Migration of Slaves from Maryland to Louisiana
1806 - 1827

This information is generously to the Louisiana Genealogy   Project by Alice Smith -
ASmith8397@aol.com



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This information I received recently from the Carroll House in Maryland. There were 15 slaves
that were willed to Mary Blake daughter of Sarah Darnall wife of John S. Blake by her mother
which were originally from Col. Henry Darnall of Prince George Co. MD. Mary Blake married
Conrad T. Wederstrandt a former sea caption. In 1806 his widow, about to move to Baltimore
divided the slave between her three surviving sons. In the ackowledgement of this donation one
of the sons then in New Orlean wrote that "the slaves were willed to his mother by his
grandmother Sarah Blake formally Sarah Darnall".

In Louisiana betwenn 1806 and 1827 the brothers set up a sugar plantations. The slaves were
transported by brigs freom Baltimore to New Orleans. 1. Blakeford (name of one of the
plantation) 2. Hermitage (another plantation) 3. Harlem a sugar estate ultimately over a thousand
acres in extent, 35 miles below New Orleans. Here the basic group were the Maryland negroes.

In 1806 another Marylander in Louisiana, Robert Nicholls from Prince George's  County
had written home "bring over all the negroes you can possibly get as their value here is
incalcuable". By 1849 there were 125 negro slaves, 43 of whom were children. There were eight
house servants, and the field hands, called "THE PEOPLE" were granted the privaledge of
growing corn which they sold to the plantation. In the Large House, it was called mot of the
furniture, as well as the negroes had a Maryland background. Today, no doubt, descendents
of these Maryland slaves could be found in and around New Orleans, unless they as did so many
of their owners, return in due time to Maryland.

INDENTURE 27 AUGUST 1806 SIGNED BY MARY WEDERSTRANDT OF QUEEN
ANNE'S COUNTY, IN PRESENCE OF L. JAS DIVIDSON; IN POSSESSION OF A
DESCENDENT, EDWARD C. MORSE.

Her slaves, under the will of her mother Sarah Blake, (who had been Sarah Darnall). Kitt, Peter,
Jack, Soloman, Charles, Bill, Frank, Ivy, Sall, Joe, George, Sam, James, Mary, Patt.
Slaves of her Husband died 1801: Anthony, Bill, Moll, Ruth, Penn, Pegg, Fanny, Alice, Betty,
Suck, Bob, John, Proteus, Barnett, Stephen, Kitt, Tom, Isaac, Pollydore, Ruth.

These slaves were the ones divided amongst the three brothers. I am a descendent o f an AA
slave that was born in Clinton, Maryland whose owner was a Darnall. His name was Henry
Darnell who got his freedom in MD in 1800, bought land in Alexandria, Va. in 1803. Then in
1828 he went back to MD and brought the freedom of his 4 children. I hope that this information
will help someone. You can contact me for more questions because I am in close contact
with the ladies that manage these plantations in Maryland. 1. DARNALL CHANCE;
2. HIS LORDSHIP'S KINDNESS; 3. CARROLL HOUSE.