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Francis C. Brown Collection on Slavery in America
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Held at: Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division [Contact Us]
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
Francis C. (Cabell) Brown Jr. was born on January 6, 1936, and graduated from Princeton University in 1958 with a degree from the Woodrow Wilson School. He attended Harvard Law School, graduating in 1961, and practiced law in New York as a solo practitioner for most of his professional life.
BrownFrancis C. (Cabell) Brown was born on Jan. 6, 1936, and graduated from Princeton University in 1958 with a degree from the Woodrow Wilson School. He attended Harvard Law School and graduated in 1961. He is currently an attorney in New York City.
Consists of over 150 manuscript and printed documents related to the institution of slavery in America that were collected from various sources by Francis C. Brown (Class of 1958). Materials pertain to slavery in Louisiana and, to a lesser degree, in Tennessee, Kentucky, Maryland, Alabama, Virginia, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, New Jersey, and the Carolinas, with a few documents relating to the Caribbean and West Africa. While many documents relate to enslaved persons from the perspective of plantation owners and traders, others depict resistance to slavery and the lives of free people of color. Included are testimonies and legal documents regarding escaped and recaptured enslaved persons; deeds of manumission; papers of freedmen and other free people of color, including labor contracts, receipts for services rendered, and documents pertaining to inheritance and property sales; auction and estate records of plantations concerning their products, animals, and enslaved persons; mortgages of property and enslaved persons; a Civil War army discharge for an African American sergeant; receipts for the medical care and board of enslaved laborers; manifests of enslaved persons transported by ship; and bills of sale for enslaved persons, including many sold to Andrew Hynes of Tennessee; among other documents. Also of note are several documents and letters pertaining to abolitionist and anti-abolitionist movements, as well as to emancipation, including a loyalty oath signed by a Southern plantation owner shortly after the American Civil War and a group of pamphlets concerning changes to France's Code Noir in the 1840s that affected French colonies in Africa and the Caribbean. While the majority of documents are in English, many of the documents from Louisiana are in French.
Materials related to the same person are grouped together. Otherwise, materials are not arranged according to any arrangement scheme.
Gift of Francis C. Brown, Jr., Class of 1958, in 1980 (AM 1981-58).
For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.
This collection was processed by Teresa T. Basler in 2003. Finding aid written by Teresa T. Basler in 2003.
Finding aid terminology and access terms updated by Faith Charlton in November 2016. In December 2016, materials related to the same person were grouped together and description was further enhanced by Kelly Bolding, with assistance from Fiona Bell '18. 2016 updates focused on improving description of enslaved people.
No materials were separated during 2016 processing.
Subject
- African Americans -- Economic and social conditions. -- 18th century -- Sources
- African Americans -- Economic and social conditions. -- 19th century -- Sources
- African Americans -- United States -- History -- Sources
- Freed persons -- Louisiana. -- 19th century -- Sources
- Freed persons -- United States -- 19th century -- Sources
- Freed persons -- West Indies. -- 19th century -- Sources
- Fugitive slaves -- United States
- Plantation owners -- Southern States -- History. -- 19th century -- Sources
- Slave bills of sale -- Tennessee
- Slave records -- Alabama
- Slave records -- Kentucky
- Slave records -- Louisiana
- Slave records -- Maryland
- Slave records -- Mississippi
- Slave records -- Missouri
- Slave records -- New Jersey
- Slave records -- New York (State)
- Slave records -- North Carolina
- Slave records -- South Carolina
- Slave records -- Tennessee
- Slave records -- Virginia
- Slave trade -- United States -- History -- 18th century -- Sources
- Slave trade -- United States -- History -- 19th century -- Sources
- Slaveholders -- United States
- Slavery -- Louisiana -- History. -- Sources
- Slavery -- United States -- History -- 18th century -- Sources
- Slavery -- United States -- History -- 19th century -- Sources
- Enslaved persons -- Emancipation -- United States -- 19th century -- Sources
Place
- Publisher
- Manuscripts Division
- Finding Aid Author
- Teresa T. Basler; Faith Charlton; Kelly Bolding
- Finding Aid Date
- 2003
- Access Restrictions
-
Collection is open for research use.
- Use Restrictions
-
Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.
Collection Inventory
Manuscript copy of petition of Esther Williams, executrix to the estate of William Williams, for the sale of the estate in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana, which included the plantation, enslaved laborers, cattle, and farming equipment.
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Manuscript copy of manumission by Jacob W. Giles for "Negro" Oliver.
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Manuscript copy (in French) of sale of land and enslaved laborers with mortgage for 7,000 piastres. Sale included a cotton mill and press, animals and tools, and four enslaved persons: Thomas, Michel, and Cok, all from Sudan, and Celestin, from Senegal.
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Manuscript list (in French) prepared for the general census of the year 1813 (or earlier) for St. John the Baptist Parish in Louisiana, particularly for areas largely inhabited by Germans. Includes lists of white inhabitants, enslaved laborers of African descent, free people of color, and the disabled. Addressed to Terence Le Blanc, judge of the parish.
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Twenty-four-page manuscript copy of document (in French) pertaining to the sale at auction of a sugar plantation, animals, and over forty enslaved persons, listing the price of each.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved boy (age 15) and girl (age 13) for 500 dollars. Purchase conducted by Malcolm Currie on behalf of Abraham Wright.
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Printed and manuscript document certifying that assessment roles contain a correct list and recapitulation of the property and professions subjected to state taxes within the Parish of St. John the Baptist, Louisiana, for the year 1824, totaling 4,508 dollars and 2 cents. 2361 enslaved persons are listed, taxed at a rate of one dollar per person.
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Manuscript copy made in 1836 of deed dated 1824, indicating that Rebecca and Abram Horton had hired from Mary Ann and William Spencer enslaved laborers named Moses, Jack, Dick, Pat, Isaac, Hannah, and Sylvia, from 1806 to 1811, at the estimated price of 125 dollars each per year, amounting to a total of 4375 dollars owed.
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Manuscript letter from Major-General Pierre Denis de la Ronde (1762-1824) to Count Louis Philippe de Roffignac ("Joseph"), discussing enslaved persons and the Marigny Canal.
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Andrew Hynes (1786-1849) was born in Bardstown, Kentucky, and moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1810 where he joined the state militia, afterwards becoming a slave trader in Nashville. He married Ann Erwin of Home Place Plantation, Iberville Parish, Louisiana, in 1817. Hynes spent his time between Nashville and Iberville Parish, where he assisted the Erwin family with the management of their plantation.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved thirteen-year-old boy for 425 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of a seventeen-year-old enslaved boy, a barber by trade, for 800 dollars. Sale facilitated by Andrew Hynes.
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Manuscript bill of sale of a twenty-six-year-old enslaved man for 400 dollars. Sold in swap for William Davenport.
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Manuscript document, reading: "received of Andrew Hynes his draft on Joseph Erwin... for four hundred dollars... which draft I am to sell in Baltimore, and the proceeds to be laid out in the purchase of a negro boy of from fourteen to eighteen years on the best terms, for Mrs. Martha Hart, the bill of sale to be made to Andrew Hynes as Trustee for said Mrs. Hart, but I am not to be liable in case the said boy should die or run away before my return."
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Two manuscript documents, including a bill of sale and articles of agreement regarding the sale of an enslaved carpenter for 800 dollars, with the condition that Pryor could reverse the purchase within two years by paying back the money. The bill of sale is marked "dead."
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved boy around ten or eleven years old.
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Manuscript bill of sale of five enslaved boys for a total of 2100 dollars. The boys were named Cato (age 19), Pope (age 17), Milo (age 17), James (age 14), and Palladino (age 12).
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man of about twenty-four years of age for 500 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved woman of about thirty years of age and her eight-year-old daughter for 600 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man of about twenty-five years of age for 500 dollars. The bill of sale is marked "dead."
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved girl of about seven or eight years of age for 450 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved "mulatto" girl for 350 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved ten-year-old boy for 250 dollars, along with a related letter from Sally B. Hamilton to Charles Loffinn and Thomas Wilson, in which she requests that they sell Edmund to a buyer near Nashville, where his parents lived "if practicable" and discusses her ignorance of the business of the trade of enslaved persons.
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Manuscript bill of sale of three enslaved children, including two girls named Maria (age 13) and Viney (age 11), and one boy named Dick (age 11) for 775 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man named "Robert" or "Bob" at the November 7, 1829, auction on the square of the town of Nashville for 356 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man around thirty-one years old for 600 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man around forty-three years of age, who "is now disabled by sickness and infirmity" for 100 dollars, noting that Hynes accepts Ned "at his own risk" and is responsible for his "maintenance and support." A note on the reverse side indicates that Ned died in Louisiana in June 1846 "suddenly."
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man around thirty-three years of age, who was a carpenter, for 600 dollars. A note on the reverse side indicates that Bill was "taken to Louis" and "sold to Judge Dutton(?)."
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved woman around thirty-five years of age for 200 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man named John (age 20), a woman named Sucky Todd (age 35), and the woman's daughter Lethe (age 7 or 8) for 300 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved girl around twelve years of age and a boy around ten years of age for 585 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man around 38 years old for 900 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man whose labor was then hired to Captain Joseph Miller on board the steamer Nashville for a price of 575 dollars. The bottom of the page notes, "one hand deficient by a burn," and a note on the reverse side reads, "Fell from steamer Nashville boat commanded Capt. Jos. Miller and was drowned in the year 1842."
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved boy around fifteen years old for 800 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved male child around two years old for 235 dollars.
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Printed bill of sale of a seventeen-year-old enslaved girl and "her increase during life" for 300 dollars.
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Manuscript copy made in 1832 of an 1827 bill of sale (in French) for three enslaved persons, including Valentin (age 35), Jacques (age 28), and Suzette (age 30).
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Manuscript copy of donation record of an enslaved girl around fourteen years old.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man around 26 years old.
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Manuscript copy made in 1832 of a 1826 document (in French), wherein Colas Mandeville, a free black person ("nègre libre"), sold property to Rosemond Fagot for 1400 piastres. The property adjoined the land of Eulalie Mandeville, one of the wealthiest free women of color in New Orleans. Signed by Charles Fagot (judge).
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Manuscript copy (no. 37) of document (in French) regarding a land transfer involving a sugar plantation, livestock, and forty-seven enslaved persons, including their names, ages, and birthplaces.
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Manuscript affidavit (in French) on behalf of La Banque des Citoyens de la Louisiane, concerning enslaved persons on the property of Dr. Joseph Martin.
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Manuscript copy (in French) of mortgage in the amount of 60,000 dollars for a sugar plantation and 37 enslaved persons, listing their names and ages. Signed by Jean Jacques Roman (judge).
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Printed bond with manuscript additions for two free men of color, George Woods and William Henry (as security), to keep a tavern at the corner of Circus and Gravier streets in New Orleans, Louisiana.
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Manuscript document.
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Indictment from the Grand Jurors of the State of Louisiana for yeoman Louis Lazzaretti, who was accused of unlawfully selling whiskey to an enslaved man named Sam. Thomas Ryan claimed injury due to "the great encouragement of idleness and dissipation."
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Copy of manuscript deed made in 1834 for land sold in 1831 by Narcisse Lemelle, a free man of color, regarding the same tract of land sold by Francois Lemelle to Marie Jeanne Carteronne, a free woman of color, on July 22, 1786.
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Manuscript mortgage (in French) of a sugar plantation and fifteen enslaved laborers, whose names and ages are listed on the second page. Signed by Lewis M. Taney (judge).
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Printed and manuscript document (in French) mortgaging land and eleven enslaved persons and a child of eighteen months, listing their names and ages.
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Manuscript document mortgaging 26 enslaved persons, listing their names and ages.
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Manuscript document listing mortgages from the 1820s and 1830s for which there were records in the office of the parish judge.
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Two manuscript letters regarding mortgages and debts with the bank, which mentions enslaved workers who were mortgaged.
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Manuscript receipt for 160 dollars.
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Manuscript bill from Mr. Julius A. Johnson.
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One cover and two letters from Brander in Petersburg pertaining to the sale, description, value, shipping, and insurance of enslaved persons.
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Manuscript bill of sale (1847) of an enslaved woman around twenty-six years old and her three-year-old son for 700 dollars. Also includes a related document (1851) from the Office of Mortgages in New Orleans, Louisiana, certifying that William H. Johnston had no mortgage against Mary Ann and Charles.
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Manuscript statement by Foley's neighbors attesting to his ownership of twelve enslaved persons, mentioning a mortgage Foley held with the Citizens Bank of Louisiana.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man around twenty-six years old for 1000 dollars. The bill notes, "it is understood that the sale is made whilst a warrant is out against said slave for his apprehension - and that this vendor sels him under that disadvantage at the risk of the vendee."
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man around thirty-eight years old for 526 dollars.
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Includes a manuscript document (1854) addressed to the President and Directors of the Citizens Bank of Louisiana, mortgaging the True Hope plantation, along with enslaved laborers, to the bank for 54,970 dollars, with a hand-drawn map of the plantation; also a printed and manuscript appraisers certificate and oath (1856) requested by Mrs. Richard Charles Downes, assigning the property the same value.
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Printed form letter with manuscript notes from General Superintendent of Negro Labor George H. Hanks to Mr. E Gay(?), authorizing two enslaved men "to return to their homes, with the understanding that they will be kindly treated." A handwritten addition at the bottom asks the recipient to "receive them kindly and forget their error" in leaving "home."
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Manuscript document regarding compensation for the labor of enslaved workers who were impressed into the Army by the government.
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Manuscript document containing a "list of hands to be paid," which lists names, wages, and class (1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th) of freedmen laborers, whose wages amounted to a total of 152 dollars for labor during the period from March 15 to April 15, 1864.
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Printed document with manuscript signatures. An example of the loyalty oaths that were a part of Abraham Lincoln's "ten percent plan" for the reinstatement of the Southern states following the American Civil War and emancipation.
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Printed labor contract filled in by hand, specifying payment, labor conditions, and room and board. A manuscript list of workers' names is appended to the bottom of the contract.
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Printed document filled in by hand, for 22.50 dollars in taxes for the year 1865 on 404 acres of property valued at 15,000 dollars.
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Manuscript list.
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Manuscript letter introducing a Mr. G.E. Sallis, who was visiting Louisiana to introduce "Coollies" from Cuba as "a laboring class for our Planters." The letter likely refers to indentured workers from South China or India.
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Printed bill filled in by hand requiring that a Dr. L. Lacroix pay sixteen dollars owed to freeman Dick Marshall. A handwritten note indicates that the bill was paid on November 21, 1864.
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Two manuscript bills, each for 75 dollars, for work done by free men of color, including André Fontenette and another man (name illegible), on a Louisiana plantation. Both bills are marked "paid."
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Printed contact with handwritten additions between African American workers from North Carolina and a Louisiana plantation owner, which includes a list of the names of 130 men, women, and their children, along with their age, sex, and the monthly rate of pay for each person. An "X" next to each name comprises the signature of each of the workers. The contract spans the period from February 20 to December 25, 1867, and specifies expectations for payment, labor conditions, and room and board.
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Manuscript letter from a P.(?) Freeman regarding shoes.
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Manuscript letter (in French) regarding supplies, which mentions enslaved laborers.
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Consists of six booklets (in French) billed as public letters, observations, addresses, and guides for theory and practice, relating to emancipation and related changes to France's Code Noir as it pertains to French colonies in the Antilles, Martinique, and Senegal.
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Printed circular.
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Two large (folded) maps of Liberia, "Liberia" and "Maryland in Liberia," along with four sheets of paper containing five lithographs by Wagner and McGuigan that were a part of the "W. F. Lynch Report of Mission to Africa," Senate Executive Documents, 1st Session, 33rd Congress, Part 3, Vol. 1, Doc. 1. Lithographs depict Monrovia from Bushrod's Island, Cape Palmas; an Episcopal Mission near Cape Palmas; President Robert's House, Monrovia; Russwurm's Monument, Cape Palmas; and people on the beach at Cape Palmas.
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Reproductions of three illustrations depicting caricatures of freedmen and freedwomen in Louisiana, titled "Yankee divertissant ses amis les mulâtre et les nègres," "L'aristocratie en 1966," and "Education figurée par le maître d'École des Affranchis."
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Receipt of 16 dollars from the jail for the arrest of an enslaved person. The bill notes "mileage" as 6 miles and indicates that Celeste was jailed for one day.
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Printed receipt, filled in by hand, of 50 dollars paid to the Infirmary of the Sisters of Charity for the medical treatment of an enslaved person.
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Manuscript bill of 35 dollars for the treatment of enslaved persons or indentured servants.
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Printed document, filled in by hand, discharging Allen Rogers from his three-year service as a sergeant in Captain Frank D. Harding's Company C, 99th Regiment of the United States Colored Infantry. The document was issued by Frank D. Harding at Tallahassee, Florida.
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Includes an original copy of an issue of the publication, along with a photocopy of the front page, with an article announcing a parliamentary debate over the gradual abolition of the trade of enslaved persons.
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Manuscript document certifying that Roy held no mortgage affecting an enslaved man of around thirty-five years old named Nat.
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Manuscript document regarding the mortgage status of land and enslaved persons.
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Nine printed documents filled in by hand.
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Two printed documents filled in by hand.
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Two manuscript documents.
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Bill of sale of an enslaved woman of around eighteen years of age for 175 dollars on Staten Island.
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Bill of sale of an enslaved man of around forty years of age for 62 pounds and ten shillings.
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Bill of sale of an enslaved man for 100 pounds. Two bills, one on each side of the document.
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Bill of sale of an enslaved man around twenty-four years old for 940 dollars.
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Bill of sale of an enslaved man around twenty-nine years old for 450 dollars.
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Manuscript document attesting to the free status of an African American man from New York who was falsely claimed as an enslaved person. In addition to Matthew Thompson's own statement, William Hendricks and George Smith also attest to Thompson's free status.
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Manuscript court summons commanding the appearance of ten people, seven of whom are African American, in a case involving an African American man named Michael Jackson.
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Bill of sale for a four-sevenths share of an enslaved nineteen-year-old man and his ten-month-old son for 400 dollars.
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Manuscript summons commanding that Baldwin appear in court to testify in favor of the plaintiff in a case against an African American man.
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Four manuscript testimonies by Obadiah Johnston of New York City, Richard Bailey of Virginia, Rose Elliott (wife of William Elliott), and George Turner of Virginia, regarding a dispute over an African American man named George whom William Elliott of Virginia accused of running away and claimed to own.
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Printed document filled in by hand describing repossession and sale at public auction for 825 dollars of an enslaved woman, her daughter, and another girl, who were levied from Jacob Wolfe by the local sheriff's office.
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Manuscript court testimony from a Mr. Pickett and Mr. John Trimmell claiming that an enslaved man named Jack, alias Sam, had stolen gloves and a hat from William Bishop in Norfolk, Virginia, and money from a boat in New Orleans, Louisiana.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man named Nelson (age 33), a woman named Cherry (age 22), and her children, Harriett (age 2), and Ben (infant).
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved family, including a couple named Bob and Phillis and their four children, Jolene, Sal, Bob, and Catherine, for 3000 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved nineteen-year-old man named Dennis, for 783 dollars.
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Manuscript affidavit attesting to ownership of Edwin by Dr. William Stith(?), deceased, indicating that Edwin should be transported by sea to the deceased's mother near Petersburg, Virginia.
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Manuscript bill of donation of an enslaved fourteen-year-old boy from a father to his son.
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Manuscript bill of sale, conducted in New Orleans, of an enslaved man around twenty-four years old.
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Manuscript bill of sale, conducted by Griffith's executor, of 14 enslaved persons for 10,750 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of a plantation, along with livestock, tools, and two enslaved persons, Baptiste (age 21) and Rosalie (age 20).
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Manuscript bill of sale of a thirty-year-old enslaved woman for 850 dollars.
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Notarized manuscript document and receipt regarding the settlement of a debt to Boudreau, the widow of Amant Hebert, through the mortgage of three enslaved women and girls, Selvina (age 20), Caroline (age 15), and another girl (age 14).
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Notarized manuscript document and receipt regarding the mortgage of six enslaved persons, including Daniel (age 28), Hector (age 35), Anthony (age 15), Grace (age 50), Lydy (age 30) and Lydy's child Bynah (age 3) for 1000 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale, notarized in Iberville Parish, of an enslaved man around thirty-seven years old for 800 dollars.
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Manuscript will distributing property, as well as freeing and leaving money to an enslaved woman named Josephine, who is described as "mulatto," as well as her children.
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Printed manifest filled in by hand documenting the transportation of a forty-year-old woman enslaved by Charles D. Ludlow aboard the steamer Knoxville.
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Three manuscript lists of enslaved persons sold at auction by Thomas Bryan for members of the Quash family, for a total of 46,480 dollars.
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Manuscript list of property, goods, livestock, and enslaved persons.
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Printed bill of sale filled in by hand of three enslaved persons named Machandia(?), Maty, and Betty for 1090 dollars.
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Two printed receipts on the same page, filled in by hand, for 390 and 250 dollars.
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Printed receipt filled in by hand for 2250 dollars.
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Manuscript receipt for sale of enslaved eighteen-year-old woman and her four-month-old child for 350 dollars.
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Manuscript receipt for 160 pounds.
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Two manuscript documents concerning the manumission of enslaved persons.
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One sheet of paper, with a manuscript statement on each side, attesting to the free status of two free African American people.
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Manuscript document regarding property, livestock, and enslaved persons owned by Richard Samuel in Boone County.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man around twenty-two years old for 750 dollars.
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Manuscript copy of a letter from a British official concerning the removal of an enslaved person from the family of Charles Bankhead, British Secretary of Legation, by Constable Madison Jeffers. This conflict resulted in a federal legal case, United States v. Jeffers.
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Manuscript document attesting to the free status of a formerly enslaved man.
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Printed document with manuscript additions. While the indenture was for a period of seven years, a note on the reverse side indicates that it was cancelled in 1867.
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Manuscript deed of gift.
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Manuscript memorandum of agreement regarding the use of enslaved workers from the estate of Samuel Smith.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved woman for 300 dollars.
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Printed contract filled in by hand for a four-year apprenticeship.
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Manuscript receipt for four hundred pounds received from the "public accountant."
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John Armfield (1797-1871) was an American slave trader. In the 1820s and 1830s, he brought enslaved African Americans from the mid-Atlantic states to re-sell in the newly opened territories of the Deep South.
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Manuscript affidavit (2 pages) claiming that fifty-five enslaved persons had not been imported after 1808 and were thus legally enslaved, along with a list of persons claimed, including their names (first and last), ages, height, complexion, and remarks.
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Consists of a partial list of 128 enslaved persons, including names (sometimes both first and last names), age, height, and complexion. The list is incomplete and begins at no. 44.
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Consists of a list of 102 enslaved persons, including first and last names, age, height, and complexion, as well as a letter on the reverse side stating that these persons were not imported. A second page includes a list of an additional 11 enslaved persons (numbered 103-113), which was likely appended.
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Manuscript bill of sale of a seven-year-old boy for 175 dollars.
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Manuscript document and receipt releasing 6,000 livres, part of a 10,000-livre inheritance left to a free man of color named "Jean" by the widow Papin L'Épine.
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Manuscript bill of sale of enslaved man around nineteen or twenty years old for 850 dollars. Date may be 1851.
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Manuscript deed describing the sale of land, animals, and an enslaved twelve-year-old girl named Eliza.
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Manuscript letter from anti-abolitionist Allison Owen in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Governor Dunlap in Brunswick, Maine, in which Owen attempts to justify his cause by claiming that enslaved persons are treated better than free men of color. Owen notes that a similar letter was sent to governors of all states on behalf of the officers of an anti-abolition town meeting held in Cincinnati on January 22nd, 1836.
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Manuscript copy of document listing enslaved persons sold by the estate.
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Manuscript letter requesting legal assistance for a black woman who was unlawfully enslaved and sold in the West Indies.
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Manuscript bill of sale of a woman and a fourteen-year-old girl for 975 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of five enslaved persons, including Primus (age 22), Cherry (age 20) and her child Gaston (age 9 months), Hannah (age 13), and Simon (age 12). Purchase was made in trust for Dorothy A. Edmonds.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved woman and her four children, Nelly, Aaron, Laurence, and Agnes, for 600 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved thirteen-year-old girl.
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Manuscript bill of sale of an enslaved man around twenty-eight years old.
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Manuscript report of sale of enslaved man Aaron to J.A. Abrahams for 3600 dollars and woman Tabby to E. A. Mallard(?) for 600 dollars.
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Manuscript bill of sale of three enslaved men, including Peter to John E. Cusack, Wesley to James Nair, and Jack to Mrs. Cabell McGrew.
Physical Description1 folder
Two manuscript reports of the sale of enslaved persons at auction from the estate of Martha H. Odom, including one regarding the sale of an enslaved girl Judy (age 12) for 700 dollars and another regarding the sale of an enslaved family including Bob (age 59), Seney (age 47), Charles (age 11), Hannah (age 8), and Nancy (age 4) to Thomas Wainwright for 3100 dollars.
Physical Description1 folder
Printed bill of sale filled in by hand of an enslaved woman around forty-five years old for 150 dollars.
Physical Description1 folder