Queen Anne District (PG County)

John Woodard (1821-1892)

John Woodard lived most of his life area between Sheriff Road and the current Central Avenue in Prince George’s County.

Prior to the Civil War it was Bladensburg District and after the war the district was divided and he lived in the part was christened Kent District.

He was married twice, first to Rachel Contee and second to Sarah Jones. He was drafted into the USCT and after the war, returned to his family and the land which he continued to labor for the profit of others, his life before and after emancipation connected to the white Wilson family that had been his enslavers.

USCT

He was drafted in July 1864, the Baltimore Sun listing him as “John Woodward, slave of Virginia Wilson“. The enlistment of Black men into the army was a matter of controversy in Maryland, as both slaveholders and non-slaveholders protested various directives and commands that first enlisted free Black men, which appeared to favor slaveholders by exempting the enslaved, and then the slaveholders protested the confiscation of their property. Ultimately, the slaveholders received compensation for their male slaves who enlisted (See Slavery and Freedom on the Middle Ground, Chapter 5).

Woodard’s service records notes that he “failed to report” and in Dec 1864, he was arrested in Prince George’s County and brought to John Woolley, provost marshal for Baltimore. Later in 1866, the charger of desertion was removed due to “Special Order 15” suggesting that Woodard had been prevented from reporting as opposed to actively resisting enlistment.

With the exodus of Black people from Maryland seeking freedom and with the enlistment of able male bodies, the number of men aged 20 to 45 were increasingly scarce and his enslavers may have resisted letting go of Woodard. A superintendent of Black recruitment in Maryland told his superiors “whenever the US gets a soldier, somebody’s plow stands still”. (Slavery and Freedom, page 126-127). John Woodward was one of three adult males (the other two were 18 years) claimed by Mortimer Wilson in the 1867 compensation lists.

*U.S., Colored Troops Military Service Records, 1863-1865*

The records show that William B. Galer was paid $30 for the “apprehension and delivery” of John Woodward to the army. This detail helps to support the idea that Woodward was prevented from reporting to his drafted enlistment.

Galer was a 26-year-old white man living Bladensburg according to the 1860 census. Galer was enumerated living in the household of his inferred mother (DN 681). They did not have listed property (real or personal). Mortimer L. Wilson was enumerated at DN 668 and his widowed mother, Amelia Wilson, at DN 719. Galer’s immediate neighbors were horse traders, hostlers and stage conductor, suggesting that they lived in Suitsville or Brightseat, which was situated between Lawrence and his mother on the 1878 Hopkins map of Kent District. Galer’s father had been listed as a wheelwright in the 1850 census.

After the war, Mortimer L. Wilson claimed $100 for the service of John Woodard in the 4th USCT Infantry Regiment.

Second Wife, Sarah Jones

John Woodard returned to his wife, Sarah, and his children after the war. In 1870, they are living near Philip Hill and Edward Magruder, two landowners connected to the Wilson family through marriages. This places Woodard and his family on Sheriff road which connected the District with Brightseat P.O.

In the 1870 Census they had four children:

Arthur Woodard, age 14
Matthew Woodard, age 12
Ellen Woodard, age 6
Michael Woodard, age 4

Sarah applied for a widow’s pension when John died in 1892. She included affidavits from William W. Wilson, the son of her husband’s enslaver and as well as two people who served as groomsmen and bridesmaid at her wedding ceremony in 1852. Nathan Thomas and Sallie Hickman served as the witnesses to the ceremony. They attested to the fact that she and John were married by Father Dietz at White Marsh, the Catholic Church near Priest’s Bridge and the Patuxent River.

Sallie Hickman and Sarah (Jones) Woodard were enslaved on the same estate by the Marsham Waring family. In 1900, Sarah (Sallie) Hickman was living with her son on Sheriff Road within the District of Columbia.

Although their enslavers allowed their marriage, they were enslaved on different estates. Sarah raised her children at Warington, the Marsham Waring estate while John remained on the Wilson estate with children from his first marriage.

First Wife, Rachel Contee

The affidavit by William W. Wilson names John’s first wife. He states in his message that “John Woodard was married before to one Rachel Contee and died in June 1848 on “Baltimore Manors” in Kent District, Prince George’s County, Maryland.”

Baltimore Manor was the name of the estate owned by the Wilsons for generations. It sat on the land that FedEx field currently sits on. William Wilson was the father of Washington Wilson, Margery Wilson and Joseph H Wilson and other children. When he died around 1817, portions of Baltimore Manor were bequeathed to Washington Wilson and Margery Wilson and other lands (among them Beall’s Pasture) was bequeathed to Joseph H Wilson, the father of Mortimer L. Wilson and William W. Wilson. Joseph H Wilson acquired portions of Baltimore Manor after the death of his brother, Washington Wilson, in 1825 and a chancery suit. (MHT)

Children of Rachel Contee and John Woodard

In 1867, Mortimer L Wilson claimed John Woodard along with Jeffrey and Eveline/Emeline Woodard, who were about two decades younger than him. Their position in the list and their ages suggests they are his children. The two additional children: Charles and Peggy are children of Eveline as evidenced by later census records.

Compensation List for Mortimer L Wilson | MSA

In 1858, Eveline/Emeline was listed with a William, age 12, and a Jeffrey, age 11 in the inventory for Joseph H. Wilson’s estate. Their grouping would bolster the suggesting that they are siblings. Based on the omission of William in the compensation lists, it would suggest that William was separated from his family by death or sale.

Inventory of Joseph H Wilson (1858 | WAJ 1:681) | MSA

Jeffery Woodard died in Jan 1907 and his death certificate names his parents as John Woodward and Rachel Contee. His estimated birth year of 1847 from the inventory suggests he was born shortly before the death of his mother.

In 1880, Arthur and Matthew Woodward are living with Emily [Emeline] and her husband, Edward Hamilton, and children in the District at 910 Delaware Ave. They are listed as her husband’s brother-in-laws.

Rachel Contee

Rachel Contee died around 1848 and before the inventory of Joseph H Wilson in 1858. She is not listed in the 1833 Personal Property Assessment for Joseph H Wilson, suggesting that he acquired her after 1833.

In 1841, Joseph H Wilson became indebted to Levi Sherrif for over $5000 dollars. Levi Sheriff was married to Joseph’s other sister, Matilda. As was common, Wilson used the people he enslaved as collateral for the loan. This was recorded in the land records (JBB 1:413). He listed John, age 20, [est BY 1821] which is consistent with John Woodward. He also listed Rachel, age 19, [est BY 1822]. Since Wm Wilson notated that she died on “Baltimore Manor” in the pension affidavit and since her age is similar to John’s in the indenture, this would suggests that this is Rachel Contee.

The Baltimore Sun |Tue, Mar 3, 1874 | Page 2 | newspapers.com
Death notice for the widow of Joseph H Wilson names Baltimore Manor.

William Wilson, the patriarch of the Wilson family, died in 1817 conveying the main tract of land to his son, Washington Wilson. In 1825, less than a decade later, Washington conveyed the tract to his son, James A Wilson, while Joseph H Wilson was named estate executor and guardian of his nephew. After the death of his nephew, he acquired the property which passed to his son, Joseph K Wilson.

Jane Colbert | Kendall Green

In May 1862, shortly after the emancipation of enslaved people in the District of Columbia, a large groups of enslaved people made their way to the District in order to be free. The newspapers are filled with reports with descriptions of men carrying and baggage from Loudoun County, Virginia, and armed groups coming for the District carrying weapons. On May 7, 1862, the Evening Star reported “the first arrests under the emancipation law were made this morning” when police arrested “two slaves who had run away from their masters in Prince George’s County, were on their way to the city and had crossed the District Line”.

Jane Colbert‘s husband, Daniel Colbert (Calvert) was named in affidavit seeking his return by James Waring, along with others from his estates. The people named, like Daniel had wives and partners living on other estates who were not named, and were likely part of the group that sough freedom in the district.

Their marriage was recorded by agents working for the Freedmen’s Bureau in 1867. They noted along with hundreds of other freedmen marriages and partnerships. Daniel Colbert and Jane Dorsey were married in 1859 by a Jesuit Priest named Bague and had two children. In 1862, 5 months prior to their escape, they had their son, George W Colbert, baptized by the Jesuits at White Marsh.

Daniel Calvert was most likely born enslaved to Marsham Waring in Prince George’s County, the son of George Calvert and Amelia Jones. He was enslaved on Waring’s Chelsea estate and while Jane Dorsey was likely enslaved by the Hall family on their nearby estate. Both slaveholding families were Catholic and multiple people they enslaved were married by Jesuit Priests and had their children baptized.

On 20 January 1868, “Jane Colbert” is recorded in the Freedmen’s Bureau records as living in the Kendall Green Barracks and receiving supplies. Her age and relationship to others is not noted in the document. The Barracks had suffered a fire in mid January, as reported by the Daily Morning Chronicle.

The names Mary Dorsey and Malvina Jones are also recorded on the list, suggesting the possibility that there may be a connection between Jane Colbert and the larger Calvert-Dorsey-Jones kin group. While Mary Dorsey has an extremely common given name, Malvina is a more unusual given name and may be used to show a connection between the individuals at Kendall Green and the kin group.

Malvina Jones, age 34, was claimed by Miss Mary Cornelia Wilson, the daughter of Joseph H. Wilson, in the 1867 Compensation Lists. The Wilsons owned land near Marsham Waring, who enslaved Daniel Calvert. Waring and Wilson enslaved other people who partnered, e.g., John Woodward and Sallie Jones.

Two children of Malvina Jones were baptized in the 1850s. In 1854, Cornelia “Johns”, daughter of Will. Johns and Livana “Ahlens”, “property of Jos. Wilson”, was baptized by the priests of White Marsh. In 1859, Richard Jones, son of William and Livinia Jones, was baptized by the priests of White Marsh; no enslaver was noted. William Jones, named in the baptismal records, is a brother of Amelia Jones, Daniel Colbert’s sister.

Like Daniel, Waring listed him in the 1862 affidavit. In 1864, William Jones, age 45, is listed in the Freedmen’s Bureau Records as a refugee from Prince George’s County living in Camp Springfield with multiple other names from the 1862 affidavit. In 1870, William Jones and his wife Malvina Jones were enumerated living in Ward 6, which is on the eastern side of the City near Kendall Green. While the 1870 Census does not lists specific street addresses, the Jones family was enumerated at DN 1533; Ignatius Tabbs was enumerated at 1538 and was also listed in the 1871 City Directory as living at 324 15th NE, near Howard’s Row and Tennessee Avenue. This connects with an 1872 address for Daniel Colbert. Daniel Colbert is listed in the City Directory (66 Howard’s Row NE), living close to William and Malvina Jones’ inferred address. Daniel Calvert is not listed in the 1870 census in their neighborhood.

Both Sallie Jones Woodward and William Jones are inferred siblings of Amelia Jones, the mother of Daniel Calvert and were enslaved by the Warings, like Daniel. The presence of both Malvina Jones and Jane Colbert on the same list suggests that Jane may be Daniel Calvert’s partner, and suggesting that she too escaped to DC.

Eliza Stewart

In 1830, Eliza Stewart was held in the prison in Washington County, District of Columbia. She was listed as 16 years old, wearing a country cloth frock, linen shift, and coarse shoes.

Burr, the jailor, advertised for her return to her enslaver: Joseph Wilson living near Bladensburg in Prince George’s County, Maryland.

(Daily National Intelligencer, DC, 12 April 1830)

From the age in the advertisement, she would have had an estimated birth year of 1814. Approaching puberty and her child-bearing years, it would have been an anxious time for Eliza Stewart. Enslavers often sold adolescents as the market valued the labor extracted from people aged 14 to 40. And as enslavers valued women who could be breeders to increase their chattel, the likelihood of sexual assault grew as well. While the advertisement omits much about her specific motivations, freedom from a system that reduce her to property and subject to abuse would motivate many to seek liberation.

Three years later in 1833, enslavers in Prince George’s County had their personal property assessed and the names of the people they enslaved were listed in the tax books. Joseph H Wilson had two women who were named with the diminutive “Bet“. One was given the external market appraisal value of $60, the other $120. These values, imposed on the women by men who commodified their bodies as property, allow us to estimate their age in 1833.

Elizabeth (Bet), appraised at $60, is likely either a small child between the ages of 3 and 6 or an elderly woman between the ages of 50 and 60. She was the first female listed which suggests that she was one of the oldest women on the estate. Usually at this age, the enslaved were no longer forced to labor in the fields, rather they took on labor roles that could be considered caretaker roles: cooks, nurses, midwives, seamstresses, caretakers of children. This Elizabeth is unlikely to have been the much younger Eliza Stewart who escaped to the District.

Elizabeth (Bet), appraised at $120, was likely between 6-10 years old, almost a full decade younger than the Eliza advertised in 1830.

This suggests that Eliza may not have returned to Wilson and instead was likely sold with other captured Black people into the domestic slave market, as the District was central to the forced migration of enslaved people from the Chesapeake Slave Society to the Deep South and the cotton plantations.

Joseph H. Wilson, the enslaver of Eliza Stewart, was married to Amelia Virginia Weems in 1825, five years prior to Eliza’s capture in 1830. Her brother, Nathanial Chapman Weems, Jr., owned a cotton plantation in Rapides Parish in Louisiana, after he migrated from Maryland to the Louisiana in the 1830s. While his migration was after the personal property assessment and the advertisement, it suggests the possibility that she was removed from Maryland and sent south.

Eliza Stewart is of interest due to her family name. The slave-holding Wilson family owned property in Prince George’s County near Northhampton, the Sprigg estate as well Marsham Waring and Benjamin Lee’s estates. Marsham Waring and Benjamin Lee both enslaved members of the Stewart family. Waring enslaved James Stewart, born around 1805, as well as Patrick and Notley who were born later in the 1820s. Eliza Stewart, with an estimated birth year of 1814, could be a sister or cousin of the Stewarts enslaved by Waring.

Patrick Stewart of Seat Pleasant

See “the many Patrick Stewarts” for the introduction to why this post was written.

Patrick Stewart of the Marsham Waring Inventory was 40 years old with an estimated birth year of 1820. Patrick Stewart of Seat Pleasant was 37 in the 1870 census, with an estimated birth year of 1833. It seems unlikely that they are the same Patrick Stewart. And as Patrick Stewart of Seat Pleasant is followed through the census records, it becomes even more unlikely that he is the Patrick Stewart of the Marsham Waring Inventory. In 1880, he was listed at 40, which shifted his birth year from 1833, to 1840, two decades after the Patrick Stewart of the Inventory was born; the same for the 1900 census, where he was listed as 60, making his birth year around 1840.

After Emancipation

In the 1870 US Census, Patrick Stewart and his wife, Lidia, are living near John E. Berry, the son of Dr. John E Berry. They are near the intersection of what is now Addison Road and Central Avenue in Seat Pleasant.

In 1880, Patrick Stewart is still living in Kent, the district formed from Bladensburg. In his household is Patrick and Mary Stewart, an elderly couple. Patrick is listed as 70 years old and Mary is listed as 65. They are most likely his parents. Patrick is enumerated as Pat. Hen., which is consistent with the land record that is recorded in 1892.

Patrick Henry Stewart purchased Lot #5 of the Seat Pleasant subdivision. The land contained about 10.5 acres. He paid $350 for the lot. (JWB 22:262; mdlandrec.net)

The land was situated near the corner of DC in the portion of Bladensburg District which was used to create the Kent District in the 1870s. It sat on the former land of John E Berry, Jr., an enslaver and landowner in Prince George’s County prior to the Civil War. Berry, Jr., 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.

MSA_C2380_155_Jackson Plat of Seat Pleasant | Maryland State Archives

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 manumission.

A death certificate records Patrick Stewart’s death in May 1929, when he died from “entero-colitis”. It lists his occupation as farmer and at the time of his death, he was living in the District at 30 H Street NE, the household of John Thomas Stewart, his son. The death certificate also lists his parents as Patrick Stewart and Mary Ridout, names consistent with the 1880 census.

Before Emancipation

Prior to emancipation, Patrick (Henry) Stewart was enslaved by John E. Berry, who submitted a compensation list to the 1867 Commission on Slave Statistics; Berry was also the landowner of Seat Pleasant. Patrick (Henry) Stewart was listed as 20 years old, giving him an estimated birth year of 1845. Also enslaved by John E Berry is Mary Stewart (II), who was 38, born about 1827.

John E. Berry also submitted a list as administrator of the estate of Albert B Berry, his brother, who owned adjacent land. On the list submitted for A. B. Berry are Mary Stewart (I), age 58, and Alexander, age 22. Working from the assumption that Mary Stewart (I) is Mary Ridout, this allows us to expand the outline of the family. I wrote another detailed post about Mary Ridout and her connection with other Ridout Branches (and therefore the Stewart family).

In brief, Mary Ridout is likely related to Ridout Family Group enslaved by the Sprigg Family (Northhampton) and Waring Family. The Sprigg family enslaved Margaret (Brooks) Ridout who was the inferred mother of Barbara Ridout who married Joseph Jones, both enslaved by the Warings. Many of the Ridouts can be found in the vicinity of Seat Pleasant after emancipation. This suggests the likelihood that Mary Ridout was married to Patrick Stewart of the Waring estate.

Disambiguation

Patrick Henry Stewart of Seat Pleasant is too young to be Patrick Stewart of the Waring estate and he can be found in the compensation lists of John E Berry with other relatives. However, Patrick Henry Stewart is the son of Patrick Stewart of the Waring Inventory, as evidenced by the direct evidence of his death certificate which names his father and his mother’s family name. His mother’s family name, Ridout, provides indirect evidence that there were connection to the Stewart estate.

Patrick Stewart of Hillsdale

See “the many Patrick Stewarts” for the introduction to why this post was written.

Patrick Stewart of Hillsdale was originally considered as Patrick Stewart of Queen Anne District due to his age and geographic location in the 1870 Census. The 1870 Census gave his age as 50 [1850] which makes him the same age as Patrick Stewart of Queen Anne District. Additionally, he was residing in Hillsdale, a community of freed Black people that had escaped to the District like Patrick Stewart of Queen Anne District had.

However, a review of further records related to him suggests he was not from Queen Anne District, but rather southern Prince George’s County and Charles County, Maryland.

After Emancipation

In the 1870 Census, Patrick Stewart is living in Hillsdale, a community of freed Black people, originally known as Barry Farm and run by the Freedmen’s Bureau. It was called Barry Farm as it had been built on a 375 acre of land that had been owned by the Barry family.

Topographical map of the original District of Columbia and environs showing the fortifications around the city of Washington | loc.gov

The 1878 Hopkins Map shows it as Potomac City. An act passed in 1873 changing the name of “Barry Farm, or Potomac” to Hillsdale in 1873. Charles R Douglass, a relative of Frederick Douglass, was a political leader within the Hillsdale community. Douglass was enumerated at dwelling number (DN) 602; Patrick Stewart at DN 599.

Atlas of fifteen miles around Washington, including the County of Prince George, Maryland | loc.gov

In 1870, Patrick Stewart was not listed in the Washington, DC City Directories. He appeared in the City Directories in 1875 as living on Howard Avenue, in Hillsdale. Howard Avenue is situated in the northwest portion of HIllsdale, running parallel to Stickfoot Branch. An 1867 Tax List ran in the National Republican and cited “Whole Tax on lot 38 and improvements in section 9, in Barry Farm subdivision, assessed to Patrick Stewart, $5.25”.

Map of the division of the north half of a tract of land called “St. Elisabeth,” situated on the east side of the Anacostia River in the county of Washington, D.C. : surveyed into one acre lots for sale to freedmen | loc.gov

This lot sat on the end of Howard Ave along the river and was larger than the other 1 acre lots. The acreage most likely allowed Patrick to ply his trade as a carpenter.

“In order to purchase property, entire families worked in the city all day and walked at night to Barry’s Farm to develop their land and construct their homes by lantern and candlelight. As one man described it, ‘the hills and valleys were dotted with lights. The sound of hoe, pick, rake, shovel, saw and hammer rang through the late hours of the night.’”
The Anacostia Story (1977) | Louise Daniel Hutchinson

In the 1870 Census, Patrick Stewart is living with his wife, Caroline, and his children: Julia, Georgie and Joseph. They are also living with Henry Stewart, age 93. Presumably, Henry is Patrick’s father.

Two of the children, Julia and Georgie, were born prior to emancipation. Joseph was born after emancipation and when the family was living in the District.

Before Emancipation

George Morton, a landholder and enslaver from the Eighth District, submitted a compensation list that included Caroline Stewart, Julia and Georgiana, as well as an older and younger daughter, who do not appear in the 1870 census with Patrick and Caroline.

Prince George’s Slave Statistics | Maryland State Archives

The Eighth District was in the southernmost part of Prince George’s County, along the boundary with Charles County. George Morton is shown on the Martenet Map as holding land east of Woodville.

Martenet’s Map of Prince George’s County, Maryland. | loc.gov

Maria Stewart Briscoe

Maria Briscoe and her two children Henrietta and Ben Briscoe are enumerated immediately following Caroline Stewart and her named children in the 1867 compensation lists for George Morton.

Like her parents and siblings, Maria and her partner, Richard Briscoe, left the Aquasco area and purchased a lot in Hillsdale. Richard Briscoe was assessed for his lot: “Whole Tax on lot 35 and improvements in section 8, Barry Farm Subdivision, assessed to Richard Briscoe, $4.13” His lot was near but not adjacent to the Patrick Stewart lot.

Both Richard Briscoe and Patrick Stewart were carpenters; many skilled workers found lots in Hillsdale.

Maria’s death record records her parents as Caroline Wood and Patrick Stewart and her husband as Richard Briscoe. Her transcribed death record inaccurately records her age as 61. Based on the emancipation records, she was in her eighties, which is consistent with her 1920 census record.

Mattawoman Baptismal Records

In a no longer extant parish, “Upper and Lower Zachiah and Mattawoman”, there were three chapels:

A private chapel on the estate of William Boaman (near Bryantown) in Lower Zachiah
A chapel on Thomas Reeve’s land on the Upper Zachiah (later St. Peter’s parish in Waldorf)
A chapel “located south of the later parish of St. Mary’s in Piscataway”

Topographical atlas of Maryland: counties of Calvert, Charles and St. Marys. | davidrumsey.com

There are three baptismal records in the Maryland, U.S., Births and Christenings Index, 1662-1911 Database associated with “Roman Catholic, Mattawoman, Charles, Maryland”.

25 Apr 1857, the baptism of Julia Stewart, daughter of Patrick Stewart and Caroline
8 May 1859, the baptism of Georgiana Stewart, daughter of Patrick and Carolina
27 Jun 1859, the baptism of Henrietta Briscoe, daughter of Richard and Marg Briscoe

Disambiguation

Despite Patrick Stewart having a similar birth year, and reasonable 1870 residence, he is not Patrick Stewart of Queen Anne District. He was a carpenter from southern Prince George’s County and northern Charles County.

Robert Stewart | Patriarch

This post explores the possibility that Robert Stewart is the patriarch of branch of the Stewart Family Group enslaved by Marsham Waring near Buena Vista and Woodmore along the border of Bladensburg and Queen Anne Districts in Prince George’s County.

Background Information

Marsham Waring died in 1860 and in the inventory of his estates are three adult males named James, Patrick and Notley. The men are enumerated with round ages of 50, 40, 30, suggesting that the listed ages are not precise ages, rather estimated. After the Civil War, the heirs of Marsham Waring submitted compensation lists to the 1867 Commission on Slave Statistics in hopes of being compensated for the emancipation of their “personal property”. While compensation never occurred, the lists provide the given and family name of people enslaved; the three men are listed with the family name Stewart.

During the Civil War, Patrick and Notley Stewart escaped Prince George’s County for the District of Columbia, where slavery had been abolished in 1862 with their extended kin group. James Waring, the son of Marsham Waring, filed an affidavit seeking the return of the refugees to his captivity in May 1862.

The relationship between James [est. 50 | 1810] and the other two men, Patrick and Notley, has been ambiguous due to a lack of definitive records stating a relationship between the men and due to the rounded ages. The thirty year gap between James and Notley leaves open the possibility of a son-father relationship, brother-brother relationship, uncle-nephew relationship, and no doubt other less likely relationships.

Post-Civil War records for Patrick Stewart are ambiguous as there are multiple Patricks with a wide range of birth years. A post seeking to differentiate between the Patricks and connect them with the appropriate branch of the Stewart Family Group is forthcoming.

White Marsh Baptism

Notley Stewart was baptized in 1829 by the Jesuit Priests at White Marsh, a plantation maintained by the Catholic Church near Priest’s Bridge in Queen Anne District, Prince George’s County.

Notley, son of Robert & Ann, his wife slave of Massin [Marsham] Waring, aged 4 months. Sponsor Amelia. JS
April 19, 1829

The baptismal record identifies the parents of Notley Stewart as Robert and Ann and does not mention James. This record removes the possibility that James is Notley’s father leaving open the two possibilities 1. that James and Notley are brothers, or 2. Robert and James are brothers, making Notley the nephew of James.

The baptismal records cover 1819-1833; they do not include James’ baptismal record as he was born prior to the extant records.

1833 Personal Property Assessment

In 1833, the tax assessors for Prince George’s county compiled a list that included the “Proprietors” Name (property owner) with the names of the people they enslaved and the enslaved person’s assessed property value. These values were determined by their gender and age range. For example, males age 50-60 were assessed at $100 and females age 50-60 were assessed at $60.

Marsham Waring’s property list includes the names of Robert, James, Patrick, and Notley.

Name	Value	Age Range	Birth Year Range
Robert (Bob)	$100	50-60	1773-1783
James (Jim)	$400	18-30	1803-1815
Patrick	$250	10-15	1818-1823
Robert	$150	6-10	1823-1827
Notley	$60	3-6	1827-1830
James (Jim)	$350	15-18 or 35-40	1815-1818 or 1793-1798

1833 Personal Property Assessment for Marsham Waring, 2nd District | Maryland State Archives

James Stewart was enumerated in the 1870 and 1880 US Federal Census. In 1870, he was listed as 63 years old, with an estimated birth year of 1807; in 1880, he was 70 with an estimated birth year of 1810. This allows us to reasonably identify James Stewart as the James (Jim) valued at $400.

Notley’s inclusion in the assessment list is consistent with the information recorded in the White Marsh Baptismal Record; he is valued as a toddler who was born around 1830. His father, Robert from the White Marsh record, is most likely Robert (Bob) valued at $100, as this value allows us to estimate his age as 50-60. The other Robert is valued at $150, allowing for an estimated age of 6-10; he is likely a brother of Notley.

Robert (Bob), between 50 and 60 years old, would have been born during the Revolutionary War (1773-1783). He is old enough to be the father of James, Patrick, Robert and Notley.

At 50-60 years old, Robert (Bob) would already be considered an elderly man. He most likely was no longer used in the fields and instead was laboring as a body servant, gardener or caretaker. As one of the older men on the estate, he was likely a source of stability and wisdom for the younger enslaved family and friends. See Daina Ramey Berry, The Price for Their Pound of Flesh for a discussion of the lives of elderly enslaved people.

Eleanor (Nelly) Crawford

Nelly Crawford was listed in the Benjamin Lee inventory as 33 years old with four living children: Caroline, Louisa, Dennis, and Jerry.

The names of the children with their ages allowed for the identification of Eleanor (Nelly) Crawford’s family in the 1870 Census. The family was living with their father, Dennis Green, near the small mercantile community of Woodmoor. Eleanor is not listed with the family, suggesting she died within the past two years.

James Stewart | Wife

In 1870, a partnerless James Stewart is living with his grown children in Queen Anne District of Prince George’s County. The census allows us to identify George, Mary (Polly), Sarah (Sallie) and Notley. The death certificate for George Stewart in 1904 lists James Stewart and marks his mother as unknown.

James Stewart was enslaved by Marsham Waring and his children were enslaved by Dr. Benjamin Lee. Both slaveholders owned extensive property in Queen Anne District and were brother-in-laws. They also both died during the Civil War, and the inventories of their estate help to identify the family groups.

The 1863 Inventory of Lee’s estate (WAJ 3:127) allows for the identification of other children of James Stewart. As explored in another post, Jim was identified as James Stewart, Jr.

In 1832, James Stewart and Suky had their son, James, baptized by the priests of White Marsh. James (Sr.) was identified as enslaved by Marsham Waring and Suky was identified as enslaved by Dr. Lee.

In the inventory excerpt, there is a child, Susan, 2 months old, that is likely the daughter of Betty, age 18, and grandchild of James Stewart as they are listed between other children of James Stewart also identified in the 1870 census. The name Susan is also used by Sarah Stewart, the daughter of James Stewart. This repetition suggests that the name is significant to the family and is consistent with what was learned from the 1832 White Marsh Record, namely that James Stewart partnered with Suky, or Susan. Sukey (and numerous variations) was a diminutive of Susan.

In 1854, Susana Steward sponsored the baptism of Christina Johns [Jones], the daughter of Joseph and Barbara Jones, who were enslaved by Marsham Waring.

The names in the inventory give hint to Susana Stewart’s age. The ages range from 29 to 3; though the baptism of James in 1832 suggests that the ages are slightly off. If we estimate that Susana began having children around 1830 and that Notley was her last child in 1860, this would suggest a typical child-bearing range of 30 years when women were approximately 15 to 45 years old, allowing us to estimate that Susana was born around 1815.

Rachel Weldon

Collateral

A series of financial transactions between Richard W. W. Bowie and others in the 1850s shows Bowie in debt and using Rachel and her children, whom he enslaved, as collateral for his debt.

Richard W. W. Bowie’s father had died in 1839, and his inheritance was controlled by his mother until her death in 1852. Bowie married the same year; joining in matrimony to Elizabeth L Waring, the daughter of Marsham Waring.

In 1852, Richard W. W. Bowie signed an indenture on account of having borrowed $500 from Septimus I Cook. To secure the loan, he sold the legal authority to enslave Rachel (about 30 years old) and her four children: Elizabeth, 10 years old, Mary, 8 years old, John, 6 six years old, and Sophy about three years old to William Holtzman, who secured the loan. (ON 1:157) Holtzman was a merchant living in Vansville District.

In 1854, Richard W. W. Bowie signed another indenture on account of having borrowed $1200 dollars from James T. Perkins. He secured the loan through the conveyance of Rachel (32 years old), Catherine (12), Sophy, (6) and Edward (4). and a “boy” by the name of Isaiah (18) to Richard D Hall, a planter, also residing in Vansville. (ON 2:148)

Name	Age in 1852 Indenture	Age in 1854 Indenture
Rachel	30	32
Catherine/Elizabeth	10	12
Mary	8	–
John	6	–
Sophy	3	6
Edward	–	4

Baptismal Records

The same year that Bowie mortgaged the family to Hall, Rachel had a child baptized by the priests of White Marsh. Baptismal records for White Marsh prior to 1853 perished in the fire, and the baptism in 1854 is the first after the fire.

In August 1854, the priests of White Marsh baptized Philomena, the daughter of Eduard Weldon and Rachel Galloway. Rachel was recorded as property of Richard Bowie.

In May 1856, the priests baptized Ann. Elis Welden, the daughter of Eduard Welden and Rachel Galloway. Rachel was again marked as property of R. Bowie.

In July 1859, the priests baptized Anne Maria, daughter of Edward and Rachael Weldon, at Mr. Bowie’s residence.

In April 1863, the priests baptized Mary, daughter of Rachel and Edward Weldon at Rob. Bowie’s residence.

Waring’s Purchases

In March 1857, Richard W. W. Bowie sold the family to Marsham Waring, his father-in-law for $2000, most likely allowing him to maintain possession of the family at his estate for the use of Waring’s daughter, Elizabeth L. Bowie. (CSM 1:538) This transaction was not secure a debt, rather was a bill of sale, in which he sold the legal authority to enslave Rachel, age 35, Catherine, age 13, Sophia, age 7, Edward, age 5, Philla, age 3, and Elizabeth age 1. The Bill of Sale does not mention her husband Edward Welden; it is unclear who enslaved him, as priests did not consistently record the father’s slaveholder.

Name	Age in 1852 Indenture	Age in 1854 Indenture	Age in 1857 Bill of Sale
Rachel	30	32	35
Catherine/Elizabeth	10	12	13
Mary	8	–
John	6	–
Sophy	3	6	7
Edward	–	4	5
Philla (Philomena)			3
Ann Elizabeth			1

In February 1859, Richard W. W. Bowie was paid $3000 by his brother Walter W. W. Bowie to relinquish claim to land described in the 1839 will of his father, Walter Bowie, particularly “Locust Grove”. (CSM 3:117)

Then, in the same month, Marsham Waring purchased the lot and parcel of land “known as part of Darnall’s Grove” and called “Locust Grove”, for $15,190 from Walter W. W. Bowie. (CSM 3:538) The Daily Exchange, a paper out of Baltimore, reported the sale.

In Waring’s 1860 will, he directed that the farm “Locust Grove” go to his son James Waring, “for the use and benefit of my beloved daughter Elizaebth L Bowie [Richard W. W. Bowie’s wife], the plantation which I purchased of Walter W. W. Bowie” In his inventory, the people enslaved by Waring were organized by estate and 9 people were named as laboring on Locust Grove: Anna, 22, George, 4, Mary 15, Sam, 35, and Rachel 28, Catherine, 16, Edward, 8, Eliza, 8, and Maria, infant. Rachel and her children made up the bulk of the people named on the estate.

After Waring’s Death

In May 1862, Catherine Weldon, the daughter of Edward and Rachel, fled to the District with other people from the Waring estates. She is named in the affidavit that James Waring took out. The month prior, in April 1862, the District had abolished slavery and those enslaved in the neighboring jurisdictions fled to the freedom it promised along with the Federal Troops who offered a modicum of protection against slave patrols and slave catchers. Many named in affidavit and their extended family are found in the records of the freedmen’s camps (see Jones Family Group and Stewart Family Group posts). Records connected to Catherine have yet to be located. Though in February 1867, Rachel Weldon is recorded as receiving a nominal amount from a Freedmen Bureau’s agent in the District.

In April 1867, the priests of White Marsh baptized Edward, the son of William Franklin and Catherine, his wife. Martha Sprigg, a woman formerly enslaved by the Warings, sponsored the baptism. Martha’s son, Daniel, was baptized the same day. Edward was likely named for her brother and father.

In 1870, Edward and Rachel Weldon were living in the District of Columbia, in Ward 6 with their son Edward. Both Edward’s are working as laborers. City Directories place them near Lincoln Park. In 1880. the census records Edward and Rachel at 328 Ninth Street SE with their grandchildren. Rachel died in October 1884 and was buried at Mt. Olivet Cemetery. Edward died in 1889 and is also buried at Mt. Olivet.

In 1870, Catherine and William were living in Queen Anne District in the vicinity of Collington with three children and in 1880 they were living in the vicinity of Bowie. FrankWeldon, age 48, is living in their household. He is perhaps an older brother or uncle of Catherine.

Rachel’s Family Group

Rachel partnered with Edward Weldon. The extended Weldon family had multiple baptisms recorded in the surviving White Marsh Baptismal records and many were connected with the Mary Hall estate. In the 1861 Inventory of Mary Hall’s estate, two elderly people are named: Frank and Becky. Based on their age in the inventory, they were born around 1790. In 1822, a priest of White Marsh baptized Catherine, daughter of Francis “Welden” and Becca Sprig. The name Catherine would also be used by Edward and Rachel suggesting a relationship between the Weldons enslaved by the Bowies (Edward Welden and his children) and the Weldons enslaved by the Hall family (Francis Weldon and his children)

Two direct sources provide two possible names for Rachel’s family: Galloway and Mahoney. The Baptismal Records lists Rachel as Rachel Galloway in 1854 and 1856 baptisms of her children. This source most likely had either Rachel or her enslaver providing the name for her family, and therefore directly knowledgeable about her family connections. The second source is a death record for Catherine Franklin, who died in Dec 1911, almost thirty years after Rachel. Her son listed his grandparents, and Catherine’s parents as Edward Weldon and her mother as Rachel Mahoney.

Mahoney is connected with a family with direct ties to White Marsh, as Charles Mahoney had sued John Ashton, manager of White Marsh for his freedom in the 1790s. William G. Thomas wrote a fascinating book about this suit and others, called A Question of Freedom: The Families Who Challenged Slavery from the Nation’s Founding to the Civil War. The Hall Family was descended from Benjamin Hall who is said to have taken possession of Ann Joice after she was illegally denied freedom at the end of her indenture. The Mahoney family was descended from Ann, and three Mahoney’s were named in the will of Francis Magruder Hall in 1826. Francis Weldon and Becca Sprigg were named by Hall as well in his will. The death record that connects Rachel to this family group is from a less reliable informant than the informant of the baptism records due to the nature of memory. Based on depositions given by the members of the Mahoney family during their freedom suits, their family passed on an oral tradition of how they were related to Ann Joice, which may have continued after the end of the freedom suits.

The family name Galloway has fewer baptisms than Mahoney or Weldon. In 1832, the priests baptized Charles, the son of Patrick and Henrietta Galloway who was enslaved by Robert Bowie. The sponsor was Kitty from White Marsh. Seven years earlier, a Charles Galloway escaped the captivity of Mary Weems living in Prince George’s County. He was described as a mulatto man about 21 years of age with relations in the city of Washington. Mary Weems, who advertised for Galloway’s return, may be Mary Margaret Hall who married James William Loch Weems and the grandmother of Walter W. W. Bowie and Richard W. W. Bowie. Mary Margaret Hall and Francis Magruder Hall were siblings, and therefore likely to partner their enslaved young adults.

The two diagrams below show the relationships visually. The first shows the connections between the slaveholders. The second diagram shows the family connections of Edward and Rachel Weldon as constructed from direct and indirect evidence, and the estates they were were associated with.

Mary Weems died in 1849, and the 1850 inventory of her estate shows a family group that may be Rachel and children born prior to the surviving baptismal records of White Marsh. (PC 1:384) Rachel, age 30, would have an estimated birth year of 1820, similar to Rachel Galloway’s age given in the multiple Bowie transactions. Additionally, she had a daughter, Catherine, age 5, would would have an estimated birth year of 1845. The 1857 Bill of Sale between Bowie and Waring had an age of 13 for Catherine which would result in an 1844 estimated birth year. Additionally, the oldest daughter, Henny, may have been named for Henrietta Galloway, the mother named in the 1832 baptism, an inferred relative of Rachel.

John and Patsy Hamilton

The eruption of the Civil War and the subsequent abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia disrupted social hierarchy of Prince George’s County The Cecil Whig estimated in March 1864 that over 30,000 enslaved people escaped their captivity across the state and found freedom from their enslavers. Census records show the same for Prince George’s County.

In the decades prior to the Civil War, the enslaved population of Prince George’s County grew from 10,636 in 1840 to 12,479 in 1860. In these decades, the birth rate of the enslaved population was likely offset by high mortality rates among children, a short life expectancy for adults, and sales to the Deep South. The Evening Star in October 1863 called it “the late very large exodus from [Maryland] of free [Black] and slave labor”

In 1860, at the start of the Civil War, the combined total for the free and enslaved population was 13,677. After the war ended and a new economic relationship between White employers and Black employees was being established, the Black population of Prince George’s County had dropped to 9,780, a total comparable to the enslaved population in 1810. About thirty percent of the population had disappeared during and after the war, either having fled their estates or having died from starvation and disease inevitable during times of war.

While John and Patsy Hamilton survived the war, their family group did not and their children had disappeared.

In 1863, as the war raged on, Dr. Benjamin Lee died. A large landowner in Queen Anne District of Prince George’s County, his inventory named seventy-six people he enslaved. He resided at “Oak Hill” near the Sprigg Northhampton estate and near the Western Branch. His inventory also indicated his “Chelsea Farm” and his “Stewart Farm”. Benjamin Lee’s nephew, James Waring, was one of the appraisers for the inventory, who notated at the end of the inventory:

Owing to he unsafe condition of the above property consistent of seventy-six [Black people] produced by the war, we can value them at but an average of one hundred dollars per head.”
WAJ 3:132 Inventory of Benjamin Lee

In his inventory are included the names John and Patsy. They are listed near the beginning of the inventory suggesting they were more likely to be house servants rather than farm laborers. With them are the names of four people who are likely their children and grandchild:

Pink, age 24
Frank, age 15 months
Egbert, age 17
Letty, age 14

The children/grandchild have yet to be located in the 1870 census, suggesting they fled or died during the War and the ensuing chaos. Barbara Jeanne Fields, in her book Slavery and Freedom on the Middle Ground: Maryland During the Nineteenth Century, wrote that after the abolition of slavery in the District, “families packed up such of their possessions as could be compactly assembled and departed, sometimes appropriating means of transportation from their owners”. The escape to DC was often along roads lined with slave patrols and local constables. James Waring, Lee’s nephew, had gone to DC in May 1862 to return a group of enslaved people who had fled from Waring’s estates. Because fleeing to DC meant the possibility of physical punishment resulting from exposure to elements and torture from patrols, it was often the “vigorous young men and women” who took their chances with the intention to come back for the rest of their family.

In June 1863, the Evening Star in the District of Columbia ran the headline:

EXTENSIVE STAMPEDE OF SLAVES

A FIGHT BETWEEN THEM AND AN INDEPENDENT PATROL

On Sunday night, some seventy-five slaves, belonging in the neighborhood of South River, Anne Arundel count and Queen Anne’s Prince George’s county, MD, stampeded, taking with them a wagon and cart, with horses and brining with them a portion of their effects. The party left the first named neighborhood about 11 o’clock at night, and travelled all night, at various points on the road being reinforced, until the number reached about seventy-five.

Yesterday morning, they were stopped near the “Long Old Fields” by a number of men styling themselves “patrols” armed with shot guns and pistols, but the party of slaves massed themselves and pushed on, the patrollers attempting to stop their profess and to drive them from the teams, and when about one mile from Fort Meigs, they fired into the fugitives, when it is said, one of the slaves returned the fire and selves other shots were fired. The party of fugitives separated and led and the patrollers also made off.

Among the fugitives there was two men an one woman killed and five wounded as far as known. The wounded persons were taken in charge and brough to the city, and th company in different bands arrived here yesterday afternoon and during the night– fifty having reported at Contraband Camp up to the his morning. Some of the wounded are not expected to live. One man received four balls in his head, face, shoulder and hip.”
Evening Star, 16 Jun 1862, page 3

Letitia Hamilton shows up in the White Marsh Records in 1868. In October, “Letitia, daughter of John and Betsy Hamilton, 18 years old” had converted to Catholicism and was baptized. The same day, she stood as a sponsor for the baptism of Eliza, the daughter of John Cameron and his wife, Matilda. The priests of White Marsh were inconsistent spellers, often from non-English spelling countries and using phonetic spelling. Hence, Betsy for Patsy. This record helps support the belief that the four names after John and Patsy in the Inventory are their children/grandchild.

In 1870, John and Patsy Hamilton are living in household of Violetta Harding, the daughter of Benjamin Lee, and heir of the estates. Patsy is given an estimated age of 50, while John is given an estimated age of 60. Despite their age, which for the formerly enslaved is quite elderly, they are working. Patsy is listed as a servant. John is listed as a farm hand. The next household listed is James Duvall, an overseer, who likely oversaw the tenant farmers, who were formerly enslaved.

By 1880, they are no longer listed in the census.

Prior to the war, John Hamilton had attempted an escape of his own from the estates of Benjamin Lee. In 1841, the Washington Daily Globe ran an advertisement for the return of John Hamilton. He was described as “about 21 years of age, five feet seven or eight inches high, dark complexion, large head and short neck”. Benjamin Lee offered a $100 reward for his return.

His clothing was described as “a dark kersey roundabout, white kersey pantaloons, blue and red striped home-spun waistcoat with metal buttons, and an old furred hat; he has other clothing and the probability is that he will change them”.

Kersey is a kind of coarse woolen cloth. Lee’s inventory showed he had about hundred sheep across his three estates with over 500 lbs of wool. Despite the wool production from the labor of the people he enslaved, there was no mention of a spinning wheel among his inventory. The kersey and the “home-spun” waistcoat was probably purchased from a local merchant or artisan rather than produced on the estate. Along with the world, was listed a small trunk with 16 pairs of stockings, 26 servant shirts, cloth for 12 coats and 6 servant frocks.

The color and the metal buttons of the homespun waistcoat suggests a more extravagant waistcoat than typically worn by a field laborer. The expense of the waistcoat suggested by the dye and metal buttons opens the possibility that John Hamilton is wearing a waistcoat handed down from Benjamin Lee; or that John Hamilton worked in the house and as such was dressed in his livery. Patricia Hunt-Hurst writes in her article about the clothing of the enslaved: “Unlike other items of clothing, vests [or waistcoats] were likely optional apparel, more decorative than functional, and thus rarely worn by slaves. They may have been a winter allotment for some plantations, perhaps as a hand-me-down or gift.”

During the war, on 12 July 1864, the Baltimore Sun ran a list of draftees for the Civil War. Listed in the Seventh District for Prince George’s County is the name Jno. Hamilton, slave of the estate of Benj. Lee. Due to his age, it is unlikely he enlisted; no record has been found.

Sources:

Fields Barbara Jeanne. Slavery and Freedom on the Middle Ground : Maryland during the Nineteenth Century. Yale University Press 1985.

Hunt-Hurst, Patricia. “‘Round Homespun Coat & Pantaloons of the Same’: Slave Clothing as Reflected in Fugitive Slave Advertisements in Antebellum Georgia.” The Georgia Historical Quarterly, vol. 83, no. 4, 1999, pp. 727–40. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40584195. Accessed 21 May 2023.