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African-American “slave for life” Sold to Farmer by Louisiana Cotton Planter

Bills of Sale

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Slavery St. Helena Parish, LA, January 20, 1846 African-American "slave for life" Sold to Farmer by Louisiana Cotton Planter MDS [SLAVERY.] Hezekiah Thompson and Gabriel Lilley, Manuscript Document Signed, Bill of Sale for Slave Henry, January 20, 1846, St. Helena Parish, Louisiana. 2 pp., 8" x 12.5". Also signed by Notary Public S. B. Draughon and witnesses Daniel Newton and John Burton. Separation on several folds; general toning. With this bill of sale, cotton planter and future state legislator Hezekiah Thompson sold the enslaved man Henry to James Lilley for $600. Acting on behalf of Lilley was his son Gabriel Lilley (1814-1879), who had married a year earlier and was perhaps beginning his own farm with the aid of slave labor. Excerpt "Hezekiah Thompson...declared and acknowledged that for and in Consideration of the sum of six hundred Dollars to him in hand paid by James Lilley...Thompson has Bargained sold transfered and delivered unto the said James Lilly all his right title interest and claim in &amp; to a Negro man named Henry of dark Complexion aged thirty eight years a slave for life and warranted free from all the vices and malides prescribed by Law...." Hezekiah Thompson (1797-1866) was born in central Virginia and served in the War of 1812. In 1819, he married Sarah Berry in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, and they had at least eight children. They lived for fifteen years in Covington, north of Lake Pontchartrain. In 1833, Thompson and his business partners purchased two steamers to transfer cargo and passengers across the lake to and from New Orleans. In the 1830s, Thompson purchased land in St. Helena Parish, forty miles northwest of Covington, and began to acquire a large number of slaves to operate a large cotton plantation there. He was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives in 1852 By 1860, he owned 2,000 acres of land and 66 slaves. Politically, he was a Whig, then a member of the American Party in the mid-1850s. He supported the presidential aspirations of John Bell and Edward Everett of the Constitutional Union Party in 1860, then became a Democrat in 1862. James Lilley (1789-ca. 1851) was born in Virginia and married Nancy Lee. They had at least ten children, and by 1814 were living in Louisiana. He was a veteran of the War of 1812 and became a farmer in Louisiana. This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses. WE PROVIDE IN-HOUSE

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Source: University Archives https://www.universityarchives.com/auction-lot/african-american-slave-for-life-sold-to-farmer-by_1BC45BDBDD Slavery St. Helena Parish, LA, January 20, 1846 African-American "slave for life" Sold to Farmer by Louisiana Cotton Planter MDS [SLAVERY.] Hezekiah Thompson and Gabriel Lilley, Manuscript Document Signed, Bill of Sale for Slave Henry, January 20, 1846, St. Helena Parish, Louisiana. 2 pp., 8" x 12.5". Also signed by Notary Public S. B. Draughon and witnesses Daniel Newton and John Burton. Separation on several folds; general toning. With this bill of sale, cotton planter and future state legislator Hezekiah Thompson sold the enslaved man Henry to James Lilley for $600. Acting on behalf of Lilley was his son Gabriel Lilley (1814-1879), who had married a year earlier and was perhaps beginning his own farm with the aid of slave labor. Excerpt "Hezekiah Thompson...declared and acknowledged that for and in Consideration of the sum of six hundred Dollars to him in hand paid by James Lilley...Thompson has Bargained sold transfered and delivered unto the said James Lilly all his right title interest and claim in & to a Negro man named Henry of dark Complexion aged thirty eight years a slave for life and warranted free from all the vices and malides prescribed by Law...." Hezekiah Thompson (1797-1866) was born in central Virginia and served in the War of 1812. In 1819, he married Sarah Berry in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, and they had at least eight children. They lived for fifteen years in Covington, north of Lake Pontchartrain. In 1833, Thompson and his business partners purchased two steamers to transfer cargo and passengers across the lake to and from New Orleans. In the 1830s, Thompson purchased land in St. Helena Parish, forty miles northwest of Covington, and began to acquire a large number of slaves to operate a large cotton plantation there. He was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives in 1852 By 1860, he owned 2,000 acres of land and 66 slaves. Politically, he was a Whig, then a member of the American Party in the mid-1850s. He supported the presidential aspirations of John Bell and Edward Everett of the Constitutional Union Party in 1860, then became a Democrat in 1862. James Lilley (1789-ca. 1851) was born in Virginia and married Nancy Lee. They had at least ten children, and by 1814 were living in Louisiana. He was a veteran of the War of 1812 and became a farmer in Louisiana.

Collection: University Archives — Bill of Sale Search

Time Period: Pre-1865 (Slavery Era)

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