Historical Documents

Refugees Home in Kentucky.

For the Worcester Daily Spy.

   Kentucky and other papers have lately published what purported to be an order from Gen Palmer, or by his authority, granting passes to all negroes who desired to leave the State— an expeditious method of ratifying the Constitutional Amendment. The Western Citizen of Paris, Ky., says the stampede of negroes is enormous, and gives particulars of their thronging about headquarters. It alleges that in five days 1,300 passes averaging four persons to each pass had been issued. So at Lexington and other points, and it was estimated that 25,000 negroes left Kentucky last week.  

            But now comes The Cincinnati Enquire of August 1, with this statement   

                                                            THE NEWS.

    STAMPEDE OF NEGROES IN KENTUCKY.

                 General Palmer to the President.

                    HEADQUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF KENTUCKY,  }

                                 LOUISVILLE, Ky., July 27, 1865                      }

 To his Excellency ANDREW JOHNSON, President of the United States:––

        Slavery in Kentucky.

   General John M. Palmer, commanding the Department of Kentucky, has addressed the following letter to President Johnson in answer to the charge that the provost-marshals of his department were in the habit of issuing "free papers" to colored persons, without regard to the legal right of those receiving them to freedom––

                   "HEADQUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF KENTUCKY,  }

                                 LOUISVILLE, Ky., July 27, 1865                      }

 To his Excellency ANDREW JOHNSON, President of the United States:––

COMMUNICATIONS.

Recollections of the Underground Railroad.

NUMBER TWO.

We had also agencies and stations at Baltimore–Jacob R. Gibbs and our lamented friend; Darius Stokes. At Alexandria we had a host of true friends. Now for the modus operandi:

The Plans of John Brown.

                Gerrit Smith writes a long letter, in which he denies that he know [knows] anything of John Browns’ invasion scheme. He also relates some interesting circumstances in regard to that old her. Mr. Smith says:

Where were you a slave, Perry?

I was sold and brought up in old Kentucky, in Greenup County. I was sold from that county into Boone and from Boone into Kenton. My last master was Milt Graves. A few weeks before I ran away, a party of twenty-two slaves had made their escape. Among the number were William Casey [alias Lewis Gardner], who used to live in Battle Creek, George Hamilton, father of John Evans, Nelson Stephens and wife and daughter, the latter now Mrs. A.D. Cook of this city. They were all living in my neighborhood.

Was it their successful escape that incited you to run away?

   A Reminiscence of the Slavery Era.

Editor of the Traveller.

   The recent death of Don Piatt calls to remembrance a scene of former days connected with the Piatt family, who then resided near Covington, Ky. In the fall of 1853 three of their slaves ran away. The first place where they reported was at the house of Levi Coffin, an agent of the underground railroad in Cincinnati, and who is the author of a “History of the Underground Railroad.” He and James Brisbane, a former slave-holder, but then a friend of the slaves, put them on a train on the old Mad River & Lake Erie Railroad, and paid their fare to Sandusky City. The Piatt family had a relative residing near Bellefontaine, Ohio, to whom they telegraphed to watch the trains, and if they discovered them to arrest the fugitives. This man discovered them and took them off the train at Bellefontaine.

...When I was about 17 years old, eleven slaves came along at one time some of them women. We put them into two lightly covered wagons, and I drove one of the teams. It was not practicable to stop at Plymouth station, so we had to drive to the next sixty miles from home, took the day time for the last thirty miles. Keeping the darkies well covered with hay in the wagon body. Did not reach home until the fourth day, and you can well imagine that our folks here were pretty well frightened about us. I suppose that nearly one hundred slaves passed the Mendon station of the Underground R.R. and I never heard of but one being captured. That was near McComb, McDonough Co. Ills....

               FREE NEGRO FOR 46 YEARS.

   Last survivor of the 1848 'Insurrection' Tells of Attempt to Escape.

   There is living in Lexington, Ky., an old negro, Harry Slaughter, who is the last survivor of the negro "insurrection" of 1848. He was born on March 13, 1818, and grew to be a man of remarkable physique. He was 6 feet 1 inches tall, weighed 214 pounds, and was considered the best man physically in Fayette county when he was in his prime, says the New York Sun. 

   In 1849 he was owned by Miss Sidney Edmiston, who had at that time one of the most costly residences in Lexington. She had a fondness for male servants of gigantic proportions, and on account of his size he was made a dining-room man. Although well treated, he longed for freedom. This is the story he told one day of his attempts to obtain it. He is now in his 80th year:

     The Death of Peter Pointz.

   Peter Pointz died last Friday night in the county infirmary at Fremont, aged nearly 81 years. The remains were brought to Clyde on Saturday, and on Sunday the funeral was held in the M.E. church, conducted by Rev. S.J. McConnell, and the remains were interred in McPherson cemetery, the services being largely attended. 

   Peter Pointz had been a resident of Clyde since 1860, until a few months ago when on account of failing health and the fact that he had no livign relatives to look after him, he was taken to the infirmary. He was a member of the Clyde M.E. church, and in many respects a very remarkable man. The following story of his life was taken down from his dictation, and will be very interesting to the friends of "Uncle Peter:"

HISTORY OF THE LIFE OF PETER POINTZ