Browse Items (201 total)
- Collection: Slavery in the Maryland Province
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Peter Kenney, SJ's observations on the enslaved families at Bohemia, 1831
Fr. Peter Kenney SJ reports negatively on the condition of enslaved families at the Bohemia plantation in Cecil County, Md., in 1831.
"We are in the dark as long as we keep slaves": Br. Joseph Mobberly, S.J. calculates the cost savings from emancipation, February 5, 1815
In this letter to Georgetown President Giovanni Grassi S.J,, Brother Joseph Mobberly, S.J. urges that the Jesuits' enslaved people be sold for a time or set free. Most of the letter is devoted to calculating the cost advantage of hiring free white…
The Maryland Missions in 1765
In 1765, Fr. George Hunter SJ compiled a survey of the Jesuit missions in Maryland that accounted for 192 enslaved persons. Missions listed include St. Inigoes, Newtown, Port Tobacco, Deer Creek, and Bohemia. Hunter recorded the annual income of each…
Baptism of Sylvester, 1819
Baptismal record for Sylvester, the son of Joe and Easter, slaves of Newtown, dated June 4, 1819. Joe and Easter (or Esther) Greenleaf and their children, including Sylvester, were sold to Henry Johnson in 1838. Their names appear on the list of…
"A Dreadful Whipping": Fr. Beschter to Fr. Leavy on the whipping of an enslaved woman at St. Inigoes, January 7th, 1836
In this letter to another Jesuit priest in January 1836, Fr. Beschter describes the whipping of a cook at St. Inigoes because she witnessed the self-flagellation of Fr. Bolton, an older Jesuit at the Mission.
"The sale of two unnecessary negroes": Bishop Carroll to Fr. Neale proposing the sale of people, November 12, 1805
In a letter from Bishop Carroll to Fr. Francis Neale dated November 12, 1805, Carroll proposes the sale of up to four people to raise funds needed for the management of the missions.
"Sales of Negroes for Life": Abp. Carroll expresses his surprise that people were sold against the Corporation's orders, Oct 1815
Archbishop Carroll writes to Francis Neale in 1815 about the administration of the missions. The letter includes a reference to the sale of "Jem's family" from the Bohemia estate and unauthorized sales of people from White Marsh. Carroll expresses…
A "Multiplicity of Deaths": Fr. Mobberly to Fr. Grassi, on a series of deaths that occurred at St. Inigos, 1812.
In this letter from 1812, Fr. Mobberly writes to Fr. Grassi about the mortality rate at St. Inigos and the common illnesses among its inhabitants. It mentions the deaths of five enslaved people: Old Billy, Old Sucky, Old Mathew, Little Sucky, and…
"4 Sick Grown Hands": Letter from Fr. Brooke to Fr. Neale on a disease outbreak among the enslaved population of Newtown, October 1806
In this letter to Fr. Francis Neale, Fr. Brooke describes how a disease outbreak among the enslaved population left his plans for the Newtown mission in disarray.
"They want them... for their Plantations": Fr. Kenney to Fr. Neale on their plans to sell a group of people to a Louisiana planter, Sept. 10, 1832
In this letter from 1832 Fr. Kenney asks Fr. Neale to provide him with "the number and description of the Blacks, whom you would sell to Mr. John Lee and to Mr. Horsey." Kenney mentions Louisiana as their destination, stating that the planters…