Releasing one Negro Woman and child mentioned in the inventory of the estate of Jane Hamilton presented to the Court of Nicholas County, (West) Virginia, during the November term of 1821.
In the left margin:
Jane Hamilton
Inventory & appt
We the Subscribers agreeable to an order of the Worshipful the
County Court of Nicholas at the November term 1821 of
Said Court being first duly sworn have proceeded to appraise
the personal Estate of Jane Hamilton Dec’d – as produced
to us by Robert Kelly & John Mc. Hamilton The administra-
=tors on said Estate to wit, on the 18th day of December 1821
$ – Cents
one Negro woman & child 425=00
Saddle Sddle (sic) bags & Bridle 17=00
Bed Stead Bed & beding 40=00
one Wheel 3=00
one Set of Silver tea spoons 6=00
one trunk 2=00
Morses Geography 0=75
Wool & Cotton & thread 11=00
Callico for a quilt 3=00
one Umbrilla 2=50
Samuel Neil
John Groves
Nathaniel Foster
John Fitzwater
Sworn to before me Edward Rion
The inventory of the Estate of Jane Hamilton was sold on 25 December 1821. The enslaved woman and child are seen as Sophia & child and were sold to Jane’s brother John Hamilton for $585.
Jane Hamilton
a/c Jane Hamilton’s Estate, an account of the sale thereof
Sale on the 25 of December 1821 by the Admtr. to wit
$ Ct.
Polly Hamilton . . . . . . . . 1 Spindle Wheel Inventry . . . . . . . . . . .3 00
John Hamilton . . . . . . . . Sophia & Child . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 585 00
Polly Hamilton . . . . . . . . Saddle wo. Bridle & Saddlebags Inventry . .17 00
” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bed & furniture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 00
” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Set of Tea Spoons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 87 1/2
” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Trunk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 00
” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wool & Cotton thd. Invy . . . . . . . . . . . 11 00
Robert Hamilton . . . . . . Morses Geography Invy . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75
Miss Mary A. Hamilton . 1 Umbrella . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 50
” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Callico for a quilt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 00
R. Kelly
J. Mc. Hamilton Adtrs.
Jane Laverty Hamilton (1793-1821) was the daughter of John Hamilton (1748-1818) and Rebekah Laverty (1765-1811). In 1820 her older married brother Robert Hamilton had three slaves in his household, two males under 14 years of age and one male 45 years or older. There were several white adults in the household but since Jane had a female slave she was probably not in this household. Robert was the only Hamilton on the 1820 census. One or more of his unmarried brothers may have been in this household.
Jane’s older sister Margaret was married to Robert Kelly who had five slaves in his household, one male under 14 years of age and four females between 14 and 25 years of age. As in Robert Hamilton’s household, there were several white adults in Robert Kelly’s. It is more than likely that Jane was in this household as it also included a female enslaved person who may have been Sophia.
William Hamilton died about a month after his sister Jane. His inventory and sale were recorded at the same time as Jane’s and will be shared next month.
Following my three part series on the slaves of my 5th great-grandfather James Sims during Black History Month in February 2015 I made a commitment to write a post on a monthly basis until I’ve RELEASED all of the names of slaves owned by my ancestors or owned by persons I’ve researched who were relatives or neighbors of my ancestors. These posts are part of the Slave Name Roll Project which can be found on Schalene Jennings Dagutis’ blog Tangled Roots and Trees
© 2016, copyright Cathy Meder-Dempsey. All rights reserved.
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Thank You Cathy for writing about Sophia and her baby. I can only imagine. I just hope someone finds them one day. I really appreciate you thinking on their Lives and sharing this information. Prayers to Sophia and her baby and the family that finds them one day. May your Soul Fly.
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You’re welcome, True. From the sale I know she went with Jane’s brother John McKee Hamilton. I have not researched the Hamilton family but being prominent citizens of Nicholas County it should not be difficult to follow them after 1821.
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As I commented on FB, I still find that when I read these wills I am still shocked to see people listed as property.
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It was a terrible thing. I believe this is a way we can try to make up for the wrong. Thank you, Amy.
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I agree. Education about the horrors of the past is essential to prevent history from repeating itself.
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Moving to the South two years ago was a real culture shock for me. Kansas, where I’m from, of course has no history of slavery, but I’m constantly confronted with it here in Kentucky. And imagine my feelings when my recent research shows that my father’s family were early settlers here…and were slave owners. Our previous research had focused on his maternal line–staunch abolitionists who helped settle Kansas.
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I’m sure most people who can trace their ancestry back to pre-Civil War times will find at least one ancestor or relative who owned slaves. Thanks for sharing, Karen.
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Cathy, thank you for this contribution to the Slave Name Roll Project.
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Schalene, I’m happy to be able to contribute. You’re welcome.
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