Who Were “Felix Richards' Slaves”?: Identifying Enslaved People Photographed During the Civil War
Amy Bertsch
Content
Welcome
1m 50s
Speaker's Introduction
1m 20s
Introduction
6m 26s
Enslaver's Family
7m 5s
Virginia Chancery Cases
9m 41s
Virginia Slave Birth Index
11m 0s
Finding Family in Freedom
4m 28s
Civil War Pension Applications
4m 19s
Identifying Individuals in Photo
11m 1s
Announcements / prizes
5m 18s
Questions / answers
8m 12s
About this webinar
Nine African Americans — two women and seven children — were posed amid a laundry day setting in a rare Civil War-era photograph. The handwritten caption identified them only as “Felix Richards Slaves” and the location as Volusia, near Alexandria, Va. Could their true identities be established? In this case study, historian and genealogist Amy Bertsch discusses a variety of sources, including probate records, a chancery suit, Civil War pension applications, and the former enslaver’s federal compensation claim, she used to identify the individuals in the photo, which is now at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. She explores how these records can yield new discoveries for family historians and she also demonstrates the importance of researching the enslaver’s family when conducting African American family research.
About the speaker
Amy Bertsch is a historian specializing in African American and Virginia history who has taught in the Public History and Historic Preservation certificate program at Northern Virginia Community Colle...
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Comments (50)
Fantastic!
Absolutely excellent presentation
Great presentation! I had no idea how someone would go about identifying people in old photos.
The information was clear and examples excellent
Such an excellent and timely (for me) webinar. I am researching enslaved persons in VA who share my surname. The webinar gave me some resources that will extend the reach of the ones that were already familiar to me. I would really encourage anyone researching enslaved persons to take this webinar. While it's focus was on identifying persons in the photograph -- the resources, and research methods are outstanding.
Very interesting!
Fascinating results and encouraging to keep digging in multiple sources.
Outstanding presentation