4th Great Grandfather Moses King

My 3rd great-grandfather on my Allmond side was Solomon Butler, who was born free. I can see him on the 1850 census as living in the home of William Allmond, who also had an enslaved black woman named Charlotte, my 3rd great-grandmother. In 1854, William Allmond died, and somewhere between then and 1860, Charlotte was moved to the home of the son, William J. Allmond. However, I do not see Solomon Butler there. On the 1860 Census, I do see a Solomon Butler in the home of the Baileys, a free black family living very close to William Sr.’s widow. I don’t find Solomon Butler at all in 1870. I have an Isle of Wight County marriage record for him from May 16, 1866 where he listed his father as Moses King and his mother as Milly Butler.

I looked around census records and found one Moses King in Isle of Wight County, Virginia in 1870. I have not yet found Milly Butler.

He is found here at 70 years old in the same household with Sukey King, aged 65. Moses is listed as a laborer. Neither is listed as being able to read or write. Interestingly, the column labeled “Whether deaf and dumb, blind, insane or idiotic” is checked for both of them.

I also found Moses in the Freedmen’s Bureau records Virginia, Freedmen’s Bureau Field Office Records, 1865-1967, Petersburg (subassistant commissioner) records. He was involved in a number of legal matters. Based on the records, Moses King appeared primarily as a plaintiff in disputes over property damage and unpaid debts. Here are the cases I found:

Date:February 3, 1866
Case Number:88
Plaintiff:Moses King
Defendant:Wm H. Jones
Action or Charge:Claim for damages for breaking buggy shaft
Verdict:Judgment for $1.00 damages and 50 cts costs
Amount/Remarks:$1.00; Paid February 21, 1866
Date:March 1, 1866
Plaintiff:U. S. Govt
Defendant:Moses King
Action or Charge:To show cause why the judgment in favor of Smith Jackson has not been satisfied
Date:March 14, 1866
Case Number:167
Plaintiff:Moses King (Col’d)
Defendant:Henry Lumley (Col’d) & G. Washington (W )
Action or Charge:Claim for $3.65 debt due
Verdict:Judgment confessed for amount and 50 cts cost
Amount/Remarks:$3.65; Mr. Curtis lumber taken
Date:March 17, 1866
Case Number:186
Plaintiff:Moses King (Col’d)
Defendant:Geo Smith (Col’d)
Action or Charge:Claim for $12.39 debt due
Verdict:Judgment confessed for amount and costs
Amount/Remarks:To be paid 1 April 1866
Date:March 27, 1866
Plaintiff:Moses King
Defendant:H Lumley
Action or Charge:Summons issued to show cause
Amount/Remarks:To appear 29 March 1866
Date:April 5, 1866
Plaintiff:Moses King
Defendant:G Washington
Action or Charge:Summons issued to show cause

During Reonstruction, the Freedmen’s Bureau provided a means by which newly freed Black people could seek legal redress, not just from other Black people but also from white people. Moses King exercised his rights multiple times during that time, even though according to the Census he could not read or write.

Note: I used NotebookLM to help me read these handwritten files. I also used it to create the infographic used as the feature image.

Sources:

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