NELSON COUNTY, VIRGINIA
LARGEST SLAVEHOLDERS FROM 1860 SLAVE CENSUS SCHEDULES
and
SURNAME MATCHES FOR AFRICAN AMERICANS ON 1870 CENSUS
Transcribed by Tom Blake, July 2003
PURPOSE. Published information giving names of slaveholders and numbers of slaves held is almost non-existent. It is possible to locate an ancestor on a U.S. census for 1860 or earlier and not realize that ancestor was also listed as a slaveholder on the slave schedules, because published indexes almost always do not include the slave census. 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. The actual number of slaveholders may be slightly lower because some large holders held slaves in more than one County and would have been counted in each County. Excluding slaves, the 1860 U.S. population was 27,167,529, with about 1 in 70 being a slaveholder. It is estimated by this transcriber that in 1860, slaveholders of 200 or more slaves, while constituting less than 1 % of the total number of U.S. slaveholders, or 1 out of 7,000 free persons, held 20-30% of the total number of slaves in the U.S. The process of publication of slaveholder names beginning with the largest holders will enable naming of the holders of the most slaves with the least amount of transcription work. Surname matching of slaveholders with 1870 African Americans is intended merely as suggesting another possibility for further research by those seeking to make connections between slaves and holders.
SOURCES. The 1860 U.S. Census Slave Schedules for Nelson County, Virginia (NARA microfilm series M653, Roll 1394) reportedly includes a total of 6,238 slaves. This transcription includes 83 slaveholders who held 20 or more slaves in Nelson County, accounting for 3,294 slaves, or about 53% of the County total. The rest of the slaves in the County were held by a total of 471 slaveholders, and those slaveholders have not been included here. Due to variable film quality, handwriting interpretation questions and inconsistent counting and page numbering methods used by the census enumerators, interested researchers should view the source film personally to verify or modify the information in this transcription for their own purposes. Census data for 1860 was obtained from the Historical United States Census Data Browser, which is a very detailed, searchable and highly recommended database that can found at http://fisher.lib.virginia.edu/census/ . Census data on African Americans in the 1870 census was obtained using Heritage Quest’s CD “African-Americans in the 1870 U.S. Federal Census”, available through Heritage Quest at http://www.heritagequest.com/ .
FORMAT. This transcription lists the names of those largest slaveholders in the Nelson County, the number of slaves they held in the County and the first page number on which they were listed. No local districts were shown on the enumeration. The page numbers used are the numbers rubber stamped in the upper right corner of every other page of the census, with the intervening pages being reported here with a B added to the number of the preceding page. Following the holder list is a separate list of the surnames of the holders with information on numbers of African Americans on the 1870 census who were enumerated with the same surname.
TERMINOLOGY. Though the census schedules speak in terms of “slave owners”, the transcriber has chosen to use the term “slaveholder” rather than “slave owner”, so that questions of justice and legality of claims of ownership need not be addressed in this transcription. Racially related terms such as African American, black, mulatto and colored are used as in the source or at the time of the source, with African American being used otherwise.
PLANTATION NAMES. Plantation names were not shown on the census. Using plantation names to locate ancestors can be difficult because the name of a plantation may have been changed through the years and because the sizeable number of large farms must have resulted in lots of duplication of plantation names. In Virginia in 1860 there were 641 farms of 1,000 acres or more, the largest size category enumerated in the census, and another 2,882 farms of 500-999 acres. Linking names of plantations in this County with the names of the large holders on this list is beyond the scope of this transcription.
FORMER SLAVES. The 1860 U.S. Census was the last U.S. census showing slaves and slaveholders. Slaves were enumerated in 1860 without giving their names, only their sex and age and indication of any handicaps, such as deaf or blind Slaves 100 years of age or older were supposed to be named on the 1860 slave schedule, but there were only 1,570 slaves of such age enumerated, out of a total of 3,950,546 slaves, and the transcriber, though not specifically looking for such named slaves, did not notice any such information while doing this transcription. Freed slaves, if listed in the next census, in 1870, would have been reported with their full name, including surname. Some of these former slaves may have been using the surname of their 1860 slaveholder at the time of the 1870 census and they may have still been living in the same State or County. Before presuming an African American was a slave on the 1860 census, the free census for 1860 should be checked, as almost 11% of African Americans were enumerated as free in 1860, with about half of those living in the southern States. Estimates of the number of former slaves who used the surname of a former owner in 1870, vary widely and from region to region. If an African American ancestor with one of these surnames is found on the 1870 census, then making the link to finding that ancestor as a slave requires advanced research techniques involving all obtainable records of the holder.
MIGRATION OF FORMER SLAVES: According to U.S. Census data, the 1860 Nelson County population included 6,649 whites, 128 “free colored” and 6,238 slaves. By the 1870 census, the white population had increased about 14% to 7,586, while the “colored” population stayed about the same at 6,312. (As a side note, by 1960, 100 years later, the County was listed as having 9,197 whites, about a 38% increase, while the 1960 total of 3,554 “Negroes”was only about 44% of what the colored population had been 100 years before.) In comparing census data for different years, the transcriber was not aware of any relevant changes to County boundaries.
Where did the freed slaves go if they did not stay in the same County? Between 1860 and 1870, the Virginia colored population declined by about 36,000, to approximately 513,000, a 6.5% decrease. Two Virginia Counties that showed a significant increase in colored population between 1860 and 1870 were Henrico, with an increase of over 7,000, and Norfolk, with an increase of over 10,000. States that saw significant increases in colored population during that time, and were therefore possible places of relocation for colored persons from Nelson County, included the following: Georgia, up 80,000 (17%); Texas, up 70,000 (38%); Alabama, up 37,000 (8%); Florida, up 29,000 (46%); North Carolina, up 38,000 (8%); Ohio, up 26,000 (70%); Indiana, up 25,000 (127%); and Kansas up from 265 to 17,000 (6,400%).
SLAVEHOLDER LIST:
BOYD, Henry C., 30 slaves, page 160B
CABELL, Frederick M., 60 slaves, page 180
CABELL, Geo. W., 26 slaves, page 179B
CABELL, Mary W., 42 slaves, page 187
CABELL, Mays?, 32 slaves, page 183B
CABELL, N. Francis, 55 slaves, page 195
CABELL, Wm. D., 24 slaves, page 184
CALLOWAY, Eliza, 24 slaves, page 185B
CHEATWOOD, Sally W., 33 slaves, page 182B
CLAIBORNE, Chas. B., 30 slaves, page 163
CLAIBORNE, Jane M., 45 slaves, page 161B
CLARKSON, Nelson C., 52 slaves, page 157
COFFEY, Peter C., 27 slaves, page 157B
COLEMAN, Hawes N., 29 slaves, page 175
COLEMAN, Hawes N. Sr., 96 slaves, page 176
COLEMAN, Jno. J. Sr., 78 slaves, page 175B
COLES, John B., 27 slaves, page 193
CREWS, John, 37 slaves, page 182B
DILLARD, James S., 67 slaves, page 166
ELSOM, William, 20 slaves, page 188B
EUBANK, Royal H., 27 slaves, page 179B
FITZPATRICK, Alexr., 25 slaves, page 173B
GOODWIN, William H., 36 slaves, page 157B
GORDON, William, 45 slaves, page 166B
GRAVES, Nancy, 25 slaves, page 170B
HARRIS, Albert W., 64 slaves, page 173B
HARRIS, James M., 30 slaves, page 191B
HARRIS, Jos. L., 23 slaves, page 172B
HARRIS, Schuyler G., 36 slaves, page 190B
HARRIS, William W., 53 slaves, page 173
HARRIS, William H., 23 slaves, page 194
HARRIS, William M., 40 slaves, page 177
HARTSOOK & LEWIS, 26 slaves, page 185B
HILL, John A., 20 slaves, page 193
HILL, Martha, 34 slaves, page 188
HORSLEY, Mary M., 26 slaves, page 166
HORSLEY, Paul J. M., 21 slaves, page 180B
HUBBARD, R. T., 101 slaves, page 167
HUGHES, James B. Est., 27 slaves, page 174
JOHNSON, Absalam, 26 slaves, page 187
JONES, George, 23 slaves, page 161
JONES, Susan, 23 slaves, page 160
JORDAN, William C., 34 slaves, page 181
LEWIS (see Hartsook & Lewis)
LEWIS, Zazy? R., 64 slaves, page 186B
LONDON, Jno. J. Est., 54 slaves, page 183B
LORING, William S., 35 slaves, page 168
MARTIN, Gamel? W., 57 slaves, page 177B
MARTIN, Hudson, 24 slaves, page 174B
MARTIN, Nicholas L., 25 slaves, page 178
MASSEY, Patrick C., 34 slaves, page 158
MASSIE, Thomas, 72 slaves, page 160B
MASSIE, Wm., 154 slaves, page 162
MCCLELLAND, James R., 28 slaves, page 163
MOSELY, Alexander, 56 slaves, page 186
MOSELY, Alfred D., 26 slaves, page 186
MOSELY, John W., 21 slaves, page 184
NELSON, Thos. F., 32 slaves, page 165
PAMPLIN, Jas.? L. Est., 21 slaves, page 163
PAMPLIN, John H., 30 slaves, page 169B
PARRISH, Elizabeth, 25 slaves, page 174
PAYNE, William A., 40 slaves, page 181B
PETERS, Frederick G., 33 slaves, page 180
POWELL, eonard, 38 slaves, page 184B
RIVES, Margaret, 43 slaves, page 168B
RIVES, R. Of Albemarle, owner, F. N. Farrar overseer, 24 slaves, page 171B
RIVES, Robert of Albemarle, owner, Moses Philips overseer, 28 slaves, page 172
RIVES, William C.?, 71 slaves, page 161B
ROBERTS, Henry H., 31 slaves, page 191
ROBERTSON, Elizabeth, 23 slaves, page 189
SHELTON, John M., 27 slaves, page 194
SHELTON, Jos. H., 32 slaves, page 158B
SHEPHERD, Elizabeth F., 30 slaves, page 171B
SHEPHERD, Wm. P., 22 slaves, page 190
SHIPMAN, Miles T., 30 slaves, page 172
SMITH, Joel, 31 slaves, page 192B
SMITH, Wilson C., 27 slaves, page 178B
SNEAD, Stapleton C., 41 slaves, page 167B
TOMPKINS, William, 24 slaves, page 168B
TURNER, Lemuel, 116 slaves, page 169
WILBOURNE, Richard S., 21 slaves, page 187B
WILLS, Elizabeth, 23 slaves, page 160B
WOODS, James, 133 slaves, page 192
WOODS, Samuel, 27 slaves, page 176B
SURNAME MATCHES AMONG AFRICAN AMERICANS ON 1870 CENSUS:
(exact surname spellings only are reported, no spelling variations or soundex)
SURNAME, # in US, in State, in County, born in State, born and living in State, born in State and living in County)
BOYD, 1905, 213, 0, 387, 203, 0
CABELL, 99, 56, 9, 65, 56, 9
CALLOWAY, 227, 75, 1, 95, 74, 1
CHEATWOOD, 10, 10, 0, 10, 10, 0
CLAIBORNE, 195, 109, 2, 128, 108, 2
CLARKSON, 156, 13, 3, 25, 12, 3
COFFEY, 89, 3, 3, 6, 3, 3
COLEMAN, 4329, 932, 11, 1515, 922, 11
COLES, 387, 270, 12, 292, 267, 12
CREWS, 221, 67, 0, 77, 65, 0
DILLARD, 568, 186, 6, 228, 179, 6
ELSOM, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0
EUBANK, 80, 38, 0, 43, 38, 0
FITZPATRICK, 212, 2, 1, 28, 2, 1
GOODWIN, 778, 87, 1, 160, 86, 1
GORDON, 1952, 281, 0, 511, 266, 0
GRAVES, 1232, 242, 0, 327, 234, 0
HARRIS, 11315, 1877, 39, 2995, 1847, 39
HARTSOOK, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0
HILL, 6675, 1025, 21, 1627, 1007, 21
HORSLEY, 35, 19, 10, 19, 19, 10
HUBBARD, 708, 154, 1, 216, 154, 1
HUGHES, 1641, 220, 9, 376, 217, 9
JOHNSON, 33402, 4458, 61, 7797, 4373, 61
JONES, 27193, 3894, 26, 6648, 3807, 26
JORDAN, 2359, 301, 10, 497, 281, 10
LEWIS, 8707, 1513, 11, 2588, 1483, 11
LONDON, 184, 10, 1, 19, 10, 1
LORING, 34, 15, 15, 17, 15, 15
MARTIN, 5318, 436, 12, 820, 429, 12
MASSEY, 509, 41, 1, 89, 41, 1
MASSIE, 100, 57, 7, 60, 57, 7
MCCLELLAND, 50, 0, 0, 2, 0, 0
MOSELY, 620, 79, 1, 153, 79, 1
NELSON, 3371, 377, 4, 742, 371, 4
PAMPLIN, 17, 3, 0, 4, 3, 0
PARRISH, 185, 56, 4, 62, 56, 4
PAYNE, 1603, 397, 12, 609, 395, 12
PETERS, 936, 102, 11, 183, 101, 11
POWELL, 2420, 278, 8, 481, 272, 8
RIVES, 166, 78, 1, 86, 78, 1
ROBERTS, 3309, 304, 5, 543, 294, 5
ROBERTSON, 2878, 543, 3, 832, 535, 3
SHELTON, 875, 246, 15, 362, 243, 15
SHEPHERD, 591, 29, 0, 196, 128, 0
SHIPMAN, 62, 2, 2, 4, 2, 2
SMITH, 29087, 3499, 19, 6339, 3398, 18
SNEAD, 155, 66, 0, 75, 65, 0
TOMPKINS, 316, 59, 0, 92, 59, 0
TURNER, 5742, 851, 17, 1503, 831, 17
WILBOURNE, 2, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0
WILLS, 409, 67, 6, 104, 66, 6
WOODS, 20226, 95, 16, 295, 89, 16
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