Description:

Louisiana Slaveowner Sells a Slave for Horse, Carriage, and Cash

With this bill of sale, Nathaniel Amacker sold a slave to Dr. William D. Pearson for $750, paid with a horse and carriage worth $300, $200 in cash, and a promissory note for the balance of $250.

Amacker warranted that the slave George was free of both disease and "the Vices known in the Laws of the State of Louisiana." Much of the Louisiana Civil Code came from the 1804 French Code Napoleon, in contrast to the English common law origins of laws in most American states. It divided the defects of slaves into "vices of body" and "vices of character." Articles in the Civil Code declared, "The absolute vices of slaves are leprosy, madness, and epilepsy.... The vices of character which give rise to the redhibition [invalidation of sale] of slaves, are confined to the cases in which it is proved: That the slave has committed a capital crime; Or, that he is addicted to theft; Or, that he is in the habit of running away, when he shall have absented himself from his master’s house twice for several days, or once for more than a month."

[SLAVERY.] Nathaniel Amacker, Autograph Document Signed, Bill of Sale, July 26, 1852, St. Helena Parish, Louisiana. 1 p., 7.75" x 10". Expected folds; very good.

Complete Transcript
State of Louisiana / Parish of St. Helena
Be it Known & Remembered that on this the Twenty Sixth Day of July A D 1852, That for & in Consideration of Seven hundred & fifty Dollars Paid in the following manner to wit Horse & Carriage at Three hundred Dollars Cash Two hundred Dollars & the ballance payable January 1853, I hereby Sell Transfer Convey & Deliver unto W D Pearson all my right Title Interest & Clame in & to a Certain Negrow man named George about Twenty nine years of age of dark Complexion a Slave for life & warranted free of disease & the Vices known in the Laws of the State of Louisiana; & The Title Warranted against My Self My Heirs, Assignes Administrators & all other persons. To have & to hold unto the said W D Pearson his Heirs & assignes forever The Possession of the same is hereby Acknowledged.
    This done & assigned in the presence of John A. Hayse & Jessee Carnes Subscribing witnesses to the same on tis the day & date above written
                                                                        N Amacker
                                                                        W. D. Pearson
Witnesses
J. A. Hays
J C Cairns

Nathaniel Amacker (1811-1881) was born in Mississippi but moved to Louisiana as a child. He married Mosilla Pearson (1813-1871) in 1831, and they had at least eleven children. In 1850, Amacker was a farmer in St. Helena Parish, owned $7,500 in real estate, and owned sixteen enslaved African Americans. In 1860, he owned $3,100 in real estate, and $48,000 in personal estate, including thirty-three slaves. After the Civil War, he moved to Tangipahoa Parish. In December 1881, he was thrown from his buggy and died two weeks later.

Dr. William D. Pearson (1816-1873) was born in Louisiana. In 1834, he married Winnifred Stewart Bates (1819-1864), with whom he had two children. In 1850, he lived in Ouachita Parish, in northern Louisiana, where he owned $8,750 in real estate and eight slaves. By 1860, he lived in Pike County in southern Mississippi, where he was a hotelkeeper with real estate valued at $5,000 and personal estate valued at $5,500, including four slaves. Pearson died in Amite County, Mississippi.

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 SHIPPING WORLDWIDE.

Accepted Forms of Payment:

American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Money Order / Cashiers Check, Paypal, Personal Check, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

Unless otherwise indicated, we do our own in-house worldwide shipping!

Applicable shipping and handling charges will be added to the invoice. We offer several shipping options, and remain one of the few auction houses who proudly provides professional in-house shipping as an option to our clients. All items will ship with signature required, and full insurance. Most items are sent via Federal Express, with P. O. Box addresses being sent through USPS. We insure through Berkley Asset Protection with rates of $.70 per $100 of value, among the lowest insurance rates in the industry. Our shipping department cameras document every package, both outgoing and incoming, for maximum security. In addition, we compare our shipping and handling rates against those of other auction houses, to ensure that our charges are among the lowest in the trade.

Upon winning your item(s), you will receive an invoice with our in-house shipping and handling fees included. ***We will ship to the address as it appears on your invoice. If any changes to the shipping address need to be made, you must inform us immediately.***

International shipments: In order to comply with our insurance provider, all international shipments will be sent via Fed Ex and customs paperwork will show a value of $1.00. International buyers should contact our office directly with any questions regarding this policy.

Third Party Shipping Option: If a third party shipper is preferred, the buyer is responsible for contacting them directly to make shipping arrangements. For your convenience, we have provided some recommended shippers. For your protection, we will require a signed release from you, confirming your authorization for us to release your lots to your specified third party Please copy and paste this following link into your browser: http://universityarchives.com/UserFiles/ShippingInfo.pdf. At that point, our responsibility and insurance coverage for your item(s) ceases. Items picked up by third party shippers are required to pay Connecticut sales tax. Items requiring third party shipping due to being oversized, fragile or bulky will be denoted in the item description.

Please see our full terms and conditions for names of suggested third party shippers.

After payment has been made in full, University Archives will ship your purchase within 10 business days following receipt of full payment for item.

Please remember that the buyer is responsible for all shipping costs from University Archives' offices in Wilton, CT to the buyer's door. Please see full Terms and Conditions of Sale.

August 17, 2022 10:30 AM EDT
Wilton, CT, US

University Archives

You agree to pay a buyer's premium of 25% and any applicable taxes and shipping.

View full terms and conditions

Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $299 $20
$300 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $2,999 $200
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 + $5,000