not
in his immediate service and they have to be managed at a great distance. Furthermore, he
contends, he is attached to them and they to him. If he sold them the money would not be as
useful to him as the slaves. Smoot seeks permission to bring the slaves into Virginia.
0725. A number of residents of Cumberland County sustained “great injury” because “vicious
negroes” set fire to their houses. If there are strong suspicions that certain blacks were
responsible, the petitioners assert, their owners should be compelled to send them out of the
state or dispose of them within three months. Petitioners {40}: Baskervile, William B.; Brown,
William; Brown, James, Sr.; Dunford, William; Guthrey, John.
0729. Accomack County. Maryland slave owner William Houston anticipates a move to a
plantation he owns in Virginia. Accordingly, he asks permission to bring three slaves into the
state. He is willing to sell his other Maryland slaves, or leave them behind, but he raised and
tutored the three slaves in question and they are “very valuable."
0732. Fauquier County. Many years before, Maryland resident Dekar Thompson acquired a tract
of land in Fauquier County, Virginia. Except for the “insuperable obstacle in the Slave Law” he
could now work the land profitably. “Your Petitioner has enough of this species of property in
Maryland to establish him[self] on his lands in this state in Comfort,” Thompson writes. If forced to
sell his slaves he would suffer “great pecuniary loss.” In addition, he would feel the pain that
every man of sensibility feels when “selling separating and dispersing faithful & valuable
Servants."
0736. Brunswick County. Virginia slaveholders John and William Wilkins possessed more slaves
than they could conveniently work on their Virginia plantations. Consequently, they purchased a
tract of land in North Carolina, about thirty miles south of the Virginia line. They ask to work some
of their slaves “alternately in both States without incurring any of the penalties of the Law."
0739. Monongalia County. Inheriting a slave woman and child from a relative in Maryland,
Lewess Wolf requests permission to bring them into Virginia.
0742. Monongalia County. Receiving six slaves from his father, a resident of Maryland, George
Dausey asks for permission to bring the slaves into the state.
0745. Amelia County residents seek to emancipate the family of Frank Gowen, a free black man
who purchased his wife and children. Gowen had recently died and his family—Patience and the
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children Philemon, Elizabeth, and Henry—might be sold by the overseers of the poor. The four
are honest, peaceful, and respectable, and deserve special consideration, despite being legally
slaves. Petitioners {20}: Ford, John; Holcombe, Phil; Holcombe, Thomas A.; Jones, John W.; Old,
William.
0751. Fearing a general insurrection on Christmas Eve, 1808, Westmoreland County whites
armed themselves and began systematically searching slave cabins on various plantations. Their
instructions were to “put to death such as resisted.” Slave owner Samuel Templeman writes that
his slave, Joe, secretly left to visit his wife on a neighboring plantation when the patrol arrived in
the middle of the night. When Joe tried to escape he was shot in the knee and foot and died the
next day. Joe's owner seeks compensation.
0762. Benjamin Browne, the sheriff of Surry County, turned over five jailed runaway slaves to
their owner without collecting any maintenance fees. He now seeks relief from the legislature for
the expenses incurred while the slaves were in the county's care.
Reel 17
Virginia (cont.)
0001. Descriptive material.
1810.
0007. Culpeper County. About 1795, John Smoot moved from Maryland to Virginia. When his
father in Maryland died about 1807, Smoot inherited nine slaves, but because of the
nonimportation law he could not bring them into Virginia. Smoot seeks permission to transport the
slaves—Lucey, Rachel, Winney, Bazel, Robert, Lewis, Lucey, Mary, and Delilah—into Virginia.
0010. Petersburg City. “[Y]our petitioner was born, and to this hour remains, a Slave,” James
Butler began. Having always conducted himself to gain the good will and esteem of whites, and
having paid his master for his freedom, Butler asks for an act of emancipation. He “is now
considerably advanced in years” and had long hoped to enjoy freedom in his latter days. But to
leave his family within twelve months as the law required would put him in a state “infinitely more
galling” than bondage. He seeks permission to remain in Virginia.
0016. Emancipated by Peter Lott of Albemarle County in his will in 1801, James Lott was
nonetheless sold as a slave by the administrator of Peter Lott's estate to pay outstanding debts. It
was the black man's good fortune to be purchased by a man who permitted him to buy his
freedom. By the time he was able to do so, however, the law required emancipated slaves to
leave the state. “Your Petitioner fondly imagined he had arrived at the end of his Sufferings,” Lott
wrote, only to realize if he did not leave his home he might “be reduced again to a State of
Servitude.” He asks for relief.
0019. Mason County. As a result of a recent marriage, Andrew Bryan became part owner of the
slave Peter, who is hired out in Kentucky. Bryan complains about “great inconveniences” and
high costs of hiring at such a distance. He also explains that according to a trust he cannot sell
the slave until his wife's children by a former marriage come of age. He requests permission to
bring Peter into Virginia.
0022. Isle of Wight County. In 1801, Pompey Branch contracted with his owner, Benjamin
Branch, to purchase his freedom. By “great industry and economy” over the following nine years,
he paid for himself. James Johnson and Matthew Fulgham acted as his security. To protect them
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from loss, Pompey had the bill of sale made out to the two white men. In 1810, he owns a small
plantation in Isle of Wight County and lives there with his family. He asks for his freedom and
permission to remain in Virginia.
0031. Bequeathed a number of slaves in North Carolina and Georgia, John and Ann Ware ask
that they be permitted to bring them into Virginia. The couple was “advanced in life” and planned
to remain in Goochland County. The slaves were bequeathed to Ann by her sister, Jane Harrison
of North Carolina, having descended to the sister from their father, Andrew Harrison.
0034. Hanover County. Free black Henry Birch purchased his two slave sons, John and Bond,
from William Dandridge Claiborne, of King William County, and asks that they be emancipated
and allowed to remain in Virginia.
0039. Charlotte County. Petitioners complain about slaves who keep and raise horses and hogs.
Those who do, the petitioners say, steal hogs, corn, and provisions from their white neighbors.
Petitioners seek a law to penalize slaveholders who “directly or indirectly permit their slaves to
own or possess any horses or hogs.” The slave-owned property should be confiscated and either
turned over to the informer or used to assist poor people. Petitioners {172}: Brent, J.; Davis,
James; Green, Croxen; Johnson, James; Roach, John.
0044. Richmond County. Petitioners complain about “the practice, of Negro Slaves free Negroes,
& Mulattoes, raising and carrying dogs.” This was done to the great injury and detriment of sheep
raisers. A law should be passed prohibiting slaves from taking dogs off of their owner's plantation
and forbidding free black families from owning more than one dog. Petitioners {149}: Clark,
Reuben; Davis, John; Dolyns, Abner; Smith, William C.; Wrae, John.
0048. King George County. Benjamin Ledwick moved from Maryland to Virginia and shortly
afterwards learned that an act had been passed prohibiting the introduction of slaves into the
state. He had brought in two slaves, Tom and Len, but returned them to Maryland, where a
similar act had been passed. Now he fears losing the slaves. As he “has settled in this State, and
married here, he prays an act may pass permitting him to retain the two Slaves."
0051. In 1802, Samuel Jones Catlett took sixteen slaves with him to Georgia to visit his brother
and possibly settle in that state. In June 1805, he returned to Virginia but left his slaves under
contract with his brother to work through the 1806 harvest season. The law that was passed in
1806 prevents him from retrieving his slaves. Most of the blacks had been given to him in 1797 by
Ann Raines, a relative, in a trust and would go next to a “person” in King William County. Now,
with Catlett's death, his widow, Mary M. Catlett, seeks to bring the slaves into Virginia.
0059. Stafford County. Due to her fidelity to her late master, Mary was emancipated in a will and
left with “comfortable support.” She asks to remain in Virginia with her slave children and friends.
It would be “painful and distressing to leave."
0062. Prince William County. When his daughter-in-law moved to the Mississippi Territory,
Timothy Brundige loaned her a ten-year-old servant named Clara. The white woman, however,
died in Natchez in August 1809, ten months after leaving Virginia. The black youngster was sent
to New Orleans and thence to Baltimore. Brundige asks that the slave be permitted to return to
her native state.
0065. Residents of Henrico County support the emancipation of Walter Spurlock, sometimes
called Watt, a black man about forty-five years old. He had paid his late master for his freedom.
Now there was fear that “some ill disposed Person or Persons” might disturb him in his business
as a wheelwright. Petitioners {48}: Childrey, William; Cocke, Bowler; Randolph, Richard; Reese,
George; Vaughan, James.
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0074. Born a slave in 1776, Jingo was sold as a youngster to William Barclay, a storekeeper and
merchant in Accomack County. Even before Barclay left for Great Britain in 1798 or 1799, Jingo
acted “as a free man.” After Barclay's departure Jingo asserted that his owner intended to free
him but “from forgetfulness or some such cause” failed to do so. In 1810, Barclay returned to the
United States and signed a deed of manumission in the Baltimore County Court. Jingo seeks
permission to remain in Virginia as a free man.
0080. Northampton County. Elizabeth Hayley's husband moved to North Carolina and died
intestate, leaving her “possessed of some Valuable Slave property” in that state. She seeks
permission to bring three slaves into Virginia.
0083. Jefferson County. Virginia resident Jesse Allnutt inherited several slaves from the estate of
Nathaniel Newton, late of Prince George's County, Maryland. Allnut is “advanced in years,”
between sixty-five and seventy, and does not have a sufficient number of slaves to cultivate his
farm. He seeks permission to keep one of the slaves—a man of good character. He is “not able to
govern such as may prove refractory,” he admits, and could easily suffer injury if compelled to
part with a good servant and purchase one of unknown character.
0086. Augusta County. Six Virginia legatees of the estate of Alexander Work, late of Iredell
County, North Carolina, were sent six slaves by one of the “other legatees.” The slaves range in
age from fifteen to twenty-four. The Virginia heirs ask that the slaves be permitted to remain in the
state. Petitioners {6}: Berry, Robert; Scott, Isabella; Scott, James; Scott, Jane; Scott, John.
0090. On a visit to his father's home in South Carolina in 1809, John Crenshaw received the loan
of a slave named Moses. When he returned to Mecklenburg County, Virginia, he was informed he
had broken the law and took Moses back to North Carolina. It was his father's wish that the slave
remain with the family, Crenshaw explains; he asks for permission to bring him back into Virginia.
0095. Receiving a male slave named Stephen as a gift from his father in Worcester County,
Maryland, James McMaster asks to import the slave into Virginia. His residence in Accomack
County is only five or six miles from his father's residence. “If it be admitted that slaves are an
evil,” McMaster argues, he could not conceive that the evil would be increased by his request,
especially since “White people bear a greater proportion to the Slaves than in any other of the
counties in the lower parts of this State."
0099. On 18 June 1810, members of the Common Hall in Richmond passed an ordinance that
“no Negro or Mulatto,” except as a servant, shall be permitted to use any “Gig chair or other
carriage” in the city. Christopher MacPherson, who served as clerk during the American
Revolution, asks for an exemption from the ordinance. As an accountant and bookkeeper, he
travels to various parts of the city. In addition, he and his wife are “advanced in life” and
occasionally need to rent a carriage. MacPherson accepts the disabilities imposed on “that class
of people to which he belongs” but argues that the 1810 ordinance was “unjust as it respects
himself and family and that it deprives him of rights to which he is intitled under the laws and
Constitution of this Commonwealth."
0163. Sussex County. He had always been “a dutiful and faithful slave, & invariably obedient to
the Commands of his much lamented Master,” Jacob explains, and now that he has been freed
by the will of John Holt he asks for an act of emancipation.
0167. Richmond County. The inspectors of tobacco at Indian Creek and Dymer's warehouses on
the Rappahannock River complain that since the embargo farmers have “almost ceased to
cultivate” the crop. With warehouses unused and in disrepair, “Negroes and other dishonest
persons” have broken in and stolen three thousand hogsheads of tobacco “for chewing and
smoking.” The inspectors ask for money from surpluses given in previous years to “indemnify
them against the above loss.” Petitioners {2}: Pitman, Thomas; Sydnor, Anthony.
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1811.
0170. Jefferson County. Accompanying her sick daughter from Virginia to Kentucky in 1807,
Susanah Bennett took along her thirteen-year-old servant, Maria, who acted as her daughter’s
nurse. Following the daughter’s death, Maria stayed on in Kentucky and cared for several of the
daughter's “young & helpless children.” Now Bennett asks to bring Maria back to Virginia. Losing
her would not only be a pecuniary loss but a loss in “many other respects."
0174. Washington County. Elizabeth Brackenridge's mother died in childbirth, and she was left in
Virginia to be raised by her grandmother. The father moved to Kentucky and now wishes to give
his daughter a slave, Matilda, as part of her “paternal estate.” Elizabeth is “extremely anxious to
be permitted to bring [Matilda] into the Commonwealth."
0178. Following the death of their father, James and Thomas Spencer, slaveholders in North
Carolina, inherited a “very considerable Landed & personal Estate” in Amherst and Nelson
counties. They ask to bring seventeen slaves into Virginia. The slaves are loyal, faithful, and
attached to the Spencer family, and purchasing new hands would involve great risk, “trouble &
expence."
0181. Washington County. As a slave, Fincastle Sterrett was sent to distant points to transact
business for his owner, William King, a merchant. He handled large sums of money without “the
slightest suspicion of improper conduct.” When the master died, and left no deed of
emancipation, a relative purchased and freed Sterrett and now seeks permission for him to
remain in Virginia.
0189. Frederick County. Emancipated in the will of his master, Adam Barber seeks to remain in
Virginia. He feels attached to his native state and promises “to set an example of Honesty
Sobriety & peaceable deportment.” It would be beneficial for other blacks if a man of his color—a
“Dark Mulatto"—were freed by “a wise & Liberal Government."
0198. Brunswick County. In March 1808, John Mason journeyed to Tennessee on a horse selling
trip. Accompanying him were two slaves, Lawny and David, servants of “good character"—
honest, humble, and faithful. Mason always considered himself a transient in Tennessee, but did
not return until July 1810, when he requests that he not be “liable to any forfeiture” of the two
slaves under the nonimportation law.
0201. Harrison County. In 1807, Absalom Boring moved from Maryland to Virginia, bringing with
him a “negroe boy slave.” Ignorant of the nonimportation law, he is “a very old man and has but
little property & a family to maintain.” He needs his slave and asks for an exemption from the law.
0205. James L. Clowney of Lewis Burgh seeks permission to retain his slave, Isaac, a gift from
his father in South Carolina. He brought Isaac into the state in the spring of 1810 and remained
determined “never to part with him by selling him out of this state inasmuch as it would be a
violation of feelings which your petitioner cannot think of committing either as it respects himself
or the aforesaid Slave."
0208. The nine petitioners were emancipated by their owners, Margaret and John N. Rose. They
are “very desirous from many weighty considerations” to remain in Virginia. Born and raised in
Amherst County, they describe themselves as peaceable and industrious. Petitioners {9}: Dean,
Betty; Dean, Billy; Dean, Franky; Dean, Henry; Dean, John.
0211. Accomack County. Self-purchased free black Robin Justice signed a deed of trust on 17
November 1804 to purchase his wife, Eve. During the next few years, the couple had two
children. Eve and the children remained in bondage as Justice's slaves, even after he had paid
his wife's purchase price. Now he hopes to free his family. Unfortunately, he explains, they are
subject to the law passed 25 January 1806, requiring emancipated blacks to leave the state
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within one year or be sold by overseers of the poor. He asks that his family be emancipated and
allowed to remain in the state.
0216. Harrison County. Emancipated by his late master, the mulatto man Starke asks to remain
in Virginia. He has a wife and child who were free prior to the 1806 act requiring freed slaves to
leave the state within a year, and he has rendered himself “useful to society” in his trade as a
chairmaker.
0219. District of Columbia. As owners of three thousand acres of land in Virginia, Thomas Beall
and George Washington seek to transfer about fifty slaves back and forth between Maryland and
Virginia “as their interest require.” It would be an “act of inhumanity” to sell the slaves, since they
had been “raised” by Thomas Beall and possessed “family connections among themselves."
0222. Freed by their late master, John Clarke, for “meritorious services,” Stewart Gloucester and
his wife, Nancy, ask to remain in Virginia.
0227. Emancipated by John Kearsley of Jefferson County after twenty years of service, tanner
Abraham Britton asks to remain in Virginia. He feels “an attachment for his native State” and if
forced to leave would be separated from his wife and children and “Friends whom he holds dear."
0233. Richmond City. Free black Thomas Brewster acquired his freedom some time before the
passage of 1806 law, but due to “causes which it was not in his power to prevent” he obtained his
emancipation deed only recently. The law requires that he emigrate, but he hopes to remain in
Virginia.
0240. Fluvanna County. On 17 December 1810, Henry Martin sent his wife to Kentucky to be with
relatives. He had been married thirty years, but his wife's behavior had become strange and he
agreed to the trip “with a view of its restoring her mind to its usual state and dignity.” To
accompany her he sent four slaves—Paul, Nelly, Cuzza, and Peter. He was very much attached
to the slaves, as they had been “raised by him and in the family.” He asks that they be permitted
to return.
0245. Berkeley County. Emancipated in the will of John B. Craghill, deceased, Jerry, age about
forty-five, and his wife, Susannah, ask to remain in Virginia. Their four children would be sold,
perhaps to planters nearby, and Jerry's slave mother, owned by a Craghill in Jefferson County,
was “so old & infirm that she could not be removed to any considerable distance."
0258. Ohio County. In October 1811, Robert Poage moved from Kentucky to Ohio County,
Virginia, with his family and two slaves, fifteen-year-old Anne and ten-year-old Fitch. The two girls
were natives of Virginia, and Poage seeks exemption from the law subjecting him to fine and
forfeiture.
0261. Southampton County. In 1805, free woman of color Jemima Hunt contracted with Benjamin
Barrett to purchase her husband, Stephen, promising to pay ten pounds each year for ten years.
She paid the full amount before the expiration date. Now she faces of the prospect of Stephen
being forced by law to leave the state if she attempts to set him free. They have a large number
of children, and she requests an exemption from the law requiring emancipated blacks to leave
the state.
0266. Brunswick County. In 1808, John Mason journeyed to Tennessee, with several horses to
sell. He took along two male slaves as horse tenders. The blacks did not return to Virginia within
twelve months, and now he is in jeopardy of losing them. The two were devised to him by his
father and are of good character. At present they are hired out in Tennessee, for a “very
inconsiderable sum.” He would be glad to send two female slaves out of the state, if he were
allowed to bring his two male slaves back into Virginia.
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0269. Petersburg City. Purchasing the slave James Butler of Prince George County for 180
pounds, John Osborne agreed to allow Butler to purchase himself. Though born a slave, Osborne
says, James possesses the “honor and integrity of a freeman.” Working as a miller, he paid for
himself. Osborne asks that he be freed and permitted to remain in Virginia with his wife and
children.
0276. Possessed of several Virginia slaves acquired by marriage, Joshua W. Kilpatrick plans to
move from Iredell County, North Carolina, to Amelia County, Virginia. The slaves in question—
Amos, Flora, Miles, and Edward—were taken from Virginia to North Carolina, and now Kilpatrick
asks to bring them back into Virginia.
0279. Having purchased a farm in Ohio County, Virginia, many years before, Robert Hardcastle
now plans to move from Talbot County, Maryland, to Virginia. At age seventy-two, he is old and
infirm and does not expect to live much longer. He asks to bring with him “one Male Slave a lad of
about Sixteen years” to assist him in his old age. He is very fond of the slave, having “raised” him
from childhood.
0282. Jefferson County. Following her emancipation, Catharine Carlyle fears being “taken up &
sold as a slave by the overseers of the poor.” She asks to remain in Virginia, with her husband.
0286. Brooke County. For his “fidelity and faithful services,” Tobias was freed by his owner,
Colonel Richard Brown of Burke County. Tobias had previously arranged to purchase his wife,
also owned by Brown, and had paid a considerable part of her purchase price. He now discovers
he must leave the state within a year. To abandon his wife would be a fate worse than slavery
itself, Tobias asserts; he asks to remain in Virginia.
0291. Berkeley County. Three slaves—Daniel, Paris, and Letty—were given to John Harrison
with the stipulation that they could never be sold or hired “without their own consent freely
obtained.” In 1807, Harrison, a physician, moved from Maryland to Martinsburg, Virginia.
Deprived of the advantage of his slaves “at that period of life when alone they can be of any real
use,” he asks that the three be permitted to enter Virginia.
0296. Prior to his trial, conviction, and execution for murder, Salley Pegram's slave, Will (or
William), had instituted a suit in forma pauperis for his freedom. Following his arrest, he had been
remanded by the Dinwiddie County Court to the superior court and tried as a free man. Pegram
claims he was still her slave and she should be compensated five hundred dollars (his courtappraised value). She asks for an act requiring the state auditor to draw a warrant in her behalf
for that amount.
0303. Southampton County. Emancipated by James Booth in his will, Joe Booth asks to remain in
Virginia with his wife and children. He could not enjoy freedom if he were forced to leave his
family as required by law.
0309. In 1796, with the consent of her guardian, Anna Whiting of Gloucester, Virginia, married
John Pryor, a Richmond man considerably older than herself. The couple lived happily until June
1810, when Pryor rented a house to Charles Fremon, an immigrant French teacher who tutored
students renting rooms in Pryor's house. Pryor later discovered that his wife was having an affair
with Fremon. To alleviate his shame, he sent her to live with her sister in Gloucester County,
giving her two slaves for her support. Instead of going to her sister's, however, Anna and her
lover took the slaves and journeyed to Charleston, Savannah, and “whither farther.” Now far
advanced in years, Pryor asks for a divorce.
0320. Sussex County. Nathaniel Holt, executor of John Holt's estate, asks to emancipate Jacob,
as provided in the deceased master's will.
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0323. The initial petition of Nathaniel Holt being rejected by a small majority in the Senate,
citizens in Sussex County ask again for Jacob’s freedom. They have known him for a number of
years; he is a “very industrious, sober, honest, & careful Negro.” Petitioners {45}: Bailey, James;
Bendall, James; Bendall, Jesse; Clinton, John; Rose, James.
0331. Southampton County. Emancipated by his late master, Joseph Ruffin, free black Charles
Ruffin asks to remain in Virginia. He felt “the deepest distress at the idea of being in a short time,
compelled to leave his native State and be forever separated from his Wife and Children, or be
taken up and sold as a slave."
0338. Possessed of several Virginia slaves acquired by marriage, Joshua W. Kilpatrick plans to
move from Iredell County, North Carolina, to Amelia County, Virginia. The slaves in question—
Amos, Flora, Miles, and Edward—were taken from Virginia to North Carolina, and now Kilpatrick
wishes to bring them back into Virginia.
0341. Sussex County. Following the death of his wife and the payment of his debts, John Owen
willed that his slave, Jacob, should “enjoy his freedom in as full a maner as possible.” Jacob says
he has been a “discreet, honest and industrious man” and asks for an act of emancipation.
1812.
[September 1812 petition out of chronological order, see reel 20, frame 0312.]
0347. Former Virginia resident William Spence, who moved to North Carolina eleven years
before, seeks to return to Westmoreland County to assist his aging father. His father could not
perform the arduous labor necessary for “the comfort and Support of a very numerous Family
many of whom are Infants of very tender years.” Spence has five slaves and asks to bring them
into Virginia.
0352. Jefferson County. A few years before, Thomas Van Swearengen traveled to Kentucky to
assist his father in a civil suit involving some land. He took with him “a favorite family of slaves
consisting of a man, woman & two children.” He returned “a short time since” and asks to bring
the family back to Virginia. Also he sent more than a dozen slaves out of the state but did not
comply with the 1811 law requiring “the necessary affidavits and evidence” from the county court.
As a result he “lost all benefit of his exertions.” He asks for relief.
0357. Nansemond County. Freed by his deceased master's will, Hill Ballard asks to remain in
Virginia, with his wife and “many young children in this county.” He had always demeaned himself
well, and as he was now “old and infirm” it would add “greatly to his happiness” if he could remain
with loved ones.
0367. Fauquier County. Contracting with his master, Edward Diggs, to purchase himself, Sam
was conveyed in a trust to Richard Brent with the understanding that when he paid Brent five
hundred dollars he would be freed. After nine years, Sam made the final payment. He asks for an
act of emancipation and permission to remain in Virginia with his slave wife and children.
0376. Brunswick County. Shortly after her marriage, Tabitha Hicks moved with her husband to
Franklin County, North Carolina, taking along one of her father's slaves to “assist her in raising
and supporting her children.” When her husband was unable to support the family, Tabitha and
the slave, a woman named Rose, returned to Virginia. She asks permission to keep her father's
slave in Virginia. She had no intention of evading the law. She hoped, however, that her situation
would be considered favorably under the new law passed 14 February 1812, permitting
importation under certain conditions.
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0381. Emancipated by his late master on 19 August 1812, Samuel Hays asks to remain in
Virginia.
0385. Stafford County. In April 1807, Ben Johnston purchased himself from his owner, Stephen
Bowen, but was unable to pay the full amount. Johnston solicited Lewis Alexander of Falmouth to
post a bond with Bowen for the unpaid portion. Working for Alexander, Johnston broke his leg
and became partially disabled. He found a new occupation, however, as a butcher, and paid off
the debt. Apprehensive about leaving the state and living among strangers, he asks to remain in
Virginia.
0390. Washington County. Emancipated by his late master’s family, Burk asks to remain in
Virginia with his wife and children. He would rather be “reduced again to slavery” than leave his
family.
0396. Culpeper County. In 1800, Armistead Long acquired a tract of land in Maryland, partly
along the Potomac River and partly on an island near the Virginia shore. He placed his slaves on
the island, and they were alternately used in Maryland and Virginia. In 1803, he sold the portion
of the Maryland land along the shore. By 1812, he owned twenty-two slaves on the island,
including three families with husbands, wives, and children, and a mother with her children.
Armistead wishes to give these slaves to members of his family and asks permission to bring
them into Virginia.
0401. Hampshire County. Sarah James moved from Maryland to Virginia, bringing with her a
female slave named Rebecca, about twelve years of age. Without the slave she would be
“entirely dependant on her friends” and deprived of “all means of support in her declining life.”
She asks to keep Rebecca as her servant.
0408. Prince William County. Fifty-eight-year-old free black Daniel Webster, in “the decline of
life,” purchased his mulatto wife, Lucy, also in her late fifties, but does not wish to hold her as his
slave. Nor does he wish to move to a “Strange State where they are unknown.” This would only
“cloud their last days with Misery and want.” He asks that his wife be permitted to remain in
Virginia.
0411. Charlotte County. In January 1812, a visitor from South Carolina sold William Gaines, a
“very valuable house servant.” The next day Gaines remembered the law prohibiting the
introduction of slaves for sale or trade, and sought to nullify his contract, but the seller was on his
way home and refused to take the slave back. Later, the unnamed house servant was
confiscated and sold by the overseers of the poor. Gaines seeks reimbursement.
0427. Elly, a free woman of color, is married to Nelson, a slave whose father is white. She
purchased her husband “with the design to have emancipated him,” but he refuses to accept
freedom if required to be separated from his wife and children. She asks that he be freed and
permitted to remain in Virginia.
0431. Cabell County. Virginia resident William Buffington purchased a slave woman who had
been brought into the state from North Carolina. He acquired her “solely for his own use” and not
for trafficking or speculation. He seeks to keep the woman in Virginia.
0434. Campbell County. In 1809, Lynch Dilliard and his wife moved to Tennessee to be near his
father-in-law who was gravely ill. A short while later, the father-in-law died, Dilliard's wife became
seriously ill, and “his black family” also became quite sickly. A few of the slaves died. In 1811,
Dilliard and his wife and some of the slaves returned to Virginia. He requests permission to keep
the four slaves, ages three to eleven, he had brought back into Virginia.
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1813.
0438. Petersburg City. Working as the “principal miller” in Richard Bate's “manufacturing mill,”
James Butler was promised his freedom if he worked diligently for ten years and paid his owner
six hundred dollars, his purchase price. When he fulfilled the agreement, Butler learned he would
have to leave Virginia. He is now an old man—"in a few years the grave will close over his
person"—and he wished to remain near his children and friends. He asks for a law conferring on
him the “rights of a free person,” and permission to remain in Virginia.
0446. Hampshire County. In 1804, Joseph Hill promised to free his slave, James, if James
worked for Archibald Linthicum for five years, and if Linthicum paid Hill one hundred pounds
Virginia currency. James kept his part of the bargain, but Hill reneged and demanded more
money. After it was paid, James became the property of Linthicum, who signed his deed of
emancipation. James, who has lived a long life, asks for freedom and residency.
0456. In her will, Mary Matthews freed her slaves and directed her executor to take them to some
place where they would “enjoy their freedom.” One of the freed slaves, Lucinda, refused to leave,
explaining that her husband lived in King George County, and nothing could make her leave him,
not even her freedom. A year passed, and now fearful of being sold by the overseers of the poor,
she asks to return to slavery as the servant of her husband's owner.
0460. Cumberland County. Freed by the will of Henry Holloway along with her infant daughter,
Sophia, Nancy asks to remain in Virginia. To venture to an unknown land, “in the midst of
Strangers, cut off from the society & aid of relations & friends,” would be unbearable.
0471. Stafford County. Liberated about 1809 by her late master, Mary received annual support of
twenty dollars in cash, three hundred pounds of pork, and three hundred bushels of Indian corn.
She also received her house, a garden, and a supply of firewood. To avoid re-enslavement,
however, she spent a “considerable portion of her time” in the District of Columbia. Her husband
and children live in Virginia, and she requests permission to remain in her native state as a free
person.
0474. When his master decided to move from Prince William County, Virginia, to Tennessee in
1808, Jacob struck a bargain to purchase himself and remain with his wife and children, slaves in
Fairfax County. He paid for himself but before he received his deed of manumission, he explains,
the General Assembly prohibited the emancipation of slaves within the commonwealth. He
obtained a white guardian, but now “far advanced in life,” being about fifty-four, he fears being
forced to emigrate. He would rather die, he says, than leave his wife and children “whom he
tenderly loves.” He asks to remain in Virginia.
0479. Sussex County. Emancipated by an act of the General Assembly, Jacob requests
permission to remain in Virginia with his wife and children.
0489. Spotsylvania County. Ann Brock traded two slaves—a woman and child—for a house
servant named Milley. The man who made the trade assured her that Milley had been born in
Virginia. A visitor to Brock's farm, however, recognized Milley as a slave born in “that part of the
state now comprised in the District of Columbia.” Thus, the trade was illegal. She asks to keep
Milley with her in Virginia.
0493. Henrico County. When he moved to North Carolina, George T. Kennon, a physician, took
along three slave shoemakers—one owned by him and the other two by his mother and brother—
as hirelings. Unaware of the law regulating slaves taken out of the state, when he received an
appointment as a Navy surgeon and returned to Virginia, he discovered that he did not register
the slaves as required by law. The shoemakers are natives of Virginia, he explains, and currently
are hired out in Mecklenburg County, Virginia. He asks to hold the slaves “free from any penalty
or interruption.” Petitioners {3}: Kennon, Elizabeth B.; Kennon, George T.; Kennon, William H.
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0498. King George County. William Kendel admits to fathering a mulatto boy—nearly nine years
old now—the son of one of his slaves. He asks that the boy be freed, given the name William
Thornton Alexander, and allowed to remain in Virginia.
0501. Surry County. In December 1812, Jenny Parker's master, Josiah Wilson, died, bequeathing
Jenny her freedom. One of her children had long since been emancipated, she explains, and her
adult child owns real estate, personal property, and two of Parker's other children. Now
“advanced in years,” Jenny Parker asks for permission to remain in Virginia with her children and
friends.
0506. Amherst County. Philip Smith secured in trust a slave named Squire to care for the children
of a family member who was moving to Kentucky. The slave remained in Kentucky for four years
but eventually returned to Virginia. Ignorant of the laws requiring that slaves transported in such a
manner be registered, Smith asks for relief.
0513. Powhatan County. Emancipated slave Edward Woodson asks to remain in Virginia. He
feels very much attached to his native state.
0516. Loudoun County. Daniel was emancipated by his owner in 1805, but the deed was not
recorded until after the passage of the 1806 law prohibiting freed slaves from remaining in
Virginia. He asks to be extended privileges according to the law when the deed was written,
rather than when it was recorded.
1814.
0520. Brunswick County. Owned by William Brown of Surry County, the slave Godfree was
bequeathed to Brown's infant daughter following the owner's death. When she grew to
womanhood and married, Godfree was emancipated for “various considerations,” especially his
“long and faithful services.” Godfree's wife and children are slaves in the same county. He is
faced with the prospect of leaving them, or surrendering his liberty. He seeks residency.
0523. Residents of Brunswick County support Godfree in his effort to remain in Virginia. Godfree
is an honest mechanic and “extremely useful to the publick.” Petitioners {199}: Hobbs, Hubbard;
Kirkland, David; Kirkland, Stephen; Percivall, Joseph; Saunders, Joseph.
0530. Nansemond County. Having served his late owner honestly, faithfully, and diligently,
Benjamin Godwin explains that it was his master's wish that he be freed if he could save enough
money to provide for himself and his family. He had saved the requisite amount, and asks to be
emancipated and remain in the state with his wife, children, and friends.
0544. Princess Anne County. Due to their “honesty, fidelity, and good conduct,” David, Cloe,
Lotty, and Daniel are given their freedom and a bequest from their late master, Emanuel
Fentress. The owner's relatives, including his brothers, however, seek to nullify the bequest. The
four emancipated slaves are fearful that they will be apprehended and sold as slaves by the
overseers of the poor under the statute requiring free blacks to leave the state within twelve
months or be returned to slavery. The former slaves seek relief.
0551. Following the sudden and unexpected death of slave owner Benjamin Harrison, Nick Scott,
Harrison's body servant, seeks to be emancipated and remain in Virginia. It was his owner's wish
that he be freed, and the owner's son, also Benjamin Harrison, is supportive of his request. He
has conducted himself properly and can earn a living by “honest industry.” He has a family in
Buckingham County.
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0556. Nansemond County. Freed by the will of his owner, John Fowles, five-year-old Willis seeks
to remain in the state protected by his “friends.” His owner freed him, his mother Bett, and his
siblings and bequeathed them his plantation.
0564. Richmond City. Emancipated slaves Hembro and Dilsy Gallego, husband and wife,
purchased their son, Phil, and ask that he be emancipated. If he remains enslaved, they argue,
their property will escheat to the state.
0569. Purchased and emancipated by his parents, Philip Hembro Gallego asks to remain in
Virginia. His parents are growing old, and he wishes to care for them in their old age. In addition,
they own valuable property in Richmond. Philip is their only child, and “it is their wish and desire
that your petitioner should inherit, possess and enjoy at their death all the property which they
now hold or may hereafter acquire."
0573. Hanover County. For their “Fidelity & good Conduct,” Armstead (sometimes called
Armstead Smith), London, Isaac, John, and Morning were emancipated by Samuel Overton in his
will. The executor of Overton's estate, James M. Morris, asks that they be freed and permitted to
remain in Virginia. Morris expresses particular concern about Armstead Smith, who served as
Overton's body servant. Following a 1793 trip with Armstead to Jamaica, Overton had promised
him his freedom. “Your Petitioner believes that there is no Person of Colour of Better Character or
more meritorious than s[ai]d Armstead."
0584. Buckingham County. Emancipated in the will of his master, the slave Billy asks to remain in
his native state. As proof of his “General good character,” he submits certificates written by “many
respectable Gentlemen."
0597. Fairfax County. In 1805, Jacob contracted with his master, Nathan Wheeler of Fauquier
County, to purchase himself for fifty-six pounds, five shillings. The money was to be paid to
Wheeler's creditor, Christopher Trickey of Prince William County. Jacob paid twenty-five pounds
within a short time, but before he could pay the total amount the General Assembly had passed a
law prohibiting emancipated slaves from remaining in Virginia. Rather than leave his home state,
Jacob arranged to be sold to Trickey, who became his nominal master, promising to free him
whenever he wished. Now Jacob seeks emancipation and permission to remain in Virginia.
0605. In her will, in 1810, free woman of color Patsey Jackson bequeathed a house and lot in
Richmond to Richard North, a white man. She instructed North to purchase a slave named Henry
and allow him to purchase his freedom. After Jackson's death, one of the witnesses to the will,
William J. Dunn, said he would not “prove” the will unless he received one-half of the property.
North asks the legislature to intervene. If nothing is done, he says, the property will escheat to the
state, as Jackson had no free relatives.
0611. Wood County. The petitioner's father moved from Virginia to Maryland, about twelve or
fifteen years before, taking several slaves. When his father died, Griffith inherited a slave named
Molly, about thirty-five years of age, and brought her back to Virginia. He now asks for an
exemption from the forfeiture law. Petitioner: Griffith, John.
0616. Northampton County. Nine months after his marriage, Richard Jones's wife, Peggy, gave
birth to a girl. At first Jones thought the child was his “notwithstanding the darkness of its colour &
its unusual appearance.” Later, however, it became clear that the baby could not have been
fathered by a white man. His wife eventually admitted that the girl's father was a man of color, a
fact already known by many neighborhoods. Jones seeks a divorce.
0620. Louisa County. Executor of the estate of the late John Brown seeks to free two of Brown's
long-time, faithful slaves, as stipulated in his will. The two slaves do not wish to leave Virginia—
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"they appear unwilling to accept emancipation on the terms of exile"—and the petitioner asks that
they be freed and allowed to remain in Virginia. Petitioner: Michie, Patrick.
0623. Amherst County. Forty-seven-year-old free black John Charleson (also spelled Charlston)
purchased himself, his wife, and her two children. He asks for the freedom of Ursley, his wife, and
the children; he requests that they be permitted to remain in Virginia.
0627. The law passed in 1814 requiring militia captains to remove boats “out of the Reach of any
slave or slaves,” a group of Matthews County residents complain, creates hardship for many
citizens. With their canoes gone, they are deprived of means of supporting themselves during the
greater part of the summer and fall. The “property of the rich,” they assert, “is protected at the
expense of the Poor.” This was both “unreasonable and unJust.” Petitioners {50}: Dixon, Finley;
Dunbar, William; Hunley, Caleb; Owens, Gorge; White, Joseph.
0630. Chesterfield County. Owned by Joseph Mann (in right of his wife), and after Mann's death
in 1798 or 1799, by his widow Mary Mann, the slave Sterling was promised his freedom. After the
widow's death, a son, Joseph Mann, “set up a claim” and Thomas Burfoot took it, permitting
Sterling to purchase himself for $550. At age fifty, Sterling says he is too old to move and wishes
to remain with his slave wife in Virginia.
0637. Augusta County. On 3 December 1812, Ellen Shields married Robert Dunlap, turning over
to her husband two slaves—Milly and Hudson—and other property. It was not long before she
was forced to leave, discovering that her husband was “criminally unlawfully and carnally
Intamate with and [did] keep her the Said Negroe Milly” from the first day of their marriage. She
seeks a divorce.
0647. Matthews County. The law passed in 1814 requiring militia colonels, commanders, majors,
or captains to remove boats “out of the reach of any slave or slaves” to halt their desertions to the
enemy created hardships for many citizens. With their canoes gone, they were deprived of means
of supporting themselves during the greater part of the summer and fall. The property of the
wealthy, they assert, was protected at the expense of the poor “which is unreasonable and
unjust.” Petitioners {234}: Banks, James; Brookes, George W.; Evans, Joseph; Hudgen, Hunley;
Peede, Lucas.
1815.
0657. Frederick County. “Hurried off” by a “fatal and malignant disorder,” slave owner Bennett
Taylor did not have time to make arrangements for his slave Isaac's emancipation. Arguing that
the master had always intended to free him, Isaac, also called Isaac Harris, petitions for his
freedom and permission to remain in Virginia.
0665. Emancipated drayman Jacob Prosser asks to remain in Virginia, with his slave wife.
“Testimonials of usefulness and exemplary conduct in people of color, and especially Slaves, are
so rare,” Prosser explained, he hoped the legislature would consider his good reputation among
“commercial men in this city."
0669. Charles City. Emancipated about six years before by the “Kindness & liberality” of his late
master, Robert Pleasants, free black Henry Carter purchased his slave wife and “other property
both personal and real.” Carter asks that his wife, Prescilla, be permitted to remain in the
commonwealth, exempted from the emigration law.
0677. Greenbrier County. Frances Hudson, a Louisiana man, bought on credit a number of
slaves from Hugh and James McLaughlin but failed to meet his payment schedule. To discharge
the debt, the McLaughlins confiscated “sundry negroes” owned by Hudson and sold them in
Kentucky. There was, however, a problem with the title for one of the slaves, Moses, who is of
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“peculiar Value in consequence of being an excellent house servant.” They brought Moses back
to Virginia and ask that they be allowed to keep him without incurring any penalty.
0681. Rockingham County. Emancipated in April 1815, Charity asks to remain with her
husband—a term slave to be freed 25 December 1824—and her child. Without the intervention of
the legislature, she will be forced to return to slavery.
0685. Washington County. In 1811, Burke purchased himself from his master, William P.
Thompson, for four hundred dollars, and now asks to remain in his “native Country” with his slave
wife and children. “He humbly trusts that the legislature of his Country will not Compell him to
adopt an alternative So distressing to his feeling; they will not insist on maintaining a policy Verry
questionable in its character and So Subversive of humanity."
0690. Loudoun County. About 1797, Maryland slaveholder Robert Whiteford transported the
slave Fanny to Fauquier County, Virginia, and about 1807, sold her to Thomas Chapel. Her new
owner, however, failed to register her at the courthouse, as required by law. Consequently, Fanny
was returned to the family of her former owner. Chapel, however, owned her husband, and when
Fanny's Maryland owners planned to move, Chapel and others got up a subscription. “By this
means, and by her own indefatigable industry,” the petitioners explain, Fanny raised enough
money to secure her transfer back to Chapel. By then she had given birth to a daughter, Ellen;
later she gave birth to another daughter, Harriott. The petitioners ask that she and her children be
emancipated. Petitioners {17}: Bailey, Sydnor; Chapel, Thomas; Davis, William F.; Gibson,
Moses; Hill, Benjamin.
0694. Accomack County. Emancipated by John Bull in his will, the petitioners each received
twenty dollars. They had “a peculiar attachment to this their native county” and ask to remain in
Virginia. Petitioners {4}: Billy; George; London; Moses.
0700. Northumberland County. Catharine Nelms, widow of Edwin Nelms, recalls that during the
late war two slaves belonging to her deceased husband's estate attempted “to desert to the
enemy.” To protect her property she sent the slaves—Winny and Easter—to Rockingham County
and hired them out. Now, with the war over, Winny has a baby boy, and Easter has a husband “&
is very much opposed to being seperated from him.” Nelms asks that the slaves be sold in the
upcountry and she be permitted to invest the proceeds in real estate.
0703. Richmond City. The petitioners, slaves of Peyton Drew, are well aware of the law
prohibiting emancipation within Virginia. But, they argue, the prohibition originated out of the “evils
consequent upon an indiscriminate emancipation” and should not apply to virtuous slaves.
Considering themselves “uniformly good & meritorious,” they ask to be emancipated and to
remain in Virginia. Petitioners {2}: Darmsdalt, George; Darmsdalt, Patsey.
0707. New Kent County. Ben, age about sixty, had served the Vaughan family for more than fifty
years. Following his father's death, Bolling Vaughan seeks to free Ben. “His Services have
amounted to ten times the Value of ordinary slaves,” Vaughan explains. Ben, however, had a
slave wife and seven slave children in the county, and leaving them would be “worse than
Slavery.” Vaughan asks that Ben be emancipated and allowed to remain in Virginia.
0713. Richmond City. Having faithfully served his deceased master, Captain John F. Price, for
many years—"in Health, and Sickness, and in all vicisitudes"—William, alias William Yancey,
asks for his freedom as authorized in Price's will. He also asks to remain in Virginia. Yancey
believes that the legislature has the right to deny freedom to those who are not worthy, but
argues that “limited & circumscribed” emancipation, based on merit, as in his own case,
represents sound policy.
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0718. Accomack County. Emancipated in his deceased owner’s will, Joseph asks for an act of
emancipation and permission to remain “in his native place free and unmolested."
0721. Fauquier County. Through industry and economy Samuel Johnson purchased himself from
his master, Edward Digges, receiving permission from the legislature to remain in the state. Now,
again through strict attention to business, he saved “a large sum of money” and purchased his
wife and children. He asks that they be emancipated and permitted to remain in Virginia.
0724. Chesterfield County. In 1806, Thomas E. Trabue died, stipulating in his will that his “negroe
boy Roderick be emancipated & set free.” He instructed his executor to take Roderick to the
Cumberland settlement in Tennessee, give him one hundred acres of land, and provide him with
“fifty pounds cash lawfull money of Virginia.” This plan failed, however, because of the Tennessee
law “inhibiting the introduction of persons of colour.” Roderick asks to remain in Virginia.
0735. Loudoun County. In accordance with his father's wishes, James Saunders asks to
emancipate a faithful slave and allow him to remain in the commonwealth.
0738. Accomack County. Freed by the will of Margaret Robins, deceased, Ladock, Peter, Jack,
Rachel, and Agness and her three children ask to remain in Virginia. Petitioners {8}: Agness;
Jack; Ladock; Peter; Rachel.
0745. Living some twenty-five or thirty miles away from his wife, the slave Will, owned by Bowling
Clark of Campbell County, asks Samuel K. Jennings to purchase his slave wife, Mourning, who
belongs to a man in Amherst County. Will had saved the purchase money himself, and Jennings
believes it is admirable that the black man seeks to purchase his wife before buying himself.
Mourning is “a woman of fair & honest Character remarkable for her Industry & the correctness of
her Conduct.” He asks that Mourning be freed and allowed to remain in Virginia.
0753. Cumberland County. Emancipated in the will of Thomas Norris, deceased, Sally and her
children seek an exemption from the act requiring them to leave Virginia, or return to slavery
within a year after their emancipation. They were willing to enter into a good behavior bond but
had saved only one thousand dollars, not enough to pay for all the children. Nor could they move
to Kentucky, that state having recently passed “a countervailing law,” forbidding the immigration
of freed slaves. Petitioners {5}: Norris, Betsey; Norris, Henry; Norris, Jesse; Norris, Reuben;
Norris, Sally.
0769. Louisa County. Slave owner John Bourn died in 1813, stipulating in his will that his two
male slaves—James Barrett and Ludwick Muckleton—should be emancipated and that his
executor should apply to the legislature for their freedom. The executor, Patrick Michie, is
probably entitled to the blacks if they are not freed, but he asks that they be emancipated and
allowed to remain in Virginia.
0775. Stafford County. Thirty-year-old Harry Minor, a barber in Falmouth, saved enough to
purchase his freedom from Thomas Seddon. Minor asks for permission to remain in Virginia. His
wife and children are slaves “to whom he is tenderly attached and with whom he wishes to remain
being unable to purchase them."
0780. Spotsylvania County. Receiving two slaves—Easter and Mark—by a deed of gift from a
North Carolina woman, Mary Thomas carried the slaves into Virginia. She is “poor and needy,” as
well as “a widow aged and infirm.” She asks to keep the slaves for her own use.
0785. Louisa County. Following the death of his owner, the slave Billey, a mulatto, worked as the
superintendent or overseer on the widow's small farm. He saved about two hundred dollars and
eventually purchased himself and his wife. When the widow died, Billey was purchased from the
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estate by a relative, who seeks to free him and allow him to remain in Virginia. Petitioner: Harris,
Frederick.
0792. Wythe County. Arguing that he was freed in a will written prior to the law requiring freed
slaves to emigrate, Caesar, a black man, asks to remain in Virginia. His wife and children are
slaves, and his loyalty to his former master, James Campbell, has never been questioned.
0803. Powhatan County. Forced to emigrate from Virginia as a result of the 1806 law, freed slave
Edward Woodson moved to the District of Columbia and later Kentucky. He always remained
deeply attached to his home state, however, and asks permission to return to “the place of his
birth."
0809. Nansemond County. In his will John Yeates bequeathed “Sundry Slaves towards the
Support of two free schools.” The slaves, however, were “a total expense.” Some were sick with
“Afflictions,” others had young children, some of the men were disorderly, absconding part of the
year, and still others refused to hire out to certain employers. Residents ask that the board of
trustees for the schools be permitted to sell the slaves at their discretion. Petitioners {44}: Darden,
John; Denby, Edward; Powell, Ezekiel; Rodwell, Thomas; Saunders, Robert.
0813. Emancipated in 1809 by Mary Wallace of Prince William County, Jane Baker, a “very bright
mulatto,” moved to Maryland and took up residence with Wallace's half-brother, William T. T.
Mason. Feeling attached to the family, when the Masons move to Loudoun County, Jane Baker
asks to stay with them and requests permission to return to Virginia.
0817. Hanover County. The two daughters of Samuel Gist, a British subject, deceased, seek an
act of manumission for Samuel Gist's approximately three hundred Virginia slaves, as stipulated
in his will. If this were not possible, they ask for an act extending them “benefits.” The daughters
are growing very old and are residents of Virginia. Petitioners {4}: Fowke, Elizabeth; Fowke,
William; Pearkes, Martin; Pearkes, Mary.
0826. Louisa County. In 1800, Daniel Ellis moved from Virginia to Kentucky, taking along “sundry
Slaves.” In 1807, at the urging of his wife, he returned to Virginia with three slaves. He had done
nothing with regard to the importation law and now asks that the slaves be permitted to remain in
Virginia.
0829. Powhatan County. Hezekiah Mosby seeks a divorce from his wife, who was not only
unfaithful but “bestowed her favours on men of a different colour.” When his wife was in labor,
Mosby called in a group of ladies to witness the birth “before any accident could happen.” They
verified that the child was mulatto.
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0001. Descriptive material.
1816.
0007. Fauquier County. Five months after her marriage, Nancy Newton gave birth to a mulatto
child. She admitted that the baby was conceived by a black man in the neighborhood. Nancy, her
mother, and the baby departed for Ohio, and Abraham Newton, the husband, seeks a divorce.
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0014. In 1806, with a license from the clerk of court in Campbell County, free black Robert Wright
married Mary Godsey, a free white woman. They were married before a “regularly Licensed
Minister of the Gospel.” In January 1815, Mary eloped with a white man, William Arthur, carrying
“a negro Girl and other property belonging to your petitioner.” Wright overtook the two in Liberty,
and persuaded his wife to return, but in November 1815, the two eloped again, this time fleeing to
Nashville, Tennessee. Although he knew there was a law against interracial marriage, Wright
asserts that his marriage was “valid and binding.” As a result, he seeks a divorce.
0021. Albemarle County. In the spring of 1815, Frank Carr became entitled through marriage to
two mulatto slaves—John and Patsey—residing in Jefferson County, Kentucky. Ignorant of the
law requiring him to obtain a certificate from the county court in Kentucky concerning ownership,
he seeks an act authorizing him to retain the slaves in Virginia.
0029. Norfolk Borough County. As the son of a “Regular Branch Pilot of the First class,” free
black Harry Jackson Jr. grew up navigating Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. The 1802 law
prohibiting people of color from acting as branch pilots made a special allowance for those who
were at that time pilots. Jackson was then serving as an apprentice to his father. He asks that he
be permitted “to Enjoy the rights of a Pilot” and that the legislature pass a special act allowing him
to be examined for a pilot's license by “the Examiners appointed by Law."
0036. Dinwiddie County. Having purchased land in Virginia, Patrick McGruder seeks to bring
“Sundry Domestic Servants” into the state. He believes that the law seeks only to prevent the
importation of slaves for the purpose of speculation. The slaves include William and Isaac, Milley
and her three children, Jane, Nicholas, and another William, belonging to himself, as well as one
slave belonging to his son, and three others—a mother and two children—belonging to his
daughter.
0041. Emancipated by Jane Graham of Frederick County, free black James Beeseck applied
twice to the county court for permission to remain in the state. His case, however, was never
taken up. Now he “is advised that it is doubtfull if he could even obtain a hearing of his case.” His
case is “particularly distressing” because he would be forced to leave his wife and children. He
seeks legislative intervention.
0046. Richmond City. Eliza Cook's father died in North Carolina and left her nine slaves—Watt,
Alfred, Isaac, Collin, Sandy, Charles, Harry, Abraham, and Dice. Eliza and her husband petition
the legislature to bring the slaves into Virginia. The blacks had all been born in Virginia and taken
to North Carolina by Eliza's father. Petitioners {2}: Cook, Eliza; Cook, William.
0049. In 1814, Moses Ball of Lee County, Virginia, loaned Tidings Lane of Claiborne County,
Tennessee, $1,310, securing the loan by mortgaging six slaves. After twelve months, Lane
defaulted and emigrated to “some unknown Land.” Ball struggles under “great inconvenience &
Considerable expense” not being able to bring the slaves “& their increase” into Virginia. He
seeks permission to do so.
0053. Lee County. In August 1815, William Heiskell purchased a slave, Simon, from L. L.
Henderson, who had himself only recently bought the slave in Tennessee. The seller had not
fulfilled the legal requirements necessary to bring a slave into the state. Heiskell said that laws
governing importation caused “much inconvenience and injury” in his section, but Simon “is Verry
Valuable, and a Slave of excellent character.” Heiskell is willing, as required by law, to export a
female slave in Simon's stead.
0057. On 8 January 1815, Izard Bacon of Henrico County died. In his will, he directed that his
slaves be emancipated as soon as a law could be obtained permitting them to remain in Virginia.
Meanwhile, the proceeds of their labor should “go to the support of the aged, infirm &
unfortunate.” In two previous wills, Charles Crenshaw says, the decedent expressed “great
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concern at the alteration of the law putting it out of his power to execute his steady & known
intention.” The petitioner explains that the slaves are anxious to leave, rather than remain in their
present situation. He asks permission for a trustee to be appointed. The money they earn should
go into a trust until enough had been raised “to defray the expenses of their removal & to assist
them in settling.” Charles Crenshaw wrote the petition “In behalf of the Slaves."
0063. Charles City. Receiving slaves as part of a trust estate, Ann H. Lee of Alexandria and
Bernard M. Carter, acting as trustee, ask that the slaves be sold. The problems hiring the slaves
out, to say nothing of their elopement—two had already run away—convinced her that she should
seek another type of investment. She needed a “more certain, more punctual, and easily
obtained” income for herself and her children.