Enslavement Bill of Sale of Jim, a Boy, Mecklenburg County, 1847, PC.2000
Abstract
Jim was born into slavery, circa 1840, and was enslaved at a young age in a transaction
between two residents of Mecklenburg County. Possibly his surname after emancipation
or after the Civil War was Johnston or Sloan.
This handwritten enslavement bill of sale referencing a boy named Jim from enslaver
Samuel Johnston to E. B. D Sloan, possibly Edward Brice Dobbs Sloan, on 11 December
1847, for five hundred dollars.
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Bill of Sale of an Enslaved Person, Jim, Enslaved by E. B. D. Sloan (Mecklenburg County)
- Call Number
- PC.2000
- Creator
- Sloan, E. B. D.
- Date
- 11 December 1847
- Extent
- 1.000 cubic feet
- Language
- English
- Repository
- State Archives of North Carolina
Restrictions on Access & Use
Access Restrictions
Available for research
Use Restrictions
Copyright is retained by the authors of these materials, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law (Title 17 US Code). Individual researchers are responsible for using these materials in conformance with copyright law as well as any donor restrictions accompanying the materials.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item] PC.2000, Enslavement Bill of Sale of Jim, a Boy, Mecklenburg County, 1847. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC, USA
Biographical/Historical note
Although available records do not indicate that Samuel [C.?] Johnston (ca. 1789-1868)
was a long-term enslaver, one documented instance of his involvement in slavery concerns
the enslavement and sale of a young boy named Jim. The duration of Jim's forced labor
under Johnston remains unclear. In December 1847, Johnston sold Jim to E. B. D. Sloan,
after which Johnston no longer appears in records as enslaving any individuals. Neither
the 1850 nor 1860 U.S. Federal Census Slave Schedules list him as an enslaver.
The 1850 Census records Johnston living alone as a farmer in Mecklenburg County, near
his son James L. Johnston and family. By 1860, Johnston was recorded as a cabinetmaker,
living with another son, John H. Johnston. Evidence suggests that Johnston may have
been apprenticed as a cabinetmaker in his youth and that this may have been his primary
occupation.
The buyer named in the 1847 bill of sale was E. B. D. Sloan, likely Edward Brice Dobbs
Sloan (ca. 1810-1874), a resident of Dewese Township, Mecklenburg County. Sloan remained
in the area following the purchase. Both the Sloan and Johnston families have burial
sites at Ramah Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Huntersville, Mecklenburg County.
The 1860 Federal Census lists Sloan as a farmer living with his wife and children.
That year's Slave Schedule documents eight individuals enslaved by Sloan, including
five males with approximate birth years of 1820, 1830, 1840, 1842, and 1847. It is
possible, though unconfirmed, that Jim may be the individual born around 1840.
Following emancipation, it is difficult to trace Jim's life. His whereabouts, surname,
and community affiliations after the Civil War remain uncertain. Several individuals
identified in postwar census records might possibly be Jim, but no conclusive link
has been established. These individuals include:
James Sloan, age 21 in 1870, a Black male in Berryhill, Mecklenburg County
Edward Sloan, age 54 in 1870, a Black male in Berryhill, Mecklenburg County
James Johnston, age 46 in 1880, a Black male farmer in Dewese, Mecklenburg County
James Johnston, age 65 in 1900, a Black male residing with his family in Long Creek,
Mecklenburg County
It is important to note that the Samuel Johnston named in the 1847 bill of sale is
not related to Samuel Johnston (1733-1806), the prominent political figure and enslaver
from Edenton, Chowan County.
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Acquisitions Information
Gift of Charles A. Carbone, Burke, Va., 2010