WILKES COUNTY, GEORGIA
LARGEST SLAVEHOLDERS FROM 1860 SLAVE CENSUS SCHEDULES
and
SURNAME MATCHES FOR AFRICAN AMERICANS ON 1870 CENSUS
Transcribed by Tom Blake, April, 2003
PURPOSE. Published information giving names of slaveholders and numbers of slaves held in Wilkes County, Georgia, in 1860, is either non-existent or not readily available. It is possible to locate a free person on the Wilkes County, Georgia census for 1860 and not know whether that person was also listed as a slaveholder on the slave census, because published indexes almost always do not include the slave census.
Those who have found a free ancestor on the 1860 Wilkes County, Georgia census can check this list to learn if their ancestor was one of the larger slaveholders in the County. If the ancestor is not on this list, the 1860 slave census microfilm can be viewed to find out whether the ancestor was a holder of a fewer number of slaves or not a slaveholder at all. Whether or not the ancestor is found to have been a slaveholder, a viewing of the slave census will provide an informed sense of the extent of slavery in the ancestral County, particularly for those who have never viewed a slave census. An ancestor not shown to hold slaves on the 1860 slave census could have held slaves on an earlier census, so those films can be checked also. In 1850, the slave census was also separate from the free census, but in earlier years it was a part of the free census.
African American descendants of persons who were enslaved in Wilkes County, Georgia in 1860, if they have an idea of the surname of the slaveholder, can check this list for the surname. If the surname is found, they can then view the microfilm for the details listed regarding the sex, age and color of the slaves. If the surname is not on this list, the microfilm can be viewed to see if there were smaller slaveholders with that surname. To check a master surname list for other States and Counties, return to Home and Links Page.
The information on surname matches of 1870 African Americans and 1860 slaveholders is intended merely to provide data for consideration by those seeking to make connections between slaveholders and former slaves. Particularly in the case of these larger slaveholders, the data seems to show in general not many freed slaves in 1870 were using the surname of their 1860 slaveholder. However, the data should be checked for the particular surname to see the extent of the matching.
The last U.S. census slave schedules were enumerated by County in 1860 and included 393,975 named persons holding 3,950,546 unnamed slaves, or an average of about ten slaves per holder. The actual number of slaveholders may be slightly lower because some large holders held slaves in more than one County and they would have been counted as a separate slaveholder in each County. Excluding slaves, the 1860 U.S. population was 27,167,529, with about 1 in 70 being a slaveholder. It is estimated by this transcriber that in 1860, slaveholders of 200 or more slaves, while constituting less than 1 % of the total number of U.S. slaveholders, or 1 out of 7,000 free persons, held 20-30% of the total number of slaves in the U.S. The process of publication of slaveholder names beginning with larger slaveholders will enable naming of the holders of the most slaves with the least amount of transcription work.
SOURCES. The 1860 U.S. Census Slave Schedules for Wilkes County, Georgia (NARA microfilm series M653, Roll 152) reportedly includes a total of 7,953 slaves. This transcription includes 126 slaveholders who held 20 or more slaves in Wilkes County, accounting for 5,475 slaves, or about 69% of the County total. The rest of the slaves in the County were held by a total of 392 slaveholders, and those slaveholders have not been included here. Due to variable film quality, handwriting interpretation questions and inconsistent counting and page numbering methods used by the census enumerators, interested researchers should view the source film personally to verify or modify the information in this transcription for their own purposes. Census data for 1860 was obtained from the Historical United States Census Data Browser, which is a very detailed, searchable and highly recommended database that can found at http://fisher.lib.virginia.edu/census/ . Census data on African Americans in the 1870 census was obtained using Heritage Quest’s CD “African-Americans in the 1870 U.S. Federal Census”, available through Heritage Quest at http://www.heritagequest.com/ .
FORMAT. This transcription lists the names of those largest slaveholders in the County, the number of slaves they held in the County and the first census page on which they were listed. The page numbers used are the rubber stamped numbers in the upper right corner of every set of two pages, with the previous stamped number and a “B” being used to designate the pages without a stamped number. Following the holder list is a separate list of the surnames of the holders with information on numbers of African Americans on the 1870 census who were enumerated with the same surname. The term “County” is used to describe the main subdivisions of the State by which the census was enumerated.
TERMINOLOGY. Though the census schedules speak in terms of “slave owners”, the transcriber has chosen to use the term “slaveholder” rather than “slave owner”, so that questions of justice and legality of claims of ownership need not be addressed in this transcription. Racially related terms such as African American, black, mulatto and colored are used as in the source or at the time of the source, with African American being used otherwise.
PLANTATION NAMES. Plantation names were not shown on the census. Using plantation names to locate ancestors can be difficult because the name of a plantation may have been changed through the years and because the sizeable number of large farms must have resulted in lots of duplication of plantation names. In Georgia in 1860 there were 482 farms of 1,000 acres or more, the largest size category enumerated in the census, and another 1,359 farms of 500-999 acres. Linking names of plantations in this County with the names of the large holders on this list should not be a difficult research task, but it is beyond the scope of this transcription.
FORMER SLAVES. The 1860 U.S. Census was the last U.S. census showing slaves and slaveholders. Slaves were enumerated in 1860 without giving their names, only their sex and age and indication of any handicaps, such as deaf or blind Slaves 100 years of age or older were supposed to be named on the 1860 slave schedule, but there were only 1,570 slaves of such age enumerated, and, though not specifically searching for such slaves, the transcriber noticed none in this County for the holders transcribed. Freed slaves, if listed in the next census, in 1870, would have been reported with their full name, including surname. Some of these former slaves may have been using the surname of their 1860 slaveholder at the time of the 1870 census and they may have still been living in the same State or County. Before presuming an African American was a slave on the 1860 census, the free census for 1860 should be checked, as almost 11% of African Americans were enumerated as free in 1860, with about half of those living in the southern States. Estimates of the number of former slaves who used the surname of a former owner in 1870, vary widely and from region to region. If an African American ancestor with one of these surnames is found on the 1870 census, then making the link to finding that ancestor as a slave requires advanced research techniques involving all obtainable records of the holder.
MIGRATION OF FORMER SLAVES: According to U.S. Census data, the 1860 Wilkes County population included 3,434 whites, 33 “free colored” and 7,953 slaves. By the 1870 census, the white population had increased about 15% to 3,969, while the “colored” population decreased about 2% to 7,827. (As a side note, by 1960, 100 years later, the County was listed as having 5,342 whites, about 55% more than in 1860, while the 1960 total of 5,618 “Negroes”was about 30% less than what the colored population had been 100 years before.) It should be noted however, that in comparing census data for 1870 and 1960, the transcriber did not take into consideration any relevant changes in county boundaries.
Where did the freed slaves go if they did not stay in Wilkes County? Chatham County saw an increase in colored population of almost two thirds between 1860 and 1870, so obviously that is where many freed slaves went. Other Georgia Counties showing significant increases include Fulton, Houston and Richmond. Between 1860 and 1870, the Georgia colored population increased by 80,000, to 545,000, a 17% increase. Where did freed Georgia slaves go if they did not stay in Georgia? States that saw significant increases in colored population during that time, and were therefore more likely possible places of relocation for colored persons from Wilkes County, included the following: Texas, up 70,000 (38%); Alabama, up 37,000 (8%); North Carolina, up 31,000 (8%); Florida, up 27,000 (41%); Ohio, up 26,000 (70%); Indiana, up 25,000 (127%); and Kansas up from 265 to 17,000 (6,400%).
SLAVEHOLDER LIST:
ALEXANDER, A. L., 46 slaves, page 503
ANDREWS, Wm., 50 slaves, page 466B
ARMSTRONG, F. C., 26 slaves, page 479B
ARNETT, B. A., 55 slaves, page 474B
ARNOLD, Allen J., 26 slaves, page 489
ARNOLD, Moses, 51 slaves, page 489B
BARKSDALE, Thos. A., 41 slaves, page 466
BARNETT, P. J., 40 slaves, page 477
BARNETT, Saml., 59 slaves, page 493B
BINNS?, Christopher, 42V91B
BOLTON, Jas. N., 37 slaves, page 459
BOOKER, Ef. M., 29 slaves, page 500
BOOKER, Jabez M., 26 slaves, page 476
BOOKER, John M., 43 slaves, page 473
BOOKER, Wm. E., 65 slaves, page 500B
BOWDRE, Benj. T., 49 slaves, page 484B
BURDETT, Thos. P., 52 slaves, page 496B
BURDETT, Thos. P. For 2 minors, 31 slaves, page 496B
BURNS, Saml. T. Sr., 34 slaves, page 478
BUSSEY, C. H., 20 slaves, page 495B
CALAWAY, P., 117 slaves, page 486B
CALLAWAY, A., 23 slaves, page 493
CALLAWAY, C., 70 slaves, page 458B
CALLAWAY, John T., 25 slaves, page 499B
CALLAWAY, S. Sr., 28 slaves, page 470
CALLAWAY, Sea? Jr., 32 slaves, page 492B
CALLAWAY, Thos. W., 24 slaves, page 487B
CARTER, John R. J., 35 slaves, page 496
CHENAULT, J. N., 27 slaves, page 473B
CLEVELAND, A. A., 22 slaves, page 456B
COFER, Henry J., 26 slaves, page 492
COLLEY, France, 38 slaves, page 494
COLLEY, H. F., 33 slaves, page 457B
DANIEL, S. E., 41 slaves, page 458
DOWNES, John, 32 slaves, page 498B
DUBOSE, J. R. Senr., 64 slaves, page 455
DUBOSE, Wylie H., 20 slaves, page 501
EVANS, Arden Sr., 32 slaves, page 488B
FANNING, Welcome, 55 slaves, page 469B
FAVER, L. D. For 2 minors, 28 slaves, page 490B
FAVER, Lewis D., 20 slaves, page 490B
FAVER, Nancy H., 29 slaves, page 490B
FICKLIN, F., 73 slaves, page 477B
FLORENCE, George W., 28 slaves, page 503B
FORTSON, Benj. W., 55 slaves, page 465B
GARTRELL, Jos., 74 slaves, page 475B
GULLATT, Rachael, 40 slaves, page 496
HACKNEY, Mary, 50 slaves, page 488
HALL, James M., 70 slaves, Bloodworth District, page 507
HARDEN, Benj. B., 61 slaves, page 481
HARRIS, James, 51 slaves, page 485
HEARD, Benj. W., 81 slaves, page 462B
HESTER, Sarah E., 24 slaves, page 494
HESTER, Simeon, 45V93B
HILL, L. M., 240 slaves, page 461
HILL, Wylie P., 75 slaves, page 460
HUBBARD, Teague? L., 24 slaves, page 483
HUFF, Richd., 27 slaves, page 499
HULING, James, 83 slaves, page 482
IRVIN?, I.? T., 117 slaves, page 502
JOHN, Wm. L. Sr., 26 slaves, Bloodworth District, page 506
JONES, Winefrey L., 41 slaves, page 472B
JORDAN, Benj. F., 42 slaves, page 483B
JORDAN, Wm. M., 58 slaves, page 460B
JOSEPH, G.? R., J. S.? Sherman agent for, 48 slaves, Bloodworth District, page 506B
KENDALL, Reuben, 34 slaves, page 493
KENDRICK, G. M., 49 slaves, page 480
LANE, James H., 24 slaves, page 504
LYLES, Maria E., 24 slaves, page 488B
MCKINNEY?, George, 22 slaves, page 478B
MCLENDON, Francis, 38 slaves, page 499B
MCMEKIN, A. C., 20 slaves, page 495
MOSS, Wm., 34 slaves, page 483
NORMAN, G. G., 22 slaves, page 487
NORMAN, Johnston, 27 slaves, page 491
PALMER, Geo. W., 43 slaves, page 455B
PARKER, Thomas H., 29 slaves, Bloodworth District, page 505
PARKER, Wm. C., 36 slaves, Bloodworth District, page 505
PASCHAL?, Dennis Sr., 24 slaves, page 476B
PERTEET, Wm. R., 28 slaves, page 470
PETTUS, S. G. Jr., 53 slaves, page 477
PETTUS, S. G. Senr., 77 slaves, page 456
POOLE, John S., 30 slaves, page 468B
POPE, Alex. Sr., 152 slaves, page 497
POPE, Wm. H., 40 slaves, page 484
POPE, Wylie M., 36 slaves, page 484
PRATHER, Benj., 27 slaves, page 495B
PULLEN, Dinah, 20 slaves, page 466
PULLEN, Geo. Senr., 23 slaves, page 467
PULLEN, Mary, 38 slaves, page 467
QUINN, W. D., 31 slaves, page 468
RANDOLPH, for 2 minors, John A. Dyson, 37 slaves, page 504
ROBERT, M. G., 37 slaves, page 494B
SHANK, Felix, 25 slaves, page 501B
SHANK, George, 24 slaves, page 500
SIMS, George W., 53 slaves, page 475
SLATON, H. T., and 2 others, 64 slaves, page 485
SMITH, Adelia E., 36 slaves, page 488
SMITH, F. E., 20 slaves, page 468B
SMITH, James, 24 slaves, page 487B
SMITH, Jonathan, 30 slaves, page 457B
SNELLSON, Nathl., 24 slaves, page 498B
SPRATHER?, James H., 25 slaves, page 490
TALIAFERO, N. M., 78 slaves, page 465
TRUITT, Purnell, 26 slaves, page 498
WALLACE, Benj., 38 slaves, page 458
WALTON, John H. Jr., 32 slaves, page 478B
WALTON, John H., 31 slaves, page 471B
WALTON, Mary A., 27 slaves, page 464B
WALTON, Richd. T., 63 slaves, page 472
WALTON, Wm. D., 26 slaves, page 485B
WARE, Nicholas C., 24 slaves, page 500B
WEST, John Q., 32 slaves, page 501B
WILKINSON, J. W., 25 slaves, page 486
WILLIS, James D., 55 slaves, page 502
WILLIS, James A., 54 slaves, page 467
WILLIS, Lewis B., 36 slaves, page 472B
WINGFIELD, A. S., 66 slaves, page 478B
WINGFIELD, C. for self and 2 others, 57 slaves, page 479B
WINGFIELD, G., 83 slaves, page 459B
WOOTEN, R. W., 33 slaves, page 470B
WORTHEN, J. B., 42 slaves, page 462B
WRIGHT, James C., 22 slaves, page 498B
WYLIE, N., 34 slaves, page 481B
WYNN, Jno. L., 75 slaves, page 463B
WYNN, Saml. L., 69 slaves, page 463
SURNAME MATCHES AMONG AFRICAN AMERICANS ON 1870 CENSUS:
(exact surname spellings only are reported, no spelling variations or soundex)
(SURNAME, # in US, in State, in County, born in State, born and living in State, born in State and living in County)
ALEXANDER, 3460, 313, 0, 351, 234, 0
ANDREWS, 1160, 247, 11, 259, 214, 10
ARMSTRONG, 1600, 179, 5, 199, 153, 5
ARNETT, 99, 30, 16, 30, 27, 15
ARNOLD, 945, 231, 18, 226, 188, 16
BARKSDALE, 300, 68, 25, 67, 61, 24
BARNETT, 755, 97, 13, 127, 86, 13
BINNS?, 32, 17, 11, 18, 17, 11
BOLTON, 284, 62, 5, 57, 53, 3
BOOKER, 1338, 112, 48, 119, 95, 47
BOWDRE, 12, 8, 3, 11, 7, 3
BURDETT, 76, 20, 2, 22, 20, 2
BURNS, 1023, 100, 8, 117, 85, 8
BUSSEY, 71, 30, 1, 28, 23, 1
CALAWAY, 157, 36, 0, 42, 31, 0
CALLAWAY, 268, 112, 58, 104, 94, 52
CARTER, 7164, 598, 8, 653, 479, 8
CHENAULT, 88, 13, 7, 11, 11, 7
CLEVELAND, 242, 52, 2, 47, 38, 1
COFER, 42, 15, 14, 15, 15, 14
COLLEY, 64, 13, 7, 14, 12, 7
DANIEL, 1765, 496, 9, 539, 441, 9
DOWNES, 36, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0
DUBOSE, 252, 19, 8, 27, 14, 7
EVANS, 3275, 428, 21, 491, 377, 19
FANNING, 42, 11, 9, 15, 11, 9
FAVER, 29, 27, 18, 26, 26, 18
FICKLIN, 46, 14, 0, 9, 0, 0
FLORENCE, 84, 25, 2, 37, 24, 2
FORTSON, 77, 40, 12, 38, 36, 11
GARTRELL, 24, 18, 13, 19, 18, 13
GULLATT, 18, 14, 11, 16, 14, 11
HACKNEY, 92, 12, 4, 12, 12, 4
HALL, 5875, 642, 2, 693, 513, 2
HARDEN?,577, 138, 7, 148, 124, 7
HARRIS, 11315, 1232, 25, 1401, 1049, 25
HEARD, 357, 205, 33, 212, 183, 31
HESTER, 359, 59, 3, 64, 55, 3
HILL, 6675, 825, 49, 951, 671, 47
HUBBARD, 7008, 59, 4, 77, 52, 4
HUFF, 361, 117, 16, 126, 110, 16
HULING, 26, 20, 13, 21, 20, 13
IRVIN?, 446, 71, 7, 71, 57, 7
JOHN, 444, 16, 0, 17, 10, 0
JONES, 27193, 2842, 42, 3155, 2331, 40
JORDAN, 2359, 446, 15, 483, 378, 14
JOSEPH, 503, 23, 0, 19, 15, 0
KENDALL, 155, 32, 0, 34, 29, 0
KENDRICK, 260, 114, 4, 122, 98, 4
LANE, 1402, 178, 2, 193, 148, 2
LYLES, 233, 17, 0, 19, 13, 0
MCKINNEY, 459, 43, 9, 47, 32, 9
MCLENDON, , 188, 121, 27, 102, 100, 26
MCMEKIN, 6, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
MOSS, 935, 112, 2, 167, 106, 2
NORMAN, 604, 126, 30, 143, 119, 29
PALMER, 1211, 111, 0, 118, 89, 0
PARKER, 4448, 264, 5, 311, 199, 4
PASCHAL, 99, 65, 10, 60, 59, 10
PERTEET, 8, 7, 7, 6, 6, 6
PETTUS, 99, 9, 7, 12, 9, 7
POOLE, 217, 28, 6, 32, 23, 5
POPE, 989, 154, 12, 177, 119, 11
PRATHER, 101, 34, 2, 26, 23, 2
PULLEN, 124, 46, 17, 51, 44, 17
QUINN, 239, 28, 4, 34, 24, 4
RANDOLPH, 979, 66, 1, 71, 52, 1
ROBERT, 315, 22, 0, 33, 19, 0
SHANK, 18, 13, 2, 11, 11, 1
SIMS, 1411, 246, 14, 272, 211, 12
SLATON, 70, 22, 11, 31, 19, 9
SMITH, 29087, 2625, 75, 2979, 2200, 70
SNELLSON, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0
SPRATHER, 1, 1, 0, 1, 1, 0
TALIAFERO, 24, 4, 1, 3, 1, 1
TRUITT, 56, 30, 1, 25, 25, 1
WALLACE, 2315, 175, 3, 181, 136, 3
WALTON, 1110, 248, 37, 267, 211, 35
WARE, 998. 18, 13, 231, 152, 12
WEST, 2298, 321, 5, 328, 266, 4
WILKINSON, 521, 66, 9, 93, 65, 9
WILLIS, 2042, 275, 23, 314, 227, 20
WINGFIELD, 196, 64, 33, 59, 57, 33
WOOTEN, 299, 51, 0, 53, 40, 0
WORTHEN, 38, 35, 0, 34, 34, 0
WRIGHT, 5428, 670, 10, 765, 580, 10
WYLIE, 107, 10, 4, 11, 9, 4
WYNN, 300, 110, 22, 111, 91, 20
Wilkes County, GA GenWeb (County genealogical resources)
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