I have been studying the 1850 Slave schedule for Patrick County. In the course of that study I noticed that at least 5 gentlemen were listed as "Agents" and/or having slaves. They are: Drury Mazs - 20 slaves William Mazs - 15 slaves Berry Miller - 37 slaves Oliver Shelton - 27 slaves Jesse Giles - 79 slaves. Can anyone tell me if these individuals were the custodians of these slaves and then hired them out; or were they in the business of selling slaves. Any clues I might get on their occupation(s) will help me in finding out where slaves were purchased in Patrick County. I also noticed that Abram Staples had an unusual amount of slaves in 1850 (about 170). Did his occupation require him to be the custodian of county slaves. The 1850 scheduled does not have the notation "Agent" next to his name. == Cynthia A. Wilson Seattle, WA _________________________________________________________ DO YOU YAHOO!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com