Sherrod Family Papers, 1802-1967

Summary

Creator:
Sherrod (Family : Franklin County, N.C.)
Abstract:

The collection documents the white Sherrod family of Franklin County, N.C., including Thomas Sherrod (1730-1818); Jordan R. Sherrod (active 1818-1859); and John M. Sherrod (1828-1914) and Henry H. Sherrod (active 1837-1865), both of whom served in Company E, 15th Regiment North Carolina Infantry during the American Civil War. The collection consists primarily of receipts, warrants, business correspondence, and other financial papers, 1802-1865. These papers provide a record of the Sherrod family's connections to slavery, including people who were enslaved by family members; rent and tax payments; sales of cotton; purchases of goods and services; and transactions conducted to settle the estates of family members. Many of the receipts and warrants from the 1820s through the 1850s concern Jordan R. Sherrod, while most papers from the late 1850s and early 1860s relate to the business of Sherrod and Green of Franklinton, N.C., a partnership that included Henry H. Sherrod and Andrew Green. The collection also contains Confederate documents authorizing a disability discharge for John M. Sherrod and leaves of absence for Henry H. Sherrod. Other items include an 1802 marriage license; a transcription of Thomas Sherrod's 1818 will, which documents trafficking of enslaved people through inheritance; an 1879 school report; and a 1967 letter about family genealogy.

Extent:
250 items (0.5 linear feet)
Language:
Materials in English
Library Catalog Link:
View UNC library catalog record for this item

Background

Biographical / historical:

The white Sherrod family resided in Franklin County, N.C., in the 19th century. Thomas Sherrod was born in Northampton, N.C., in 1730. He was a member of North Carolina's Fourth Provincial Congress, which met in Halifax on 4 April 1776, and he fought in the American Revolution, reaching the rank of colonel. He may have been married twice, the second time to Elizabeth, and he had at least seven children: Temperance, Charity, Martha, Penelope, James, Nancy, and Benjamin.

Thomas Sherrod died in 1818, leaving Jordan R. Sherrod as one of the executors of his will. Their relationship is uncertain since the copy of the will in this collection refers to Jordan R. Sherrod as "formerly Jordan R. Steagall." Jordan R. Sherrod was probably born in the 1770s and died in 1859. His children included John, Henry, Lucian, Alphonzo, and Martha.

John M. Sherrod was born around 1828 and during the American Civil War served in Company E, 15th Regiment North Carolina Infantry until he was discharged for disability in June 1863. Henry H. Sherrod was born around 1837 and served in the same regiment. In addition, he was an active partner in the business of Sherrod and Green in Franklinton, N.C., during the early 1860s.

Enslaved people who are documented in this collection include:

  • "Old Villet" [Violet?], active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, lent to Elizabeth Sherrod until her death, then bequathed to Temperance Young
  • Tiller, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, lent to Elizabeth Sherrod until her death, then bequathed to Temperance Young
  • Charles, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, lent to Elizabeth Sherrod and/or Temperance Young for ten years, then directed to be emancipated
  • Dick, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, lent to Elizabeth Sherrod and/or Temperance Young for ten years, then to be emancipated
  • Baldy, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, then bequeathed to Temperance Young
  • Caroline, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, then bequeathed to Temperance Young
  • Mingo, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, then bequeathed to Temperance Young
  • Pleasant, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, then bequeathed to Temperance Young
  • Pricey, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, then bequeathed to Temperance Young
  • Jack, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, then bequeathed to Charity Richards
  • Vined, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, lent to Penny Sherrod for her lifetime, then bequeathed to William Young, Thomas Young, and Nancy Young
  • Nancy, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, lent to Penny Sherrod for her lifetime, then bequeathed to William Young, Thomas Young, and Nancy Young
  • Melberry, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, lent to Penny Sherrod for her lifetime, then bequeathed to William Young, Thomas Young, and Nancy Young
  • Rose, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, then bequeathed to Nancy Hayes
  • Rochester, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, then bequeathed to William Young
  • Booker, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, then bequeathed to Betsy Pullian
  • Eton, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, then bequeathed to Joseph and John Weaver
  • Alfred, active 1818, enslaved by Thomas Sherrod, then bequeathed to Thomas Young
  • Cuffy, active 1823
  • Charlotte, active 1829, enslaved by William Harrison (deceased)
  • Caroline, active 1848, enslaved by Thomas Powell (deceased)
  • Isaac, active 1859, enslaved by Jordan R. Sherrod
  • Sam, active 1859, enslaved by Jordan R. Sherrod
Scope and content:

The collection documents the white Sherrod family of Franklin County, N.C., including Thomas Sherrod (1730-1818); Jordan R. Sherrod (active 1818-1859); and John M. Sherrod (1828-1914) and Henry H. Sherrod (active 1837-1865), both of whom served in Company E, 15th Regiment North Carolina Infantry during the American Civil War. The collection consists primarily of receipts, warrants, business correspondence, and other financial papers, 1802-1865. These papers provide a record of the Sherrod family's connections to slavery, including people who were enslaved by family members; rent and tax payments; sales of cotton; purchases of goods and services; and transactions conducted to settle the estates of family members. Many of the receipts and warrants from the 1820s through the 1850s concern Jordan R. Sherrod, while most papers from the late 1850s and early 1860s relate to the business of Sherrod and Green of Franklinton, N.C., a partnership that included Henry H. Sherrod and Andrew Green. The collection also contains Confederate documents authorizing a disability discharge for John M. Sherrod and leaves of absence for Henry H. Sherrod. Other items include an 1802 marriage license; a transcription of Thomas Sherrod's 1818 will, which documents trafficking of enslaved people through inheritance; an 1879 school report; and a 1967 letter about family genealogy.

Acquisition information:

Received from Edith Sakell of Chester, Md., in April 2005 (Acc. 100057).

Processing information:

Processed by: Elise Allison, July 2005

Encoded by: Elise Allison, July 2005

Remediation by: Nancy Kaiser, April 2024: Updated abstract, subject headings, biographical information, scope and content, and contents list.

In 2017, we began using "white" as an ethnic and racial identity for individual and families, in addition to "Black," "African American," "Jewish," and other familiar identity terms that we have used for decades in collection descriptions. We use this identity term so that whiteness is no longer the presumed default of the people represented in our collections. To determine identity, we rely on self-identification; other information supplied to the repository by collection creators or sources; public records, press accounts, and secondary sources; and contextual information in the collection materials. Omissions of ethnic and racial identities in finding aids created or updated after August 2017 are an indication of insufficient information to make an educated guess or an individual's preference for identity information to be excluded from description. When we have misidentified, please let us know at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu.

Other processing info

Sensitive materials statement:

Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.

Access and use

Restrictions to access:

No restrictions. Open for research.

Restrictions to use:

Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

No usage restrictions.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], in the Sherrod Family Papers #5206, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Location of this collection:
Louis Round Wilson Library
200 South Road
Chapel Hill, NC 27515
Contact:
(919) 962-3765
wilsonlibrary@unc.edu