enslaved people

The last will and testament of Daniel Land (1851).

In a will dated 29 March 1851, Daniel Land left his wife Martha a life estate in, among items, four enslaved people — Jason, Violet, Boston, and Venus. (Land lived in a section of Edgecombe County that became Wilson County in 1855. Interestingly, in the 1850 census of Edgecombe County, Land, whose occupation was “overseer of the poor,” claimed no slaves.)

Land’s estate was inventoried and sold on 21 December 1857. The administrator made note of the property passed via the terms of his will.

However, his remaining enslaved people were sold on twelve months’ credit: Louis, Mary and her child George, John, Cherry and her child Lonzo, and Caroline.

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  • Jason Land

On 21 August 1866, Jason Land and Caroline Pender registered their four-year cohabitation with a Wilson County justice of the peace.

  • Venus Armstrong Drake

In late December 1867 or very early January 1868, Thomas Drake, son of Thomas Avent and Lucinda Drake, applied for a marriage in Wilson to marry Venis Armstrong, daughter of Mary Armstrong. The license was not returned.

In the 1880 census of Town of Toisnot, Wilson County: railroad worker Thomas Drake, 34, wife Venus, 28, and children Jane, 9, Isaac, 7, John T., 3, and an unnamed infant, 1 month.

In the 1900 census of Elm City, Toisnot township, Wilson County: on Broad Street, farmer Thomas Drake, 55; wife Virginia [Venus], 46; and children Mattie, 20, cook, Ernest, 15, and Clarence, 11.

In the 1910 census of Toisnot township, Wilson County: Tom Drake, 65, wife Venus, 62, and  daughter Pearl, 10.

Venus Drake died 5 February 1917 in Elm City, Wilson County. Per her death certificate, she was about 55 years old; was a midwife; was born in Edgecombe County to Amos Braswell and Mary Braswell; and was buried in [Elm City] “col. cemetery.” Tom Drake was informant.

  • Mary Land Braswell

In 1866, Mary Land and Amos Braswell registered their 14-year cohabitation with a Wilson County justice of the peace.

In the 1870 census of California township, Pitt County, N.C.: farmhand Amos Braswell, 40; wife Mary, 35; children John, 17, and Polly, 15; and Fereby Bassett, 28.

  • Lewis Land

In the 1870 census of Joyners township, Wilson County: Lewis Land, 30, farm laborer; wife Martha, 29; and Winnie, 10, and Charles, 2.

North Carolina Wills and Probate Records, 1665-1998, http://www.ancestry.com.

The last will and testament of Jacob Barnes (1859).

In a will executed on 27 November 1859, among other items, Jacob Barnes bequeathed to his daughter Zilpha Ann Barnes, “three Negroes Milby, Anna, and Milby Jane” and directed his executor to “sell two Negroes Ephraigm and Randall.”

He also bequeathed:

  • to his daughter Milly Stansell a life estate in a woman named Gilly and any children Gilly might have
  • to his son Elias Barnes, Eliza, Chany and one child, Rose, and Elly

North Carolina Wills and Probate Records, 1665-1998, http://www.ancestry.com.

The last will and testament of Zilpha Daniel (1862).

In her 20 May 1862 will, Zilpha Daniel bequeathed her son-in-law George A. Wooley an enslaved man named Prince. The remainder of the group of people she enslaved were to go to her four living children jointly.

In the 1860 slave schedule, Daniel had reported to the enumerator that she enslaved 14 people — men and boys aged 2 months to 39 years and women and girls aged 1 year to 39 years — who lived in four houses.

1860 slave schedule, Wilson County, North Carolina.

Daniel died shortly after executing her will. An inventory of her property, conducted 5 August 1862, names the 14 people she enslaved — Prince, Hannah, Pheby, Dennis, Telitha, Lucy, Fanny, Charles, Malissa, Rosa, Caroline, Frank, Jerome, and Jesse.

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  • Prince Daniel

Prince Daniel was probably the 39 year-old black man listed in the 1860 slave schedule. His wife and children were enslaved on another farm.

On 31 August 1866, Prince Daniel and Absely Simms registered their 16-year cohabitation with a Wilson County justice of the peace.

In the 1870 census of Crossroads township, Wilson County: farm laborer Prince Daniel, 55; wife Absley, 40; and son (grandson?) Isaac, 13.

In the 1880 census of Crossroads township, Wilson County: farmer Prince Daniel, 67, and wife Absley, 44. (Next door: farm laborer Isaac Daniel, 23; wife Zilla, 24; and daughters Virginia, 5, Ella Jane, 3, and Mobelia, 3 months.)

  • Hannah Daniel Simms

Hannah Daniel Simms was probably the 39 year-old black woman listed in the 1860 slave schedule. Her husband was enslaved on another farm, but her children belonged to Zilpha Daniel.

On 24 July 1866, Hanner Daniel and Harry Simms registered their 27-year cohabitation with a Wilson County justice of the peace.

In the 1870 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Harry Simms, 64; wife Hannah, 50; children Emily, 19, Caroline, 15, Frank, 13, and Jesse, 8; and Junah Acock, 2.

In the 1880 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Harry Simms, 70; wife Hannah, 65; children Lissa, 28, Rose, 26, Jesse, 19, Mille, 18, and Henry, 9; and grandchildren Andrew, 7, Ira, 4, and Louvinia, 1.

On 29 April 1889, Johnnie Woodard, 21, son of Mintos and Sarah Ward, married Rose Ward, 34, daughter of Harry and Hannah Simms, in Wilson County.

On 25 February 1893, Rosana Simms, 30 [sic], daughter of Harry and Hannah Simms, married George Lee, 40, son of Eli and Jane Lee, in Wilson County.

Rosanna Lee died 21 March 1917 in Wilson township, Wilson County. Per her death certificate, she was 58 years old; was born in Wilson County to Harry Simms and Harry Best; was married; and was buried in Wilson County. Lola Woodard was informant.

Malissie Bunch died 16 August 1923 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was 66 years old; was born in Wilson County to Harry and Hannah Simms; was the widow of Ned Bunch; lived at 409 Banks; and was buried in Wilson [probably, Vick Cemetery.] Lucy Williams was informant.

  • Phoebe Daniel Bass

In 1866, Phoebe Daniel and Simon Bass registered their ten-year cohabitation with a Wilson County justice of the peace.

  • Dennis Daniel

Dennis Daniel was probably the 16 year-old black boy listed in the 1860 slave schedule. He was the son of Hannah and her husband Harry Simms.

On 24 July 1869, Dennis Daniel, son of Harry and Hannah Simms, married Zilphia Aycock, daughter of Washington Woodard and Chaney Peacock, in Wilson County.

In the 1870 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: farm laborer Dennis Daniel, 27; wife Zilphia, 18; and daughter Ella, 1.

In the 1880 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: common laborer Denis Daniel, 37; wife Zilpha, 28; and daughters Ella, 9, Viny, 7, and Minnie, 2.

  • Lucy Simms Woodard

Lucy Simms Woodard was probably the 19 year-old black woman listed in the 1860 slave schedule. She was the daughter of Hannah and her husband Harry Simms.

Lucy Woodard died 29 June 1934 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, he was 94 years old; was born Wilson County to Harry Simms and Hannah Simms; lived at 1202 East Washington; was the widow of Rufus Woodard; and was buried in Wilson [likely Vick Cemetery.] Annie Howell of Wilson was informant.

  • Fanny Daniel Woodard

Fannie Daniel Woodard was probably the 18 year-old black woman listed in the 1860 slave schedule.

In 1866, Jack Woodard and Fany Daniel registered their two-year cohabitation with a Wilson County justice of the peace.

In the 1880 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: farmer Jack Woodard, 35; wife Fannie, 32; and children John, 12, Julia, 7, Cynthia, 6, Albert, 5, and Aaron, 2.

On 6 January 1890, John Woodard, 21, son of Jack and Fannie Woodard, married Edmonia Brooks, 19, daughter of Gray and Darkis Brooks, in Wilson County.

On 12 February 1890, Dock Evans, 23, son of Burket and Julia Evans, married Deora Woodard, 19, daughter of Jack and Fannie Woodard, in Wilson County.

On 8 March 1906, Gus Woodard, 23, son of Jack and Fannie Woodard, married Lizzie Brooks, 18, daughter of David and Ret Brooks, in Black Creek, N.C.

Diarie Batts died 29 July 1924 in Black Creek township, Wilson County. Per her death certificate, she was about 52 years old; was married to John Batts; was born in Wilson County to Jack Woodard and Fannie Simms; and worked as a tenant farmer for P.L. Woodard.

Augustus Woodard Sr. died 13 August 1951 in Black Creek township, Wilson County. Per his death certificate, he was born 1 March 1883 in Black Creek, N.C., in Jack Woodard and Fannie [no maiden name]; was a widow; was a tenant farmer; and was buried in Black Creek. Daisy Adams was informant.

Steve Lee Woodard died 26 October 1966 in Chapel Hill, N.C. Per his death certificate, he was born 24 February 1884 in Wilson to Jack Woodard and Fanny Woodard; lived in Sharpsburg, Edgecombe County, N.C.; and was buried in Rest Haven Cemetery, Wilson.

Harriett Dawson died 25 September 1967 in at her home at 311 Freeman Street, Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was born 30 August 1893 in Wilson County in Jack Woodard and Fannie Simms; was married to Vanderbilt Dawson; worked in a tobacco factory; and was buried in the Masonic Cemetery. Easter Dawson was informant.

  • Charles Simms

Charles Simms was probably the 12 year-old black boy listed in the 1860 slave schedule. He was probably the son of Hannah and her husband Harry Simms.

On 16 August 1869, Charley Simms, son of Harry and Hannah Simms, married Liza Hall, daughter of Charley Hall, in Wilson County.

In the 1870 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farm laborer Charles Simms, 21; wife Clara, 20; and daughter Margaret, 2 months (next door to Harry and Hannah Simms, above.)

In the 1880 census of Town of Wilson, Wilson township, Wilson County: grocery store [keeper] Charles Simms, 30; wife Clara, 27; and children Margarett, 10, and Franklin, 7.

  • Malissa Simms Bunch

Malissa Simms Bunch was the daughter of Hannah and her husband Harry Simms.

In the 1880 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Harry Simms, 70; wife Hannah, 65; children Lissa, 28, Rose, 26, Jesse, 19, Mille, 18, and Henry, 9; and grandchildren Andrew, 7, Ira, 4, and Louvinia, 1.

On 13 December 1883, Ed Bunch married Lissie Simms in Wayne County, North Carolina.

In the 1900 census of Wilson, Wilson County: teamster Ned Bunch, 50, wife Lissa, 50, and children Mary, 16, Martha, 12, Orra, 11, Nellie, 9, Mattie, 7, and Lucy, 5.

In the 1910 census of Wilson, Wilson County: on Spring Street, odd jobs laborer Ned Bunch, 55; wife Mary [sic], 55; and children Martha, 23, Ora, 21, Willie, 19, Mattie, 15, and Lucy, 13, all factory laborers.

Ned Bunch died 19 March 1916 in Wilson of lobar pneumonia, age 65. His death certificate reports that he was born in Wilson County, and his father was James Bunch. Malissa Bunch was the informant.

Martha Robbins died 12 October 1918 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was born in 1887 in Wilson County to Ned Bunch and Malissa Simms; was married to Jas. D. Robbins; and was buried in Wilson [probably, Vick Cemetery.]

Mary Newton died 9 March 1919 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was born April 1885 in Wilson to Ned Bunch and Malissy Simms; was married to Robert Newton; was a tenant farmer for L.O. Blackman; and was buried in Wilson [probably, Vick Cemetery.]

Malissie Bunch died 16 August 1923 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was 66 years old; was born in Wilson County to Harry and Hannah Simms; was the widow of Ned Bunch; lived at 409 Banks; and was buried in Wilson [probably, Vick Cemetery.] Lucy Williams was informant.

On 23 October 1923, James Thompson [sic], 24, of Wilson, son of Isaac and Lizzie Thompson, married Ora Bunch, 23, of Wilson, daughter of Ned and Malissie Bunch, at Ned Bunch’s residence. Missionary Baptist minister Fred M. Davis performed the ceremony in the presence of Mina Crawford, H.D. Beckwith, and Paul Hargrove.

  • Rosa Simms Ward Lee

Rosa Simms was probably the 1 year-old black girl listed in the 1860 slave schedule. She was the daughter of Hannah and her husband Harry Simms.

On 29 April 1889, Johnnie Woodard, 21, son of Mintos and Sarah Ward, married Rose Ward, 34, daughter of Harry and Hannah Simms, in Wilson County.

On 25 February 1893, Rosana Simms, 30 [sic], daughter of Harry and Hannah Simms, married George Lee, 40, son of Eli and Jane Lee, in Wilson County.

Rosanna Lee died 21 March 1917 in Wilson township, Wilson County. Per her death certificate, she was 58 years old; was born in Wilson County to Harry Simms and Harry Best; was married; and was buried in Wilson County. Lola Woodard was informant.

Caroline Simms Bunch was probably the 7 year-old black girl listed in the 1860 slave schedule. She was the daughter of Hannah and her husband Harry Simms.

  • Frank Simms

Frank Simms was probably the 3 year-old black boy listed in the 1860 slave schedule. He was the son of Hannah and her husband Harry Simms.

In the 1870 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Harry Simms, 64; wife Hannah, 50; children Emily, 19, Caroline, 15, Frank, 13, and Jesse, 8; and Junah Acock, 2.

  • Jesse Simms

Jesse Simms was the son of Hannah and her husband Harry Simms.

In the 1870 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Harry Simms, 64; wife Hannah, 50; children Emily, 19, Caroline, 15, Frank, 13, and Jesse, 8; and Junah Acock, 2.

In the 1880 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Harry Simms, 70; wife Hannah, 65; children Lissa, 28, Rose, 26, Jesse, 19, Mille, 18, and Henry, 9; and grandchildren Andrew, 7, Ira, 4, and Louvinia, 1.

On 18 February 1886, Jesse Simms, 24, married Anna Farmer, 19, at Polly Farmer‘s in Wilson County.

In the 1900 census of Saratoga township, Wilson County: farmer Jessie Simms, 33; wife Annie, 34; and children William, 7, Martha, 6, Jonah, 2, and Mary, 9 months.

In the 1910 census of Saratoga township, Wilson County: farmer Jesse Simms, 49; wife Annie, 40; and children Willie, 16, Martha, 15, Jonah, 12, Mark, 7, Mike, 4, and Elizabeth, 2.

In the 1920 census of Saratoga township, Wilson County: tenant farmer Jessie Simms, 59; wife Annie, 58; and children Martha, 25, Mike, 14, Lizzie Beth, 12, and Amous, 10.

Jesse Simms died 4 April 1929 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, he was 68 years old; was born in Wilson County to Harry Simms and Hannah Simms; was married to Annie Simms; was a farmer; and was buried in Rountree Cemetery. Mike Simms was informant.

North Carolina Wills and Probate Records, 1665-1998, http://www.ancestry.com.

The last will and testament of William J. Armstrong (1856).

In his 30 September 1856 will, William J. Armstrong directed his slaves be hired out until all his debts were paid, then divided equally among his heirs with the proviso that “it is my desire that at the division of my Slaves my Daughter Mary E. Barnes have Slave Harry as a part of her share at a fair valuation as she has had him for several years.”

North Carolina Wills and Probate Records, 1665-1998, http://www.ancestry.com.

The last will and testament of Charity Pope (1858).

William Pope died intestate in about 1857. He lived on the south side of Contentnea Creek, in the Black Creek area, in either Wayne or Wilson County. He left a widow and six children (and grandchildren of a seventh) and a complicated estate. Records indicate that Pope died possessed of ten enslaved people — Isaac, Mary, Nancy, Green, Zilpha, Rachel, Bryant, Patsy, Maria, and Ellis.

On 6 November 1858, William’s widow Charity Pope, who lived in Wilson County, executed a last will and testament that included this provision:

“[T]o my esteemed friend William Thompson one third part of my right and title & interest as one of the distributees of my late husband William Pope in and to Negroes Isaac, Patsy, Zilpha, Mary, Nancy, Green, Rachel, Bryant [and] Ellis ….” The remaining two-thirds interest was to go to her daughters Martha and Elizabeth Pope.

 

In 1 December 1859, well before Charity Pope’s death, all the people WilliamPope had enslaved were sold at court-ordered auction. They went to seven different purchasers, most of whom — Benjamin H. Bardin, Edwin G. Clark, James Newsome, James D. Barnes, and Charity Pope — lived in Wilson County.

Charity Pope purchased Patsy and her children Ellis and Maria, the newborn, for $1205.00. On credit.

In the meantime, in January 1860, estate administrator Simon Hooks paid Charity Pope for “keeping” Patsy for the year 1857. (The other enslaved people were hired out.) Per their agreement, Pope was to receive fifty dollars for her service, plus an additional ten dollars “if the negro woman brought a child during [the] year.” In other words, Pope was to be rewarded if the pregnant Patsy safely delivered (and thereby increased the value of her husband’s estate.)

Estate of William Pope (1856), Will of Charity Pope (1858), North Carolina Wills and Probate Records, 1665-1998, http://www.ancestry.com

The last will and testament of Martha Simms Barnes (1856).

In her 1856 will, among other bequests, Martha Simms Barnes left her son James Reddick Barnes her “interest in negro woman Clary and her children.” We can infer that Martha Barnes jointly owned Clary and her children with unnamed others.

In the 1860 slave schedule, James R. Barnes reported enslaving 41 people (and controlling another 32 as trustee for unnamed minors. In June 1856, two people he jointly owned with others, Cate and Sherard, were sold at auction at a toll house on White Oak Swamp. Barnes was high bidder.

In honor of Julia Bailey, “a tender mother and a faithful friend.”

My deepest gratitude to Randy Marshburn and Al Letchworth, who located and photographed the headstones of Julia Bailey and Andrew Terrell at the edge of Buckhorn Reservoir.

They recently returned to Bailey’s grave to reset the monument and place flowers in honor and remembrance.

Thank you!

Photo courtesy of R. Marshburn.

A pause to allow some to exit the room.

If you agree that there’s too much emphasis on “how bad Slavery was,” this is not the place for you.

I have chronicled the terrible traumas that slavery inflicted on black people in what is now Wilson County. I will continue to do so. If you want the hopeful, positive, apologist, unwoke version of the history of American slavery, try the Smithsonian museums in about six months.

The Wilson Ledger, 19 February 1861.

Read about J.W. Hamlet and Jacob D. Farmer and their Negro dogs here.

The Freemans’ Johnston County roots?

In 1986, Mary Freeman Ellis published The Way It Was, a memoir of life with her father, noted stonemason Oliver Nestus Freeman. Early in the work, she wrote that Nestus Freeman’s father, Julius Franklin Freeman, was born in Johnston County, North Carolina.

Julius Freeman moved to Wilson County before 1870, when he appears in the first post-slavery census as a 21 year-old carpenter living with Alfred Boyit, 26, and his wife Eliza, 29, in the household of white farmer John R. Farmer, 56. [Alfred Boyette was also born Johnston County, and research links him to George Boyette (owner of the extant Boyette slave cabin) and his son James Boyette, who settled in Oldfields township, Wilson County.] I have found no formal records placing him in Johnston County or identifying his birth family. (Note, however, Nestus Freeman of Ohio, born just a few years before Julius Freeman, and likely a relative.)

“Julius” and “Nestus” were uncommon names among enslaved people in this area. Recently, however, while researching for a Johnston County client, I encountered both names among records of people enslaved by members of the extended Sanders family, who were wealthy plantation owners. I also found “Olive,” which was the name Julius Freeman gave one of his daughters and, of course, the feminine version of “Oliver,” the first name of two of his sons — Oliver Lovett Freeman and Oliver Nestus Freeman. In  addition, I found “Lydia,” the name of Julius Freeman’s eldest daughter, Lydia Freeman Norwood.

The evidence is thin, but suggestive. Then, as now, some given names gained local popularity and were used repeatedly among unrelated people. Nestus seems to have been such a name, as it is used as early as the 1830s among Johnston County white families. However, the clustering of four given names that Julius F. Freeman passed to his own offspring may signal a link between him and the enslaved communities held by the extended white Sanders family.

Baldy Sanders’ slave records, which have been digitized by Johnston County Heritage Center, include a register of births (and some deaths) of people Baldy Sanders enslaved. The register includes Oliff [Olive], whose birthdate is not specified but can be inferred as January 1841; Julius, who was born 9 August 1851 and died 3 June 1852; and Lydia, born 12 July 1863.

Mary Boddie Sanders’ estate file, opened in 1843, contains a reference to Lydia, whose ownership passed to her son John F. Sanders.

In 1863, North Carolina’s Confederate General Assembly ordered that tax lists included  enslaved people name. Few of these assessments survive, but Johnston County’s lists show:

  • Julius, age 18, blind, enslaved by Sarah Sanders
  • Olive, 22, enslaved by Sarah Sanders
  • Julius, 18, enslaved by William E. Sanders
  • Lydia, 3, enslaved by William E. Sanders
  • Nestus, 17, enslaved by William E. Sanders
  • Julius, 21, enslaved by Willis H. Sanders
  • Lydia, 20, enslaved by Willis H. Sanders
  • Nestus, 24, enslaved by Willis H. Sanders
  • Olive, 41, enslaved by Willis H. Sanders

Affidavits of good behavior, no. 3.

I’ve been hunting for digitized evidence of the trade of Wilson County slavers like Wyatt Moye, Robert S. Adams, Stephenton Page Jr., and Joshua Barnes in Aberdeen, Mississippi. I finally found some in a deed book dated 1847-1850. (Wilson County, of course, had not yet formed, but these and other traders lived or had lived in parts of Edgecombe, Nash, Wayne, or Johnston Counties that are now Wilson County.) These registered affidavits attest to the affiants’ personal acquaintance with an enslaved person who had been sent from North Carolina to Mississippi for further sale.

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Deed Record 13, page 640. Chancery Clerk’s Office, Monroe County, Mississippi.

Know all men by these presents that we Jesse Simpson and Isaac Williamson Citizens and free holders of the County of Nash and State of North Carolina do hereby certify that we are acquainted with a negro man named Abram aged about twenty three years old a Stout Strong well musselled boy about five feet two inches high and darke culler and cross eied, furthermore that said Slave has not been guilty or convicted of murder arson burglary or felony within our knowledge or belief in said County nor no other County.  /s/ Jesse Simpson, Isaac Williamson

Deed Record 13, page 640. Chancery Clerk’s Office, Monroe County, Mississippi.

Know all men by these presents that we Jesse Simpson and Isaac Williamson Citizens and free holders of the County of Nash and State of North Carolina do hereby certify that we are acquainted with a negro man named Aberdeen aged about twenty three years old, a large Stout Strong Boy and of dark complection, furthermore that said Slave has not been guilty or convicted of murder arson burglary or felony within our knowledge or belief in said County of Nash or any other County.  /s/ Jesse Simpson, Isaac Williamson

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  • Abram and Aberdeen — Abram (or Abraham) and Aberdeen appear in the 1835 will of Elisha Applewhite, who devised them to his daughter Smithey D. Applewhite. Eventually, they came into the hands of Bartley Deans, whose daughter Elizabeth had married Smithey’s brother Robert Applewhite. In 1848, Deans placed both Abram and Aberdeen with the slavetradiing firm Moye & Adams to sell or hire out in Monroe County, Mississippi, a transaction that ended in litigation.
  • Jesse Simpson — Simpson is listed in the 1850 slave schedule of Nash County, N.C., with three enslaved people — two men, aged 55 and 33, and a young woman aged 16.
  • Isaac Williamson — Williamson is listed in the 1850 slave schedule of Nash County, N.C., with two enslaved people — two women, aged 40 and 24.

Documents reproduced at www.familysearch.org.