Letter, Joseph McFarland to John Augustine Washington III

Containers:
Box 66, Folder 1845.08.03
Creator:
McFarland, Joseph
Scope and content:

Autograph letter signed. John Augustine's overseer, Joseph McFarland, writes that he has had "a great deal of difficulty" with the enslaved worker Gabriel Johnson and has had to put Gabriel in Bruin's Slave Jail in Alexandria.

McFarland describes a scene in which Gabriel was "cursing & fighting" against some horses, and then began cursing McFarland when McFarland took the horse whip away from Gabriel. McFarland writes, "I put him with Mr. Bruen at 25 cts a day. Mr. Bruen thinks he would be mighty apt to run away. I did not flog him as Mr. Bruen persuaded me not for it would injure the sale of him." He then adds to Augustine, "Times is very different to what they was when you was here."

Language:
English .

Access and use

Location of collection:
The George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon
The George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon
3600 Mount Vernon Memorial Highway
Mount Vernon, VA 22121
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Reference services
Phone: (703) 780-3600
Parent restrictions:
This collection is open for research during scheduled appointments. Researchers must complete the Washington Library's Special Collections and Archives Registration Form before access is provided. The library reserves the right to restrict access to certain items for preservation purposes.