On August 29, 1858, Elizabeth Jones and Sally Woodward were committed to the DC Jail as runaways by S. W. Chipley. They were released to “Marshall Warren” two days later, on August 31.
In Chocolate City, the authors details that the Jail was built in 1839 and sits where the National Building Museum now sits. In the decades before the Civil War, the DC Jail was in the northeast corner of the block, near 4th and G, with the Tiber Creek trickling behind it. The building was known as the “Blue Jug” for the color of its walls and was three-stories of barred windows and stone cells and iron cages.
Secrets of the prison-house–the black hole of Washington, D.C. / from sketches made on the spot by our special artist, Mr. A. Lumley | loc.gov
In 1861, The Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper ran an article entitled “Persecution of Negroes in the Capitol-Astounding Revelations” (28 Dec 1861). One of the people quoted in the article describe the conditions of the jail:
“I find incarcerated in the city jail in this city, in the midst of filth, vermin and contagious diseases, on a cold stone floor, many without shoes, nearly all without sufficient clothing, bedding or fire, and all in half-starving condition, 60 colored persons, male and female, confined because — in the language of their commitments — they were suspected of being runaways, and no proofs had been adduced that they were not runaways.
The man who captured Elizabeth Jones and Sally Woodward was a police officer who likely patrolled the Island. This suggests that Elizabeth and Sally had made it across the Eastern River from Prince George’s County and into the District near the southern side of the Mall.
Samuel N. Chipley was recorded in the 1860 Census as a policeman living in Ward 7, who had been a County Constable in Alexandria, Virginia, in 1850. He was elected for County Constable for several years in Alexandria. By 1858, he is working in the District. The Daily National Intelligencer announced his commission as a police officer in the Seventh Ward in July 1858. The 1858 City Directory lists the address for Samuel L. Shipley as 124 C South, on the Island and southwest of the Capitol. He died in 1887, and was buried in Alexandria, Virginia.
The women were released after two days in the DC Jail to “Marshall Warren” which is likely an error and reference Marsham Waring.
Elizabeth Jones was likely the daughter of Joseph Jones and Barbara Ridout. In 1858, she would have been twelve years old. She escaped the Warings again in 1862 with her family when they fled to the District. They were listed in the Camp Barker registrations. In 1861, Lizy Jones and Notley Steward had her son Augustus baptized by the priests of White Marsh. No record of her after the 1862 escape has been found.
Sally Woodard was claimed by M. Virginia Mackubin, the daughter of Marsham Waring, on the compensation list submitted to the 1867 Commission on Slave Statistics for Prince George’s County. Mackubin had inherited the legal authority to enslave Sally when her father, Marsham Waring, died in 1860. Sally was listed in Waring’s Inventory as one of the people enslaved on the main estate, Warington. In the inventory, she had three children: Maria, age 8, Arthur, age 7, and an infant child.
In the 1870 Census, Sally is living in Bladensburg District of Prince George’s County, near the Zachariah Berry and Edward Magruder, and so along the boundary between Bladensburg and Queen Anne District and near the estates of the Warings.
She is living with her husband, John, and four children: Arthur (14), Matthews (12), Ellen (6), and Michael (4).
Mathew is likely the infant child based on a 1860 White Marsh record which records the baptism of Mathew, son of John and Sarah Woodward. Edward Wood sponsored the child.
John Woodard was claimed by Mortimer L. Wilson, on a compensation list submitted to the 1867 Commission on Slave Statistics. Mortimer was the eldest son of Joseph Hickman Wilson, who lived in Bladensburg District, near the border of Queen Anne District in Prince Geore’s County, Maryland in the antebellum years, before his death in 1857. He was the stepson of Amelia Violetta (Weems) Wilson, Jospeh Wilson’s second wife.
This contrasts with records related to the Civil War. In 1864, John Woodard was drafted and called into service with the USCT. His selection is announced in the 12 July 1864 edition of the Baltimore Sun, “John Woodward, slave of Virginia Wilson” (Amelia Virginia Wilson, was Mortimer’s step-sister). Woodard’s USCT Service records show that he did not report as order and was arrested; the charge of desertion was removed by Special Order #15. Additionally, the army considered him free as they did not receive papers for him on some muster rolls; others cited him as a slave. Mortimer Lawrence Wilson submitted an oath sewing that he was the master and owner, and that he was loyal to the United States in order to claim compensation for the enlisted slave. In 1892, Sarah Woodard filed a claim for a widow’s pension for her husband’s service in the A Unit of the 4 USCT Infantry.
In another set of posts, I explore the lives of Richard (Dick) and Mary (Polly) Jones, who were enslaved by the Waring Family in Queen Anne District of Prince George’s County, Maryland.
In this post, I explore the possible series of transactions that may have resulted in Richard (Dick) Jones being held in captivity by Marsham Waring (d. 1860) and his children. Richard’s name is not listed in the 1813 inventory of Waring’s father, Marsham Waring senior, and so I propose that he may have been transferred from Stephen West’s estate; West was a manufacturer during the Revolutionary War who operated the Woodyard. Or he may have been transferred from the Lansdale family who were Waring’s in-laws.
This post, on the other hand, explores a different Richard (Dick) who was enslaved by the Waring family and most likely did not survive into old age like Richard (Dick) Jones.
JRM 9:388, mdlandrec.net
In 1802, eleven years prior to the senior Marsham Waring’s death, Waring recorded a “list” of enslaved people he brought from Georgetown to Prince George’s County. The list consists of a single name: a “boy” named Dick about 18 years old. Tax Assessments from 1800-1802 show that Marsham Waring was assessed for “2 negro boys” at his Georgetown residence– Richard (Dick) was likely one of the two listed in the tax record.
Eight years prior to this, Marsham Waring (senior) was recommended by David Stuart to George Washington for a position in the planning of the newly formed capital in the District of Columbia. In Stuart’s letter to the President, he described Waring as “a respectable sensible Merchant of Ge: town, who has never intermixed with any of the parties…As you are totally unacquainted I believe with Mr Waring, it may be necessary to say something more respecting him—he has been long an inhabitant of Ge: town, and some of his relations (I believe his brother) possessed large property in the city, but has sold out—he is universally well thought of, as a man of character, good temper and understanding.” Waring was also a Director for the Bank of Columbia, established in 1794.
It appears that while Waring did business in Georgetown in the 1790s, he soon moved from the District to his estate in Prince George’s County as evidenced by the document notating his removal of Richard (Dick) from Georgetown to Prince George’s County.
It may have been a shift in culture for Richard (Dick). It is unclear what his role was in Georgetown, being forced to labor for Waring either at his residence or place of business. However, an advertisement ran by Waring in 1794 may give a clue to the types of tasks Waring forced from those enslaved.
50 DOLLARS REWARD, RANAWAY very unexpectedly from the subscriber, on Saturday the 11th October, a Mulatto man named George, by his acquaintances called George Evans, about 25 years old, 5 feet 9 or 10 inches high, straight and well made; he has long bushy black hair, which he commonly wears queued his cheek bones rather high, his laugh simple, he has always served as a waiter was a favorite servant, and spoiled by excessive indulgences, understands dressing and shaving, and plays well on the violin, he took with him a brown fustain coatee and jacket, bound with yellow silk ferret, a pair of light coloured sagathy breeches and half boots; as he had many other cloths of cloth and light summer wear, it is probable he may change his dress. It is supposed he has crossed over to Virginia. Whoever secures the above man, shall receive the above reward, and reasonable charges, if brought home. All masters of vessels will receive him on board at their peril. MARSHAM WARING. George-Town, (in Columbia) Oct. 16, 1794.
Virginia Gazette and General Advertiser, October 29, 1794
Washington Globe 13 Mar 1835, Washington | newspaperarchives.com
In 1835, Bachelor Jackson fled the capticity of Benjamin Lee, a physician and planter in Prince George’s County. His estate “Oak HIll” was located in Queen Anne District along the Western Branch of the Patuxent River.
Benjamin Lee most likely acquired Bachelor Jackson from his father-in-law, James Belt, who died in 1832. Bachelor, age 20, was listed in the 1832 Inventory of James Belt’s estate between Washington and Charles, both age 30.
Bachelor Jackson of Frederick County, MD
There was another Bachelor Jackson living in “Frederick Town” of Frederick County, Maryland, as a Black man with free status. Based on the census, he was betweeen the ages of 55 and 99. He had five other people in his household, both adults and children. It is possible that the enslaved Bachelor Jackson was related to him.
While geographically separated from Prince George’s County, there were connections between the two counties. Francis Scott Key, of “Star Spangled Banner” fame, was a lawyer in Frederick Town, and he was on the boat to observe the bombardment of Fort McHenry in order to secure the release of William Beanes, a Prince George’s County planter. Beane’s sister, Eleanor Beanes married James Mullikin of Mullikin’s Delight, situated to the northeast of the Sprigg and Lee estates. Samuel Sprigg, Lee’s neighbor, had lived in Frederick County prior to inheriting Northampton from his uncle Osborn Sprigg. Sprigg’s wife, Violetta Lansdale Sprigg was niece of James Belt via his wife Elizabeth Lansdale. Violetta Lansdale was the daughter of Thomas Lancaster Landale, a merchant in Queen Anne. Belt’s connection with the Lansdale and therefore Sprigg family suggests that Belt had connections with Frederick County.
Two pieces from newspapers further suggest the connection between Frederick and Prince George’s County.
In 1799, James Belt advertised for the return of Bob and Bash, two enslaved men who left his estate in Anne Arundel county. In his advertisment he shared that Bash had relations in Montgomery County on Hallings River, where Thomas Lansdale lately lived. Hallings river is presumably Hawlings River, a tributary of the Patuxent, near Brookeville.
In 1825, D Sprigg advertised, as an agent for James Belt, the sale of a House and Lot on Potomac Street in Hagerstown [Washington County], “belonging to Capt. James Belt of Prince George’s County, now occupied by Mr. John McCurdy.
The Torch Light And Public Advertiser 15 Nov 1825, Tue · Page 4 newspapers.com
Another Bachelor
In 1789, William Smith of Seneca, Montgomery County, MD, advertised for the return of Bachelor, no last name given. Bachelor was born in Prince George’s County, about 5 miles from Upper Marlborough, “and having a numerous set of acquaintances and relations, in that county, he may endeavour to get among them”. Smith, though, thought he was more likely to go to Baltimore-Town or Fell’s Pount, as “I understood his mother lives and is free, who is or was lately kept by a Spanish or Portuguese seafaring captain, and keeps his house.” Both Chelsea (the land tract Belt owned in Prince George’s County) and Hazelwood (the estate owned by Thomas Lancaster) were about 5-7 miles from Upper Marlborough.
I can’t help but wonder if Bash, age 36, in 1799 and Bachelor, age 25 in 1789, are the same man, determined to be free. Both men have an estimated birth year of 1764/1765 and Bash could very well be a shortened form of Bachelor. And I can’t help but wonder if they are Bachelor Jackson of Frederick County who would have been born before 1776.
Bachelor Jackson is not listed in the 1840 census, though other Black families of free status are: Maria Jackson and her son, William Jackson, with an eldery woman, and his family, Augustus Jackson and his family, Kitty Jackson and her children and finally John and his family. They are all living in District 8 of Frederick County.
Relatives Left Behind
When Bachelor Jackson escaped Benjamin Lee, he no doubt left behind people from his family and larger kinship group.
Bachelor’s family name Jackson connects him with others Jacksons, and Marsham Waring, Lee’s brother-in-law, had several Jacksons enslaved on his Chelsea estate as evidenced by the compensation lists submitted by his children to the Commission on Prince George’s County Slave Statistics.
This is significant as Waring inherited the Chelsea estate through his wife, Violetta Lansdale Belt, the daughter of James Belt — suggesting that he not only inherited the real estate associated with the estate but also its chattel and the people enslaved by Belt.
Given Name
Age
Est Birth Year
Name
Martha
35
1825
Martha
Minita
3
1857
Araminta
Sally
6
1854
Sarah
Maria
8
1852
Maria
Matilda
10
1850
Matilda
Washington
16
1844
Washington
Anna
16
1844
Ann
Ellen
30
1830
Eleanor
Mary Ellen
4
1856
Mary
Charles
30
1830
Charles
Robert
20
1840
Robert
Jim
4
1856
James
The chart shows the identified Jacksons in the Inventory; their given names and ages were compared to the given names and ages in the compensation list provided by James Waring’s administrator to the Commision on Prince George’s County Slave Statistics.
William and sons Charles & Robert Jackson
In 1831, a year before the death of James Belt, the priests of White Marsh recorded the baptism of Charles, the son of William Jackson (of James Belt) and Amelia (of Marsham Waring). Based on the 1832 Inventory, William was 24 and Bachelor was 20, suggesting that if they both had the family name Jackson that they were brothers.
Charles baptized by the priest appears in the 1860 Inventory of Marsham Waring’s estate, as they both have an estimated birth year of 1830/1831.
In 1870, Charles has reunited with his wife, Caroline, who was enslaved by Mary Hall. She is the daughter of Susan Weldon and Walter Harrison. Susan was enslaved by Mary Hall and Walter was ensalved by Walter W W Bowie. In 1870, they are living in Mitchellville, near the estate of Mary Hall.
Listed under Charles in the 1860 Marsham Waring Inventory is Robert, age 20. When he died in 1902, his son listed his parents as Amelia Stewart and William Jackson. We know the Warings enslaved other Stewarts as identified on the Prince George’s Slave Statistics.
In 1870, Robert is living near Robert W. W. Bowie and his wife Elizabeth L Bowie, the daughter of Marsham Waring. The Bowies lived on the estate of Locust Grove, purchased for them by Waring. Robert Jackson is neighbors with Jacob Jones, another freedman from the estate of Waring. By 1880, he had moved near Woodmore, near other members of the Jones Family. The Jones family had been enslaved on the Waring estate as well.
Martha Jackson & Children
In 1870, Martha and her children have reunited with her partner William Jackson. They are living near Suitsville and William, in his work as a Carpenter, as acquired a bit of personal property. By 1880 William and Martha have moved near Robert Jackson, the inferred brother of Charles.
This chart shows the family trees with the sources for the inferred relationships. It is inferred that the William of the census records is the same William named in the James Belt Inventory and the White Marsh Baptism due to the geographic proximity to Robert and similar estimated birth year in the 1880 census record.
William is listed as a carpenter in the 1870 census. Interestingly, there is a Washington Jackson (estimated birth year 1811) that is also a carpenter who is living in Nottingham District of Prince George’s County. He is too old to be the Washington Jackson in the Marsham Waring Inventory and he could be a brother to William and Bachelor, and the Washington of the Marsham Waring Inventory could be a nephew named after the elder Washington.
The Baltimore Sun | 12 Jul 1864, Tue · Page 1 | newspapers.com
In 1864, the Baltimore Sun ran the names of the people drafted for the Union Army from Prince George’s County, including the name of “Peter Stewart, slave of the estate of Benjamin Lee“.
Dr. Benjamin Lee had died during the war and his administrators created an inventory of his estate in 1863. The inventory did not include the name Peter.
The 1867 Slave Statistics provide an incomplete list of people enslaved in Queen Anne District [District 7] of Prince George’s County as reported by their enslavers. While submission of the list was voluntary, and not all estates and enslavers submitted a list. That said, it provides the names of over fourteen hundred enslaved people. The 1860 Slave Schedule recorded almost twenty-three hundred enslaved people. The Prince George’s County Slave Statistics names about 62% of the enslaved population in Queen Anne District. Of them, there is only one named Peter: Peter Ridout enslaved by Violetta Sprigg, the neighbor of Benjamin Lee. He was also named in the list.
The list also included the names of Thomas Brown and Jno Hamilton, enslaved on the estate of Benjamin Lee.
Jno. Hamilton is named — he and his partner Patsy are named near the beginning of the inventory list. In 1870, he and Patsy are living in the household of C. A Harding, the son-in-law of Benjamin Lee, and Eleanor Lee, Benjamin Lee’s widow. Patsy is working as a servant in the household, while John is laboring in the fields.
Inventory of Benjamin Lee estate WAJ 3:126 | Maryland State Archives
Thomas Brown, like Peter Stewart, is not named in the 1863 Inventory. He may be the “Tom” who fled Lee’s enslavement in 1859. Lee described him as a 32 or 33 year old man. Further information about Thomas Brown has not been found. If Peter fled Lee’s captivity, like Tom, then Lee does not appear to have advertised for his return.
The question persists if Peter Stewart was the name of a person enslaved by Benjamin Lee, or if the editors of the Draft List in the Baltimore Sun made a mistake as they transcribed and inserted names.
In 1929, Patrick Stewart, age 84, died of a stomach ailment. His son, J. T. Stewart, furnished the information for the death certificate for the District of Columbia records.
Patrick Stewart, age 84, was the son of Patrick Stewart and Mary Ridout. He was born around the year 1845, twenty years prior to the emancipation of the enslaved in Maryland, where he and his parents were born into chattel slavery.
Enslaved by John E Berry
In 1867, John E Berry, of Bladensburg in Prince George’s County, Maryland, submitted a list to the Commission of Prince George’s County Slave Statistics of the people he enslaved prior to emancipation in hopes of compensation from the federal government. Among those he listed were Patrick Stewart, age 20 and Mary Stewart, age 38.
While we do not have an age for Mary from the death certificate, the ages of the two Patricks are consistent with each other, both are born around 1845 — and Mary, the other Stewart, is old enough to have borne Patrick as her son.
The identification of Patrick’s mother as Mary Ridout opens up a line of inquiry about whether or not Mary Ridout is connected to the Stewarts of the Waring estates and to the Ridouts enslaved in and around the Waring estates.
The connected posts discuss the details of this diagram more fully
Seat Pleasant
In the post on Barbara Jones’ connection to the Ridout family, we saw that Peter and Priscilla Ridout moved to the boundary between DC and Maryland, near Charles H Hays and we saw that Margaret (Peggy) Ridout and her daughter moved into the household of Geo R Wilfred Marshall, also near the boundary of DC and Maryland. The two families essentially bookend the area where Mary Stewart and her son Patrick are enslaved.
In the 1880s, Patrick Stewart purchased Lot #5 of the Seat Pleasant subdivision. The land contained about 10.5 acres. He paid $350 for the lot.
It sat on the former land of John E Berry, Jr. Berry, Jr., who purchased “Seat Pleasant” from his relative Thomas E Berry. At the close of the Civil War, the land was sold to real estate developers who created the town of Seat Pleasant. Berry’s father, Dr. John E Berry, Sr., had a nearby plantation called Independence, and Berry’s brother, Albert B Berry had a farm called Sunnyside in addition to his other real estate holdings. The survey of Seat Pleasant was completed in 1873. In addition to detailing the lots, it marks what is likely the Seat Pleasant dwelling house and marks several cabins on the land, which may have be slave dwellings occupied by freedmen after emancipation.
In the 1870 census, Patrick and his wife, Lidia, are living with their three daughters: Mary E [1864], Margaret [1866], and Rachel [1868]. By 1880, they have five more children: William [1870], Daniel [1872], John Thomas [1874], Jane E [1876], and Christiana [1880]. The name of their last daughter, Christiana illustrates the connection with the Ridout family. As seen, Barbara Ridout Jones had both a sister and daughter named a variation of Christiana.
Mary Ridout Stewart
Mary Ridout Stewart was living next door to her son, Patrick, in the 1870 census in the household of George and Grace Johnson and their children.
1870 Census for Bladensburg District in Prince George’s County | ancestry.com
This leads us to the suggestion that Grace is Mary’s daughter and Patrick’s sister.
Like Mary and Patrick Stewart, George Johnson was enslaved by John E Berry. The two men likely worked the tobacco fields of Seat Pleasant, first as enslaved men and then as tenant farmers.
Unlike the Patrick and George who were held in bondage on a large tobacco estate, Grace and her children were enslaved by a farmer, Charles H Hays, who likely grew produce for the Washington markets. Hay’s farm was north of Seat Pleasant, along the DC border, where Peter and Priscilla moved after the war.
When large estates were often valued above $10,000, Hay’s farm was valued at $2000. Farms were smaller in this part of Prince George’s County and often grew other products instead of tobacco. In 1864, Charles Hays advertised a reward of $5 for a cow that had strayed. Upon his death, his farm of 105 acres was advertised for sale; the soil was described as well adapted for grazing and market gardening. The land had a dwelling of six rooms and a tenement house of three rooms.
The 1860 Slave Schedule lists 8 enslaved people for Hays, and Hays submitted the names of 10 people whom he enslaved. In addition to Grace and her children, Hays enslaved Letty Hanson, age 25. Her first name is phonetically similar to that of Lidia, Patrick’s wife.
By 1880, Mary Ridout Stewart and her husband, Patrick Stewart, are living together in the household of Patrick Stewart and Lidia with their children. Patrick (Jr.) has yet to buy the land in Seat Pleasant. From neighboring houses, it appears that they are living near Buena Vista near the Waring Estates, in the newly created Kent District along the boundary with Queen Anne District and near close and extended family.
Dwelling Number
Relative
Relationship to Mary Ridout
253
Patrick Stewart (Sr.)
Husband
253
Patrick Stewart (Jr.)
Son
258
Grace Johnson
Daughter
247
Michael Jones
Son of Barbara’s brother-in-law
244
Bettie Fletcher
Barbara’s sister in law
92
Geo Stewart
Inferred Nephew, as he is son of James Stewart
The table lists the dwelling numbers of people related within the extended kin group of Mary Ridout. Dwellings 253 & 258 are members of her immediate family and include her children. Dwellings 247 and 244 are members of the Jones family that Barbara Ridout, Mary’s inferred sister, partnered with. Elizabeth (Bettie) Fletcher was the daughter of Richard and Mary Jones. And dwelling 92, which can be identified as being in the geographic vicinity as it is neighboring Jos. K Roberts house is the household of George Stewart, the son of James Stewart.
James Stewart was listed in Marsham Waring’s 1860 inventory with Notley Stewart, who fathered Barbara Ridout Jones’s grandchild, Augustus Jones. Also listed with James and Notley was Patrick Stewart. During the Civil War and shortly after the abolition of slavery in the District, Patrick and Notley fled to DC with many others from the Waring estates. James Waring, as administrator of his father’s estate, went to the District to seek their return, swearing an affidavit that they were from Maryland and therefore subject to his enslavement. Records of Patrick Stewart are not found, though records of the others in Camp Barker and Camp Springdale have been found. Likewise, Patrick in the 1870 census has yet to be identified. However, it appears he reunited with his family by 1880.
Joseph and Barbara had several children and lived on the Waring estates.
A White Marsh baptism record from 1854 gives a clue to her family before her union with Joseph. The priests recorded her family name as “Reyder”. Given the phonetic spelling of the priests who were not English, it suggests the possibility of Barbara being related to the Ridout family.
Peter and Priscilla Ridout, Inferred Brother
In the 1867 Commission on Slave Statistics, the estate for James Waring (dec.) submitted a compensation list that included other Ridouts:
Family Name
Given Name
Age
Ridout
Priscilla
37
Ridout
Eliza
22
Ridout
Henny
2
In the 1870 Census, Priscilla can be found in a household with Peter Ridout, which suggests that Priscilla’s family name is not Ridout, but adopted upon her union with Peter. Peter appears on a compensation list submitted by Violetta Sprigg, the widow of Samuel Sprigg, the former governor of Maryland. In 1870, Peter and Priscilla are living in Bladensburg, next door to Charles H Hays. They are also living within the vicinity of Alex McCormick, Barbara Jones’ neighbor in 1870.
1870 Census for Bladensburg District, Prince George’s County | ancestry.com1861 Martenet Map of Prince George’s County with annotations marking McCormick, Hays, the Waring estate and the Sprigg estate | loc.gov
In 1880, Peter and Priscilla have moved into the District along Central Avenue, just as Joseph and Barbara have moved from McCormick’s farm to Central Avenue. Joseph and Barbara Jones are enumerated at household 169, while Peter and Priscilla are enumerated at household 171.
The likelihood of Peter and Barbara being siblings is based on a few things.
Joseph and Barbara named one of their sons Peter, who would continue to live in the District near Central Avenue into the 20th century. It would appear they named Peter after Barbara’s brother Peter.
Peter and Barbara’s estimated birth years: Barbara has an estimated birth year of [1829] based on the 1870 census, while Peter has an estimated birth year of [1817]. They are approximately 12 years apart; this difference falls within the range of a woman’s typical child-bearing years of 15-45 (or 30 years).
Their geographic proximity to each other both prior and after emancipation. They resided on neighboring estates and left the immediate vicinity of the estates after emancipation and lived near each other after emancipation.
Ridouts of Sprigg’s Northampton Estate
Violetta Sprigg submitted not only the name of Peter Ridout to the 1867 Commission on Slave Statistics, but also the names of other Ridouts.
Family Name
Given Name [Name]
Age
Ridout
James
50
Ridout
Peter
48
Ridout
Peggy [Margaret]
66
Ridout
Hanson
18
Ridout
Christianna [Christina]
25
Based on her age, Margaret (Peggy) Ridout is assumed to be the mother of the family group. The chart below was created to evaluate the likelihood that Margaret (Peggy) is the mother of the other Ridouts.
Using Margaret’s birth year, we can estimate her child-bearing years as when she was 15-45. In the 1870 census, Margaret (Peggy) Ridout is listed as 80 years old, which indicates it’s likely an estimated age, though it places her birth year as 1790. In the 1867 Prince George’s County Slave Statistics, she is 66, giving her an estimated birth year of 1801, a full decade later; while in Samuel Sprigg’s 1855 inventory, she is listed as 63, giving her an earlier estimated birth year of 1792, closer to her 1870 census age. For purposes of the chart, we will use the ages in the 1855 inventory, as it appears that the compiler of the compensation lists for the Prince George’s County Slave Statistics used the ages in the inventory.
Margaret is shown with her birth year mark and a line drawn to represent her child-bearing years, and her children’s estimated birth years are plotted as well. James and Peter appear to have been born toward the beginning of her child-bearing years while Christina was born later in her years. Henson falls outside of the 15-45 year range, though within a margin of error of five years.
In 1870, Margaret has also left the Sprigg estate and moved closer to the District. She is living in the household of [Geo R] Wilfred Marshall, a neighbor of Robert W. Brooke.
Annotated Excerpt of 1861 Martenet Map of Prince George’s County marking the Sprigg Estate and household of Robert W Brooke | loc.gov
Also living in the household is Christy Ann [Christina] Beall. She is 35 years old with an estimated birth year of 1835, which suggests she is Christina (Christianna) Ridout, the inferred granddaughter of Margaret (Peggy) Ridout and is confirmed by her son’s death certificate. In 1911, Daniel Bell (Jr.) died in New York City, where he had migrated and was working as a driver. His death certificate lists his parents as Daniel Bell and Christina Ridout.
1870 Census for Bladensburg District, Prince George’s County | ancestry.com
In 1822, the priests of White Marsh recorded a baptism of Richard, the son of Richard Ridout and Margaret Brockx [sic]. The transcriber proposed the family name Briscoe in brackets. However, based on the family names of other people enslaved by the Spriggs in the 1867 Prince George’s County Slave Statistics, I suggest the surname Brookes. This will be explored further in a different post.
Patterns in Given Names
When looking at the given names of the enslaved, it is ambiguous who gave the name. Was it the parents, or was it the enslaver?
When looking at names of those born within the 18th century, and especially earlier in the century when Maryland planters were importing larger numbers of Africans to labor on their fields, it is more likely the names were imposed on the Africans by the Marylanders. In later generations, especially after the abolishment of the international slave trade in 1808, the names originally given by the Marylanders to the first generation of African appear to be given to their African-American descendants by their parents and grandparents as a way of marking kin groups within a world that cared little for their families and relationships.
The identified generations of Ridouts have names that repeat across the generations, suggesting kin groups.
Generation 1
Two white-generated source documents allow us to identify the first generation of Ridouts living in the vicinity of the Waring/Sprigg estates along the Western Branch of the Patuxent River:
the White Marsh baptism record that identifies Margaret’s (Peggy) partner as Richard
a War of 1812 claim for two enslaved people (more about War of 1812 claims in general can be read about on the Maryland State Archives site)
In 1828, Tilghman Hilleary, a neighbor of Marsham Waring, sought compensation for the Andrew and Peter Ridout, who runaway from the Hillearys during the War of 1812.
Born before 1808, it is possible that Richard, Andrew and Peter were forced to migrate from Africa to Maryland as laborers. However, due to a common family name, it is likely that Peter, Richard and Andrew are born in Maryland to enslaved Africans or African-Americans. Their exact relationship to each other is unknown; the common family name suggests brothers or cousins. Given the few number of Ridouts identified in the Prince George’s County records (e.g., the Prince George’s County Slave Statistics, the White Marsh Baptism records, the 1870 census), it seems more probable that they are brothers, rather than cousins, from a father brought to Prince George’s County by his enslaver (either by the Hilleary or Sprigg families, who appear to be an intertwined family themselves in previous generations).
Peter’s name gets repeated in later generations.
Generation 1 Names
Peter
Andrew
Richard
Generation 2
Shifting to the second generation, or specifically the children of Richard Ridout and Margaret (Peggy), we can identify the children from the Samuel Sprigg Inventory, the Prince George’s County Slave Statistics and the White Marsh records. No doubt there are as yet unidentified children of Richard and Margaret.
Of note, Richard and Peter are repeated. Richard (Jr.) is mostly named after his father, while the use of Peter for their other son, suggests that Peter (Sr.) was a close relative. The use reinforces the idea that Peter, Andrew and Richard of Generation 1 were brothers.
Generation 2 Names
Peter
James
Richard
Henson
Christina
Barbara
Possible Generation 2
One of the possible unidentified children of Richard and Margaret may be the partner of Sophia Ridout, claimed by John Contee’s administrator in the Prince George’s County Slave Statistics. She may also be partnered with either James or Richard. No other records related to Sophia and her children have been identified. Contee’s list did not name an adult male Ridout, suggesting that he may have been enslaved on another estate, leaving open the possibility that he was James, Richard, and Henson.
She uses the name Richard (Dick) for her son, likely named for either his father or uncle.
Contee’s estate was in the same neighborhood of Waring and Sprigg.
Generation 3
This generation brings us to Barbara (Ridout) Jones, who initiated the line of inquiry. She was identified in the White Marsh record as Barbara Reyder. The names of her children reinforce the idea that she was a Ridout descended from Richard and Margaret.
The use of White Marsh Baptism Records, the Prince George’s County Slave Statistics, and the 1870 & 1880 Census records allows us to identify the following children for Barbara (Ridout) Jones:
Four out of six of Barbara’s children share the names of her inferred siblings. The fifth child, Sophia, shares a name with the inferred sister-in-law, Sophia, who lived with her children on the neighboring Contee estate.
Generation 2 Names
Generation 3 Names
Peter
Peter Jones
James
James Jones
Richard
Richard Henson Jones
Henson
Richard Henson Jones
Christina
Christina Jones
Barbara
Tentative Conclusion
The use of repeated given names across generations; the proximity to other Ridouts on neighboring estates, along with proximity after emancipation as they congregated toward Seat Pleasant and Lincoln suggests that Barbara was a child of Richard and Margaret Ridout.
Richard (Dick) Jones and his wife, Mary (Polly) were born at the end of the Revolutionary War and lived until the start of the Civil War in Queen Anne District of Prince George’s County. The vast majority of their life was spent on the estates of Marsham Waring. They and their children labored for Waring and his three children, as well as neighboring estates. This post explores the life of one of their sons, Joseph Jones.
Chart showing Mary’s estimated child-bearing years and identified children | Subject to Change
Joseph Jones was one of Mary’s younger sons. He labored on Warington, which was the main dwelling estate for the Warings, along with his parents, wife and children
Joseph and Barbara had three of their children’s baptisms recorded by the priests of White Marsh.
“Johns, Christina, daughter of Jos. Johns & Barbara Reyder, his wife, born May 3, 1854, property of Mr. Marsh. Waring. Godmother: Susana Steward.”
“Do: James, 2 weeks old, of Joseph & Barbara, property of M. Waring. Sp: Selley.” [1857]
“Bapt’. Richard of Joe & Barbara Jones, col’, 10 weeks old. Spons: Bettzy Fletcher for Martha Colbert.” [1860]
In May 1862, a group of enslaved people from Waring’s estates fled to DC with James Waring, Marsham’s son, pursuing them. He swore out an affidavit, swearing that they were enslaved in Maryland, not the District, and therefore he was lawfully able to seek their return to bondage. Joseph Jones was among those named by Waring.
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington, D.C.; Records of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Relating to Slaves, 1851-1863; Microfilm Serial: M433; Microfilm Roll: 3 | ancestry.com
Joseph and his wife, Barbara, and their children are listed on a registration list for Camp Barker, a refugee camp set up in the northern part of the City of Washington, near U street and Vermont Avenue.
The image places the 1860 Waring Inventory on top for comparison with the names on the registration list estimated to be either in 1863 or 1864 based on other lists in the book. U.S., Freedmen’s Bureau Records, 1865-1878 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2021. | ancestry.com Marsham Inventory WAJ 2:321 | Maryland State Archives1869 Plan of the city of Washington : the capitol [sic] of the United States of America | loc.gov
“The present shelter of the refugees in Washington is called Camp Barker. We visited it on the 25th of 11th month. It consists of a large oblong square, surrounded on three sides by huts or barracks, and other buildings, all opening within the square; and by a high fence on the west side. The entrance is under a military guard. The huts, about forty-eight in number, are about twelve feet square, and each have from ten to twelve inmates. There are also several large tents, occupied by old or infirm men, and two buildings called hospitals—one for men, and one for women. The residence of the superintendent is within the enclosure.”
Report of a Committee of Representatives of New York Yearly Meeting of Friends upon the condition and wants of the colored refugees. | loc.gov
In 1861, the baptism for Augustus, the son of Lizy Jones and Notley Steward was recorded. Augustus is in the registration list for Camp Barker with Joe, Barbara [Patsy] and Elizabeth. Notley Stewart, with Joseph Jones, was listed on the affidavit by James Waring. Notley is not listed with the Jones family, though Elizabeth and Augustus are listed together.
At some point, they may have been transferred from Camp Barker to Camp Springdale, which was the precursor to Freedmen’s Village on the Arlington Estate (owned by Robert E Lee’s wife) and what would become Arlington Cemetery. They appear on a list of those who left Camp Springdale. The note indicates that they “gone to do for themselves”
After the war, Joseph and his family settle outside the City of Washington in the District in and around Benning’s Road. In 1870, they lived near Alex McCormick along the Maryland-District Border. McCormick had used his location along the border to hide the people he enslaved in Maryland when the District abolished slavery. The family successfully petitioned for their freedom. See Civil War DC for more information about this petition. Living with McCormick in 1870 is Robert Jones, a nephew of Joseph Jones. Of their children, Sophia and Peter are not listed with them in 1870. Peter rejoins them in 1880, but not Sophia. This suggests the likelihood she died, though it is possible she married.
1861 Topographical map of the District of Columbia | loc.gov
It’s likely that Barbara died in 1896; a death record for a Barbara Jones, born around 1824 in Maryland can be found. She was buried in Mt. Olivet, a Catholic cemetery. No family members are listed.
Her son, Peter Jones, is still living in the vicinity of Benning’s Road in the 1900 Census. He is working in a stock yard, and his son, Peter Jones, Jr. is working as a jockey.
Richard (Dick) Jones and his wife, Mary (Polly) were born at the end of the Revolutionary War and lived until the start of the Civil War in Queen Anne District of Prince George’s County. The vast majority of their life was spent on the estates of Marsham Waring. They and their children labored for Waring and his three children, as well as neighboring estates. This post explores the life of one of their sons, Nicholas Jones.
Nicholas Jones was one of the younger sons of Richard and Mary born toward the end of Mary’s estimated child-bearing years (1795-1825), when she was 15 to 45 years old. If my theory is correct about Richard’s forced migration from Stephen West to Marsham Waring (see connected post), then Nicholas was named after his grandfather, Nick.
He labored on the Waring estate “Heart’s Delight”, which was in Bladensburg District near Buena Vista, near the Warington estate where his parents lived and labored. His wife and children labored on a neighboring estate owned by John B Magruder.
Nicholas and Martha had several of their children baptized by the priests of White Marsh.
1853: Richard Euseb., son of Nichol. [Johns] & [?] Williams, property of J. Magruder; Sponsor: Chas. Gasebeth
1856: Robert, son of Nichol [John] + Martha Williams, property of John Magruder; Sponsor: Thomas Allen
1858: Lucy, of Nic Jones & Martha Anne, property of J. Magruder; Sponsor: Susan
1862: Nicholas, of Martha & Nich Jones, col.; Sponsor: Carolina Green
In May 1862, a group of enslaved people from Waring’s estates fled to DC with James Waring, Marsham’s son, pursuing them. He swore out an affidavit, swearing that they were enslaved in Maryland, not the District, and therefore he was lawfully able to seek their return to bondage. Some of those named in the affidavit were Nicholas’s siblings, Joseph and Richard. Nicholas was not named, however, he is living in the District in the 1870 Census, suggesting he joined them later.
In 1864, Martha and her children are listed in the Freedmen Bureau’s Registration list for Camp Springdale, without Nicholas, her husband. She was recorded as Jones, and some of her children were recorded as Johnson. A comparison of the lists of names in the Freedmen’s Bureau Record with that of John B Magruder’s list of enslaved people he submitted to the Prince George’s Commission on Slave Statistics for compensation however show similar given names and ages and is similar to the list of names found in the White Marsh baptismal records. Again, Martha’s husband, Nicholas Jones is not listed with them.
Records of the Field Offices For the District of Columbia, Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, 1865-1870; NARA Series Number: M1902; NARA Reel Number: 21; NARA Record Group Number: 105; NARA Record Group Name: Records of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, 1861 – 1880 | ancestry.com — Prince George’s County Slave Statistics Original Scans | Maryland State Archives
They are reunited by the 1870 Census. Nicholas and his wife lived with four of their sons; one of their sons, Charles, had married and his wife and children lived with them in the District. They worked as laborers. How and where they labored is unclear.
1870 Census, District of Columbia, Ward 6 | ancestry.com
They lived near D & 13th NE on the far edge of town, near the boundary with the county and along the road to Benning’s Bridge. Other siblings were found in the County near Benning’s Bridge in the 1870 and 1880 census records.
By October 1870, Martha, Nicholas’ wife had died of consumption, now more commonly called tuberculosis.
Annotated by author with residence’s of Nicholas Jones from City Directories | Entwistle’s handy map of Washington and vicinity : showing public buildings, churches, hotels, places of amusement, and lines of street rail roads. [1876] | loc.gov
After 1870, the lives of Nicholas and his children become obscured. Other than Nicholas consistently living in Ward 6, the family and its members are not reliably identified in the 1880 census records. A widowed Nicholas Jones is identified in the census, living on B Street SE, which would suggest it is the same Nicholas Jones. He is recorded as born in Virginia, though this could have been an error made by the census enumerator, as other senior members of the household are also listed as born in Virginia.
He is in the household of Frances Williams and her grown children; this suggests he moved in with one of his wife’s relatives, if this is the same Nicholas Jones.
A death record for 1899 lists Nicholas Jones, widowed, who was born around 1815. He was buried at Potter’s Field, part of the Washington Asylum, the “poor house”. It was located near where Nicholas Jones was recorded living in the City Directories.
What connection if any does James Stewart have to the enslaved of Notley Young of Prince George’s County?
After emancipation in 1864, James Stewart and many of his children, including Notley Stewart, stayed on the lands of Dr. Benjamin Lee in Queen Anne District in Prince George’s County, Maryland.
Annotated Excerpt from 1861 Martenet Map of Prince George’s County | loc.gov
Prior to emancipation, Stewart had been forced to labor for Marsham Waring’s estates, while his children labored on the estates on the Lee. Waring and Lee were brother-in-laws. Inventory records for Marsham (WAJ 2:321) and the post-emancipation records of the 1870 and 1880 records suggests that James was born a few years after 1800, and about a decade after Marsham Waring.
The name “Notley” has been used by multiple generations of the Stewart family — and one possible source for the given name is from the enslaver Notley Young. Other members of the Stewart family used names that were aligned to their (former) enslaver. For example, James’ son and daughter-in-law, George and Rebecca Stewart had daughters named Violetta and Eleanora, both names in common with the wives of Waring and Lee. Sarah (Sallie) Stewart and her husband Washington Lee named one of their sons, Benjamin, giving him both a given and surname that matches Sarah’s former enslaver, Dr. Benjamin Lee. The use of Notley in the family suggests a connection with a (former) enslaver named Notley, i.e., Notley Young.
There are three Notley Youngs in three successive generations:
Notley Young (I) who died in 1802. His estates and property were located within the parts of Prince George’s County that would become the District of Columbia.
Notley’s (I) son, Notley Young (II), a priest with connections to the Jesuits, Georgetown University and the White Marsh plantation along the Patuxent.
Notley’s (I) grandson, Notley Young (III), son of Benjamin Young. Notley Young (III) married Eleanor Hall, his second cousin, and lived in Queen Anne District, before dying in 1846.
In the 1828 Tax List for Prince George’s County, Notley Young (III) owned practically 735 acres of land in the Collington & Western Branch Hundreds, from which part of Queen Anne District would become. Both Waring and Lee owned property before the Civil War along the Western Branch, which divided the two hundreds.
Map of part of the city of Washington shewing the situation of the mansion house, grave yard & buildings belonging to Mr. Notley Young : original proprietor of that part of the city. | loc.gov
View of the city of Washington in 1792. | loc.gov
Inheritance
There are three ways to acquire an enslaved person: 1. purchase, 2. inheritance/gift, or 3. natural “increase”, i.e., claiming ownership of the children of enslaved women.
James Stewart was born prior Marsham Waring acquiring his father’s estate, who died in 1813. On his inventory, there was a child called Jim (James) age 12 with an estimate birth year of 1801, which is consistent with calculated birth years from the later documents. This suggests that Marsham Waring (Sr.) conveyed James along with his other property to Marsham Waring (Jr.) of the 1860 Inventory, and opens the line of inquiry of how Marsham Waring (Sr.) acquired him.
Purchase from Notley Young, Sr.
Notley Young’s grandfather died in 1802. Included in his inventory is a James age 3, who would have been born in 1799. This is within two years of the age on the 1813 inventory of Marsham Waring (Sr.) After making some specific bequeathals to his wife and for his real estate, Young’s grandfather divided his personal estate (including his chattel) to be equally divided among his five identified children/grandchildren.
As noted on the family tree, a cousin of Notley Young (II) is George Washington Young, who inherited his father’s estate Nonesuch along the Eastern Branch (what would become known as Anacostia) and within the District of Columbia. When the District abolished slavery in 1862, G. W. Young filed a claim for compensation for his “loss” that included a “Stuart” family group.
This suggests that the Young family had enslaved members of the Stewart/Stuart Family group, perhaps even the one that James Stewart came from.
It is possible that the heirs of Notley Young sold James and separated him from his family, sending him to Marsham Waring (II) and his estates. Both Marsham Waring (II) and Notley Young were involved in the creation of the District of Columbia and engaged in business together. In the 1830s, their heirs were sued as together they had put up sureties for Thomas S Lee and a loan he had taken from Charles Carroll of Carrollton (Charles Carroll of Carrollton vs. Marsham Waring, et al June 1832).
White Marsh Baptism Record
In 1832, the enslaved population of Waring and Lee grew through “natural increase”, the term enslavers used to conflate the language they used to talk about their livestock and their enslaved people, dehumanizing the latter. James “Stuart” and Susan (Suky) had their son, James, baptized by the priests of White Marsh, the Jesuit Catholic plantation near Priest’s Bridge which also enslaved numerous people.
The baptism record notes that James (Sr.) was enslaved by “Master” Warring and that Susan (Suky) was enslaved by Dr. Lee in Marlborough. The record also notes the sponsor/godmother as a person enslaved by Notley Young, mostly likely Notley Young (III) based on the year of the baptism. The name was transcribed as “__rvelide?”.
“Content” | wikipedia.com Dr. Benjamin Lee lived in this house in Upper Marlboro from 1821-1844 before moving to his estate in Queen Anne District. This is where Suky and her children most likely labored.
It is probable that the sponsor for the baptism of James and Suky’s son is a relative of either James or Suky, as godparents are usually chosen from within a kinship group, and therefore suggesting a connection between the Notley Young estates and James Stewart’s kinship group.
Reconstructing the Transcribed Name
My source document provides the typed transcription without access to the handwritten record of the priest, leaving the reader to guess at how the the transcriber interpreted the name. To complicate matters, the priests of White Marsh were not also fluent with Anglo-American names or the diminutives used by the enslaver and so there is often non-traditional spelling. With that in mind, the following three items helped to narrow the possibilities.
The transcriber noted it was a godmother, therefore looking for women’s names
The index to White Marsh Book 4 provides three plus page list of names of given names used by the priests, providing a sampling of names used during this time period by enslavers and enslaved.
The final syllable “-ide”
These three items helped to identify Adelaide and its variations as a probable given name for the godmother. Another possibility includes names like Emeline and its variations, though Matilda and Cornelia are also likelihoods.
Of note, on the same page, a Adelaide was noted as a person enslaved by Benjamin Young, likely Notley Young’s brother. She had a son, Alexander who was baptized the same year as James. In 1818, Sandy [Alexander] and Adelaide were married at White Marsh with the permission of their enslaver, though the record does not note their enslaver. That said, the repetition of Alexander and Sandy in both records suggests that Adelaide and Alexander married and had a son, named for his father, Alexander.
A 1821 records provides more insight into the Alexander + Adelaide family group. Francis and Moses Sandy were baptized in 1821, as one-day old sons of Sandy and Adelaide Cosy, servants of Mr. Benj. Young. In 1817, Peter Corsey escaped from Notley Young, he may be related to the Cosy’s of Benjamin Hall.
A review of the 1809 Inventory (TT 1:321) for the estate of Benjamin Young (the son of Notley Young (I) and the father of Notley Young (II) and Benjamin Hall Young provided a possible family group for Adelaide. The Inventory appears to be groups in families, as a few adults will be named then children, then adults and children again. The group identified occurs near the beginning of the inventory. The list includes a Suck, a name variation for Susan; though Susan was an extremely common name for the enslaved communities of Prince George’s County.
Name
Age in Inventory
Estimated Birth Year
Dolly
32
1777
Eliza
21
1788
Suck
15
1794
Louisa
12
1797
Adelaid
10
1799
Harry
12
1797
John
10
1799
Billey
10
1799
Maria
4
1805
Chrissy
5
1804
Edward
3
1806
Ned
4
1805
Robert
2
1807
Tentative Conclusion
The circumstantial evidence suggests that James Stewart came to the Waring family from the Young family.
The use of Notley as a given name within the Stewart Family
The presence of a James on the 1802 Notley Young (I) Inventory
The inclusion of other Stewart family groups on the Compensation List for G. W. Young
The presence of a White Marsh baptism record which indicates a godmother from the Notley Young estate for James Stewart’s son, James (Jr.)
This post explores the possibility of Amelia (Emilia) Jones Calvert as a daughter for Richard and Mary Jones. She was first found in a White Marsh baptism record with the surname Jones and a documented connection to the Waring estates, which is where Richard and Mary Jones were enslaved, suggesting she was a relation.
White Marsh Baptism
In 1831, Amelia (Emilia) Jones, wife of George Colbert [Calvert], had their daughter Mary Rachel baptized by the White Marsh priests. The priests recorded George as property of James Belt, Marsham Waring’s father-in-law, and recorded Amelia (Emilia)Jones as property of Marsham Waring.
George Calvert [1794]
James Belt had purchased Chelsea, a tract of land from another branch of the Belt family and conveyed it to his two daughters, Violetta Lansdale Belt and Eleanor Belt. Violetta married Marsham Waring and Eleanor married Dr. Benjamin Lee.
Most likely James Belt purchased the legal authority to enslave George from Cornelia Lansdale, his sister-in-law, in 1826, when he satisfied two mortgages. (see Prince George’s County Land Records, AB 4:308; accessible through mdlandrec.net).
George is also listed in James Belt’s 1832 Inventory (PC 2:20) as 38 years old [1794]. At 38, George had outlived the expectancy of most enslaved people and would be roughly 70 years old by the time of Benjamin Lee’s death in 1863 and Marsham Waring’s death in 1860; he is not listed in either inventory.
Indirect clues from Waring’s Inventory
In Marsham Waring’s 1860 Inventory, George (II) Calvert, age 38 [1822] and Daniel Calvert, age 25 [1835] are listed. When enslaved adults were partnered, any children usually stayed with the mother and the estate she was held captive on, until the enslaver chose to sell the child and/or the mother. As Amelia was indicated property of Waring, it is probable that George (II) and Daniel are Amelia and George’s sons living with her on Waring’s estate. Additionally, their birth years bookend the baptism of Mary Rachel. The identification of George (II) and Daniel as probable sons, allows us to begin to identify a likely age range for Amelia along with the identification of George (I) Calvert.
To begin, George’s ages in Belt’s inventory provides us with an upper limit to her age. Taking into consideration the life expectancy rates of enslaved people and its impact on the age of the partners in the union, then we can also predict the likelihood that Amelia was younger than George. She was likely not older than 38 (George’s age in the 1832 Inventory) and was more likely to be 5-10 years younger, suggesting an upper age of no more than 28-33 years old.
Her child-bearing years suggest a lower limit for her age. Women’s child-bearing years are roughly between the ages of 15 to 45, meaning that Amelia was most likely between 15 and 45 years old when she had the three identified children. If she was the father of George (II), then she would have been at least 15 years old in 1822, and therefore no younger than 24 in 1831, suggesting that she was between 24-33 at the time of birth for Mary Rachel.
As a result, this allows for an estimated birth year range of 1798-1807, which in turn places her within Mary (Polly) Jones’ child-bearing years, which places her as a likely daughter of Richard and Mary Jones.
Amelia is possibly listed in the 1860 Marsham Waring Inventory as Amelia, age 50 [1810]. 50 may be an estimated age (allowing for a few years either way, this places the age on the upper limit of range.
In the inventory, she is listed near Daniel Calvert, her son, and Michael Jones, her likely brother, reinforcing the possibility that she is Amelia Jones Calvert of the 1831 baptism.
stories of Then 