Francis Pellicer had six heirs to his estate. In his will he divided his estate between his children. Dividing one's property up in a will was very common in the antebellum south. Most plantation owners, if not all, wrote up some sort of will to divide their estate up so their children and widow could have some type of inheritance. Slaves and property, such as land, were two types of things...
Zephaniah Kingsley was a plantation owner on Fort George Island, now Jacksonville, FL. In his "Treatise of Patriarchal, or Co-operative System of Society", Kingsley spoke of the use of slaves in southern states as the only answer to agricultural production because the white people of the region were not created to work within the area. He used the argument...
”Patriarchy is a system where males are the head of the family and have all the rights of decision-making,”a system that has persisted for many years in American History. Patriarchy was not only used in government bodies, but it was also used in determining a slave child’s fate. In A Treatise on the Patriarchal or Co-Operative System of Society a humble servant by the name of Z. Kingsley...
During the early nineteenth century, women became the center of the family—nurturing and educating their children. Catharine E. Beecher’s essay, Suggestions Respecting Improvements in Education, became relevant as she characterized a woman’s role as the teacher and caretaker of the household. In her essay, she connected a woman’s domestic life with education, and provided...
Moses Austin had been dead nine years when his final move came about. The owners of the land where Austin and his wife were buried were apparently quite anxious to have their bodies moved off of the property, for reasons unknown today. Their son, Stephen Austin requested to a certain Bishop Rosatti (through his brother-in-law) that they be placed in a Catholic burying ground. It was noted to the...
In late December of 1827, Sally Champs Carter, living in Richmond at the time, wrote home to her mother who was living in Albemarle County (approximately sixty miles west of Richmond). Sally described her living situation in the city, telling her mother that she participated in the gaieties of the city, however more moderately and prudently than she had in her first year residing there, as some...
The New Map of Virginia went on sale in the capitol city of Richmond on August 3, 1827. The Legislature of Virginia authorized the sale of only 250 maps, and required citizens of Virginia to submit an application in order to obtain a copy. The Richmond Enquirer claimed that the map reflects the highest credit on the science and skill of the persons immediately concerned in its...
On Friday, August 20, 1830, the editor of the Eastern Argus printed some of the Indian Removal Act's guidelines and stipulations for all citizens to read and then judge whether this law was fair to Indian nations, especially the Penobscot Indians of Maine. Land bought and sold by the Penobscot caught the eye of the State legislature. The state saw a way to intervene in tribal affairs...
In the years prior to the Civil War, upper-class families in the South lived the good life. The Randolphs of Richmond were one such family. In 1830, William Randolph and his clan maintained several houses and a handful of slaves across the state, living prosperously in the antebellum Virginia. Judging by records left behind, Randolph provided very well for his family, feeding, clothing, and educating...
On September 8, 1830, William Russell spoke to a crowd of educators and citizens of Norfolk gathered together for the founding of an Association of Teachers in Norfolk County. His speech, directed at the educators, addressed the need for a unified body of teachers in the county which would guide the next generation of Americans. It included discussions on nine different disciplines intended to foster...