One must think carefully about the law of manumission (removing the bonds of servitude that we call slavery), since it was perfectly legal for any man to simply say to his slave, "Go, God speed, and have good fortune." Provided, that is, that such slave be considered by the community to be able and of an age to reasonably be about his/her business and create no burden for the parish or his community. That method simply did not work however, since we had fugitive slave acts for 2 centuries and more - until the Civil war - hence any Black person walking about, especially the South, was presumed to be an escaped slave, would not be believed if he/she protested otherwise, and quite usually was taken into custody awaiting proof, trial, or the appearance of a master. So it was that all manumitted - freed - slaves did their utmost to carry with them some document - often called "free papers" - revealing the date, place and person or court order by which they were freed. They were freed by will, by will with a stipulation that freedom would come after some additional number of years in bondage, by simple contract, by a wish of a master to be rid of the burden of their keep after they were no longer able by age or infirmity to maintain their required work schedule, by purchase of their freedom for those VERY few who could earn enough to buy their own freedom or that of a parent, child, or loved one, and by simple kindness of a master. In short, if a master intended freedom it was easy to accomplish, and if a slave was so freed, he carried with him a document of his manumission or a copy of a court order so stating. Incidentally, contrary to popular belief, becoming a Christian did not provide freedom; indeed, the church had precious little to say affecting such a decision by an owner or a court. See y'all in 10 days or so. Paul ---- Original Message ----- From: "grumpychump" <grumpychump@yahoo.com> To: <VA-SOUTHSIDE-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, April 27, 2001 2:50 PM Subject: [VA-SOUTHSIDE-L] Manumission of slaves, mid 1800s | Could someone tell me what had to happen legally for a | slave to be set free in the mid 1800s? I assume there | had to be more involved than an owner simlpy stating | the fact. | | Thanks! | | _____________________________________________ _____ | Do You Yahoo!? | Yahoo! Auctions - buy the things you want at great prices | http://auctions.yahoo.com/ | | | ==== VA-SOUTHSIDE Mailing List ==== | Hosted by Rootsweb http://www.rootsweb.com | | | ============================== | Create a FREE family website at MyFamily.com! | http://www.myfamily.com/banner.asp?ID=RWLIST2 |