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Several Firsts in Maryland

Slave Dwelling at Sotterley Plantation, Hollywood, Maryland

Saturday, July 9, 2011 found me at Sotterley Plantation in Hollywood, Maryland.  Southwest Airlines deserves credit for allowing this stay and lecture to fit perfectly into a weekend.  Prior to my arrival at Sotterly, I knew that I would be dealing with several firsts; the first stay in Maryland and the first stay at a former tobacco plantation.  Sotterley was one of the stays that came about as a result of the popularity of the Slave Dwelling Project.  I can recall getting a call from Eileen Miller, Marketing Manager for Sotterley, and scheduling the stay.

Sotterley Plantation is located on the banks of the Patuxent River and is the only remaining Tidewater Plantation in Maryland open to the public. It is designated a National Historic Landmark and the site includes the early 18th century mansion, a rare slave cabin, and a full array of outbuildings on nearly 100 acres of rolling fields, gardens, and riverfront. The authentic 18th and 19th century architecture reveals Chesapeake Bay plantation life in the form of a customs warehouse, smokehouse, corn crib, brick privy, and plantation schoolhouse. Visitors can also walk along Sotterley's shoreline, woodland trails, meadows, an antebellum orchard, and colonial revival gardens.

When I arrived at the entrance to Sotterley, I had to stop and marvel at the trees that lined both sides of the road because this was reminiscent of several plantations I had encountered in the past.  Even more impressive were all the historic buildings still on the site. 

Tree-Lined Drive Leading to Sotterley Plantation

The first face to face meeting with Executive Director Nancy Easterling was intense.  Her passion for the site was obvious and her questions came in rapid succession.  Our tour of the site verified that all of the buildings were indeed authentic.  The highlight for me of course was the tour of the slave dwelling.  It was then, I discovered another first; the first dwelling with a dirt floor.  That revelation factored into my decision to sleep in the loft of the dwelling, another first.  While in the cabin, I was interviewed by two people who represented two different local newspapers.

At dinner that evening, I was informed by Meredith Taylor, a Trustee of Sotterley and a professor at St. Mary’s College, that a student would like to come and film the experience.  I informed her that filming would be fine but also issued an invitation for the student to spend the night in the dwelling with me.  The student Ryan Gugerty accepted the invitation.  When I got back to the dwelling and inspected the loft more thoroughly with a flash light, I discovered an active wasp nest.  I knew then where not to go. 

Stairway to Loft in Slave Dwelling at Sotterley

When Ryan made it to the site around 10:00 pm he gave me a call on my cell phone and I went out to meet him in the parking lot.  The questions by both of us indicated that I was as curious about him as he was about me.  I do recall warning him that I snored like a champ, a tidbit that if revealed prior to his arrival may have yielded a different outcome.  I do not know if it was my snoring or the call of nature that caused Ryan to get up and leave the cabin at least twice during the night.  I also recall it being very hot before the temperature moderated to a level comfortable enough to sleep. 

The next morning the questions from Ryan continued only this time everything was being recorded and filmed.  We could not resist the temptation to walk to the river.  Along the way, we came up on a demonstration garden.  Planted there was tobacco.  Not only did I think about the slave labor necessary to harvest the crop but I thought about my own personal experience growing up in Kingstree, SC and working in tobacco fields during the summer. When we reached the river it was not hard to imagine the historic landscape without trees and how the plantation house sat prominently on a hill that could be seen from the river. 

After one more news paper interview in the cabin, Nancy delivered me to the home of Jan Briscoe and Sam Baldwin.  Jan is the current President of the Board of Trustees for Sotterley.  Sam had a beautiful breakfast prepared.  Jan is a descendant of the last owner of Sotterley to own slaves.  Initially, it was hard to keep my attention because I was admiring ospreys that were nesting right near their dock.  Jan and Sam had instructions to deliver me to Sotterley in time for the scheduled Slave Dwelling Project lecture that I was scheduled to give.  They carried out their assignment well but not before we bonded with great conversation about Sotterley Plantation and about the Slave Dwelling Project.

Joseph McGill at Entrance to Sotterley Slave Dwelling

I am always a little nervous when I start thinking about how many people might show up at these lectures.  I’ve given the lecture to as little as two and many as one hundred plus and all points in between.  I was impressed and encouraged by the number of people that showed.  A fellow Civil War reenactor, Lou Carter, from Company B, 54th Massachusetts Reenactment Regiment out of Washington, DC attended as he promised.  I was even more impressed that my friend Beth Lingg showed.  I met Beth in 2005 on a cruise down the Mississippi River on the riverboat Delta Queen from Memphis, Tennessee to New Orleans, Louisiana.  Beth is the only person from that cruise with whom I have kept in contact.  When I informed her that I was coming to Sotterley she immediately put it on her calendar.

The lecture was a success.   I put Ryan on notice that I would call on him to talk about his experience in sleeping in the cabin.  He verified that it was my snoring that kept him up during the night.  After the lecture, the question and answer period could have gone longer but I had to let the audience know that I had a plane to catch.  When the session concluded another first happened, Eileen Miller Marketing Manager and Artist, presented me with an oil painting of the cabin that I slept in.  This along with all of the other activities at Sotterley puts it on the short list of best places stayed to date.  More importantly, Sotterley must be commended for the work and resources that it has put forth to ensure the slave dwelling on its property was restored and is being properly interpreted.  

Related Video: Sotterley Plantation Stay

About the Slave Dwelling Project

The records we have located thus far provide both direct and indirect evidence that Robert S. Tarleton’s parents were Joseph and Sarah Tarleton. They were identified as such in the 1871 Freedman’s Bank record (see this earlier post for a full discussion) and lived next door to Robert in the 1870 census (see this earlier post for a full discussion).

Our tendency may be to jump back to this earlier generation and start working on Joseph and Sarah. However, this is the surest way to build ourselves an impassible brick wall.

We would first continue to gather information concerning Robert S. Tarleton. In this column, we have used only those sources available online. If this were your project, you would continue your research into Robert by consulting microfilmed and original records.

Microfilmed records are often available to be rented from the Family History Library through your local Family History Center. Information on these services is available at http://www.familysearch.org. Click on the “Catalog” link, then search by “Place Name” for “South Carolina, Colleton” to see what county records are available, but don’t forget to also search for “South Carolina” itself, to catch all those state records. To find a Family History Center near you, click on the “FamilySearch Centers” link at the top of the FamilySearch homepage.

You can find original records in many locations, but you will want to check the records collections of the South Carolina Archives, the South Carolina Historical Society, and state universities around the state.

For the purposes of this example, though, we will not continue with the full research, but use the records we have already located.

One of the most difficult aspects of researching enslaved African American families is the use of indirect evidence. As defined in an earlier post, a record contains indirect evidence when its information implies the solution to your research problem, rather than providing the solution explicitly. Because freedmen and women appear in so few of the most common record groups in the period immediately following emancipation, it becomes necessary to glean as much information as possible from these records. This especially includes the identification and use of indirect evidence as clues to your ancestry.

To illustrate this process, we will define our research problem as the identification of Robert S. Tarleton’s former slave owner. None of the records that we have located provide this detail outright, but we can find clues in these records.

The two most useful records for this purpose are the 1870 federal census and the 1871 Freedman’s Bank deposit register entry. To see these records, with a detailed analysis, read the posts, “Evaluating A Record By Itself,” (for the Bank record), and “Corroborating Evidence” (for the census record).

So what evidence can we use from these records to help us identify Robert’s slave owner?

1. In 1870, Robert’s family was enumerated near Green Pond, in Blake Township, Colleton County, South Carolina. In 1871, his Bank record states his residence as Combahee, near Green Pond. The other records located agree nearly universally that he resided in this area (see the post “Gathering More Information – Researching from Your Research Plan” for details). This could be a clue as to the location of the plantation where Robert and his family were enslaved. The following modern map from the South Carolina Department of Transportation depicts the general area of Robert’s residence (you can click on the map to view a larger version).

2. It cannot be determined whether Robert’s father Joseph was possessed by the same owner as Robert. Under South Carolina law, enslaved children were considered the property of the mother’s owner. The father may have lived on a separate plantation, with the parents being involved in a cross-plantation, or “abroad,” marriage. Unfortunately, there is no way to know this for certain yet, so we must assume that Robert did not live with his wife and children (and perhaps we will be pleasantly surprised). The census record and Bank record do provide the names of Robert’s mother and siblings: Sarah, b. ca. 1807; Robert, b. ca. 1835; and Betsy [“Scott”], b. ca. 1842. Another brother, “Dandy,” is noted as having been “sold away.” Not only does this prompt us to look for bills of sale once we have identified the owner, but this note also implies that Robert and Betsy were not “sold away.” So we should be able to locate Sarah, Robert, and Betsy living together.

The next step would of course be to take the evidence we have, including the indirect evidence, and attempt to identify Robert’s slave owner. To do this, we may have to complete a survey of records. This will be explored in a future article.

Slavery in the North

Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, the City of Brotherly Love, these are all things we associate with the city of Philadelphia.  I find it ironic that the purpose of my last stay in Philadelphia was to highlight that peculiar institution that was the opposite of all of those things. I commend Cliveden’s staff for taking the high road in this matter by engaging the public and seeking their input in how they should move forward in telling the stories of all the people who were involved. The Cliveden experience has given me a better understanding of how slavery existed in northern states.

Cliveden, Home of the Chew Family, Philadelphia, PA

Interior, Cliveden Historic Site, Philadelphia, PA

Cliveden Slave Quarters, Philadelphia, PA

Further Reading:

About the Slave Dwelling Project

Sleeping in a Relocated Slave Dwelling

Visitors at Roper Mountain Science Center, Greenville, SC

Thomas and Ben Riddle Outside of Slave Cabin

Thomas Riddle and Joe McGill Inside Slave Dwelling

Joe McGill at Roper Mountain Science Center, Greenville, SC

Slave Dwelling Project Visits Bellamy Mansion

Bellamy Mansion, Wilmington, NC

Sunday, May 15 found me spending the night at Bellamy Mansion in Wilmington, NC.  I arrived there around 4:45 pm which was good because the young lady working there did not have prior knowledge of my arrival.  This was very important because she was now aware that she should not turn on the alarm in the slave dwelling.  The context of the house reminded me a lot of the Aiken Rhett House in Charleston, SC.  One could easily be enamored by the architectural significance of the house and totally ignore the slavery that was associated with the structure if the former slave dwelling was not still located in back and interpreted.  The dwelling was two stories, made of brick, two bed rooms up top; downstairs contained a bedroom, kitchen and privy.

Joe McGill Stands Outside of Slave Quarters, Bellamy Mansion

When I got settled in to the slave dwelling, I took a leisurely stroll to the Wilmington waterfront.  I was amazed by its beauty and the vibrancy of the city.  There was a wealth of activities happening.  I had an abundance of restaurants from which to choose.  I finally decided on one that would allow me to sit outside and enjoy the nice weather and people watch as I ate my meal.

When I returned to the dwelling, I turned on my computer and was amazed to discover that I had wifi capability.  This capability gave me the opportunity to get caught up on blogging about some of the past stays that I had done.

I was later joined by Terry James, this would be his fifth stay. Terry and I were later joined by Braxton Williams the Bellamy Mansion employee who helped to arrange my stay.   Braxton gave us an overview of the history of the mansion.  He then mentioned that there was an African American Civil War reenactor in the area named Fred (Sweet Corn) Johnson.

Joe McGill Stands Outside of Slave Quarters, Bellamy Mansion

Terry and I got back to the dwelling around 11:30 pm.  Our conversation did not last very long before both of us went to sleep.  Terry slept in the slave shackles again for the third consecutive time.  Because of the urban setting, I was awakened throughout the night by the fire, police and emergency sirens.

Fred "Sweet Corn" Johnson and Joe McGill, Bellamy Mansion

The next morning Sweet Corn treated us to breakfast as he promised.  Terry and I then did a live interview for a local radio station.  Terry then had to go back to his hometown of Florence.  I was obligated to stay to give a lecture on the Slave Dwelling Project later that day.  The lecture was given in the parlor of the Bellamy Mansion to a standing room only crowd.

I went away from that experience knowing that I have to extend the Slave Dwelling Project deep into the heart of the state of North Carolina.  The network established at Bellamy will help me achieve that goal.  Stay tuned for more North Carolina slave dwelling stays in the year 2012 and beyond.