WHAT'S NEW IN THE PAST? YOU'RE ABOUT TO FIND OUT PROLOGUE —— or the NATIONAL ARCHIVES.Writing Freedom’s History: The Destruction of Slavery ‘ra Berlin, Barbara J Fields, Thavotia Glyph, Steven E Miller By ly Joseph P Reidy Leslie Rowland, and Julie Saville he beginning of the Civil War marked the beginning, of the end of slavery in the American South. At first most white Americans denied what would eventually seem self-evident. With President Abraham Lincoln in the fore, federal authorities insisted that the nascent conflict must be a war to restore the national union and nothing more. Confederate leaders displayed a fuller comprehension of the importance of slavery, which Vice-Pres- ident Alexander Stephens characterized as the cornerstone of the Southern nation, But if Stephens and others grasped slavery’s sig- nificance, they assumed that the Confederate struggle for indepen- dence would require no change in the nature of the institution, A. Southern victory would transform the political status, not the social life, of the slave states; black people would remain in their familiar place, Despite a vigorous dissent from Northern abolitionists, most Whites—North and South—saw no reason to involve slaves in their civil war. Slaves had a different understanding of the sectional struggle. Un- moved by the public pronouncements and official policies of the fed eral government, they recognized their centrality to the dispute and knew that their future depended upon its outcome. With divisions among white Americans erupting into open warfare, slaves watched and waited, alert for ways to turn the military conflict to their own, advantage, stubbornly refusing to leave its outcome to the two bel- ligerents. Lacking political standing or public voice, forbidden access to the weapons of war, slaves nonetheless acted resolutely 10 place their freedom—and that of their posterity—on the wartime agenda Steadily, as opportunities arose, they demonstrated their readiness to take risks for freedom and to put their loyalty, their labor, and their lives in the service of the Union. In so doing they gradually rendered untenable every Union policy short of universal emanci: pation and forced the Confederate government to adopt measures that severely compromised the sovereignty of the master. On both sides of the line of batile Americans came to know that a war for the Union must be a war for freedom. ‘The change did not come easily or at once. At first Union political WRITING FREEDOM'S HISTORY 211PROLOGUE SC and military leaders freed slaves only hesitantly, under pressure of military necessity. But as the war dragged on their reluctance gave way to an increased willingness and eventually to a firm determination to extirpate chattel bondage. The Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863, and the enlistment of black soldiers into Union ranks in the following months signaled the adoption of emancipation as a. fundamental Northern war aim, although that commitment availed little until vindicated by military victory. Even after the surrender of the Confederacy, slavery survived in two border states (Delaware and Kentucky) until the Thirteenth Amendment became part of the United States Constitution in December 1865. While Union policy shifted in favor of eman cipation, Confederate leaders remained deter- muned to perpetuate slavery. But the comerstone of Southern nationality proved to be its weakest point. Slaves resisted attempts to mobilize them on behalf of the slaveholders’ republic. Their sullen, and sometimes violent, opposition to the Published volumes such as the ones below fare the result of years of research, analysis, transcription, and annotation by documentary editors, 212 WINTER 1985 Confederate regime magnified divisions within Southern society, gnawing at the Confederacy from within. In trying to sustain slavery while fending off the Union army, Confederate leaders unwittingly compromised their own national as- pirations and undermined the institution upon Which Southern nationality was founded. In the end, the victors celebrated slavery’s demise and claimed the title of emancipator. The van- quished understood full well how slavery had helped to seal their doom ‘The war provided the occasion for slaves to seize freedom, but three interrelated circum- stances determined what opportunities lay open to them and influenced the form that the strug- ile for liberty assumed: first, the character of slave society; second, the course of the war itself; and third, the policies of the Union and the Con- federate governments. Although none of these operated independently of the others, each had its own dynamic. All three were shaped by the particularities of Southern geography and the Chronology of the war. Together, they made thePROLOGUE ( saeeian anc aEaiRiaaaeeemammTmeemamtmmm amma destruction of slavery a varying, uneven, and frequently tenuous process, whose complex his- tory has been obscured by the apparent certitude and finality of the great documents that an- nounced the end of chattel bondage. Once the evolution of emancipation replaces the absolut- ism of the Emancipation Proclamation and the Thirteenth Amendment as the focus of study, the story of slavery’s demise shifts from the pres- dential mansion and the halls of Congress to the farms and plantations that became wartime battlefields. And slaves—whose persistence forced federal soldiers, Union and Confederate policymakers, and even their own masters onto terrain they never intended to occupy—become the prime movers in securing their own liberty With emancipation in the South, the United States enacted its part in a world-wide drama. Throughout the western world and beyond, the forces unleashed by the American and French revolutions and by the industrial revolution worked to undermine political regimes based upon hereditary privilege and economic systems based upon bound labor. Slavery had already succumbed in the Northern states and in the French and British Caribbean before the Amer- ican Civil War, and it would shortly do so in its remaining strongholds in Spanish and Portu- guese America, Almost simultaneously with the reat struggle in the United States, the vestiges Of serfdom in central and eastern Europe yielded to the pressure of the age. Only small pockets in Africa and Asia temained immune, and their immunity was temporary. The fateful lightning announced by the victorious Union army was s00n to strike, ifit had not already struck, wher- ever men and women remained in bonds of per- sonal servitude, Because they thrust common folk into prom- inence, moments of revolutionary transforma- tion have long occupied historians seeking to solve the mysteries of human society. Know!- edge of the subordinate groups who have formed the majority throughout history has proved es- sential to an understanding of how the world works. Moments of revolutionary transforma- tion expose as at no other time the foundations upon which societies rest. While those who en- jay politcal power and social authority speak their minds and indulge their inclinations freely and often, their subordinates generally cannot. Only in the upheaval of accustomed routine can the lower orders give voice to the assumptions that guide their world as it is and as they wish it to be. Encompassing in full measure the revolution- ary iemplications of all transitions from bondage to freedom, emancipation in the American South “Many former slaves fought valiantly forthe Union during the Cioit War. Above is a medal gwen te “colored tronps.” WRITING FREEDOM'S HISTORY 213ee eeeeeee_ee—e—eeee”-oOoO ‘Ey. PROLOGUE 1 was this signature on the Emancipation Proclamation that formally freed the slaves in the Confederate states has left behind an unparalleled wealth of doc- umentation permitting direct access to the thoughts and actions of the freed men and women themselves. As the war for the Union became a war for liberty, the lives of slaves and freedpeo- ple became increasingly intertwined with the ac tivities of both the Union and Confederate governments. Following the war federal agen- Ges continued to figure prominently in the re construction of Southern economy and society. ‘The records created and collected by the agen- Ges of these governments and now housed in the National Archives of the United States pro- vide an unrivaled manuscript source for under- standing the passage of black people from slavery to freedom. As far as is known, no comparable record exists for the liberation of any group of serfs or slaves or for the transformation of any soup of people into wage workers SFlowever valuable, the archival records also have their problems. They are massive, repeti- tive, and often blandly bureaucratic. Their size alone makes research by individual scholars inevitably incomplete and often haphazard. In part because of the scope of government records generated during the Civil War and Reconstruc- Gon, individual scholars have been unable to avail themselves of the fullness of the Archives’ resources, Only a large-scale collaborative effort could make the resources of the Archives avail- able to the public In the fall of 1976, with a grant from the Na- tional Historical Publications and Records Com- mission and under the sponsorship of the University of Maryland, the Freedmen and Southern Society Project launched a systematic search of those records at the National Archives that promised to yield material for a documen tary history of emancipation, Over the course of the next three years the editors selected more than forty thousand items, representing perhaps 2 percent of the documents they examined. In Gexed and cross-referenced topically, chrono- logically, and geographically, this preliminary selection constitutes the basis from which doc- ‘uments are being further selected for publication ina multivolume edition entitled Freedom: A Doc- wmentary History of Emancipation, 1861-1867. Reflecting, editorial interest in a social history of emancipation, the documents selected for 214 WINTER 1985 publication in Freedom illustrate processes which the editors believe to be central to the transition from slavery to freedom. The first two series concentrate primarily upon the years of the Civil War. Series 2, Tie Black Military Experience (pub- lished in 1952) examines the recruitment of black ‘men into the Union army and the experiences of black soldiers under arms. The two volumes that constitute Series 1—The Destruction of Slav- ery and The Wartime Genesis of Free Labor—to- gether portray the wartime transformation of Southern life. The Destruction of Slavery explicates the process of emancipation in the portions of the South occupied by the Union army, in the Union's own border slave states, and in the shrinking Confederacy. Its companion volume, The Wartime Genesis of Free Labor, will discuss wartime reconstruction behind Union lines. The documents that follow are drawn from The De- siruction of Slavery, which was published at the tend of 1985. Following the editorial practice of the Freed- men and Southern Society Project, the docu- ments are transcribed exactly as written, with no correction of spelling, punctuation, capitali- zation, or syntax. Extra space marks the end of unpunctuated sentences. I President Abraham Lincoln summoned sol diers to preserve the Union, not to destroy slav- ery. Desiring to reassure wavering unionists in the slave states, particularly the foyal border states, Lincoln promised that the Northern army would zespect the property rights of slavehold- ers. In the early months of the war, federal com- manders hewed close to the administration's policy. Writing to the Union general in com mand at St. Louis, a Missouri unionist reiterated what seemed self-evident at the onset of war the sectional conflict would not disturb slavery Saint Louis Mo. May 14, 1861 Last evening, a gentleman, ofthe highest respectability, and intelligence, from Greene county, Mo. asked me whether 1 fippoted ft was the mtenton ofthe Unitea States Govern ment to interfere with the institution of negro slavery in Missouri or any Slave State, or impair the security of that description of property. OF caurge, my answer Was mostTas aterclr punting ty a Union sie depts ck lebrers rking othe cnsracton of eal encampment in Virginia _esqualifedy, and almost indignant inthe negative, told ‘im that Thad no mite af forming an opsion which were yen to every ater private cite, bus that Ll certain thatthe force of the Lnted Sates, would # necessary, Be terted forthe protection ofthis, #8 wel any othe Kind ti property. Wl You be good enough to spare from! Your engrossing mlitaty duses ac moc tune os maybe egaied tDiay whether [answered comecty? TThave the honor to be, wih the highest respect, your most obedient Servant, * * (Sed) Thomas T, Gant? Excerpt from Thomas T. Gant 1o Brig. Gen. WS, Hlanney, Mg 14, 1861, vol. 288 DMo, pp. 202-203, Later Sent, sr 5481, pt of the West, Recnds ofthe U.S. Army Continental Came ‘mands, 1822-1920, Record Group 393. National Archives (Hereinafter cite as RG NA) I The president's piedge did not last. In the spring of 1861, Gen. Benjamin F. Butler, sta- tioned at Fortress Monroe, Virginia, accepted ronaway slaves as “contraband” of war, putting the able-bodied men to work on federal fortifi- cations, Soon after, Congress passed the First ‘onfiscation Act and thereby allowed federal of- ficers to receive any slaves who had been em- ployed in Confederate service. A Virginia slaveholder discovered that such distinctions mattered little to his slaves, who valued. their liberty above their owner's loyalty. He hoped that a Union navy commander would hold dif- ferent priorities Lancaster County va Ape 25" 1862 Drie take the privolede of addressing ta you this eter the object of whic st recover sty property that has Bit taken from me with out any provocation an try part» Sut tn the Pin of Apa 1882, 7 of my Slaves lek me and went fn Bord tne Snip your Wover then ying in the mouth of the rapahannock ver & have sens [Sjert 0 frtess moneo Surlam A pavate peesableSatersn Ihave never Born frmes Against the unted Stats nor have any Child or neat frend who has "inthe Commensment of these troubles Noted forthe union Conane sn labor had or hat Cats Bnd made many Enemys By it the? day of Apa we bod ime meting And past resolution unanasus tha we wood offer no mulitary defence tothe northan army with these Conseeatons | appeel to you toave my propery returned Tam A farmer & Rove Bin inthe Blsness of wood Cutting for’ years & have A large Contat with Over H Saath of new Jork at this im have 1200 Cords of wood on hand A ready for marke But mast loose tf my Survant Is Mot feturnd._{bave Seen the Captin othe Rover Capt John B Studnal_heis A genleman'ct foe fecingsandT think this propery retumed he calcu Yo mak many eds totheunion hels perfectyin posession ofmy views the Survants [lost th names are a3 folows Sharlott woman 23 years feah young man 21 Dennis 18 Emma 16 Caarinda 5 rmargret B & Charles A blind Boy of 23 WRITING FREEDOM'S HISTORY 215PROLOGUE William T. Sherman used fugitive slaves as laborers when- ever possible ‘A woman I hited fom Aolfin Child & too small Children Isabellar minney moses & A man | hited from mrs Condit name Mack Kelly Sur you Compliments will greatly oblige {you obedient Surv B. 8. M*Kenny PS think my negroes shold Be returned becaus tha were taken after the order was ishued to take nomore & at the time thear a= not A man in lancaster in grme Against the Feder! Army. hope Sur if you Can You will return my regroes if you Cant Peas forward this t0 the propper Suthontes | B.B. M'Kenny 8, B. McKenmy to Comdr. Wyman, Apr. 28, 1862, encased in omar. Rt! Wyman to Hom. Gideon Welles, May 2, 1862, otomac Foil, Letters from Offers Commanting Squadrons, Nava Records Collection of the Ofc of Naval Records andi brary, RES, NA\ nit As long as the Confiscation Act alone dictated the terms by which slaves might legally exit slav- ety, it provided slaves in most places but slight access to freedom. Nevertheless, fugitive slaves Continued to present themselves at Union lines. After federal troops moved into Kentucky in September 1861 the Union generals in that state presumed it their duty to return runaway slaves to their owners. Many Northerners—both in and ‘out of the ranks of the Union army—doubted the wisdom of returning fugitives to owners who might then employ them in the Confederate ser- 216 WINTER 1985, George B. McClellan also saw distinct advantages to the use of fugitive slave labor. vice. A Michigan Quaker urged the secretary of war to consider the effects of this military policy on the slaves and on the Union war effort. Battle Creek [Mich] Deer 5* 61 re rom Teneseea few nights Since ‘ted Freind Camron _ a Fugit on his way to Canada Informed me that itis the Tetention othe Rebels to Ere Long. Arm the Slaves though: ‘out the Enter South put them inthe front Ranks to Receive the fer & then Storm the Faceral works in all points he als its Tolked of inal the Rebel Famiys. Declaring thot Every ‘Slave Shall ist be Butchered before the Rebels will give up he Sais that Tens of Thousands of Slaves are in the greatest Alarm their masters fling them that our offices & Acmay ‘will Sel them to Cuby 4 that 3 Slaves that was Sent over from Kentuckey By ous Federal Troops Say thatthe ware Badly Treated by our officers altho the offered to work or Fight for the Government. but ware told to Clear out that the officers wanted no DD Niggers about them fc cf ‘nave actually Driven over ta ther old Homes. he Sais t00 that there is nota Slave South But would Take up arms for ‘our Troopes ifthe Could, but the Treatment the Receive has almost Sett them Crasy the Expected Friends of usin Stead of Enemys the are Comeing through here Constantly an their way to Canada. now what a picluce is this iS Our Relatives tobe Buteherd a5 the Are & we to add fue! to the Flames of the Rebels to Continue the Destrction. oh Can ft be that this Government isto Crush 4000000 of Human beings. to uphold the most Blood Thirsty Sel! of Tyrants on Earth. your Document is greatly approved of, and if the ‘Administration Dont put a Stop to the Il Treatment of the Slaves by our Army I grelly tear that we willbe the Loosers thereby I think that matter Cannot be Seen to, to Soe for | am Satisived that the Rebels will Resort to any Attio- cous ats to Carry their points Very Truly Yours WitsPROLOGUE SS 1H. Wile to Freind Camron [Simon Cameron, Dee. 5, 1881, W- ‘43 1861, Leiers Rocco, Bacordsof the Office of the Secretary of War, RG'107, NA Vv Slaves’ persistent attempts to reach Union lines complicated what once seemed a simple matter of observance of the fugitive slave law (and the corollary policy of excluding Sugitives from fed- ‘eral encampments). Slaveowners who pursued fugitives to a Union camp demanded rendition and slaves begged for protection. A Missouri slaveowner discovered the new spirit with which soldiers might resist proslavery appeals after an additional article of war adopted by Congress in March 1862 prohibited the employment of Union soldiers in returning fugitive slaves to their mas- ters. His attempt to enlist the secretary of war in recovering two runaway slaves proved just as. unavailing as his complaints to local union of- ficers: It failed even to elicit a reply Syracuse Morgan County Missouri Apr 1862 {feel grat delicacy ay dea Sir, i taking the liberty, of addressing you. on a matter ently personal beng Known to you ond to fame But having een seared under Cur glorious representative government Ihave ever rejoiced ine fact, thatthe humblestndividaal migh espectlly present hinwel elore aut Rulers: On the 25" of an” a6 Gen’ Davis command passed through out town on ite march {o Springila Two of my most valable Negro Boys ned the Regiment of Co alse White Te command camped for the night nese Tipton! sae Gen! Davis that nigh nd twas assured Oy him that they shouldbe excluded from the lines He had the kindness to give me a Teter to Co Cun mings the next morning Bnd that my Boys were in CO ‘Whites command tse in unrated anys om & stated say business fea the sae ame placed in his hands Gen' Davis’ lets: tle Co’ White tld me positively he would fave nothing todo with ie {sail surely he would comply With the order of Gen Halleck when he again stated past tively he would have nothing to do with st The acm then being onthe march I rode on with my Son: as we passed fone othe Boys wasn wagon. when we reached the esd ofthe column found the other Boy with knapsack & Ca, asked for the Capt ofthe advance Busrd fe sted 0 hth ‘ny busincee: The man came forwatd and look his proper, 1 ordered the Boy to follow us we had gone but» few paces before wemet Co|White:Istopped & moat respetliy {old the Co! There was one of my Boys, the other Behind in 2 wagon: The Co stopped gave mea stern. defiant Took but Sid tata ord seeing that, passed on: my Son made the Boy getup behind hm we had passe but few paces from Col White unti'a yell was rased, behind us where we let the Co! siting on Ris horse "we were instant surrounded by several hundred armed men teetering us with natant «death woof them seized the Boy pulled him from the Horse {eran him back to where sve ad lft Co' White’ They then Commenced stoning ts, de stoned us 0 Tong as we wer reach ot tir Stones! We got out of thei each 1 Soon at practicable Bur were pursued by two Otiers on horse back {ith drawn Swoeds forced Pack & put under 3 gused of Satie ropes wereld er to gas, Now Bane sem was ete to meet men In arms f forthe protection of loyal cuzens in le liberty & property: felt that the onus GTeecneing ny Noga weed open me amt proceted with all due respect o everyone to do $0: But was glad to {ape with my hte fom Co! Whe Thefts were forth feported by me #0 Gen! Halleck {urged my prayre that ‘ny Boys might be ordered back nto my hands: have wet ten him eepestedly fe have never had diet reply: {have just received a Teter Stem my ined in St Louis who has bbe urging my’ claim He says Gen Halleck refuses 10 a {nthe case sys it doesnot come under his ursdcton | have writen to the Hon Garret Davis & to Gen! TL Price begging that request oran orden it need be, might issue from the President hinsel the hesd of all power To Gea! Halleck that my Boys might be ordered back into my hands TThave vated that | ask tae a consttotonal ight, & as 4 rebuke to the outrage upan my person & property: [ask i {Sher because a aie part ofthe hand earrings of my a Sori ii my io proper tallow deat Bove has been struck & lastly Task l beatse I rise those Boys am greatly attached to shem, and consider that they fe ened on rer fa ap hey ate ery ong Ac know nothing ofthe world am dear Sir espeetlly rostral Yours John R. Moore 1 my dear Sie you will give me your kind assinance you will confer a favour, never to be forgotten. T have just re ‘ceived a letter from Gent Pic telling me that he could not ‘make the application to the President requested by me | Now my dear Sit what am Io do, unless ean get redress through "you: Uhad thought of addressing a copy’ ofthis application {o the Pres also, but think that Will be unnecesar¥ 38 You twill f need be do me the lavout Yo confer outh hime think the case 50 aggravated thet you will do me the Kindness 10 border my Boys back into my hands, or to my Agent: One fof those Boys is the eldest on of a family of thiften: The Parents are old and if thrown upon the world could not sustain dhemselves: the Boy Was just now of ar age 9 aid ‘the support of his lege fly T have been ggeally distressed at the conduct of Co! White, a5 I ardently desire the restoration of our glorious Union as we received it from our Fathers: Mis ora has had its silence forex 2 strong reason why I wish that iy Boys may be restored t© m\e- Please let me heat from, you immediately, a5 they have now been gone upwards of fewo months: Co! Whiteis under the command of Gen! Curtis: ‘you wil ever have ay fervant prayzer, that your efforts may Be crowned with succrss, in the reastabisment of peace, and that we may soon again, be a united happy people ‘most eespectflly yours John R Moore Join R. Moore to Hon. £.M. Stanton, Apr. 5, 1862, M855 1862, Letters Received, RG 107, NA As Union troops advanced southward into the Confederacy in 1862, the army's growing ap- petite for laborers wore upon the policy of ex- WRITING FREEDOM'S HISTORY 217PROLOGUE cluding fugitive slaves from federal lines. The Militia Act of July 1862, which authorized the president to employ “persons of African de- scent” in any capacity to suppress the rebellion (and freed the slaves of disloyal masters so em- ployed), and the Second Confiscation Act adopted the same day, proved to be turning points in the Union army’s acceptance of fugitive slaves and utilization of black laborers. Even Union officers personally disinclined to interfere with slavery came to understand that each able bodied fugitive slave represented one laborer gained for the Union and one lost for the Con: federacy. As Gen. William T. Sherman ex plained to a Tennessee slaveholder who had been a West Point classmate, military exigency took precedence over personal feelings, Memphis Tenn, Aug 24 1862 My dear Sir, {freely admit that when you recall the times lwhen we were schoofellows, when te are younger than ‘ow, you touch me on a tender point, and cause me © ft that even you should syle yoursell a Rebel. { An artist for a contemporary magazine sketched this portrait of black laborers in the wake of Sherman's an «cannot believe that Tom Hunton the companion of Gaither Rankin, aid Irvin and many others long since dead, and of Halleck, Ord, Stevens and others stil ving can of his own free will admit the anarchial principle of secession or be vain enough to suppose the presen! Politcons Can frame 2 Government better than that of Washington Hamilton & Jefferson, We cannot ealize this but delade ousseives into the belie! that by some strange but successful jugpley the rmanegers of or Political Machine have raised tp the single fesue. Novth or South, which shall prevail in America? or that you like athers have been blown wh, and cast into the Mississippi of Secession doubtful f by hard fighting you can each the shore in safety, or drift out tothe Ocean of Death know itis no use for us now fo discuss this—war is on us. We aze Enemies, sil private friends. In the one Capacity Twill dp you all the hare lean, yet on the other i here. you may haveas of od my last Cent, my lst shet and pan You ask of me your negroes. and will immediately ascerta sf they be under my Miitagy Control and | wil moreov see that they are ane and sll told what is true of all Boys IF'you want to go to your master, Go-~ You are free te choose, You must now think for yousolees. Your Master has seceded from tus Parent Government and you have seceded from hirn both wrong By law but bothe ex ingan undoubted natural Right to ebel, your boys want to go, | will enable them topo, but I wont advise, persuade or force them” I contess Lhave not yet seen the "ConfPROLOGUE In September 1862 President Lincoln annownced his plans to emancipate the slaves of states still in rebellion om January 1 1863. Above isthe final version ofthe famed Emancipation Proclamation. WRITING FREEDOM'S HISTORY 219Js unchanged, not a word not a syllable and 1 can lay my hhand on that Constitution and sweat tit without one twang, 220. WINTER 1985 the Union army. This military service, as portrayed above, But your party have made another and have another in force ore to all property 556 wy titation, your slaves inchuded. You know I don't want your = Bat to bring you to reason | think asa Military Mian Gencies of other men, and must eat, be clad & to whichwas invaluable to the Unions cause end you must have property & labor, and that by Rebelling you Fisk both, "Even without the Confiscation Act by the imple laws of War we ought to take your efecive slaves Pon's say to free them, But % use dhe labor & depen you oft as Beligerents we ought to seek the hostile army find fight ie and not the people — We went to Cori but Beaureguard declined Battle, since which time many are dispersed as Guerlas, We are not bound to follow them, but ighefully make war By any means that wil tend to Bring about an end and restore Peace. Your people may say tony fexasperates, widens the breach and al that, Bue Phe longer the war lasts the more You must be convinced that we are no beter eno worse than People wh have gone befor find that we ace simply rosnacting History, aid that one of the modes of banging People 10 ceason i t0 touch thet Interests pecuniary 0° property We never harbor women of chiken—we give employ iment fo men, under the enclosed order. {find no egroc Regutered a5 belonging to Hunton, some inthe ane Mee of which the Enginer fs now making alist ee ‘MClelan says tha the negroes once taken hal ever agpin be restored “I say nothing My opinion fe execute not ‘ake the Law, Bei of Congres e War. But #8 Manstest {hati you wont go into a United Sater Distet Court and Sue fr te recovery of your slave propery You can never Geri, out of adverse Bands. No U5 Court would allow you 16 sue for the recovery of slave under the Fugitive Shve' Lave, unless you acknowledge allegiance. Believing ths honesy, 50 { must act though personally fel son frndship a8 ever, for very many kn te South” Wh Great Respect Your friend WT. Sherman, May. Gen W.T. Skermn to Thomas Hunton, Esp, Aug. 24, 1862, wl. 3, pp. 51-53, Lewes Sent, W.T. Sherman Papers, Generals’ Papers & Books, er 159, Records of he Adjutant Gert nals Ofce, 17876-1913, R698, NA ‘The free-born can pethaps never know the triumph and the pain felt by the slave who gained liberty. A Maryland slave husband drank the intoxicating wine of freedom even to its bitter dregs Upton Hill Va] January #12 1862 My Dear Wile itis with grate jay take this Hime to let you ‘ove Whare Lam__ iam now ih Safety in the 14™ Regiment fof Brooklyn this Day i eat Adress you thank god as. lee man. [had alle tube in giting away But asthe lord led the Children of Isrel to the land of Canon Se he led me to ‘land Whare fredom Will rain in spite Of earth and el Dear you must make your Self content tam free from al the Slavers Lash and as you have chose the Wise plan Of Serving the lord hope you Will pray Much and i Will ry by the help of god To Serv bin With amy hatt Lam With avery nice man and have All that hart Can Wish But My Dear I Cant expreas my grate desire that} Have #9 See you ‘true the lene Will Come When We Shal mee! again. And 54 We dont met on earth We Will Meet in hever- WhareJesas ‘anes. Dear Elizabeth tell Mrs Own[ees] That | trust that She Will Continue Her kindness to you and that god Will Blessher on earth and Save her in grate eternity" My Acom: plemente To Mis Owens and her Cildeen may They Pzo= per through life. I never Shal forgit her Kindness to me Dear Wife t must Close’ rest yourself Contented iam free i Want you fo ste To me Soon as you Can Without Delay Direct your eter tothe 14 Reigment New york tate malta Upton Fil Virginea In Care of M! Cranford Comary. Weite ‘my Beat Soon As you® Your Affectionate Hisban Kise Daniel For me John Boston Give my love to Father and Mother Jol Boston 10 Mrs. Elizabeth Boston, Jan. 12, 1862, enclosed in ‘Maj Gen. Geo. 8. McClellan to Hon, Ewin Stanton, Jam. 21 1862, A587 1862, Leters Recived, se. 12, RC 94, NA WRITING FREEDOM'S HISTORY 221PROLOGUE SS a vu In September 1862 President Lincoln an- nounced his preliminary Emancipation Prola- mation. He promised to declare “then, thenceforward, and forever free” all the slaves in states still in rebellion on January 1, 1863. That same fall the enlistment of black men into Union regiments slowly commenced. As the momen- tous first day of January approached, alarmed slaveholders in the Union-occupied parishes of southern Louisiana discovered that black sol- diers and plantation slaves intended to wield the force of the proclamation even in an area that Lincoln would declare exempt from its provi- sions, ,Jobn the Bapst Parish, La} 22% [21s] day of December AD 1862 Be st Known, that on this day the Twenty fist day of December AD i862, before me, P, B. Marmilon, Sherif of the Parish of S'Tohn the Baptist, State of Louisiana, pesor ally came and appeared D’ Gustave Chabad and) Burcord, fesiding in the Said Parish, who after being duly sworn ‘depose and Say That the presence in the lower Parishes of 5! Chatles, S* Joba the Baptist and 5! James, of te regiments known a5 the Second Native Guards under the Command of Col NW. Daniels is detrimental tothe interests of Said parishes and has had for effect he entice and effectual demoraisation of the Serule popslation n Said parishes-—and that the lives of families and inoffensive cittzens sein danger, from the heeats and actual misconduct of Sid regiments that with ‘out order or authorlsation written~and in Some cases ver bal—they have entered private houses, taken and earned ‘way property, valuables and have at diversand Sundry times Completely robbed ane Carrie away goods and prop: fees belonging to private persoas, inoffensive and loyal that without authorisation they have disarmed the loyal it ‘zens of Said parishes-—have stolen watches from Said cit ‘zens, and run about during the night without discipline oF ‘Order, and incite the quiet Serile population to revolt and ‘cruel eatment toward their mastets: thatthe depredations. long the coast are So numerous that itis impossible to ‘enumerate them sos, but ae of Such nature as to render the parishes untenable to the inhabstants of Sod parishes, who ae loyal tizens ofthe Urited Sates, as every person, fr very nearly So, fram the lower end of S' Charles to the Upper ane of S' James, has taken the oath of algiance re- ured by Gen Butler. ‘Almost every day acts of violation of damicit & property hhaue taken place and have been committed by the Soldiers of Said regiment, unaccompanied by any white officer the Same being done on denunciations of Slaves and Sometimes ven without any denunciation a leven inhabitants of Sad Parish, have been illegally a= rested by them, taken down in Cart to the Boutte Station fn insulted the Said Soldiers during the whole distance Say about 20 miles, Kept a Said Station for many days “The names of Said persons are |. B. HaydelValcowr Hay- del: [Clarfeux] Fautheux; Octave Borne, Justin Beste! Premiliew Becrel, Severin Lonpre, Seraphin Lonpre:and two iqhabitants of Said parish, athers of family to wit: Florian Bertolle et Jean Bertolle have been without any Cause and lupon the denunciation of one of their own Slave girs, who hed previously akandonned the house, been arrested, Sent fo New Orleans ad ate now in the Jal of Sad Parish, 222 WINTER 1985 CColone! Daniels upholds this monstrous State of things sj refuses tite 1 the ust demands ofthe loyal cizens oF Sd Parish This week, thee carts loaded with Slaves arived frm Boutte Staton, shrisking threats singing and excting fo insurrection, and mentioning Christmas ss Deng the Hote Set forthe emancipation a Saves Forthereore, tht Col Daniel has iegally changed and charges the Sum of $2 forthe taking ofthe Oath tt fal Sian dispose to retua to ther allegiance 10 the Unite States, and has charged $5 fora permit to cory arms and thant and vom $3 010 for Passes: all of which aren direct, oltion of the order ofthe General Commanding this De- partment, “They therefore would eeguest thatthe Sad regiment af [ative Gunrds be withdraw from thei Sod Pash and that theicown Shen be appointed Proves Marshall ard hereby ‘equest him, inthe name all the nhabstants of Sa Parish, that ts thelr demand, be by him tansmted tothe Com mmanding Genel ot New Oaears J. urcard G. Chabaud Affidavit off. Burcard and, Chabaud, Dee. 21,1862, C-90 1862, Levers Revived by the Provost Marshal Genera, sr. 1390, tae Of LA, Provost Marsal Field Organizations, RG 393, NA VIL Black men and women who took refuge in “contraband camps” and other settlements be- hind Union lines did not rest satisfied with their own liberty. Like former slaves in many parts of the Union-oecupied Confederacy, black military laborers in eastern Virginia organized a return trip home to liberate families and friends. The) ‘were accompanied by a detachment of black sol- diers, whose brigade commander reported the ‘outcome of the dangerous expedition. Newport News, Va, Sept 1%, 1864 Sir, have the honor to report that some Government em- ployees (colored) ame up here from Fort Monroe and Frampton Hospitals, heving es allowed short Teave of sence Jr the purpose of getng the ames if posse {told them had no oat, fut would Belp them with men, ‘They reappeared the nextday with sailboats T sent with them a Caplainand 19 en dstmounted Cavaly). The am ies were and about Smithfield I gave the sc instrac $onsto abstain om plundering taimure noone possible to'ge the women and children merely and come way 09 promply as posse. They were to land'in the right. ‘They Footed these directions Closely: butbreame delayed by the numbers af women and children aris flo, wham they packed in extra Boats, picked up there, and owed slong. They alto to contend against a ead tie, ond twin calm, So that their progeess down Sthield Creek in the early mom was exceedingly slow The inhabitants ev deny gathered i fom some concerted plan of alt or Signals For, 3 miles below the party were intercepted 8) a force of regular appearance, numbering sou 100 having horses and dogs with thens-armed variously with shot suns, ls, . and posted behind old breastworks with Some hursed adits They altscked the leading boo! {ied a'man and woman, and wounded another woman therein. The contrabards then roveed overt the opposite bank and scattered aver the marshes: How many more have tren slaughtered we know ot Tw (2) men have sincePROLOGUE escaped to ws singly. When the a oats, containing the solders, came Up, the Captain landed, with Ye desgh ofatacking the rebels. But then the fing revealed thee fal numbers Fe fourd they outnumbered im, more than 6 1ana thatthe Rete of our Cava, sm open boats ron the open beach, would send no chance agua the Hes behind bresstwore, He embarked gain and they made ther way pst te danger, by wong is men behind the bots having the baggage ant wedding ple up lke a bar Tende. They then Pad race wth 3 Bote wich pat out from side ices to cut them of But forthe cotness and ingenity of Capt, Whiteman, none woul have esc NEve‘ol ihe ste re brown fo hive been severly ‘wounded: but 3 are missing inthe marshes and woods We awe since leaned that there re signal Stations in hat neghiuthooi-tehich ought toe brosken ap would so Cerneslyeeonmend se basting os dozen or 20 howses in accordance wih your Cenc Order No 39 Vary fe specilly Your 01 Servant dwt A. Wild Brig. Gen. Eaied. A. Wild to Brig. Gen. G. F. Shepley, Sept 1, 1864, Dept of VA & NC, Racor of Other Miltary Commands, ser. 731, Wan Resrds Ofce, RG 94, NA x ‘The final Emancipation Proclamation and the full-scale recruitment of biack men into the fed ceral army in the spring of 1863 marked the trans formation of the war for the Union into a war against slavery. As federal forces threatened ever larger expanses of the Confederacy—par- ticularly after the fall of Vicksburg in July 1863. many slaveholders attempted t0 remove their most valuable slaves from the war front, Some- times Confederate officials ordered the forced evacuation of slaves to prevent their fight to Union lines. But, as a Mississippi planter in- formed the Confederate secretary of war, such shotgun migrations often failed to accomplish their purpose. Rather than secure slave prop- erty, they became the occasion for its loss. Washington County Miss November 3# 1863 Dear Sit I was told to day that you had commissioned ‘A.M. Paxton Esq as Major or the express purpose of coming ‘inte the Island tormed by the Yazoo and Miss Rivers, #0 remove all of the able Sadied men end women, mules and ‘ork o every description, leaving only te al decrepid men This “store for freedmen” twas established i) Beaufort, South Carolina, so tacks could purchase Ary goods and other necessitiesPROLOGUE CIRCULAR. Office Provo. Mar., 2d Sub Dist., Mo., Hannibal, Dec. 17th, 1863. By the terms set forth in General Order No. 185, dated Nov. 14th 1863, itis made the duty of Provost Marshals and Assistants to enlist all able-bodied Colored men, of suitable age, into the U, $. Service, &e. I desire to call ates tion of the citizensof the District to the necessity of using their best efforts bringing in such as desire to enlist and in, making it knows through the Distr that T am fally prepared to enlist and seud forward all able-bodied Colored volun- teers that may be offered, By orders from Provost Marshal General Col. Fry, all persons who bring in an accepted reerait, will be entitled toa fee of $2.00. ‘The eople ofthe District shoald be energetic inthis matter, ax every Colored reerait the Government will leave us one white man, free from the com- ing draft. All parties or persous found recruiting or persuading Colored men for Regiments out of the State, will be arrested and i ed, and their eases sub- mitted to Head Quarters of the Department of Missouri. A. B. COHEN, Major, and Ass’t Provost Marshal. Cireuiars and broadsides such as the one above were used to present the case for black enlistment. Every black man in uniform spared 2 white man from: battle and women and the children— The reason assigned by you was, that by doing so, it would prevent the Yankees from {getting them and thus Weaken them to that extent— If you there here upon the spot you would see the utter imprac Heabiity of accomplishing it— Instead of weakening the Yankees the very frst lot of negroes taken by surtounding the quarters, which would be the only way fo secure even fone lot, there would be a stampede ofall the balance, who ‘would take every mule with them to the Yankees — Some three months since M'T. W. Vick had his quarter sutrourcded and his men al taken to the hills— Since that time the negroes have been very shy of our Soldiers and only within the last month al the negro men on the Creek laid Out for about ten days while they were in here collecting cattle ‘The zeport came before them that they were taking all the sen forthe army and the consequence was all the men laid (ut for over a week and many sere seared off entirely to the Yankces-~ There are over one hundred and ninety ne grees on this place, Thave never thought or talked about Foving them, and had not lost one by running of until the ‘fare about a month ago when four men and a woman felt ‘Tam the only one as Tar as my acquaintance extends whe had not either attempted to or were preparing 'o move and every one who did 30 lost neary if not al of the men and ‘many of the women and children— I believe every negro fn this place will go the Yankees before they would go tO the hills: and at same time think they have made up thelr ‘minds #0 stay at home and wait the sue of events if they 224 WINTER 1985, ate permited 1 do s0— 1 believe it utterly impossible for major Paxton to be succesful in such a measure, but the Test wl be the sunning of the negroes now on te plane tations and the mules they wasid steal and she making of Bad citzens of good ones, who wil view the measures intolerable oppresion-~ There ware many persons who:an ‘with the residue of their negroes to the hills, who found st impossibe to ive and ether have orate ceturning te their homes L welt to you because | can make myself &nown {0 you, when tll you, that Lam te brother of M” Mactha Stanard the widow O ob". Stanara both of whem | know esteemed you sr. fiend Thave not the valve one dalle interested in the measure and # you want disirerested tes. tumony {have given fo you aed you can take I for what itis worth Yours uly Jon’a Pearce Peayce to Hom, Js. A. Seddon, Now. 3, 2883, P-366 1863, rs Receive, sr. 5, Secretary of War. War Department Col lection of Confeerate Records, RG 109, NA, a The increase in federal military activity in a shrinking Confederacy provoked slaveholdersPROLOGUE Se to tighten plantation discipline, making escape ore difficult and punishment more severe. A former Tennessee slave revealed the conse- quences of his fale attempt to reach federal ines. Memphis, Ten, Sept 13186. Statement of Archy Vaughn. Last spring 186] wasting sith Bartit Cie about & miles from Somervile=neat MCulloughs and one eving some Conderte solar oF ‘Guertas Same slong and he tld me to fed thelr horses, Snd I was tthe barn ging corm. and staid longer than ie thought I shoud an when | ent back to the Rouse Ne fold he was going sp me 9 the moring~ at ght took an old srare and wot to the ery actoze Wolf [ier 1was going to Latfoyte Depo to gt int the fede lines and Anes Johnson whe hives lose tothe ery tok ine and kept me until ily Simons came slong and he gave ine to him o cory me back to Bartlet Ces When he ies Took me down tovhe woods. snd Hed my hands, and pulled them ver my knees and pot @ stick through nde my incesand then toss kee and cattle ad then Stoll helop of my leftear, he made acalord man named Dallas help hold me— he drove me of rom his plantation some time in June-T think his Archy X-Vaughe ‘mark Afi of Achy Vaughn, Sep 12,1965, Afideis & State tis $508, Megs TA roast Marsal of foeimen, ecw of the Baran of Rat, Pele, ad ado tans Ri, Na xt As a loyal slave state, Maryland did not fall within the purview of the Emancipation Procla- mation. Nevertheless, as in the other border states, slavery deteriorated, cumors of freedom circulated, and slaves tested the limits of their ‘owners’ authority. A slave woman in northern, Maryland, in doubt about where matters stood, wrote directly to President Lincoln for clarfi- cation, Bela (Ma | Aug 259 1864 Mr president It is my Desire to be free.to go to see my people on the easter shore. my mistress wortlet me you Wilplease let me know if we are fre. and whats can 8 Tweite to you for advise. please send me word this week, (oF as soon a5 possible and oblidge Annie Davis ‘Annie Davis tM. present [Abrahan Lincoln), Aup-25, 1864, 1D'304 1864, Letters Receted, ser 360, Colona Tipops Dison, RG 94, NA\ xT Slavery lasted longer in Kentucky than in any other state except Delaware. Many of the state's slaves claimed freedom on the basis ofa parent's or husband's military service once Congress pro- vided in March 1865 for the emancipation of wives and children of black soldiers. The mother of a Kentucky slave soldier left her wartime employ- ment in Tennessee and returned to her home state before ratification of the Thirteenth ‘Amendment in December 1865—without Ken- tucky’s concurrence—officially ended American slavery State of Tennessee Montgomery County 15 day of September 1563 | Minerva Banks (atone tine called Minerva Suzamers) they tat Lam the ther of Charles Banks Co. "HL” TOM U's Int who died Dee, 5.1564 That since Christmas 186} Lhave made Tennessee my home and since my sal son-—Charies enlisted aya solder TThave eganded myself as fee & have been s0 informed and believe tio be true. ivorked as Cook in the Enginees Dept St Nashville and received s iharge in these words “Engineer Department Nashville Tenn. May 4 1865, Minerva Sommers (colored) in the employ of this Depa ‘ment owing t0 General Orders is hereby discharged (Signed) J. W. Barton Capt U.S. Eng’ in Charge of Delences” 1 June 1865 Lawyer Davis at Cadia Trigg Co ky hited me, but his wife was always unkind to me de abused me so that Twas compelled to leave and vet hired to Me W. H. Martin who lives 3 mules North from Cadiz and vecived from him 5 writing in these words ‘Lill give Mary Banks seven Dollars & 50 cents per mont for the ballance ofthe year and pay her atthe end ofeach rmonth—she to clothe herself June 12 1865 (signed) W. H. Marti’ | had been to work there but a few days when Edward Sommers my former master whe lives about 2 miles érom Hopkinsville—came to Mrs Martin's wit De Russel] who brought gun & theeatened to shoot me il offered o esst ‘or run, Sommers at first being hid. Somers then came UP th a large whip & accosted me saying he was afraid he ‘would have to die before seeing me as he wanted to live to give me one good thrashing Sommers then took me off rom the house about 1/2 mile into the woods. He then took the bridle vin fom his Buggy & hung me up by the neck for some time & then took me down & compelled me by force t0 strip ake & then ted my hands toa limb of the teee so that my fee! but just touched the ground. then cut limbs from the erees with which he scourged me fora long, time shipping me from my head to my feet cuting some severe gashes & among samme of the injuries inflicted he broke one of my fingures with the but end of his heavy whip Tivorked for said Martins until about Sept 1" when he informed that Re woul not pay me any thing as he was ‘obliged to pay my wages te Me Sommers— TEhave the original papers the copies whercaf afe above recited — “The above has been carefully read over to me & before God I solemnly swear that it is true & that! ef that County for fear of my lie All my things such ag bed Clothes sce OF Were Teft at Mr Marains— her Minerva X Banks ‘ark Afidavit of Miner Banks, Sep. 19, 1865, enclosed ia Buck & ‘MeMullen to Brig. Gon. CB. Fisk, Sept. 19,1965, 8-128 185, WRITING FREEDOM'S HISTORY. 225PROLOGUE eT Registered Letters Receive, se. imssioner, RG 105, NA xi When slavery fell—whether it be with escape to Union lines, the flight of fugitive masters, or the enforcement of the Emancipation Procla- mation—black people made haste to give mean- ing to their liberty. Months before a new state constitution ended slavery in Maryland on No- vember 1, 1864, a Maryland former slave wrote the secretary of war of his determination to re- unite his family and to define a new free status for himself and his people. Boston July 26 1864 Dear Sir _I.am Glad that I have the Honour to Write you afew line have been in troble for about four yars__ may Dear ‘wie was taken fom me Nov 1" 1859 and left me with three Chuldven and being a Slave Atthe me Could Not do Anny thing forthe poor litte Children for my master i was took me Carry me some forty mile tom them Se | Could Not do for them and the man that they lve with half feed them and half Cloth them & best them ike dogs when Iwas admited togo to see them ituse to brake my heart & Now I say alan |Lam Glad to have the honour to write to you to sce if you (Can Do Anny’ thing for me or for my poor litle Children Twas keap is Slay untell last Novr 1888. then the Good lord sent the Comme! borne [Birney?| Down thelr in Marland In worsester Coo 22 | have been recently feed 1 have but lele to live on but Lam Strveing Dear Sir but what | went too know cf you Sir is et possible for me to go & take my Chuldeen from those men that keep them in Savery iF is possible will you pleas give me a permit Irom your hard then I think they would let them go" Do Nat know Wwinat better to Do but am sure that you know what is best Forme to Do ‘ny to son lle with Me Josep Ennese& my litle daughter [ett with Mi Iver Spence in worsister Co |.» of Snow hil Hon sir will you please excuse my Miserable writing & answer me ab soon as youcan want get the lite Children dutof Slavery. 1 being Criple would hike to know of you also if [ Cant be permited to rase 2 Shool Down there & on ‘shat torm I Could be adraited to Do so No more At pres tent Dear Hon Sie John Q A Dennis Hon Sir wall you please direct your ler to No 4 172 Milton St Boston mass John Q. A. Dennis to Hon. ton, Cain M, Stanton July 16d, D-1049 T8ed, Letters Received, RG 107,NA. THE CONSCRIPT BILD! HOW TO AVOID IT?! U.S. NAVY. I) N WANTED, FOR 12 MONTH Seamen's Pay. Ordinary Seamen's Pay, Landsmeu’s Pay, . $1.50 extra per month to ull RIS.00 per moni . oe 400 6 : 06 6 Grog Money. Conscription into the Union army was necessary to sustain troop strength, The nivy proposed sen duty as an alternative to combat in the battlefields ofthe south, 226 WINTER 1985,PROLOGUE NOTES Ira Belin aches Nistor atthe Univesity of Maryland and is director of the Freedmen and Southern Society Project. Barbora J. Fields teaches history atthe University of Michigan and was memibeca the Freedmen and South- mn Soci) Projet in 1981-82 “Thavola Giymph teaches history atthe Unversity of Teas af Arlington and was a member ofthe Preedmen and Southern Socety Project in 1982-83 Steven F Mile is cowditor of the Fresdmen and Souther Society Project the University of Maryland sind has been 4 member ofthe projec! since 1984 Joseph P Rey teaches history at Howard University and was a member ofthe Freednen ond Southern Society reject from 1997 through 1984, Teshe 5. Rowland is covedifor ofthe Freedenen and Southern Society Project the Univesity of Maryland fed has been a member of the projet since 1976, Tue Savile teaches history at the University of Cai fornia, San Diagn, snd wes 4 member ofthe Poedmen and Southern Society Project sv 1983 "Fora uller description of the Freedmen so Southern Society Projet se ea Berlin, Barbora | Telds, Joseph P’Reidy, and Lese S: Rowland "WtingFresion's Hie tory" Prologue, 18 (all 1982) pp. 129150 and Predom 44 Becentary History of Emanepation 1861-1857, ser 2: he Black Miltary Experienced. a Bern, Joseph P Reidy, and LesieS. Rowand (1982), pp. x—¥es “Gen Wiliam §, Harnes. commander ofthe Depart ment ofthe West, promptly confirmed Cant™s under Sanding of the federal yoversments slavery policy: I should ss eon expect to ear that the orders ofthe Cov trnment wese dtccted towards the overtiow of any ‘ther kindof property a8 3 this in negro slaves” (Org Adier General [Wan 8. Hammey] to Thomas T. Gant Esq. May 1d, 1861, vol 28 DMo, pp. 205-20, Letters Sent, ser, 5481, Dept. ofthe West, RG 993, NA) ‘Secretary of Wat Simon Cameron's controversial 30 sual report of Dec 1,186, which advocated employing Slaves en behalf of the Union war effoetincasing oe ing them for mibtary service and freeing al those £0 tmployed. President Lincoln forced Carneron to delete the recommendation to agmh and tree slaves, (Edward Methewson, The Pain! History of he United Stats of America, dung the Great Rebelo, Zee. 1865. p. 249) “On Aus, 9 1862. Gen. George B. Mclean, com smandes of the Army of the Potomac, sete an order promulgating President Lincol's executive order of uly Fee which instructed the federatarmacs operating in se teiious sates to seize property suitable fr ela uc poses and to employ slaves McClellan sd that saves Employed by the Union army "have aways understood that aller being received into the miltary service ofthe United States in any eapacty they could never be re {Cnn bythe ots Holts,” ap ne promised sich Slaves "pertanent multary protection agaist any com pulsory tern to condition of servitude” (US. War Bepartment The Wr of he Rbeion’ A Compson fhe Offa Records ofthe Union and Confederate Aris, 128 Nels (1880-1901, Ser 1, vol, pl. pp 362-364) ‘On August 26, W864, Gen, Gorge F Shepley, com sander of the Dita of Easter Vani, orered that Confederate guerila tereater eaptared in Norn Car lina north of Albemace Sound and south and eas of the Chowan River were to be tewted as spies and not prisoners of wat, and that cineens who aiced the ger Fils would be imprisoned snd (with permission trom fis headquarters) their houses bumed. (General Orders No. 23, Head Quarters, Diet of Eastern Virginia, Aug 21, 1864, Orders & Circulars, ser 4, RC 94, NA) “ahegibe wars ‘©1985 by Freedmen and Southern Society Project Blacks were ar isportant part of the navy as well as the army. Above is the crew ofthe gunboat Hunchback on the James River in 1864 WRITING FREEDOMS HISTORY 227