Visiting Shirley Plantation on the James River (Hampton Roads Virginia) by Savvy Mom Ruth Paget
My
mother came to visit Florence and me right before our family moved to Monterey
County (California).
I
drove out to Charles City, which is the main town for visiting James River
Plantations. My mother took us out to
lunch at the Berkeley Plantation, and then we were off down the road to the
Shirley Plantation.
Shirley
Plantation is the 18th century structure and had a 300-year-old tree
in the front yard, which Florence played on while we visited for the tour to
begin.
The
tour participants interested me more than the house.
A
German family asked, “When do you plan to hold your next furniture sale?” they
asked.
Three
African-American ladies asked, “How many slaves were there? Are the slave ledgers kept with the family
books?”
“The
slave ledgers are kept in Williamsburg,” our guide answered.
They
might be digitized today for easy access and protection of the original ledger,
which is probably written on fragile paper.
I
have not seen slave ledgers for plantations, but slaves were treated as
merchandise and examined for sale at slave ports as well for people locating African
ancestors.
I liked reading Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon in high school and know that it is important to have some roots. Alex Haley's book and television series Roots was very good, too, I thought. Spoiler alert - I did not like Beloved by Morrison, because if you kill your kids, your culture will die.
I am a 15th generation American. My Jamestown relative did not survive. However, Isaac Penington did survive "with issue." He was the founder of the Society of Friends "Church" or Quaker Church. His son settled in Pennsylvania and various branches of the family settled the Appalachian states.
I liked reading Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon in high school and know that it is important to have some roots. Alex Haley's book and television series Roots was very good, too, I thought. Spoiler alert - I did not like Beloved by Morrison, because if you kill your kids, your culture will die.
I am a 15th generation American. My Jamestown relative did not survive. However, Isaac Penington did survive "with issue." He was the founder of the Society of Friends "Church" or Quaker Church. His son settled in Pennsylvania and various branches of the family settled the Appalachian states.
By Ruth Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
Click here for: Ruth Paget's Amazon Books
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