Greetings to ALL: I'm new to this list, and I pray that all is well with you and yours. Since "beating around the bush" is not my style, I come to you forthrightly. I'm an African American presently involved in slave ancestry research. My mission is simple. I'm attempting to piece together kinships of certain ancestors and relatives. My great, great uncle, Hilliard HADLEY (b. 1820, d. 1891) and his half brother, Wash ALDRIDGE (b. 1845, d. 1905), were enslaved persons on the plantation of James HADLEY (b. ca 1805, b. ca 1859) in Ashley Co., AR., though he (James) was originally from Cumberland Co., NC. His father was a Thomas HADLEY who was connected to the Simon HADLEY line. If I'm not mistaken, this particular Thomas HADLEY was dismissed from the Society of Quakers because of his involvement in the war. In that save vein, one of his sons', his namesake, Thomas HADLEY, was also a confederate soldier in Arkansas (Ashley Co). I have a copy of the Last Will and Testament of James HADLEY--"HILLIARD" is, in fact, the first enslaved person mentioned in his will. And, according to 1860 Slave schedule (Ashley Co, AR), he owned 32 enslaved persons, but only eight or nine are actually mentioned in his will. I'm wondering if anyone on the list may have any other records that could help me: Bill of Sales, bibles records, wills, manumissions, tax rolls, deeds, mortages etc that list names of enslaved persons. I would really appreciate your assistance in this endeavor. I would also like to clarify that I have NO INTEREST or NO CLAIMS to determine any "blood" relationships with James HADLEY. My goal is to piece together scattered/separated (NC, TN, AR) kin as a consequence of the enslavement experience. Any assistance you can provide will be greatly appreciated. I thank you for taking the time to read this brief note. Sincerely, Karim Rand Houston, Texas