The collection is open for research.
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Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Samuel Williams Ledger, c. 1839-1840, Ms2023-055, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.
The Samuel Williams Ledger was purchased by Special Collections and University Archives in February 2021.
The processing, arrangement, and description of the Samuel Williams Ledger was completed in June 2023.
The creator of the ledger is probably Samuel Williams (1769-1840), a Virginian enslaver in Wythe and Smyth counties. Williams married Sarah "Sally" Buster (c. 1776-1836) on September 25, 1795, in Wythe County, and together they had ten children. The 1830 U. S. Federal Census indicates Williams enslaved 13 persons and the 1840 census lists 11 enslaved people, including 6 under 10 years old. The ledger includes the names of 18 enslaved men, women, and children.
External Sources:
Dealer's description
U.S. Federal Census, 1830-1840
"Samuel Williams", Findagrave.com, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/219008167/samuel-williams, accessed March 14, 2024.
"Samuel Williams" in the Virginia, U.S., Select Marriages, 1785-1940, Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/discoveryui-content/view/3800030:60214, accessed March 14, 2024.
The Samuel Williams Ledger contains a "Memorandum of the amount Paid to Each of my Children Toward Their Legacies" with accompanying pages identifying ten children by name along with associated inheritance. The names of 18 men, women, and children enslaved by Williams are listed as well as property such as horses, cows, beds, and land.
The guide to the Samuel Williams Ledger by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 (