common last names for slaves in the 1800swandsworth parking permit zones

"Injurious Names: Naming, Disavowal, and Recuperation in Contexts of Slavery and Emancipation." In The Anthropology of Names and Naming. Ive taken back reclaimed some of that lost memory, especially that of my enslaved ancestors. In the 1930s, ex-slave Martin Jackson explained why he chose his last name after Emancipation: The master's name was usually adopted by a slave after he was set free. This lively Old Testament nature name (belonging to one of the three beautiful daughters of Job) may be missing from the current US Top 1000 list, but it ranks highly here on Nameberry making it one to watch! -William Faulkner, "Call it a clan, call it a network, all it a tribe, call it a family. Miracle, (Old English and Latin Origin) Derived from the first name Mauritius meaning "dark". I have been a researcher, writer, and lecturer for over twenty-five years. Practices undoubtedly varied, and different archival sources may yield different conclusions. 1412 S. Spoede Rd., St. Louis, MO 63131-2557. please contact the History and Genealogy Department. Edited by Gabriele vom Bruck and Barbara Bodenhorn, 178-199. He was sold to my master William Orr and he always went by the name Edward Orr after that.. Lastly,emancipation itself often provoked many to choose new surnames, one of the few actual freedoms freedmen had. I took the name of Jackson for the reason that I preferred to go by my fathers name, rather than the name of my last owner.. Data from the 2010 Census tells a different story. Runaway ads illustrate how many slaveholders knew the surnames of their slaves. Wood were recorded as slave. Tags: African American Names, African American Surnames, African Names, Black Surnames, Last Slave Owner, Plantation Owners, plantation slavery, Slave Family, Slave Naming Patterns, slave trade. Were there any famous slaves? Slaveholders often renamed newly acquired slaves; but self-naming by slaves, which also occurred, is likely to be underreported in the records, which were mainly created by and for slaveholders. Clark is a common surname of Anglo-Scottish origin. In fact, the previous enslaver widow sold most of the slaves. A. The last U.S.census slave schedules were enumerated by County in 1860 and included 393,975 named persons holding 3,950,546 unnamed slaves, or an average of about ten slaves per holder. Corbin Corbin has an Old English origin. Since those are the countries from which many of America's original settlers came, it's hardly surprising. I worked for him as nurse for his children, and my full and correct name was OCTAVIA, but the family could not catch on to that long name and called me LOTTIE for short. A small number of creoles in Louisiana also acquired surnames derived from ethnic identities in Senegal. African Americans tended to use surnames associated with their own families instead of the last slave owner. Free black slave holders could be found at one time or . Phone: 314-994-3300, Hours & Locations Comments/Suggestions314-994-3300, Copyright 2023. Q. Following the emancipation of approximately 360,000 enslaved people in North Carolina, changes in African American names became indicative of a new value system and sense of self-identity among freedpeople. The first published African-American poet & author Phillis Wheatley was born in West Africa. I hope this post also helps us to think about how the surnames former slaves had were connected to their experiences in slavery. -Unknown, "Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city;)" Seating is limited. This happened mostly on large plantations where several individuals had the same first names and a surname was used to distinguish them from one another. Have you visited the Whitney Plantation yet? common last names for slaves in the 1800s. It helps me to understand the complexity of surname variation I have found in researching the ancestral patterns of an African-American cemetery in my local area. Tell me the name you were called before you met Phillip Fry? Daniel Odgen, Magic, Witchcraft, and Ghosts In The Greek and Roman Worlds, p. 119, Laurence Vidal, Los Amantes de Granada, Ed. Who called you by that name and where was it done? You should give a TED talk! One given name the childs family selected and kept secret and one the child was known by given by the slave owner. Q. I have gotten so many requests over the years from those who couldn't make the live webinars so I hope you enjoy this new feature. Smithsonian Institution. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. ", "Call it a clan, call it a network, all it a tribe, call it a family. Many enslaved people were allowed to keep their original African names or names assigned them elsewhere (as reflected by the frequency of Spanish and Portuguese names among the first generation of enslaved people in the Carolinas.) On all subsequent census records, he is listed as John Lewis. Just makes me sad for the human spirit that anyone, let alone hundreds of thousands of people could participate in it. Copeland This last name comes from Old Norse origin. I want.to.know.where we (who are.descendants.of.freed.people.who.got sent.back.to Sierra Leone.from.maybe Nova Scotia.) Enslaved women were raped, creating children with white fathers who in most cases did not claim them and even sold them away. I would also recommend Elizabeth Shown Mills various case studies on enslaved people in Louisiana, which you can find at her website at https://www.historicpathways.com/articles.html. And please do share posts that interest you. . It comes from the same Greek root as 'ambrosia', the food of the gods, said to confer immortality. 1. I hope you dont mind my sharing those posts. In fact, it's not even past." Start your year off with tips and strategies that can help you in the new year & beyond. In 1800, Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman were able to escape their terrible life of enslavement and were able to help other slaves trapped in a world of forced labour and grant them freedom once again due to the Underground Railroads that helped him, his partner Anna Murray Douglas and many other fugitives sneak away from the horrible Available from https://nmaahc.si.edu/object/nmaahc_2014.174.8?destination=/explore/collection/search%3Fedan_q%3Denslaved%26edan_fq%255B0%255D%3Dobject_type%253A%2522Photographs%2522 (accessed May 6, 2022). 1. Register now! Robyn. Surely the hundreds of black Culbert people living today cannot all be connected to those three cases. Many Welsh surnames follow this pattern, with Jones (from 'John's son) being the most common. Both are excellent researchers and historians. On the U.S. Federal census that year, Wesley's birthplace was recorded as Alabama, the same as his father, and his mother's birthplace was South Carolina . For example, Roll, Jordan,Roll has an entire chapter called The Naming of Cats, discussing slave names and The Slave Community has a very good chapter called The Slave Family. Two other books I like are Been In The Storm So Long by Leon Litwick (pgs 247-248)and Joining PLaces: Slave Neighborhoods in the Old South by Anthony Kaye. Facing History & Ourselves, "Changing Names," last updated May 12, 2020. Q. Peneus saved Daphne from Apollos romantic obsessions by transforming her into a laurel tree. by John C. Inscoe, 2006; Revised May 2022 by NC Government & Heritage Library. The Washingtons of Wessyngton Plantation: Stories of My Familys Journey to Freedom, A Thank You Letter from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, Plantation Records Key Link to African American Past . . The 2000 U.S. Census counted 163,036 people with the surname Washington. And again, as a white Southerner whose ancesters were NOT slaveowners, your blog is helping me to understand the real and horrible legacy of the peculiar institution. Born in Union County, South Carolina, he was sold to his last enslaver in 1858 and then brought to Mississippi. Of the 972 names of male Slaves recorded between 1619 and 1799 the leading ones were Jack, Tom, Harry, Sam, Will, Caesar, Dick, John, Robin, Frank, Charles, Joe and Prince. 782 Lists of Slave owners with names of slaves Tamme, 766 Tom, 766 West, 766 Will, 766 Barker, Nathaniel Harry, 591, 700, 746, 767 Barkley, Barbary Grace, 651 My father would be 105 if he were alive. One thing we should keep in mind is that the practice of referring to enslaved people by a given name only was a part of the attempt of the system of slavery to dehumanize them..to other them. Women tended to have two names, and slaves often just had one. And this example from another pension file shows how even the given name of this enslaved woman was held under little regard: Testimony of Mollie Russell (widow of Phillip Fry), September 19, 1911: Q. Through DNA matches, I believe I have recently found a brother of my mothers great grandfather. Well, Ive gone off on a tangent again;) But thank you again for writing and thank you for the cemetery work (especially trying to include African-Americans you are doing that will be of benefit to others. Former slaves also interchanged surnames on census records. Although enslavers often assigned names to newly acquired enslaved peoplethat were whimsical, satirical, or condescending in intent, the frequent appearance of classical names-Venus, Cato, Hercules, Bacchus, Pompey-reflect enslavers' own educations and libraries. Surnames. Pinckney, Randolph, and Rutledgeappear only incidentally among any list of modern Black peoples names. 20 August 2022, 1-3:30 pm [PAST EVENT], Eastern Standard Time: Join me for a two-hour lecture and workshop on Using Deed Records. Enslaved people suffered constant sale, where children were frequently torn away from parents at young ages and spouses were often separated. No, I dont know to whom she belonged before she was brought from Virginia to Kentucky. Hi Susan, The poster on each page *provides the link to the handout* for that lecture, so be sure to copy it. As enslavement continued through the 1800s, African American culture included naming practices that were national in scope by the time of emancipation, and intimately related to the slave trade. I hope youll sign up to receive my postsif you do, youll get a free PDF with some of my favorite tips! There has been much debate among scholars, historians and genealogists whether enslaved African Americans used the surnames of their last owners, previous owners, or a surname that had no connection to slavery. The following documents are excerpts from government records in which Dick Barnett and Mollie (Smith) Russell explain when and why they changed their names. It can be a difficult path, but just might be reachable. Remember me. Choose the best name for your child. The given name Athena was derived from the city name Athens, which is of uncertain origins. Hi Rodney, Numerous historical sources confirm that enslaved people had surnames that they used among themselves and in many cases were known by their slaveholder. There are 15 tables, blank and editable for you to populate, as well as samples of using each. The Language of Names. James: (M) (Latin origin) means "heel" or "supplanter". 1. Newly emancipated slaves also frequently chose new first names, discarding those associated with slavery. If you can identify your ancestor's master, this source will prove of tremendous value to your research. Students consider how US history books, films, and other works of popular culture have misrepresented the history of the Reconstruction era. Please submit permission requests for other use directly to the publisher. It means 'raven'. When I was born my mother was known as Phillis Smith and I took the name of Smith too. In instances where slaves were sold from their families and they did not retain their previous owners surnames, they named their children for parents, sisters and brothers to keep a connection with their families. Gerald, however, is a Germanic name meaning ruler) 2. This is such a well-written and informative post one that I know will open many eyes to the complexity of slave surnames, as well as many other aspects of the lives of the enslaved. Besides the Morrows, whom else did you live with in Louisville? In 1911, Barnett and Fry's widow, Mollie, both applied for pensions from the government. The practice was common until its abolition in 1865 with the end of the Civil War and the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution.. For the time being, we are using this as the Slavery Plantation umbrella or portal. She was a Murphy.. Search 31 million family names. It was after emancipation on that I went back to work for Col. Morrow and where I got the name Lottie, as already explained. -Unknown, "If you can't get rid of the skeleton in your closet, you might as well make it dance!" Last updated: November 1, 2003 "Dwelling No." Prior to the emancipation of the American slaves in 1863, those African-Americans held in bondage had usually just one or two given names. In small communities when slaves were sold, they were often bought by someone in the area. She was the great patroness-goddess of the city of Athens. This topic interests me greatly and Id like to do more research. He identified father, mother and siblings in a Freedmans bank deposit in 1873, when he was already in New York City. Names from the Bible were another common practice, for given and surnames. The existence of those surnames in the area would help to verify, but also, you are fortunate to have the important oral history of that name change in the first place, since so many of us dont. Unfortunately, I am not knowledgeable enough about African and Caribbean research in the areas you name. 5. But, my mtdna also said I share ancestry with the Kru people of Liberia and the Mende from Sierra Leonne! In Greek mythology, Daphne was the nymph daughter of Peneus, a river god. The most common of 603 names of female Slaves were Bet, Mary, Jane, Hanna, Betty, Sarah, Phillis, Nan, Peg, and Sary. A Wessyngton slave named Bill who was the plantations blacksmith was known as Billy the Smith during slavery. The, For descendants, I would add the substantial emotional impact of seeing an ancestor's name attached to a dollar value, or being valued in a list with silverware and cattle. Join my mailing list below to learn about upcoming webinars. Private names used in the quarters included Abah, Bilah, Comba, Dibb, Juba, Kauchee, Mima, and Sena. Can you steer me in the right direction? But I tell you, trying to document that all those names refer to the same person is hard, hard work! Genealogy becomes so much more than just names and dates, it really feels like a true passion indeed. Allard. Alfred Francis Russell (1817-1884), 10th President of Liberia. Thanks for this very thoughtful article. 1760-1810 Persons declared to be "white by law" or "free" (part 1), (part 2) at Jamaican Family Search Genealogy Research Library. Emphasizes the giving and repeated use of names as a performative act of domination. However, research byLisa D. Cook and colleagueshas revealed evidence of racialized names from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The name James has been a popular Victorian male names in the 1800s. To date there are no book-length studies covering the naming of slaves across the Anglophone Atlantic, but Burton 1999 and Kaplan and Bernays 1997 provide useful entry-level discussions for the Caribbean and mainland United States, respectively. Anthropologist Meyer Fortes's observation that the naming practices of any society "epitomize personal experiences, historical happenings, attitudes to life, and cultural ideas and values" holds particularly true for African American enslaved people. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one" Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. I just cannot imagine (thankfully) the idea of my name being changed with every new owner, with not having any idea of what my parents surnames were, of having a white father but not being able to have a father/child relationship with himand all the other myriad of circumstances that enslaved people faced. Kindest regards, A. Some of these individuals probably lived through the Civil War to become named citizens in Ashley County, Arkansas and may have taken the last name of Hollaway/Holaway or Terry/Tery. Rank. Former slaves often made up surnames based on their occupations. Middle Tennessee, where tobacco, cattle, and grain became the favored crops, held the . Ref. ", "Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city;)", "Where does the family start? All of them are alive in this moment. This reading contains quoted text not authored by Facing History & Ourselves. Another common way of distinguishing people would be 'son of', for example Johnson (son of John), Richardson, Wilson, Harrison etc. Many took the surname of famous or celebrated people; such as Lincoln, Grant, and Washington was very popular. Thanks for commenting and continued luck in your research, Former slaves often made up surnames based on their occupations. This phenomena makes research very complicated when you dont know the mothers surname. Lori Wilson Picks Up Baton to Remove Slavery Language From Californias Constitution, New Assembly Bill Would Ban Use of Police Canines for Arrests, Crowd Control, Proudly powered by Newspack by Automattic. It is these single names that have been most often studied. By country & year of birth. You can use the links below to view more common surnames. Mining the Census: Are You Finding Every Clue? Edmon S. Conner Recalls About His Career", "Law and the Cultural Production of Race and Racialized Systems of Oppression", "Runaway Slaves and Servants in Colonial Virginia", Slavery in the Courtroom: An Annotated Bibliography of American Cases, "Soldier of Furtune: John Smith before Jamestown", "YSTUMLLYN, JOHN ('Jack Black') (d. 1786), gardener and land steward | Dictionary of Welsh Biography", "Strong, Jonathan (c. 17471773), de facto freed slave", "Juan Francisco Manzano | Slave Narratives | The MoAD Salon | MoAD - Museum of the African Diaspora", "Relatos sobre la India Juliana. Many names, whether African derived or English, refer to birth circumstances, including both the ubiquitous day-names, which derive from the West African Akan-Twi language group, and others such as birth order and time of birth (e.g., day of the week, month, or season). Robinson: A patronymic of the name Robin. I was only three years old when she died. He decided that he didnt want to be known as Cap Sherrod and that he would vote and marry under his choice of names. My great great grandfather in Mississippi took the surname of the previous SC enslaver, whose widow sold him away. Thomas mother, younger brothers and sisters remained with the Black family. Most did not want to use their former owners surname, even through about 20% did use the slave owners name. In small communities where census takers and county officials knew African Americans personally and their previous owners, they often recorded the former slaves with the surnames of their last owners. They ran away, fought back, feigned illness, destroyed tools, and clung to their families. Index by slave owner's name | Surname unknown or illegible. Some scholars of slavery have come to view the names and naming of enslaved people as agauge of many aspects oflife and culture during enslavement and of howcustoms changed over time. . Thus, the patronymic surname can be effectively regarded as "keeper of the peace." This phenomenon is not unheard of with African American surnames. I was only three years old when she died. 2. . 6. Tell me the name you were called before you met Phillip Fry? When Wessyngtons owner George A. Washington married Margaret Lewis in 1849 her father gave the couple twenty-nine slaves. Some of the most common or popular last names in the 1800s included Robinson, Clark, and Smith. They called me "OCK". I am an engineer by day, but my true passion lies in genealogy. Dick Lewis Barnett and Phillip Fry were African American veterans of the Union Army during the Civil War. This article is from the Encyclopedia of North Carolina edited by William S. Powell. This is true in some cases but not all. They cut it off from OCTAVIA. The second hour is hands-on, and I want you to bring the deeds you've found along with your questions. You can read about this in the following two posts on my blog. One former slave Bill Scott from Wessyngton reported in his pension application for military service that when he enlisted in the Union Army officials put down his surname as Washington. This happened mostly on large plantations where several individuals had the same first names and a surname was used to distinguish them from one another. Robyn. Im very familiar with the work of Gwendolyn Hall and Elizabeth Shown Mills.

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