Blog Posts
As I sift through the old records of Liberty County, Georgia, looking for documents that name enslaved and free African Americans, sometimes stories, important details, research tips, etc, jump out at me. This is a place to document those. Even if you are not researching Liberty County, these may give you ideas that apply to your own research elsewhere.
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Putting FamilySearch’s Experimental Full-Text Search to the Test: A Case Study
Have you heard of FamilySearch’s experimental search feature that allows searching the full text of U.S. county land, probate and court records? It’s definitely a game-changer but how well is it working now in November 2024? I have a website where I put abstracts of Liberty County, Georgia, records naming enslaved people. I’ve gone page by page through through all the antebellum Liberty County deed, wills and estate inventory records available on FamilySearch, abstracting any
Child of USCT Soldier Quash Fripp: Rebecca Fripp Green West of Beaufort County, South Carolina (1874-1962)
NOTE: This research was done to try to distinguish this Rebecca West from a Rebecca West who was also from South Carolina but who lived in Savannah, Georgia. It is being posted to help anyone who might be researching her or her family. If you find mistakes, please let me know so I can correct them, as this is not my usual geographical research location. Summary Rebecca Fripp Green West was born in St. Helena
Rev. James Shannon and the People He Held in Slavery
My thanks to Kevin George, senior librarian, Center for Missouri Studies, The State Historical Society of Missouri, who kindly went well out of his way to assist me in finding the Shannon Family Bible and family letters. Reverend James Shannon, who immigrated from Ireland to Liberty County, Georgia, in 1820, was an influential clergyman, educator and college administrator in Georgia, Louisiana, Kentucky and Missouri. His early experiences in Liberty County, where he married a woman
Flanders Pray – A Community Leader
As the Civil War ground to an end, Liberty County, Georgia, was in disarray. It had been raided by Sherman’s Army, white families had fled their homes, and people held in slavery had been moved to other locations or left to fend for themselves. Many had scattered to follow the Army or find their own ways. Leaders — like young Flanders Pray, a formerly enslaved man — stepped up into the chaotic post-war environment to
Typical or Atypical? The Shave Family of Liberty County, Georgia
Shavetown is a small community in eastern Liberty County, on the road from the Midway Congregational Church to Fleming. Recently I was asked if I knew why it was called Shavetown, since my 2d great-grandmother was a Shave. That research question sent me on a deep dive into what was in many ways both a typical Liberty County antebellum planter family — and also a completely atypical family. John Shave was among the group of
Bryan County, Georgia, Deed Book E (1830-1840) – A Rich Record Set
As Tropical Storm Debby bears down on us here on the Georgia coast, I’ve finished up Bryan County Superior Court Deed Book E (1830-1840), which contained the names of 650+ enslaved people and a wealth of records for people searching for their enslaved ancestors. Normally I’m strict about only working on Liberty County records, but there is so much overlap with neighboring Bryan County, and the Bryan County probate records from before the Civil War
995 Names from Bryan County, Georgia
Bryan County, Georgia, neighbors Liberty County, where I normally research, and was partially formed from it in 1796. Although Bryan County’s probate records appeared to have all been lost in a fire in 1866, its antebellum deed records are a rich trove of records containing the names of enslaved people. I recently went through the deed records for 1796-1829 (deed books A-D) and have added references to 995 names of enslaved people to the TheyHadNames.net
No Matter How Much It Hurts
In 2017, when I realized that my 4th great-grandfather’s will had the names of 11 people held in slavery by him, I learned that of the 11 people, eight were a family. Sibby was their mother, and her seven children were Andrew, Toby, Toney, Frank, Elitha (Lizia, Litha), Sandy, and Clayton. After Emancipation, the ones who survived each took a different surname: Andrew Law, Toby Ashmore, Toney West, Frank Williams, and Sandy Maybank. Elitha died
The Simple Dignity of a Deed Record
In May 1871, Charlotte Stevens gave her daughter Harriet Harris a “brindled heifer and a black calf.” Why does this deed record matter? Why did it make me cry? Charlotte Stevens was a 76-year-old Black woman in poor health living with her presumable daughter, Charlotte Walthour, in Liberty County, Georgia . Only six years earlier, she herself was considered property. Six years earlier, her daughters were property because they were HER daughters, the children of
Binah McCollough and Eugene Bacon
I’m still reading through post Civil War deed records to find the ones involving African Americans. I keep running across interesting records and taking detours to research them so it’s taking longer than it should. Today’s interesting record: In 1871, Eugene Bacon, a never-married former slaveowner, made over a plot of land to Binah McCollough, who had probably been held in slavery by Bacon, in return for her services as a domestic for the rest