Slaves Divided. Over 30 named Slaves at $28,500 Split Among Widow and Small Children in Mississippi, Spectacular History!

This 1854 report by commissioners to the probate court of Hinds County, Mississippi, details the division of the enslaved African Americans owned by Oscar D. Johnston at the time of his death in 1847. The commissioners divided the slaves into three shares according to value and then assigned them by lot to Johnston’s widow and their children.

[SLAVERY.] H. M. White, Thomas J. Catchings, and J. J. Birdsong, Manuscript Document Signed, Division of Slaves, January 2, 1854, Hinds County, Mississippi. 4 pp., 7.5" x 12.25". General toning; residue of contemporary wax at top of fourth page, not affecting text; very good.

Excerpts
"The undersigned commissioners appointed by this honourable court at the December term 1853 thereof and ordered and directed among other things to divide the negro slaves of the Estate of O. D. Johnson deceased among his devisees and legatees (or legal heirs agreeable to the law of decedents and to ascertain by shears of said negro property and to allot to them their respective shears thereof...assembled at the house of J. J. Cocke in said county on the 2 day of January 1854 and immediately caused to be assembled...all of the negroes slaves belonging to said Estate of O. D. Johnston and divided them into three equal shares according to value that we assignated said shars as No 1,2,3 and by lot assigned and set off to said legatees their respective shares...."

"Schedule A
"Exhibiting the negro slaves of the estate of O. D. Johnston deceased divided into three shars respectively allotted to O D Johnston and Mrs. L. W M Cocke and D. L. O. Johnston by the undersigned commissioners as hearinafter and in this report expressed viz Shar and lot No; 1 allotted to O. D. Johnson
   negro man   named   Georgevalued at$800
            woman              Polly                      300
               "                     Phillis                   1000
          "  girl                   Elizabeth                300
             Boy                 Henry                      900
             girl                   little Mary               800
         woman               Martha                   1000
            Boy                 David                       600
                           Big Ester & Child           1000
            girl                 Henryetter              1000
             "                   little Ester                 800
             "                   Sarah                       800
                                 little Polly                 250
                                                                $9550

"Shear and lot No 2 allotted to Mrs L. W. M Cocke
   negro woman        Nancy   vallued at   $400
                  "             Affy                            900
                  "             Becca                       1000
                girl           Adaline                     1000
                Boy         Peter                          800
                "             Jessee                        600
              man          Frank                        1200
               "              Theophilus                  500
              Boy          William                        900...
           woman        Giney       vallued       400
              "          Tishy & C[h]ild               1100
            girl             Vicktory                       300
         woman         Dilsy                            400
                                                             $9500

"Shar and lot No 3 was allotted to D L. O. Johnston
   negro woman  Otty & Childvallued at$1100
                 "       Matilda & Child               1000
               girl           Sally                           200
            woman      Maryann                    1100
               "             Betsey                       1000
            man          Antony                       1200
          woman       Themy                       1000
           man          Campbell                   1000
           girl             Ailsy                            900
         woman    Clony & Child               1000
                                                            $9500.00"

Oscar Dunwreath Hazzard Johnston (ca. 1819-1847) was born in Kentucky. In January 1845, he married Louisa H. M. Peyton (1820-1909) in Hinds County, Mississippi, and they had two children, D. L. O. Johnston and O. D. Johnston. They lived near the town of Brownsville in Hinds County. After his death, his widow married in 1852 John J. Cocke, who became the guardian of her two children.

D. L. O. Johnston (1846-1874) was born in Clinton, Mississippi. In 1868, she married Noah Hodge, a Union veteran of the Civil War from Springfield, Illinois, and they had two children before her death in August 1874.

O. D. Johnston (b. 1847) is listed in the 1850 federal census in the household of Louisa M. Johnson as a three-year-old male, but this document refers to "Miss O. D. Johnston."

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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