Tag Archives: slavery

23 April 1862: “The Negroes are getting off from here in crowds”

Item description: Letter from William C. Wood to his brother, Edward Wood, reporting on the ambiguous accounts of the Battle of South Mills in Camden County, N.C., and warning him to “watch his boats” since others in the area had … Continue reading

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24 March 1862: “$25 REWARD WILL BE PAID FOR the apprehension or delivery of a mulatto boy belonging to my mother.”

Item description: 24 March 1862 advertisement placed by Raleigh druggist Peter F. Pescud on behalf of his mother, Susan Brooke Pescud, offering a $25 reward for a runaway slave, printed in the 1 April 1862 issue of the Register (Raleigh, … Continue reading

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21 March 1862: You wrote to me to know if I wanted any thing to write for it I do not want any thing but a pair of shoes

Item Description:  Letter of 21 March 1862, from Richard Godwin Joyner to his mother, Julia Joyner.  This brief and slight letter home is meant to reassure his family that all was well and to request a better pair of shoes. … Continue reading

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22 October 1861: “What an unhappy scamp is Peter – but pray dont be too hard on poor Laura – she was young & a fool”

Item description: Letter, 22 October 1861, from Jane Petigru North, Badwell Plantation, Abbeville, South Carolina, to her daughter, Jane Caroline “Carey” North Pettigrew, Bonarva Plantation, Tyrrell County, N.C. The letter briefly mentions Peter, quite possibly the slave who had fathered a … Continue reading

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19 October 1861: “I remain your faithful obedient an humble slave, Jerry Hooper”

Item description: Letter, 19 October 1861, from Jerry Hooper to John DeBerniere Hooper. Jerry Hooper was a slave who belonged to John DeBerniere Hooper (1811-1886), a professor at the University of North Carolina (1836-1848 and 1875-1885), and at a time … Continue reading

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15 October 1861: “they have been threatened with quite a formidable insurrection in Adams County, near Natchez, 40 miles from here. 27 have been hung.”

Item description: Letter, 15 October 1861, from Sophia Hughes Hunt, of Woodville, Mississippi, to her sister, Jennie Hughes, of Cedar Grove, South Carolina. The letter describes the efforts of relief societies to provide warm winter clothing for Confederate soldiers, mentions … Continue reading

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8 October 1861: “Please say to your brother that I sent servant boy Peter in charge of Mr. Houghton from Edenton. Ask him to let me know if he went safe.”

Item description: Letter, 8 October 1861, from D.G. Cowand to William S. Pettigrew. Cowand’s detailed letter gives his opinions on the defense of eastern North Carolina, especially in the wake of the Battle of Hatteras Inlet. Near the close of … Continue reading

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2 October 1861: “Peter is well acquainted with horses, is a capable servant in many respects, he can make clothes and is a first rate nurse”

Item description: Charles L. Pettigrew to James Johnston Pettigrew, 2 October 1861 In October 1861, Charles L. Pettigrew sent Peter to the Confederate army to serve Brigadier General James Johnston Pettigrew, Charles’s brother. Peter had the responsibility for managing General … Continue reading

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1 October 1861: “And I immediately commenced casting about for a servant to send to you.”

Item description: William S. Pettigrew to James Johnston Pettigrew, 1 October 1861 When Brigadier General James Johnston Pettigrew wrote to his family back home in North Carolina requesting that a servant be sent to him, William S. Pettigrew hastened to send Peter, one … Continue reading

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11 August 1861: “With some pains and a few good whippings he would make a valuable servant.”

Item description: Letter from John Kimberly, Chapel Hill, N.C., to his wife Bettie, in Nashville, Tenn.  Kimberly reports on household matters, such as the note, “I am having shelves made for my old wardrobe to use for a cupboard.” He … Continue reading

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