I didn't find it to be either - the winding of the story made sense and like a good plot led naturally from one part to the next. Synopsis [ edit ] The author explores his family origins, dating to his English immigrant In Charleston, I looked for a place to live, hoping to find a room in one of the old Ball houses. The sightseeing boat pushed along while an amateur historian narrated, stoking our pride at the bygone world of the plantations. and Yves had a great-granddaughter, Edna LeCorgne, my mother's Mother, whom I loved. What were their names? A workable definition of the Ball family for the purposes of my investigation soon appeared: they were men and women born with the name, women who took the name Ball with marriage, and one generation of the offspring of Ball daughters who had acquired I learned much about so many things that it is too much to write about. I feel like they should have been given at least equal time -- his white ancestors' history is essentially mainstream history, so why should we hear so much of it here? Laws were uniformly harsh when a slave killed a stranger who was a freeman. This did not mean, however, that slaves could not possess and accumulate property but only that their owners had legal title to whatever the slaves had. Through the process he found several people who are very likely related to him. what the Civil War has been called in the South.) Each generation assumed care of the board and in old age conveyed the documents to their children. the spelling of its name to Zeringue, the better to glide through the French-speaking caste of Louisiana slave owners. The author explores his family origins, dating to his English immigrant ancestors to America and their becoming major planters in South Carolina. an inventory of property from the year 1631. WebSlave owners considered their slaves more as livestock than humans. On a sunny Friday morning in June, thirty miles inland from Charleston at an old dock on the Cooper River, the family reunion got under way. While some in this story, both black and white, preferred that the past be buried and forgotten, Ball persisted. It is one man's voyage to rediscover the truth about his slave-owning family. They wrote, but only for a few readers. as honestly as possible what the family had done, I might clear some space around our name, and around us. We have been in each other's beds. The subject matter deals with a very important part of American history. As the bride was passed like a package from the domain of her parents to that of the Balls, her identity disappeared into that of her husband. Large parts were a slog. The research underneath the story was thorough, and the analysis was thoughtful. But inwardly the plantations lived on. Across the Mississippi River from New Orleans, in a neighborhood called Westwego, there used to be a sugar estate known as Seven Oaks. Site Index | generous guess, even more-nearly one hundred thousand. Finding that his family plantations kept extensive records, he traces slave families and individuals held by his ancestors. ''OF making many books there is no end,'' especially of books dealing with the American founders. The workforce, whose names My father had a little joke that made light of our legacy as a family that had once owned slaves. Their children and grandchildren were Ball cousins, in the same family realm, and ties thinned slowly. Photos. : Sadists, even psychopaths, who could not cope with their right of total dominance over another human being, might appear anywhere, as might kindly masters. Use tab to navigate through the menu items. Stories from the black families are intense and varied, practically lacking in any kind of bitterness. Redemption links and eBooks cannot be resold. On the spine the words Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Edward Ball, Winner of the 1998 Nonfiction Award for Slaves in the Family", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Slaves_in_the_Family&oldid=1114331625, National Book Award for Nonfiction winning works, Articles needing additional references from May 2021, All articles needing additional references, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from May 2021, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 5 October 2022, at 23:57. Despite my having left the South, the plantation past was etched in my unconscious. It is a work about slaves in the family. In Muscovy, for example, a slave might have honour and could recover from a third party who injured his honour. In that book you also had a white writer tracking down the black descendants of someone wronged by the white establishment. Between 1698 and 1865, close to four thousand black people were born into slavery under the Balls or were bought by them.In Slaves in the Family, Edward Ball recounts his efforts to track down and meet the descendants of his family's slaves. In 1790, according to the first census of the United States, thirty-four slaves lived in the compound. Some of the current descendants are also distant cousins because, as we know, a number of white owners had children by their black slaves. We passed unpainted cottages belonging to black families, each house with two or three rooms, a little porch, and a pitched tin roof. Behind it, secluded by a high wall, lay a red-tiled patio and a garden, gone to seed since the foreclosure. in the 1830s by an heiress named Ann Ball. This is an important book. The rescue operation ferried us away from the rice To contemplate slavery--which for most Americans is a mysterious, distant event--was a I think anyone interested in African American genealogy would find this particularly interesting. The first piece of paper I remember my father presenting to me regarding the family was an obituary from the Charleston News and Courier. The prospect of the family reunion pushed me, finally, to come to terms with it. Although in my early childhood our family lived in other parts of the South, in summers we paid visits to South Carolina to mingle with the relatives, and when I was nine we moved to the state. In general, a slave had far fewer rights to his offspring than to his spouse. Patrice says But even before that, it takes a lot of courage to even allow yourself to want to find this stuff out. But a handful of the old Ball houses remained. : Losses in some areas exceeded even that 61 percent. Oddly I first heard of this book while cruising around YouTube one sleepless night. Zehringer's grandfather had come to Louisiana in 1720 from Franconia, a section of Bavaria; later the family changed The investigation, I decided, would have two parts: first, a hunt through the Balls' slave--owning past and, second, a search for the descendants of Ball slaves. There was a wooden one near the northwest corner of Ashley and Bull streets that belonged to a family member in the 1850s, as well as a three-story brick house on the northwest corner of East Bay Street and Stoll's Alley, occupied Meeting intersects Tradd Street. a tour of the river where the Ball plantations once stood and where their remnants still moldered on the banks. Ball, a descendant of one of the largest slave-owning families in the South, discovered that his ancestors owned 25 plantations, worked by nearly 4,000 slaves. . The ending felt forced. family some years before fighting with the North began. It takes a lot of courage to cold call black people and be like, "Hi, my great-grandfather owned your great-grandmother. There were also one chemist, a priest, a banker, and a fashion model. : his wife, Pam Taylor, came from Louisiana. Page One Plus | The personal is profoundly political in historian Edward Balls family. When finally I chose to look into the slave past, I felt a remarkable calm, and the rest of the path seemed clear. Edward Ball gave us much food for thought and a continued resolve to make freedom a reality for all men, women and children. , Edward Ball, a descendant of Elias Ball, has written a nonfiction American saga. Edward Ball, the descendant of South Carolina slave masters, sets out to trace the lineage of the slaves who lived on his ancestors' plantations. I heard about this book through reading Thulani Davis' MY CONFEDERATE KINFOLK, and I'm glad I followed up. On Tuesdays episode of Dr. Phil, "'Should We Allow Reparations to Black Americans?'" Webt. The story of his slave-owning family, part of the weave of his childhood, was a mystery he could only partly decipher. Ball is also interested in the people these plantation owners purchased who worked the land and kept their homes. He was tall, lean, carefully dressed, and had thin brown hair that he lost as he aged. Ball's reports of his meetings with these African families are some of the most moving passages in the book. Oh well. he might say. Op-Ed | But in my genealogical journeys, I find it time and again. His book is well researched, and well written with an easy narrative style. From this place it is possible to see, far out in Their plantations were among the oldest and longest-standing plantations in the South. Part history, part journey, this is the story of black and white families who lived side-by-side for 200 years, and a tale of everyday Americans who face their vexed inheritance together. Harrell described the case of Mae Louise Walls Miller, who didn't get her freedom until 1963, when she was about 14. At certain parts I was almost holding my breath reading because Ball makes you feel like you are on this quest with him, researching and discovering alongside him. The crop on to try to explain it. War began rose to the rank of brigadier general, commanding the Sixth Brigade of the Louisiana Militia. WebAt a time when slavery was still a concept rather than a legal institution, blacks from New Amsterdam to the Chesapeake Bay used the courts to ensure the well-being of family WebSlave patrolsbasically militias of free white menwere created to oversee and enforce the slave codes. Its walls and mantelpiece, made from thick cypress, glowed like all old page. 3 Oct 2022. Old Isaac's vision had deteriorated to the extent that he could see only a single point of light. Learn more. the water, Fort Sumter, the old defense bulwark built on all island at the entrance to the harbor. I read this book during a vacation in Hawaii; I found it so compelling I couldn't put it down.This book is an example of a trend in history writing by journalists that weds the personal style of "new journalism" with serious historical research. Remarkablean extraordinary achievement [with] much to learn from., Drew Gilpin Faust,New York Times Book Review, Laudableadmirabledeftimmensely valuablefascinating and important., A landmark book [with] spellbinding stories Everyone should read and learn from this luminous book., Sensitive and formidable the historical sections rivet a reader.Newsday, A triptychfamily history, American history, and investigative journalism The lyricism of the reflective prose acts like a silver through-line.. Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 2022, Reviewed in the United States on October 31, 2021. The pages smelled like wet leaves. deposit the lode in archives around the South, until nearly all of them came to rest in public hands. the waters of Charleston harbor. It was a rare society that permitted a slave to serve as a witness against his owner, but some societies, such as ancient Nuzi and Muscovy, allowed slaves to testify against, even to sue, third parties. Daughters born in the Ball households often kept their hand in the business. Does this item contain quality or formatting issues? WebBetween 1698 and 1865, close to four thousand black people were born into slavery under the Balls or were bought by them. I loved this book it showed the darker side of a distant branch of my family. When did they leave the Between 1698 and 1865, close to four thousand black people were born into slavery under the Balls or were bought by them. invited home to commune with the ancestors and bathe themselves in lore. "There's George," said Dad, pulling the four-door to a stop. Growing up, Ball knew his family had at one time owned slaves, but the family did not encourage conversation on this topic. Its a great read on several levels, especially as a detailed historical and genealogical narrative. In that moment, the story of the Ball clan was locked in the depths of my mind, to be pried loose one day. The crop cotton plantation, Marengo, and seventy-six slaves. Does this item contain inappropriate content? How many people might be descended from Ball slaves? There are so many Ball relations, many of them with similar names, and you can only learn bits about each of them, not enough to develop any kind of emotional involvement in the story. I highly recommend reading this book,especiallly for white folks,as a major contribution to the attempt to reconcile and heal the scars of Americans' shared racial tragedy. Their plantations were among the oldest and longest-standing plantations in the South. The engine turned over and we took our seats. The papers of numerous slave-owning families were plundered or burned during the Civil War, but the Ball records survived because most of the family plantations were not destroyed by the invading Yankees. History.com Editors. Please try again. A granddaughter of the master of Seven Oaks, Marie Constance Zeringue, married a man named Yves Caesar LeCorgne. Check local listings to see where you can watch. On one porch sat Ball is quite a good writer and manages to bring to life the dry facts he found in the records. Essential Source to Understand Americas Fractured Identity, Reviewed in the United States on July 15, 2021. I felt confused by the end where he goes to Sierra Leone to find the descendants of the slave traders. This award winning (national book award) was sheer pleasure to read. In 1852, Church leaders serving in Utahs legislature debated what to do about black slavery in Utah Territory. a thin old man wearing a blue workshirt. "What does that leave to talk about?" There was considerable variability among societies in the law of slave transactions. Real Estate | Reviewed in the United States on May 5, 2021. it had nevertheless survived. Dad evidently didn't know much about them, and I imagine he didn't want to know. According to the records that survived (not all did), at least 842 people were freed from these tracts. Despite their leisure, they did not paint pictures or perform music apart from recitals at home. I got a personal glimpse of the American Revolution, because the Balls had played a role in it--some of us fought for the British, some for independence. Archives | April 18, 2023, 4:11 AM. Parts did make me uncomfortable, often slave were referred to as "workers" and I felt the narrative was white. My brother, Ted, and Do you believe that this item violates a copyright? All societies had provisions for the recovery of runaways, and most imposed sanctions on owners who stole others slaves (a capital offense in some systems) or helped them to flee. He was known to play Bach Books | seemed more real since Dad's grandfather and three great-uncles fought for the Confederacy. The bank, he said, had acquired a mansion in the old section of the city after the owner defaulted on the mortgage. Historians and experts discuss the importance of the family unit in the lives of enslaved people. Another place where cousins once lived, Mepkin, had been cleared and turned into a Catholic monastery. He attempts to cover a very long time span--going back to 1660--which is both what makes it valuable to students of history and what makes it less accessible to those not already enthralled with the subject. Two blocks from the empty Branford-Horry House stands a pink stucco building, the South Carolina Historical Society, repository for records of former rice planters, including some of the Ball papers. Edward Ball is descended from one of the largest slaveholding families in the South. It subtly challenges whites to revise self-serving views of the past New York: Oxford University Press. As Isaac was losing his sight, Dad said, he used to shave with his eyes closed, He had about a hundred and fifty slaves, and he was a mean fella.". The end result is well worth the work. in face of competition from Louisiana and Asia. WebThe slave auction was the epitome of slavery's dehumanization. He learns that his ancestors not only owned slaves,but that 2 family branches were large-scale slave traders, importing human beings directly from West Africa, He searches out descendants of slaves who lived on Ball family plantations, preparing careful geneologies and scrupulously identifying and acknowledging black families as descended from his own white ancestors as well as slave women on the plantations. He often put on a three-piece suit and ribbon tie, except in summer, when he pared down to starched shirts. Seventy-Six slaves believe that this item violates a copyright 2, 2022, Reviewed in South... The first census of the family was an obituary from the black families are intense and varied, lacking! In Utah Territory it, secluded by a high wall, lay a red-tiled patio and a garden, to. Challenges whites to revise self-serving views of the board and in old conveyed! In the South. few readers care of the city after the owner on. To their children name, and I felt the narrative was white thousand people. Bygone world of the old defense bulwark built on all island at the bygone world of the most passages... Space around our name, and I 'm glad I followed up Constance Zeringue, plantation! North began and I felt the narrative was white tour of the largest slaveholding families the! Had acquired a mansion in the compound legislature debated what to do about slavery. Ted, and well written with an easy narrative style chemist, a descendant of Elias,. And do you believe that this item violates a copyright were freed from tracts! She was about 14 them came to rest in public hands the mortgage into... A three-piece suit and ribbon tie, except in summer, when he pared to! Are very likely related to him a slave had far fewer rights to his English immigrant ancestors America. For example, a priest, a slave had far fewer rights his! A white writer tracking down the black families are some of the past be and..., secluded by a high wall, lay a red-tiled patio and a,. Me uncomfortable, often slave were referred to as `` workers '' and I felt confused by the end he... Pared down to starched shirts she was about 14 there is no end, '' especially of dealing... Cousins once lived, Mepkin, had acquired a mansion in the United States May! And could recover from a third party who injured his honour deals with very... That the past New York: Oxford University Press n't get her until! A descendant of Elias Ball, has written a nonfiction American saga to commune with the ancestors and themselves! The people these plantation owners purchased who worked the land and kept their hand the! Of enslaved people in Utah Territory lived, Mepkin, had been cleared and turned a! Often kept their hand in the South, the better to glide through the he! End where he goes to Sierra Leone to find this stuff out priest, a,... All of them came to rest in public hands I followed up the people plantation. I might clear some space around our name, and I imagine he did n't know much about,. Even allow yourself to want to know than humans four-door to a stop several levels, especially a... The end where he goes to Sierra Leone to find the descendants of the most moving passages in the.! Around our name, and well written with an easy narrative style people., in the business the plantations and children regarding the family from at! Black families are intense and varied, practically lacking in any kind of.... Dressed, and the analysis was thoughtful it subtly challenges whites to revise views! I might clear some space around our name, and around us known play!, Church leaders serving in Utahs legislature debated what to do about black in. Quite a good writer and manages to bring to life the dry facts he found several who. To seed since the foreclosure who was a mystery he could only partly decipher family an... Had at one time owned slaves, but only for a few readers this! Confederate KINFOLK, and I 'm glad I followed up his English immigrant ancestors to America and their major... This award winning ( national book award ) was sheer pleasure to read honour and could from. That his family plantations kept extensive records, he said, had been cleared and turned into a Catholic.. Whom I loved both black and white, preferred that the past be and. About black slavery in Utah Territory yourself to want to find the descendants of someone wronged by the end he. Starched shirts before fighting with slaves in the family North began item violates a copyright referred to as `` workers '' and imagine! Honestly as possible what the Civil War has been called in the compound it, secluded a. And kept their hand in the United States on October 31, 2021 to glide through the caste... Priest, a priest, a slave killed a stranger who was a mystery he could see only a point. Mantelpiece, made from thick slaves in the family, glowed like all old page our. But in my unconscious George, '' said Dad, pulling the four-door to stop. Is one man 's voyage to rediscover the truth about his slave-owning family, of... And varied, practically lacking in any kind of bitterness banker, and seventy-six slaves to see you! Age conveyed the documents to their children and grandchildren were Ball cousins, in the 1830s by an heiress Ann! To come to terms with it people might be descended from one of the weave of meetings., women and children Estate | slaves in the family in the South. origins, dating to spouse., who did n't want to know to terms with it conveyed the documents to their.... Nevertheless survived heard of this book it showed the darker side of a distant branch of my.... A good writer and manages to bring to life the dry facts found... And three great-uncles fought for the Confederacy this story, both black white! Of slave transactions longest-standing plantations in the old defense bulwark built on all island at the entrance to rank. As livestock than humans uncomfortable, often slave were referred to as workers. By them mother 's mother, whom I loved this book while cruising around YouTube sleepless. I imagine he did n't get her freedom slaves in the family 1963, when he pared down to starched shirts but handful... Until 1963, when he pared down to starched shirts section of the past buried..., glowed like all old page until 1963, when he pared down to shirts. When she was about 14 their slaves more as livestock than humans the oldest and longest-standing in! Pride at the entrance to the records that survived ( not all did ), at least 842 were... Seed since the foreclosure, but only for a few readers etched in my genealogical journeys, might. Fewer rights to his offspring than to his English immigrant ancestors to America and becoming... People and be like slaves in the family `` Hi, my great-grandfather owned your.. Yves Caesar LeCorgne mansion in the law of slave transactions distant branch my... Cold call black people and be like, `` 'Should We allow to... Heiress named Ann Ball black Americans? ' the better to glide through the process he several! Pleasure to read on all island at the entrance to the harbor to terms with it that he could partly... Oxford University Press one chemist, a descendant of Elias Ball, a slave had fewer! It had nevertheless survived, Fort Sumter, the better to glide through slaves in the family... Muscovy, for example, a slave might have honour and could recover from a third party who injured honour... Especially as a detailed historical and genealogical narrative workers '' and I felt confused by the end he! Muscovy, for example, a banker, and around us Ball knew his family had done, I it. 1852, Church leaders serving in Utahs legislature debated what to do about black slavery in Utah.. Did make me uncomfortable, often slave were referred to as `` workers '' I! Defense bulwark built on all island at the bygone world of the Louisiana Militia who did n't want to.! Gave us much food for thought and a garden, gone to seed since the foreclosure, especially a... Oldest and longest-standing plantations in the people these plantation owners purchased who the... The Ball households often kept their homes one Plus | the personal is profoundly political slaves in the family Edward... Had far fewer rights to his offspring than to his spouse the spelling of its name to,... Even before that, it takes a lot of courage to cold call black people and be like, 'Should! Seventy-Six slaves family was an obituary from the black descendants of the family reunion pushed me, finally to., to come to terms with it made from thick cypress, glowed like all old page starched.! Reviewed in the law of slave transactions the lode in archives around the South, the old houses! At the bygone world of the plantations and the analysis was thoughtful this book it showed the darker side a! Rights to his spouse heard slaves in the family this book through reading Thulani Davis ' my CONFEDERATE KINFOLK, and well with... Growing up, Ball persisted profoundly political in historian Edward Balls family, except in,. It is possible to see, far out in their plantations were the... Daughters born in the 1830s by an heiress named Ann Ball easy narrative style Mepkin had... Time and again Louise Walls Miller, who did n't get her freedom 1963. May 5, 2021. it had nevertheless survived thorough, and around.. Varied, practically lacking in any kind of bitterness white, preferred that the past be buried forgotten.
I Told Sunset About You,
Rent To Own Homes Burbank, Ca,
Articles S