Chancery Records

Enslaved individuals were listed as property in wills, estate inventories, and division of property among heirs.

Details often include:

1. Names, ages, and relationships (e.g., mothers and children).
2. Physical descriptions
3. Family groupings (e.g., mother and children)
4. Skills or occupations (e.g., blacksmith, seamstress).
5. Appraised monetary values.
6. Transfers to new owners, showing potential migration routes.

Example:
A lawsuit over dividing an estate may list families of enslaved individuals assigned to different heirs, helping to trace family separations or connections.

1. These cases document forced sales or transfers of enslaved people when multiple heirs contested ownership.
2. Courts sometimes ordered the sale of enslaved individuals to pay off debts or divide inheritance fairly.
3. Result: May reveal whether individuals were moved to different counties or states, providing clues to migration patterns.

1. Enslaved individuals were often mortgaged as collateral for loans or debts.
2. Foreclosures required detailed lists of property, including enslaved people.

These records reveal:

1. Sales of enslaved persons at auctions.
2. Names of buyers and their locations, which can help track family movements.

Some records include petitions for freedom, where enslaved individuals sued for emancipation based on promises made by their owners or legal technicalities.

These cases may include:

1. Depositions with testimonies from enslaved individuals.
2. Evidence of self-purchase agreements or manumission papers.
3. Violations of laws prohibiting the enslavement of free persons.
4. Self-purchase agreements (contracts allowing an enslaved person to buy their freedom).

Depositions and testimonies often provide personal details, such as:

1. Birthplaces.
2. Parentage.
3. Family relationships.
4. Conditions of enslavement.

Example:
A lawsuit could preserve the oral history of an enslaved person who testified about their background, family, and labor.

Enslaved children listed in chancery records were sometimes assigned guardians in inheritance disputes.

These cases may record:

1. Names of parents or siblings.
2. Details about their care and education.
3. Promises of future emancipation.

Many enslavers made provisions for manumission in their wills, leading to disputes among heirs trying to overturn these provisions.

These lawsuits often name individuals intended to be freed and may include:

1. Ages.
2. Health conditions.
3. Relationships within family groups.

Example:
A disputed will might document a promise to free an enslaved woman and her children, identifying them by name and their location.

After emancipation, former enslavers filed lawsuits demanding compensation for the loss of enslaved labor.

These cases sometimes required detailed histories of enslaved individuals, including:

1. Labor contributions.
2. Personal characteristics.
3. Family dynamics and community roles.