Finding Elisha James’ Great-Grandparents in Slavery

Using the knowledge that most freed people in Liberty County did not take the surname of their last enslaver, and that many adopted a surname that may have come from an early enslaver of their family, it was possible to find the enslaved great-grandparents of Elisha James, who lived in Liberty County in the latter part of the 19th century. His great-grandparents Will and Nancy, and his grandfather Shuel Holmes, were held in slavery by James Holmes, who died around 1826. To pay Holmes’ debts, they were seized by the Bank of Darien, which sold them to Charlton Hines, who kept them in slavery until his death in 1864. They were likely known informally by the surname Holmes throughout their lives. To follow the process of recovering their names for their descendants, see: https://theyhadnames.net/2023/05/28/finding-elisha-james-great-grandparents/.