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An Invitation for Descendants of Plantation Owners and Descendants of Slaves to Collaborate to Rediscover Lowcountry African American Heritage

Genealogical Research in the Lowcountry - Descendants of Plantation Owners and Descendants of Slaves Collaborate to Rediscover Lowcountry African American Heritage

For the past two years, descendants of the slaveholding Drayton family and descendants of families formerly enslaved on Drayton family plantations have worked side-by-side to rediscover the genealogy of African American families on Drayton family plantations. The full research results will be posted on Lowcountry Africana in the near future (we are compiling now). You may follow our blog to view research updates: http://lowcountryafricana.net/blog.asp.

With this forum, we would like to broaden that scope to begin collaborative research between descendants of all Lowcountry slaveholding families and all Lowcountry African American families.

Did your family own plantations and hold slaves? Would you like to share documents which name the enslaved or free families who worked on your family's plantations? Please do join this research and share documents and information, photos...

Are you a descendant of enslaved or free African Americans in the Lowcountry? Please join the research effort and share your family history, photos, life experiences...

GenealogyWise gives us an enormous opportunity to use the reach of the Internet to begin a large-scale collaborative research project to rediscover family heritage in the Lowcountry! We hope you will join this research effort!

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Hi Carolyn,
Thank you so much for posting here. I hope you hear from other researchers who can offer info and help. Have you had a look at the wills and estate inventories for your ancestors?

Best,
Toni :0)
The SC Historical Society has many valuable documents. I found my great-great-great-grandfather's employment contract of 1822. He was employed as an overseer on two plantations at the same time. One of those plantations was Friendfield (where Mrs. Obama's ancestor was born). The other plantation was located in Horry County. I also found a letter written by him to the plantation owner (the aunt of Gov. Robert F. Allston) in 1837.
My g-g-g-grandfather, William T. Thompson, died in 1838. He had a relationship with his cook who gave birth to a son, Nelson Thompson, in 1830. Nelson spent most of his years at Chicora Wood Plantation in or near Plantersville. He married a woman named Nellie (Nelly), one Christmas day. She had been born in 1835. Many of Nelson and Nellie's relatives are mentioned in the books THEM DARK DAYS: SLAVERY IN THE AMERICAN RICE SWAMPS by William Dusinberre, CHRONICLES OF CHICORA WOOD and A WOMAN RICE PLANTER both by Elizabeth Pringle.
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Hi Diana,
Thank you so much for posting and sharing your family's history. Hopefully your information will connect you with some family members you have yet to meet. :) Have you seen the Chicora Wood documents in the Lowcountry Africana database? They may be duplicated in the books you mention above.

Welcome and Thanks for Posting!

Toni
Hi Ruth,
Thank you so much for writing! One of our biggest goals is to learn which records reside where so Lowcountry researchers can focus in on relevant records. We would love to know what resources the Sumter County museum has.
Thank you so much!

Toni
I am interested in any information on the Groton Plantation near Estill,S.C.
Hi Mickell,
Thank you so much for posting - hope your post leads to new information. We will keep an eye out for Groton Plantation information and documents.

Welcome to the Forum!

Toni
Thank You!!
My LENOIRS are the slave descendants of Gen William Lenoir of Caldwell CO NC. My GGF Uriah Lenoir was owned by Thomas Lenoir according to his diary. The UNC-Chapel Hill papers mention various incedents re the LENOIR slaves. However, they were the last slave owners but I am uncertain as to who owned them before the Lenoirs. We are in the process of having DNA's done on the line of Romeo Lenoir(Uriah's bro in law) and Uriah Lenoir .
My GGM Dorcas Smathers was bought off the auction block in Charleston SC( according to oral history) in 1863 by Levi Smathers of Haywood Co NC. We do have a copy of her bill of sale.She was bought with her 4 month old son, Jefferson. No previous history for her YET. I do have a kind RAOGK person in Charleston SC trying to assist me with this task..A GILLIAM MILLER is the name on the bottom of her BoS and we do not know if this was the slave trader or who. Mysteries!!! Oh Mysteries.
Maybe some one can help me scale these block walls
Gwen Cradle
Hi Gwen,
Thank you so much for posting! I've just scoured the online index at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History (www.archivesindex.sc.gov) and did not see any records for Gilliam Miller. I'll do a bit of searching to see if I can find anything more about him.

Toni
Hi Gwen,
I see a death certificate for a Dorcas Smathers, widow of Henry Smathers in Haywood County, NC, states she was born in Charleston. Do you have this document yet?

Best and Peace,
Toni
Hi Gwen, I find you everywhere. I sent an email to the gentleman who emailed you the information. I printed out what you emailed me and thank you again.
Hello Gwen. I am currently in the process of publishing a book about Captain Thomas I. Lenoir and his Civil War volunteer company, the Haywood Highlanders. Emily Terrell mentioned to me (before she passed away) that you were doing research work on Henry Uriah Lenoir. I found many references to Uriah in the Lenoir letters that you undoubtedly have seen as well. I would love to share information with you if you want to get in touch with me. Best regards....Carroll Jones

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