common last names for slaves in the 1800s

The quote below, from a Southern Claims Commission file, is one of the most powerful and one of my favorites to use in lectures: I enlisted under Ross because that was my fathers name. Anouilh. Garcia (The Spanish form of Gerald, Garcia would be the son of Gerald. In the early years, especially between the 1860 and 1880s, families even changed a surname several times until they settled on a certain one. Use the form below to get in touch with me and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. The population was more than 16 million and the industrial revolution was under way, which debunks any perception of a broadly colonial society. Thank you for commenting, and continued luck to you in your research. Harris: A patronymic meaning son of Harry. My mothers name was Octavia Smith and it was from her that I got it but where the name came from to her I never knew. Robyn. The highest percentage of African names was found among male slaves in the eighteenth century, when . Names. He stated that he had always been known by his fathers surname Scott, even before he was freed. It is these single names that have been most often studied. We had to register as someone, so we could be citizens. The new surnames, usually not taken from a former slave owner, included: Williams, Jones, Johnson, Smith, Jackson, Thomas, Brown, Walker, Davis, Green, Robinson, Scott, Harris, Turner, and Anderson. She was a Murphy.. The box for father states unknown in law. Her marriage record states her name is Sarah Charlotte Gale, her father being John Sinclair Gale! They called me OCK. Start your year off with tips and strategies that can help you in the new year & beyond. Although it is not widely known, some African Americans used surnames before they were emancipated. Several names have been added under the letter representing the person's last name. However, the common practice by slaveholders was to only use the given names of enslaved people in documents such as estate papers, court and deed records. Interestingly, the five most common American surnames as of 2010 haven't changed that much over time and are Smith, Johnson, Williams, Brown, and Jones. Until recently, scholarly consensus was that early African American names did not differ significantly from those of white Americans. I would still recommend all of these books, except the first one listed for obvious reasons. They reflect an acculturation process by which generations of enslaved people, increasingly removed from the direct influence of their first enslaved African ancestors, adopted the conventions of their enslavers, eventually creating a culture and value system all their own. The difficulties include using records that provide no surnames, the constant sale and breakup of families, and the lack of identification of fathers. Mining the Census: Are You Finding Every Clue? What remains utterly amazing to me is that in the worst of circumstances, and in spite of every attempt to crush any idea that slaves were anything other than commodities, slaveholders did not succeed. Kaplan, Justin, and Anne Bernays. As a newspaper that publishes in the spirit of the Black Press, the Black Voice News has given voice to the voiceless and shined a light on systemic inequities and disparities since 1972. Elaine Fantham, Helene Peet Foley, Natalie Boymel Kampen, Sarah B. Pomeroy, H. A. Shapiro. The most common of 603 names of female Slaves were Bet, Mary, Jane, Hanna, Betty, Sarah, Phillis, Nan, Peg, and Sary. Each name was a clue to her origins. 43. Q. Ive taken back reclaimed some of that lost memory, especially that of my enslaved ancestors. This meant that army records documented their service with their old names instead of their new ones. In 1911, Barnett and Frys widow, Mollie, both applied for pensions from the government. Some of the most common or popular last names in the 1800s included Robinson, Clark, and Smith. There are 15 tables, blank and editable for you to populate, as well as samples of using each. 1. Hi Rodney, Students learn about the violent responses to the transformation of US democracy that occurred as a result of Radical Reconstruction. Abel, the name of Adam and Eve's unfortunate younger son, compensates with positive connotations: capable, competent, ready and willing. After the war ended and slavery was abolished, they exercised their freedom by changing their names. James: (M) (Latin origin) means "heel" or "supplanter". It is certainly possible that Wilsons siblings could have been sold away or owned by others. Extensive records of slaveholding over several generations exist for a number of North Carolina plantations, most notably the Skinner and Hayes plantations in Chowan County; Pettigrew plantations in Tyrrell, Washington, and Wake Counties; Bennehan-Cameron plantation in Orange County; Hargrove plantation in Granville County; Arrington plantations in Nash and Edgecombe Counties; Avery plantation in Burke County; and Lenoir plantation in Caldwell County. Through a video-based activity, students examine Americas struggle for a stronger democracy during Reconstruction and today. Here, our list of notable early African American names. Enslaved people often transferred such names to later generations in modified form or relied on African naming traditions, such as "day names" or names reflecting the order of birth among siblings. Runaway ads illustrate how many slaveholders knew the surnames of their slaves. Practices undoubtedly varied, and different archival sources may yield different conclusions. Students learn about President Andrew Johnson and the Congressional Republican's conflicting visions of how to rebuild the nation after the Civil War. Former slaves often made up surnames based on their occupations. But once freed most immediately chose surnames, with or without keeping their accustomed name. In ancient history, Lysander was the name of an esteemed Spartan naval commander and his literary cred comes from one of the two star-struck young men in Shakespeare's. But the Slaves generally had two namesthe one given by the slave owner (e.g. I was called mostly Lewis Smith till after the war, although I was named Dick Lewis Smith After the War, I was wearing the name Lewis Smith, but I found the negroes were taking the names of their fathers, like the white folks. With mythological names rising, the handsome son of Zeus and god of medicine, music, and poetry among many other things might offer an interesting, if high-pressure, option. One former slave Bill Scott from Wessyngton reported in his pension application for military service that when he enlisted in the Union Army officials put down his surname as Washington. I liked the name better than Octavia, and so I took it with me to Danville, and was never called anything else there than that name. The name.Auber.is also.in.Haiti and.is of.French orign. This phenomena makes research very complicated when you dont know the mothers surname. They are held at The National Archives (Kew, England). Edited by Gabriele vom Bruck and Barbara Bodenhorn, 178-199. Major types on which most would agree are European place and literary names, European personal names in hypocoristic (pet or diminutive) form, biblical and classical names, and names of African origin. This old French surname has Germanic origin, and means 'noble'. You can also look up Charleston Manifests by Slave Owner These records are also available through the National Archives Catalog (National Archives Identifier 2767350). He decided that he didnt want to be known as Cap Sherrod and that he would vote and marry under his choice of names. Caps statement implies that choosing his own surname was a part of exercising his newfound freedom. E. Togo Salmon Conference, E. Togo Salmon Conference 1993 Mcmaster University: Goodyear III, Frank H. "Photography changes the way we record and respond to social issues". One frequently occurring name is Rolle. Copyright 2023 Facing History & Ourselves. 77th U.S. Col Inf and Co. D. U.S. Col H Art under the name Lewis Smith which was the name I wore before the days of slavery were over. Cora: We first fell in love with this short baby girl's name from Downton Abbey, but Cora was already popular in the 1800s, meaning 'maiden' or 'good'. Robyn. Whereas names withAfrican, classical, or other unique origins were popular during enslavement, --- often continuingfrom one generation to the next and creating a distinctive nomenclature unlike that of southern whites -- free black peopleoften used more traditionally Anglicized versions of their first names. 40. Thank you. Brief, but stimulating and thoughtful for students coming new to the subject. Post Author: Post published: 18 avril 2022; Post Category: . After I had returned to Louisville from Danville, My sister, Lizzie White, got to calling me Mollie, and it was with her that the name started. I found in the Civil War registry, an enslaved man who enrolled in the infantry under the name of Wash Ellis. . This database is a compilation of information on over four thousand slaves from Louisiana who were involved in manumission (the formal emancipation from slavery) between 1719 and 1820. The names they gave their children provide a valuable, if limited, index of that process over time. My mother's name was Octavia Smith and it was from her that I got it but where the name came from to her I never knew. . They called me OCK. While Smith remains the most common U.S. surname, for the first time, two Hispanic namesGarcia and Rodriguezmade the top 10. Thomas mother, younger brothers and sisters remained with the Black family. Some of these examples come from the wonderful book, Voices of Emancipation: I served [in the War] as Henry Lock, the Lock being my old Massas name but since the War I have taken name of Rollie., [Edward] was owned by Drury Stovall and went by the name of Edward Stovall. A small number of creoles in Louisiana also acquired surnames derived from ethnic identities in Senegal. Many of these were names of heroesbut not Lincoln. Many took the surname of famous or celebrated people; such as Lincoln, Grant, and Washington was very popular. Once the slaves were freed they found they did need another name besides a given name. Robyn. Letter to James Edward Calhoun, August 27, 1831. Beginning in the early nineteenth century, more biblical names were given to enslavedchildren, a reflection of the widespread attempts to Christianize enslaved communities. Spanish areas had male Slave names as Francisco, Pedro, and Antonio; and for females: Maria, Isabella, and Juana. Others were more promiscuous. The Washingtons of Wessyngton Plantation: Stories of My Familys Journey to Freedom, A Thank You Letter from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, Plantation Records Key Link to African American Past . How did you ever come by the name of "Mollie"? Evidence indicates that many enslaved parents named their children after the first generation or so of family members brought to America. I mean, really retro. . Robyn. 30 January 2022, [PAST EVENT], Eastern Standard Time: Join special guest genealogist Taneya Y. Koonce and I as we present our joint Zoom webinar, Organize Your Genealogy! To date there are no book-length studies covering the naming of slaves across the Anglophone Atlantic, but Burton 1999 and Kaplan and Bernays 1997 provide useful entry-level discussions for the Caribbean and mainland United States, respectively. Percy is an adorable old name that is finally shedding its pampered Little Lord Fauntleroy image in this new era of boys with soft yet traditionally, Titus, once seen as a slightly forbidding Roman, New Testament, and Shakespearean name, was brought back to contemporary life in the USA by the TV series, French surname from place name Perci-en-Auge, Latin, meaning unknown, possibly "title of honour". Fortunately, the French and Latin were excellent record keepers and the Catholics were obsessed with knowing the kinship of everyone. In 1850, Ward. Introduction. In instances where slaves were sold from their families and they did not retain their previous owners surnames, they named their children for parents, sisters and brothers to keep a connection with their families. The association with the infamous Nero, the fiddling Roman emperor, would be unavoidable. Another common way of distinguishing people would be 'son of', for example Johnson (son of John), Richardson, Wilson, Harrison etc. A. Mr. Thomas Jefferson of Louisville, bought me when I was three years of age from Mr. Dearing. Are you thinking this woman Eliza Ellis was married to Wash Ellis? One given name the childs family selected and kept secret and one the child was known by given by the slave owner. Instead a wide variety of surnames came about that would be the family name for future generations. College, Advanced AA Gen. Class, September 2009, Alice, Robyn and Lajoye, CM AAHGS, September 2017, Robyn and Andrea, NGS Conference, May 2014. I make extensive use of tables for organization, analysis and citation in my research, and they have proven very popular with genealogists. Florence, Fiorella, Fleur, and Flower are translations, but we like Flora best of all. Enslaved peoplethemselves sometimes chose names denoting weather conditions at the time of their child's birth or some distinctive feature of his or her appearance. Benson, Susan. Geographic names were common, as were the names of ships or distant ports for enslaved peopleborn in places such as Wilmington or New Bern. Former slaves also interchanged surnames on census records. . Students consider how US history books, films, and other works of popular culture have misrepresented the history of the Reconstruction era. They are part of Records of the U.S. Customs Service . Thanks LaBrenda! Currently, the most popular Black last name in America is Williams, with a total count of 774,920 people who have the surname. 17. Enslaved women were raped, creating children with white fathers who in most cases did not claim them and even sold them away. Samuel had only two slaves: the man that could be Wilson and a 42-year-old woman. For example, I know of one Louisiana family whose surname of Poulard evolved from a ancestor of the Poular nation(aka Fulani). Thanks for all you to do keeps us all so enlightened! Its knowledge that I think most Americans (not even just white Americans) dont have and it is endlessly fascinating and sobering both at the same time. I am not able to find any slaveholders in the Versailes area by the name of Ellis. Label vector designed by Ibrandify - Freepik.com, https://nmaahc.si.edu/object/nmaahc_2014.174.8?destination=/explore/collection/search%3Fedan_q%3Denslaved%26edan_fq%255B0%255D%3Dobject_type%253A%2522Photographs%2522. Q. Ethereal and delicate, Cassandra was in the Top 70 throughout the 1990s but is now descending in popularity. But, my mtdna also said I share ancestry with the Kru people of Liberia and the Mende from Sierra Leonne! I also have a Slavery and Freedom Collection available for $20. According to the latest search data available, Italian last names and their meanings are searched for nearly, 40,500 times per month. However, research byLisa D. Cook and colleagueshas revealed evidence of racialized names from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Bradley was the last man owned em. Thank you, my dear friend, for adding this about enslaved people owned in the Caribbean is really important, as some of the customs were certainly different. With your explanations in mind, I will go back over a couple of family groups and re-assess the surname ambiguousness I have in my notes. In these cases, unless the name change had been passed down in the family by oral history, it would be impossible to trace the family back any further. Thus, the patronymic surname can be effectively regarded as "keeper of the peace." This phenomenon is not unheard of with African American surnames. Index by slave owner's name | Surname unknown or illegible. I love to hear from my readers. I hope you dont mind my sharing those posts. Anthropologist Meyer Fortes's observation that the naming practices of any society "epitomize personal experiences, historical happenings, attitudes to life, and cultural ideas and values" holds particularly true for African American enslaved people. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Many Welsh surnames follow this pattern, with Jones (from 'John's son) being the most common. ", "Case Overview: Ann Williams, Ann Maria Williams, Tobias Williams, & John Williams v. George Miller & George Miller Jr", "Augustine Tolton: From slavery to being the first black priest", "Cornish (and Other) Personal Names from the 10th Century Bodmin Manumissions", "Gospel-book with added Cornish records of manumissions ('The Bodmin Gospels' or 'St Petroc Gospels')", "Following Brigid's Way The Irish Catholic", Charity Folks, Lost Royalty, and the Bishop Family of Maryland and New York, "The Untold Story of How an Escaped Slave Helped Sir Francis Drake Circumnavigate the Globe", "Slave's 400-year-old grave in Dutch Jewish cemetery now a Black pilgrimage site" by Cnaan Lipshiz, Times of Israel, 6 February 2021, Roman Theater and Society: E. Togo Salmon Papers I, "Professor Says He Has Solved a Mystery Over a Slave's Novel", "Day of history to unfold in Muthill museum", "Cornelius Tacitus, The History, Book I, chapter 13", "An Old Actor's Memories; What Mt. Used by permission of the publisher. Sabe, Anque, Bumbo, Jobah, Quamana, Taynay, and Yearie) used in the Slave quarters. You can use the links below to view more common surnames. Unfortunately, I am not knowledgeable enough about African and Caribbean research in the areas you name. Women tended to have two names, and slaves often just had one. Hi Jann, . LOTTIE had been the name of the nurse before me and so they just continued that same name. The table below shows the most common last names with statistics on the heritage and ancestry of those with the surname. But the bureau also compiled lists of the fastest-growing surnames in the United States and these include Zhang, Li, Ali, Liu, and Khan - a testament to the wonderful diversity of our nation. - Jane Howard, "Friends are God's apologies for relations." Although it is not widely known, some African Americans used surnames before they were emancipated. Allard. James) will have . A. I was first called by that name in the family of Col. Morrow in whose service I was in Louisville, Ky., just after the war. Register now! Besides the Morrows, whom else did you live with in Louisville? Even that feels like something. "While African-American genealogical research in many ways is like all genealogical research, the era of slavery makes the task especially challenging. Alfred "Teen" Blackburn (1842-1951), one of the last living survivors of slavery in the United States who had a clear recollection of it. Our headquarters are located at: 89 South Street, Suite 401, Boston, MA 02111. -Unknown, "Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city;)" Of course my mother wasnt a Bradley fore she married. However, the enslaved occasionally had surnames, which became normal leading up to and after emancipation as a mark of assimilation into free society. Special slave censuses were kept in the early 1800s. A favorite of British novelists including Evelyn Waugh and P. G. Wodehouse, Ambrose has an air of blooming well-being and upper-class erudition. I was only three years old when she died. Hi Jim, . They are recorded with the Ashby surname on subsequent documents. Besides the Morrows, whom else did you live with in Louisville? These require Microsoft Word and a Windows platform. In fact, the previous enslaver widow sold most of the slaves. This lifelong quest has helped me to better know my familys past. Rather than being derived from the supernatural world, European given names were a mere handle or tag.

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