McCalla, John Moore (1793–1873), papers, 1831–1887. 688 items. Mss1M1248a. Microfilm reel C119.
Resident of Lexington, Ky., and Washington, D.C., military officer and civil servant. Correspondence, 1841–1850 (section 1), concerns the American Colonization Society, in particular arrangements for emigrants to sail to Liberia. In section 7, a letter, 1855, from Kendrick Dickerson of Bristol, N.H., refers to difficulties collecting money from local members of the American party for the Washington Monument Fund because so many members are secret abolitionists.

McCalley, Jonathan W. (b. 1806?), letter, 1849. 3 pp. Mss2M1245a1.
Letter, 7 January 1849, written from Homeland Cottage, Spotsylvania County, to William J. McCalley in Huntsville, Ala., concerning the possible sale of slaves, including two young women who are willing to be separated from their mother; a slave injured while working for hire; and the current rates for hiring out slaves to public works projects and iron mines.

McCarthy family papers, 1839–1865. 40 items. Mss1M1275a. Microfilm reel C301.
Contains the correspondence of several members of the McCarthy family of Richmond. Section 2 includes the correspondence of Florence McCarthy (1798?–1864) with his brother, John McCarthy, concerning the health of John's slaves and family news.

McCarty family papers, 1859–1898. 19 items. Mss2M1278b.
Primarily correspondence of Richmond family members with relations in West Virginia. Include letters, 1861–1870, of Mary Blair (Burwell) McCarty (b. 1811) to Harriette Boswell (Alexander) Caperton discussing wartime prices and social conditions in Richmond, the loss of labor with the devaluation of Confederate money and later with the emancipation of slaves, and Mrs. McCarty's political opinions.

McClintic family papers, 1850–1905. 65 items. Mss1M1328a.
Primarily financial records of family members who operated a store and farm at Williamsville, Bath County. An account book, 1867–1871 (item a3), kept by William Stephen McClintic (1840–1892) includes numerous accounts with freedmen and women, primarily covering pay for labor and other services provided on the farm.

McCoull, John (b. 1770), slave records, 1837–1850. [4] pp. Mss6:1 M1368:1.
Slave birth and death records kept, presumably, in Spotsylvania County.

McCraw, William, inventory, 1783. 1 p. Mss2L1197a1. Typescript copy.
Inventory, 15 April 1783, of slaves belonging to the estate of Theophilus Lacy of Pittsylvania County.

McDonald, Angus (1769–1814), agreement, 1806. 1 p. Mss2M1457a1.
Printed form, 1 January 1806, signed in Frederick County with Nathaniel Burwell concerning the hire of the slave Betty, with conditions of employment.

McDowell, George Marshall (1838–1863), letter, 1862. 4 pp. Mss2 M1481a1. Microfilm reel C606.
Written from camp near Fredericksburg on 27 November 1862 to the author's father, this letter from a member of Company F of the 2nd South Carolina Infantry Regiment, C.S.A., in part concerns earnings off of an investment and his plans to purchase a young male slave.

McGuire, James Clark, papers, 1819–1863. 32 items. Mss1M17934a. Microfilm reel C32.
Includes a newspaper clipping from the National Intelligencer (Washington, D.C.), 30 December 1856, featuring Henry Clay's 16 July 1835 letter to William S. Wood concerning the Missouri Compromise and views on slavery (item a2). Item a1 is an 1853 publication, Selections from the Private Correspondence of James Madison from 1813 to 1836, published by J. C. McGuire, Washington, D.C., containing, among other issues, Madison's views on slavery.

McIntosh, David Gregg (1836–1916), papers, 1862–1916. 98 items. Mss1M1895a.
Papers primarily concern McIntosh's service as a Confederate artillery officer and his postwar career as a lawyer in Baltimore. Section 5 contains a letter to James McIntosh regarding the fate of a slave left in Winchester by a member of the McIntosh family during the Confederate retreat from Pennsylvania in 1863.

McKenny family papers, 1814–1864. 11 items. Mss2M1997b.
Peter McKenny (d. 1859) of Chesterfield County bought several slaves between 1844 and 1848, and the collection includes bills of sale. In 1848 William Gregory sold Charlotte, age six, to McKenny, and in 1844 he bought Polly, age seven, from the same trader. After Peter's death his widow Catherine moved to Richmond. In 1860 she hired Alice to D. S. Wooldridge for $35. The printed form included "usual clothing" and "blanket"; a pillow was added.

MacLeod family papers, 1791–1977. 48 items. Mss1M2252a.
Primarily the records of merchant John MacLeod of Alexandria and Virginia native Donald MacLeod, newspaperman and federal officeholder in Washington, D.C. A diary kept in Washington by Donald MacLeod from 14 October to 1 November 1862 includes substantial references to his opinions on slavery, the Emancipation Proclamation, and his conversations with Abraham Lincoln concerning the colonization of free blacks in Africa (section 2). Many of his comments indicate an awareness of the British perspective on these issues.

MacLeod family papers, 1824–1868. 4 items. Mss2M2252b.
An 1826 letter of Helen MacLeod of Washington, D.C., to her brother Donald in part concerns the religious education of African American and poor white children and the death of Ferdinand, a trusted family slave.

McRae, Sherwin (1805–1889), papers, 1826–1890. 39 items. Mss1M2447a.
Papers of a Richmond attorney. Accounts in section 2 include information on the hiring out of slaves by McRae (with listings by name of slave, name of employer, and amounts of contract) and the sale of one slave. An undated commissioner's report (ca. 1840s) in the case of Roy et al. v. Temple in the King William County court (section 4) includes a listing of slaves by name, by purchaser, and by amount. A deed, 1826, in section 6 covers the sale of a young male slave, Reubin, by Thomas T. Allen to Christopher Johnson.

Madison, Lettie Marie Coleman (b. 1909), papers, 1925–1995. 161 items. Mss1M2656a.
Collection includes correspondence, school materials, writings, research on African American families and children, newspaper clippings, biographical materials, and miscellaneous papers of Lettie Marie (Coleman) Madison (of Montclair, N.J., and Richmond, Va.). Concerns her education at Dana College (now Rutgers University), Newark, N.J., and at Forham University, New York City; her career as a psychiatric social worker at Essex County Overbrook Hospital, Cedar Grove, N.J., and as faculty member of the Department of Social Work at Virginia Union University, Richmond; and her life in retirement in Richmond, with reminiscences of that city and of Hampton Institute (now Hampton University), Hampton, Va.

Majette family papers, 1812–1908. 999 items. Mss1M2886a. Microfilm reels C283–286.
Among the papers of this Southampton County family is a letter to Penelope Ann (Darden) Majette written by George W. Vick of the 3d Virginia Infantry Regiment. Since joining the army, Vick has had difficulty arranging for the hire of Majette's slaves. For 1864 and 1865 he arranged the hire of Henry to Mr. Parker and hired out Mills and Jerry for $900. Arrangements were made with the help of R. J. Rick and E. C. Waddell (section 12).

Mallory, William F., receipt, 1865. 1 p. Mss2B5317a1. Photocopy.
Receipt, dated 6 January 1865, [Prince George County], to Peter Birchett for the purchase of a slave.

Manly, Mary Patterson (b. 1853?), letter, 1933. 8 pp. Mss2M3153a. Photocopy.
Letter, 12 May 1933, from Claremont, Calif., to Virginius Douglass Johnston concerning his father, James Johnston, and the establishment of the Richmond Colored Normal School and the Manlys' teaching career. The period discussed covers the 1890s.

Mansfield family papers, 1852–1933. 186 items. Mss1M3178a.
Collection consists of papers of three generations of the Mansfield and related families in Spotsylvania County. Include an account book, 1875–1877, of Jno. C. Mansfield & Co., of Holladay Mills, kept by John Christian Mansfield (1826–1906), which contains records of general store accounts with African Americans (section 1).

Manson family papers, 1849–1893. 35 items. Mss2M3183b. Photocopies.
A portion of this collection includes the personal papers of Joseph Richard Manson ([1831–1918] of Brunswick County) while in Confederate service. Included among his papers are a list of corn owned by freedmen and an agreement with Robert Davis and three of his sons concerning tenant farming and service in the Manson household.

Marmion family papers, 1822–1928. 84 items. Mss1M3455a. Microfilm reel C120.
Papers of Dr. Nicholas Marmion of Harpers Ferry, Jefferson County (now W.Va.), include an 1851 agreement with Elizabeth Aldstaat concerning the hiring of Ann, with extensive conditions covering Ann's services (section 4).

Marrow family papers, 1859–1873. 58 items. Mss1M3495a.
Papers of a Hampton family. Correspondence in section 2 includes letters, 18601873, to Daniel Garrow Marrow from Maria Smith (Peek) Garrow, some describing events of their courtship during the Civil War. Several concern lack of servants to tend to household duties (23 July 1864, 18 August 1864, and 21 May 1865), and one mentions a specific incident in which Jimmy Causey was arrested by African Americans.

Marshall, S. W., account book, 1855–1857. 104 pp. Mss5:3M358:1. Microfilm reel C414.
A record of farm work, inventory of slaves, and business accounts kept while overseer for Alexander Moseley at Sycamore Island plantation in Buckingham County.

Marshall family papers, 1742–1951. 493 items. Mss1M3587a.
Records of Edward Digges, deputy sheriff of Fauquier County; Nathaniel Tyler, Washington, D.C., attorney; Sarah Robb Tyler Marshall; and William Churchill Marshall, newspaperman of Fauquier County.

Section 10 contains an 1845 affidavit of Jacob Hume concerning the sale of slaves, a list, ca. 1799–1816, of slaves belonging to members of the Cowles family, and a list, 1758–1857, of slave births and deaths, some individuals belonging to Digges family members and some carrying the family surname "Shepherd." In November 1860, Nathaniel Tyler wrote a lengthy letter to T. B. Myers from the office of the Richmond Enquirer concerning northern and southern views of government, slavery, the fugitive slave acts, and secession (section 30).

Martin, Humphrey H., receipt, 1845. 1 p. Mss2G9896a1.
Receipt, dated 14 March 1845, [Louisa County], to Samuel Atwell Guy for the purchase of a slave.

Mason, Charles Tayloe (1831–1918), papers, 1854–1906. 450 items. Mss3M3814a.
This collection contains materials documenting the service of Charles Tayloe Mason in the Confederate Army Corps of Engineers. His correspondence during the Civil War with other military officials concerns, in part, the use of slaves as laborers on the construction of fortifications and bridges on the James River.

Mason, John Tilman (1791–1849), papers, 18111857. 7 items. Mss2M381372b.
Includes bills of sale, 1828–1853, of John T. Mason of Lynchburg to Eli Burch of Bullard County, Ky., for the slave Ester and to Abraham Wimbish for Edmund, age twenty-five.

Mason, John Young (1799–1859), papers, 1855. 3 items. Mss2M3814c.
Include a list of subscribers and letters concerning a marble bust of John Young Mason, minister to France, sculpted by Eugene Warburg, a freedman originally from Louisiana.

Mason, Thomson (1730–1785), opinion, 1782. 4 pp. Mss2M3817a2. Photocopy.
Concerns the division of slaves belonging to the estate of John Ford, Richmond County. Only one slave, Lewy, is mentioned by name. (Original document in the Gunston Hall Library and Archives, Lorton)

Mason family papers, 1789–1965. 158 items. Mss1M3816b. Microfilm reel C415.
An account book, 1796–1831, kept by Lewis Fort in Southampton County includes several lists of slaves, one of which indicates slaves who were to "stay at home" on various Sundays each month, and another of which lists young male slaves by name and birthdate (section 2). A bill of complaint and answer, drafted in 1855 for submission to the Southampton County court in the case of Frances Ann (Mason) Cook et al. v. John Young Mason, concerns slaves belonging to the estates of Lewis Fort and Richard Mason (section 14). Materials, 1849, filed with the court of Greensville County concerning slaves of the estate of Edmunds Mason include a petition to the court, a court order, and a report (listing forty-five slaves by name and value) (photocopies, section 15).

The account book, 1846–1864, kept by Lewis Edmunds Mason at Fortsville, Southampton County, includes diary entries for 1860–1864 concerning agricultural operations, as well as yearly lists of allowances to slaves (including the distribution of clothing and other supplies) (section 18). A second account book of Mason, 1851–1857, concerns the operation of an unnamed cotton plantation in Mississippi and primarily consists of records of the amount of cotton picked by each slave (section 19).

Mason family papers, 1805–1886. 4,175 items. Mss1M3816a. Microfilm reels B22–23.
Much of the material in this collection pertains to the Fortsville plantation in Southampton County, which came into the Mason family through Mary Anne (Fort) Mason upon her marriage to Edmunds Mason. Edmunds Mason was frequently called on to manage sizable estates on behalf of several family members, a circumstance that involved him in the affairs of plantation and slave management for places in Greensville and Brunswick counties. As a result, much of the information concerning African Americans is in accounts and inventories for estates.

An undated inventory of slaves of the estate of Lewis Fort (d. 1826) lists names of only about fifty slaves (section 3). Materials pertaining to the estate of William Maclin (d. 1831) are in sections 10 (inventories and affidavit), 13 (an account book), and 15 (an 1825 bond for unnamed slaves at $180). The inventories, 1831–1834, record names, values, some physical features (George is deaf and dumb) and mental health conditions, and some occupations (Charles is a blacksmith) for slaves on the Greensville and Brunswick properties. Family groups are implied, and an 1833 affidavit states that Dr. Merritt attended several slaves during the winter. The account book, 1832–1846, records the slaves hired out, to whom they were hired, and for how much and groups mothers with children. Section 35 contains correspondence between Mary Anne (Fort) Mason and Lewis Edmunds Mason (her son) concerning the conditions of slaves in Southampton County. He expresses his views on the population's predisposition to cholera and the wetness of the region; he is determined to protect the slaves from the weather by issuing overcoats to the men and providing extra money to all the slaves for more clothing in addition to the standard allowance. Later slave lists for the property in Greensville County are in section 21, estate papers of Edmunds Mason; one document records the fact that his will provided for an elderly slave to choose his master and for the estate to provide an annuity for the slave's keep. A similar arrangement was made for another elderly slave, although not provided for in Mason's will. In the division of slaves, one-fourth of the smithy's tools were added to the value of each of the four smiths.

Several other lists are in section 34 (slaves of John Young Mason by name, age, value, physical and mental condition, and some by occupation, for approximately sixty slaves in 1859), section 39 (an 1855 list of Lewis Edmunds Mason's fifty-four slaves in Coahoma County, Miss., by names and implied family groups), and section 61 (undated list of approximately thirty slaves by name and age category, no place indicated).

A letter from John Townes Leigh to John Young Mason (section 24) contains advice on preparing to go into cotton growing—not to buy a farm outright but to hire out his slaves to cotton plantations for several years so that they will learn from the experience—and an invitation for Mason to learn the business while staying at the Leigh plantation. Leigh details average rates for baling cotton by experienced and inexperienced slaves and also by gender and age.

In section 52 are papers, 1837–1844, relating to a lawsuit of James Madison, a slave, against George F. Alberti of Hartford County, Md., in the Court of Common Pleas, Philadelphia, Pa., over Madison's liberty and the ownership of a horse. Section 56 contains 1854 London imprints in English, Italian, French, German, and Spanish of letters of George Nicholas Sanders and Louis Kossuth concerning the history of the slave trade, the European view of slavery, references to the Liberian colony, and slavery in the southern states.

Mason family papers, 1813–1943. 5,634 items. Mss1M3816c. Microfilm reels C415–424.
Key figures in this collection are John Young Mason (1799–1859), a minister to France in the 1850s, and John Young Mason (1823–1863), who served in the U.S. and C.S.A. Navy.

Some 1853–1855 deeds (section 29) and an 1858 deed of trust (section 91) signed at the American consulate in Paris concern unidentified slaves in Southampton County. In section 96 a power of attorney, 1863, from Susan Mason to Lewis Edmunds Mason concerns the slave Bridget and her unidentified children. In an 1863 letter in section 52, William Urquhart asks about buying Bridget and her family.

A number of lists are included in the collection, involving values (sections 32 and 57), tallies for clothes and shoes (sections 8 and 74 [including shoe sizes]), estate divisions (sections 4, 29, and 58), birth lists (sections 32, 57, and 74), and records of occupations (sections 4 and 74). Account books of Lewis Edmunds Mason, dated from 1849 to 1890, are in sections 5564 and contain a wide variety of information about family groups, appraisals (often describing general health and state of mind), food and supplies, occupations and daily assignments, and accounts with sharecroppers. The lists in section 74, also compiled by Lewis Edmunds Mason, contain information pertaining to estate management, from which cuts of meat are the most efficient at which times of the year to individual clothing assignments and shoe sizes. The lists of Lewis Edmunds Mason have been kept for plantations in Southampton County, Va., and Coahoma County, Miss.

Hiring lists and accounts are in sections 59, 62, and 74 and cover 1850–1864. An 1862 list of hirings (section 74) indicates a slave that ran to the Yankees, in addition to classifying slaves by occupation and caliber ("First Rate," "Good," "Ordinary," "Tolerable"). Valuations and appraisals are in sections 29 (1857, for Jim) and 32 (18541856, for slaves in Southampton County). In section 84, correspondence of Joseph Reid Anderson of Richmond with Nathaniel Boush Hill contains an undated list of Southampton County slaves, including health of body and mind, value, age, and mother-child relationships. Section 32 also contains information in the case Commonwealth v. James Wolff for permitting Edward to go at large and trade as a free man (Prince George County, 1840).

An 1851 letter from James Buchanan to John Young Mason concerns slavery in the context of the Reading resolutions and the stands of the Democratic and Whig parties, Free Soil, and abolition votes (section 6). Other correspondence series describe slave auctions and the business of buying and selling slaves. Section 52 contains Lewis Edmunds Mason's correspondence. An 1863 letter from S. R. Fondren reports the current rates for slaves in the "No. 1" category, by age and gender. Letters, 18551863, from Roscoe Briggs Heath relate similar information, as well as general strategies of the most profitable ways to trade in slaves. In November 1858, he discusses his views on the souls of African Americans; and in August 1856, he refers to Bridget's conduct and punishment. Letters from James Edward Mason concern the auctions, current values, and treatment of slaves. An 1864 letter also concerns sickness among the slaves. Correspondence, 1856–1858, with John Young Mason indicates his concerns for keeping families together, selling slaves only to good masters, buying the husband of one of his slaves, and the undesirability of combining different groups of slaves to work one farm. An 1855 affidavit in section 74 contains a report on the physical condition and auction of a mother and child. Section 79 contains correspondence of Roscoe Briggs Heath with Archer Anderson concerning selling a large block of slaves and comments on John Brown's raid at Harpers Ferry.

Sharecropper agreements are in sections 47 and 71. Agreements from Sussex and Southampton counties, 1865–1868 (section 47), concern holidays, charges for days lost, maintenance of fences, dates for the provision of firewood, cost of seed, conditions for contract renewal, and penalties for violation of the contract. An 1865 contract is prepared on a printed form. Section 71 contains agreements for 1868–1896, concerning division ratios of the agricultural produce such as melons, cotton, corn (fodder and shucks), and peanuts. One agreement provides for a house with a brick chimney for a sharecropper's relative and what tools are to be furnished. Accounts for agricultural laborers are in the account books in sections 62 and 64.

Mason family papers, 1825–1902. 4,972 items. Mss1M3816d.
Primarily the papers of congressman, U.S. Navy secretary, and diplomat John Young Mason (1799–1859) of Southampton County and his immediate family. In Section 2, a letter, 1844 May 31, from Commodore Matthew C. Perry concerns suppression of the African slave trade and the right of the British Navy to board American merchant ships off the coast of Africa. A letter, 1844 December 19, from Joseph Reid Anderson concerns the use of slave labor at the Tredegar Iron Works in Richmond.

Section 3 contains a letter, 1845 April 4, written by Simon Fraser Blunt (while in Sierra Leone, Africa) to Secretary Mason concerning slave factories along the Pongo River and his efforts as a naval officer in trying to suppress the slave trade. A letter, 1845 June 25, from Commodore Charles William Skinner concerns, in part, his patrolling the African coast in search of slave traders. Also in this section is a letter, 1846 September 22, written by Howell Harris (in Southampton County) to Mason concerning the condemnation and execution of Jack, a slave, for "being concerned" in the Southampton Insurrection, in which Jack's owner, Joseph Ruse, was killed. The same letter also concerns the suicide by hanging of a “very valuable servant” of Joseph H. Prince.

Section 4 includes a letter, 1846 October 29, of Robert W. Young, of Portsmouth concerning the use of slave labor at the Norfolk Navy Yard. Also of interest are letters concerning plantation land in Mississippi and Louisiana, to which Mason considered relocating a number of his slaves: 1846 December 12 and 1847 April 7 (from James Brown); 1846 December 25 (from George Eustis); 1847 June 5 (from Richard T. Archer); and 1847 September 22 (from Henry Davis, concerning the outfitting of Mason's slaves for the transfer to his new Mississippi plantation). There are also letters regarding the health of Henry, one of Mason’s slaves who was treated for epilepsy by Dr. Edward H. Carmichael (1847 February 13 and March 30).

Section 6 contains letters concerning the hiring out of slaves, 1849 December 22 (from Mary Eliza Peete); the sale of slaves (from Daniel Dodson), 1849 December 24 and December 29; and a deed of trust, 1850 July 1, of Sterling Neblett involving 80 to 100 slaves. Letters, 1849 September 22 and 1850 October 19, written by John J. Crump concern a law case John Y. Mason was handling for him involving land titles and the sale and hiring out of slaves. The 1850 letter provides the genealogy of some slaves, concerns the splitting up of some families, and offers information concerning their relocations. Other letters, 1847 January 8 and 1850 February 12, written by Elizabeth Harwood Margaret (Romaine) Mason of Petersburg, concern selling a slave named Anna to separate her from her children; an 1850 February 16 letter of Samuel Cochran also concerns this subject. An 1852 May 29 letter of David Augustine Claiborne of Hicksford discusses, in part, his and his mother's slaves, including three "breeding" women, his father’s slaves numbering over 100, and other assets.

Section 9 contains letters between Mason and his overseers at Day's Neck Farm, Isle of Wight County. Included is correspondence concerning supplies for slaves (hats, blankets, etc.), along with births and total number of slaves on the farm; a letter of 1850 January 5 mentions the high cost of hiring slaves.

Section 10 concerns establishing a plantation in Mississippi. A letter, 1847 October 6, includes a discussion of which slaves to take, including Bob, a carpenter, who could be hired out after he has built slave quarters, corn cribs, and other buildings needed on the plantation. A later letter, 1851 January 6, concerns the sale of Bob and his family. The loose accounts in section 13 include payments for blankets, clothing, shoes, cups, and spoons for Mason's slaves.

The 1837–1850 commonplace book kept by Mason as guardian of the orphans of Thomas Applewhite includes an inventory and valuation of their slaves, as well as a record of the hiring out of those slaves (d3,248). Also included in section 22 is the correspondence of three of John Young Mason's slaves or former slaves: Critty, n.d., to her husband, Armistead Tutt; Becky, 1847 September 4, to her daughter; and Pleasant Cooper, 1877 September 11, to the Mason "children."

Among the accounts of Mason's son Lewis (section 25) can be found the meal and meat allowances for each of the Mason slaves at Fortsville in Southampton County.

The letters of Susan Harriet Barksdale Mason, daughter of John Young Mason, include several letters written in the spring and early summer of 1872 concerning unrest and domestic violence among the African American population in Sussex County. There is also discussion of an incident in which a young black girl named Rosa (who was related to one of the Masons' servants) allegedly threw her baby into a fire and "burned it up." Susan reported that the African American women in the neighborhood wanted to punish Rosa by burning her alive, but she was to be hung instead. A later, undated letter reported that she had been freed because no one could prove the newborn had ever been alive (section 50).

There are several letters in Sarah Olivia Mason's correspondence, 1877, concerning a school for African American males started by her brother Lewis Edmunds Mason in Southampton County (section 38).

Massie, Thomas Eugene (1822–1863), commonplace book, 1854. 136 pp. Mss2M3857c5.
Physician of Nelson County and U.S. Army doctor during the Mexican War. Includes numerous anecdotes of life in and around Virginia, especially the mountainous areas. Several concern African Americans, in particular, the legality of white women marrying African American men in Massachusetts and the ensuing outcry among African American women; a slave's dream about Heaven and Hell, and honesty and dishonesty among various slaves.

Massie family papers, 1722–1893. 463 items. Mss1M3855c. Photocopies.
Thomas Massie (1747–1834) owned Level Green plantation in Amherst and Nelson counties, and Henry Massie (1784–1841) owned Falling Spring plantation in Bath and Alleghany counties. A diary containing lists of births ranges from 1803 to 1813 for six slaves (section 8); in section 9 an account book, 1809–1864, used by Henry Massie (1784–1841) and Henry Massie (1816–1878) contains several lists of slave births ranging from 1762 to 1838 and 1841 to 1864 (section 9). Some of the lists provide names of both parents and physical characteristics. Also in the account book is an 1831 shoe distribution list and 1817 hiring and work records. A short list, 1835–1841, pertaining to the elder Henry Massie's guardianship of minors provides only a few names and values of slaves (section 10).

Massie family papers, 1767–1993. 877 items. Mss1M3855g.
Primarily the papers of Major Thomas Massie (1747–1834) of Level Green, Nelson County, and some of his descendants, and largely concern management of extensive land holdings and an enslaved workforce. Correspondence, 1812–1828, of Major Massie includes letters written to his son William while the youngster attended school in Staunton, which in part make reference to a heat wave and its effect on African American field hands in July 1824 (section 1). Records concerning the settlement of Massie's estate include a will recorded in 1834, and an inventory and appraisal of personal property and slaves (which includes birth dates) (section 5). Papers of Doctor Thomas Massie (1782–1864), justice of the peace of Nelson County, include an 1821 affidavit that Nelson Bethel has captured a runaway slave, Isobel, the property of William Ryan (section 6). Correspondence of William Massie (1795–1862), of Pharsalia, Nelson County, include communications with his son Hope W. Massie (serving in the Confederate Army in Hanover County in 1862, concerning his father's plan to send his slaves south), Doctor Thomas Massie (regarding the medical treatment of William's slaves), J. C. Steptoe (of Liberty, Bedford County, agreeing to sell a slave for Massie), and Harry Tompkins (of Richmond, advising Massie that few female slaves are available for auction and that few would be willing to be hired out to someone living so far out in the countryside) (section 7). Records, 1836–1863, concerning slaves owned by William Massie include a register kept at Pharsalia (containing ages, birth and death dates, names of parents or previous owners, and tax status) and two items concerning slaves at Level Green (with names and ages of individuals and notations of family groups) (section 11). Correspondence of Maria Catherine (Effinger) Massie (1814–1889), fourth wife of William Massie, include communications with Henry C. Boyd, of Blue Rock, Nelson County, concerning the hiring of Massie slaves, and with her stepson Thomas C. Massie, concerning the conscription of family slaves by the Confederate government (section 14).

Maupin, Logan J., bond, 1856. 1 p. Mss2M4455a1. Printed form with handwritten completions.
Bond, 29 December 1856, to Jane Yancey for hire of Jeff, Bill, and Frank, providing for "customary clothing . . . and Blanket" and "to be returned at Christmas next." Also provides for quarterly payments.

Maury, Richard Launcelot (1840–1907), diary, 1865. [48] pp. Mss5:1M4486:1.
Kept from 5 February to 11 March 1865 in Richmond, this diary concerns, in part, the on-going debate over the enlistment of African Americans into the Confederate Army.

Maury, Richard Launcelot (1840–1907), diary, 1865. [48] pp. Mss5:1M4486:2.
Kept from 12 to 30 March 1865 in Richmond, the entries in this diary concern, in part, the recruitment of African American soldiers for the Confederate Army.

Mayo, William (1684–1744), letter, 1731. 2 pp. Mss2M4547a1.
Letter, 27 August 1731, written from Goochland County to [John Perratt of Barbados], in part concerning the suicide of the slave Quaccoo and the purchase of two young male slaves. Published in the Virginia Historical Register, 4 (1851): 8486.

Meade family papers, 1837–1981. 153 items. Mss1M4618d. Microfilm reel C609.
Chiefly the correspondence and financial records of Richard Hardaway Meade ([1831–1880] of Richmond). Included are three letters, 1870–1872, from an African American servant, Bettie Heath, to various family members (sections 10, 12, 13) announcing her departure from service to marry and her later return.

Meade family papers, 1854–1913. 118 items. Mss1M4618a. Microfilm reel C608.
Consists of the correspondence of several members of the Meade family of Amelia County and Richmond. Section 3 contains a letter, 1863, from Hodijah Lincoln Meade (1842–1902) to Everard Benjamin Meade concerning African American soldiers in the U.S. Army.

Meek, Joseph (d. 1840), papers, 1835–1836. 7 items. Mss2M4713b. Photocopies.
Include letters written by Meek of Nashville, Tenn., to Samuel Logan, of Abingdon, Va., concerning their slave-trading partnership. Subjects covered include physical specifications of slaves, the numbers of slaves needed by market time, how to price slaves, and strategies for selling slaves.

Mercer family papers, 1656–1869. 569 items. Mss1M5345a. Microfilm reels C33 and C229–231.
Political and business records of members of the Caile family of Dorchester County, Md., the Mercer family of Anne Arundel County, Md., and Loudoun and Stafford counties, Va., and the Sprigg family of Anne Arundel County, Md.

A copy of the 1774 will of Thomas Sprigg in part concerns the disposition of slaves and is accompanied by an undated list of seventy-seven slaves, along with values (section 7). Richard Sprigg's letter of 3 May 1798 to his uncle makes brief mention of Congress's consideration of the taxation of slaves in the South (section 10). A receipt issued to Richard Sprigg (1739–1798) in 1791 concerns nine slaves belonging to the estate of Elizabeth Sprigg (section 11). The 1798 will of Sprigg contains extensive provisions for the emancipation of slaves and is accompanied by an account of estate expenses (section 16); the brief 1796 will of his wife, Margaret (Caile) Sprigg, contains similar provisions.

A handwritten copy of George Mercer's 1768 letter to his brother James, written from London, in part concerns the slaves on the former's Virginia plantations (section 28). Section 29 contains letters of James Mercer of Fredericksburg and Richmond to his brother, John Francis Mercer, U.S. congressman, in the mid-1780s. He discusses the quarters for slaves and the overseers on John's Virginia estates (23 September 1783), infectious diseases among the slave population (18 February 1785), the purchase of slaves (21 February 1786), and the possible sale of the slave Christmas (3 March 1787). In the same section, a copy of a letter of James Mercer to Lund Washington in 1783 contains a list of slaves at the Retreat Quarter, presumably belonging to the estate of George Mercer.

Letters written by John Fenton Mercer to his uncle John Francis Mercer (section 31) include a number of references to the employment and distribution of the large number of slaves belonging to the estate of James Mercer (1794, 15 January 1801, 10 July 1801). Section 33 contains the general correspondence of John Francis Mercer. Letters of Solomon Betton as overseer at Marlborough in Stafford County concern the discipline and punishment of slaves by whipping, work routines of slave laborers, and Davey, a runaway slave (6, 19 September, 12 October 1791). Benjamin Harrison writes from Richmond on 4 July 1792 concerning his general guidelines for purchasing slaves but his lack of capital to do so. Mercer himself writes from West River in Anne Arundel County, Md., to his son John in 1819 with instructions concerning the purchase and manufacture of clothes for his slave population. Cary Selden writes from Baltimore, Md., on 26 May 1820 concerning the purchase of a slave from King George County, Va. Mercer again writes from Marlborough on 6 August 1794 to Richard Sprigg concerning the murder of two men in Fredericksburg by Ben Grymes, who apparently had armed his slaves for the confrontation. Finally, Dr. James Steuart of Baltimore wrote to Mercer on three occasions (16 January, 2, 7 February 1799) concerning distribution of the slaves belonging to the estate of Richard Sprigg (1739–1798).

An account book, 1804–1812, kept by John Francis Mercer includes lists of slaves at West River and Westbury, Anne Arundel County, Md. (section 34), while another eighteenth-century list of Mercer's slaves appears in section 37.

Section 39 contains the correspondence of John Mercer of West River. James Maury writes on 22 March 1830 from Liverpool, Eng., a long tale of Stephen and Willis, runaway slaves from Caroline County who escaped on a ship chartered by Maury's mercantile firm. An 1829 letter from Matthew Maury concerns the same incident. Mercer himself wrote to his son John Francis (1819–1840) on 12 August 1840 concerning an outbreak of typhoid fever among the slave population of Anne Arundel County. Margaret Mercer's 1817 letter from Liverpool (incomplete) contains a lengthy discussion of the early development of the colonization movement in the United States.

An undated memorandum by John Francis Mercer includes a list of slaves delivered to John Mercer (section 41), while letters of Maria (Hunter) Garnett of Essex County and Theodore S. Garnett of Hanover County to William Robert Mercer concern freedmen and Reconstruction in Virginia (section 45).

Meredith family papers, 1852–1934. 194 items. Mss1M5415b.
The collection primarily concerns the Reverend Jaquelin Marshall Meredith (1826–1859), attorney in Sacramento, Calif., and Steptoe Pickett Meredith, farmer in Missouri and California.

Jaquelin Marshall Meredith's correspondence (section 3) includes letters from Charles Lewis Bankhead (concerning the division of an estate including property in slaves), Dr. William Bankhead (concerning the sale of slaves), Emma G. Jones (concerning the depiction of African Americans in literature), and Ellen Monroe (Bankhead) Meredith (concerning African Americans as a group). An 1861 deed of Bickerton Lyle Winston to Meredith covers the sale of a number of slaves (section 7).

Merritt, Daniel Tatum (1795–1866), diary, 1820–1866. [504] p. Mss5:1M5534:1.
Concerns agricultural operations, slavery, and weather conditions. Kept by Daniel Merritt in Caswell and Person counties, N. C., and Halifax County, Va.

Mettauer, John Peter (1787–1875), papers, 1812–1858. 128 items. Mss1M5677a. Microfilm reel C426.
Most of the papers of this Prince Edward County physician pertain to his medical practice, especially his notable treatments of fistula. His correspondence in section 1, 1825–1853, comprises mostly requests for medical attention, frequently for slaves; section 2 consists of an account book covering the years 1819–1847 and is predominantly medical; and section 3 contains loose accounts, many of which are medical, but some of which also pertain to household supplies such as meal and flour.

Many of the requests in section 1 are for the restoration of eyesight; several are for scrofula, a tuberculosis of the lymph glands in the neck; others simply make a general request for Mettauer to examine a slave. Granville Nunnally asks Mettauer about hiring slaves, 1841; Mettauer makes an urgent request of Mr. Vernon for a wet nurse; in 1831, Otis Williams asks Mettauer to see the little boy of Cloey, a free woman who lives with Williams's family (Williams vouches for payment of the fees).

The account book in section 2 contains mostly general records of visits and examinations, dispensation of medicines, and costs of board for those patients staying at Mettauer's home while receiving treatment. Mettauer sometimes hired these slaves, too. Some of the treatments were for cataracts (page 124), a tumor operation (page 296), a compound fracture (page 291), syphilis (page 234), and scrofula (page 240). Hirings are accounted for on pages 253, 282, 293, and 308. (This list is not exhaustive.)

The loose accounts in section 3 cover a wide variety of expenses, only a small percentage being pertinent to African Americans. Of those accounts that are medical, the summaries of ailments and treatments are slightly more descriptive.

Miller, Joseph Lyon (1875–1957), collector, papers, 1610–1964. 427 items. Mss1M6154a.
Dr. Miller, an alumnus of the Medical College of Virginia and a practicing physician in Thomas, W.Va., collected manuscripts concerning physicians and the history of medical care in early Virginia, the South, the eastern United States generally, and Great Britain.

The collection includes records concerning the medical care of African American men, women, and children (primarily slaves) in the Virginia counties of Brunswick, Dinwiddie, King and Queen, and Middlesex. It also contains records of the hiring out and purchase and sale of slaves, records of slave births in Charles County, Md. (section 46), and accounts covering the service of a woman slave as midwife (section 5). A letter of Dr. Samuel Griffin of Bedford County to Dr. Levi Bartlett of New Hampshire concerns the institution of slavery in Virginia in the early nineteenth century (section 31).

Miller, Lewis (1796–1882), drawing book, 1856–1871. 114 pp. Mss5:10M6155:1.
Contains scenes drawn while traveling in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia (Giles, Montgomery, Prince Edward, Pulaski, Roanoke, and Wythe counties), and West Virginia. Includes some images of African Americans. One page also records a comparison of the life of the southern slave with the life of a laborer in the North.

Miller family papers, 1825–1883. 161 items. Mss1M6196d.
Correspondence, financial records, and other papers of family members in Frederick County and Winchester. Section 11 contains two bonds of John Godfrey Miller of Winchester, dated Christmas Day 1853 and 1854, for the hire of Turner, with the conditions of service.

Milroy, Margaret Fay Fields (b. 1937), collector, papers, 1772–1870. 22 items. Mss1M6384a.
Section 1 includes lists of bonds, 1772–1774, for the purchase of slaves transported by the ship Prince of Wales.

Minor family papers, 1657–1942. 813 items. Mss1M6663a. Microfilm reels B24 and C609–610.
Include a 1784 agreement between Philip Lightfoot of Caroline County and Charles Augustine Lewis concerning eight slaves, listed by name only, there being among them a mother and two children (section 23). In the same section is a 1784 bill of sale for the slave Bob.

Minor family papers, 1810–1932. 4,305 items. Mss1M6663c. Microfilm reels B25B30 and C610–618.
Much of this collection focuses on Robert Dabney Minor (1827–1871), an officer in the U.S. Navy (in the West Indies, Japan, Annapolis, Md., and Washington, D.C.) and the Confederate Navy, and an employee of the Tredegar Iron Works in Richmond and the Dover Company Iron Mines in Chesterfield County.

An 1862 receipt issued by Minor in his capacity as commander of the Confederate Naval Ordnance and Hydrography Bureau in Richmond contains ten male slaves' names, with owners' names and county of residence. All the slaves are from Charles City County and have been detailed to work in Richmond for the Ordnance Bureau (section 29).

Also in this collection is a commonplace book (section 69) kept by John Brown Patterson in Richmond and Poplar Grove, Mathews County, between 1810 and 1847. Among his school notes are memoranda concerning articles of clothing issued to slaves (socks, coats, inside and outside clothes), kind of cloth used (cotton or wool, yarn or woven), and whether the clothes were made in advance or not.

Monique Nursing Training Center, Richmond, records, 1968–1969. 8 items. Mss4M7494b. Photocopies and printed materials.
Concern the operations of this school, located at 126 West Brookland Park Boulevard, which trained practical nurses and served as a post-graduation employment agency for private duty nurses. Included in the collection is a curriculum; advertisement (broadside); receipts for the assessment of city license taxes; announcement by Mrs. Eleanor Forbes Randolph, director; correspondence with members of the Virginia Department of Vocational Rehabilitation; and photographs of Mrs. Randolph.

Monroe, James (1758–1831), papers, 17881828. 21 items. Mss2M7576a. Microfilm Reel C54.
Some of the items in this collection of Monroe's papers appear in the guide to the microfilm edition of James Monroe Papers in Virginia Repositories, edited by C. W. Garrison and D. L. Thomas (1969). A letter to Larkin Stanard, ca. 1788, concerns the sale of slaves in order to pay debts (item a13). Item a16 is an 1819 letter concerning the slave Daniel, seeking advice for appropriate discipline for Daniel and how to use the incident as an example to other slaves.

Item a4 is an 1828 letter written by James Monroe to Joseph Carrington Cabell inquiring about any information Cabell may have about correspondence between Monroe and Thomas Jefferson concerning an 1800 attempted insurrection in Richmond, led by the slave Gabriel.

In an 1815 letter to Walter Jones of Westmoreland County, Monroe discusses measures for returning captured slaves taken by the British to the West Indies during the War of 1812. Monroe outlines procedures for collecting information to create a list of slaves considered property of Virginia slaveowners (item a9).

Items a17, a19, and a21 are all concerned with Monroe's views on the Missouri Compromise. Items a19 and a21 are 1819 and 1820 items to George Hay; item a17 is a later (1864) printing of a letter that appeared in the New York News.

Montague family papers, 1808–1939. 337 items. Mss1M7607a. Microfilm reel B31.
Papers of a family of planters, educators, and lawyers of Gloucester County, a number of whom were active in the Baptist church. Section 5 contains a lengthy 1845 letter of Charles W. Montague to his aunt Frances Thruston Hughes concerning the discipline and moral conduct of slaves and the possible sale or hiring out of the slaves Phil and Anthony in Richmond. Another letter to Hughes, this one undated from Martha P. Dabney in King and Queen County, concerns the slave Levenia, who is "old and feeble" and whom Dabney wants to purchase (section 7). Section 12 contains five bonds, 1819–1863, covering the hire of slaves.

Moody family papers, 1725–1910. 204 items. Mss1M7765a.
Concern the Moody family of Hanover County. Section 25 contains a certificate of John Poindexter (of Louisa County) concerning Edmund Anderson, Matthew Anderson, Richard Anderson and the manumission of Jacob Going.

Monument Avenue Crest Garden Club, Richmond, records, 1946–1975. 72 items. Mss3M7692a.
This organization, named for a residential subdivision in the Westhampton area of Richmond, was involved with a number of urban antilitter and beautification projects in the 1970s. One of these focused on the grounds of Center House, Inc., at 713 North First Street in Richmond, which housed a number of social service agencies. Several scrapbooks from 1970–1971 include information on this project. Center House had formerly been St. Joseph’s Catholic Church and Convent and later became the United Givers Fund Senior Center, primarily serving the local African American community. The Senior Center was destroyed by fire in 1973, and that event, and its effects on the local community, is extensively documented in the scrapbook dated 1973–1975.

Morris, Charles, papers, 1861–1928 (bulk 1863–1865). 121 items. Mss1M8315a. Photocopies.
This collection consists of letters written by Charles Morris (1826–1893), a native of Hanover County and quartermaster in the Confederate army, to his wife, Mary (Minor) Morris. Section 1 contains letters concerning the family's slaves (letter of 1862 October 20 discusses his wife's worry about "Negroes"), the slave economy (letter of 1864 January 13 complains of a glut in the slave market), and the loss of slaves (letter of 1865 March 20 discusses Federal troops seizing his cousin's servants).

Morrison family papers, 1836–1935. 39 items. Mss1M8347a.
Concern the Morrison family of Rockbridge County. Section 4 contains newspaper clippings that concern, in part, the freeing of slaves by a member of Bethesda Church, Rockbridge Baths, before the Civil War.

Mosby, Samuel (1766?–1829), account book, 1789–1791. ca. 350 pp. Mss5:3M8552:1.
Kept as a deputy sheriff in Henrico County, this volume includes records of the executions of writs and judgments and of fees collected. The volume was also used by Mosby's widow, Mary (Anderson) Mosby, in part to record the distribution of clothing and other supplies to her slaves.

Moseley family papers, 1865–1936. 7 items. Mss2M8527b. Photocopies.
Include a Buckingham County list of former slaves of Grandison Moseley (item b5). The list bears a total of fifty-three names, many including surnames. On it are recorded years of birth beginning with 1805, family relationships, residence as of 9 August 1865 (Buckingham and Nelson counties, Richmond, and the U.S. Army), and compensation received (barrels of corn, poultry, and pigs).

Mosher, Hugh E., papers, 1918–1948 (bulk 1918–1919). 237 items. Mss1M8533a.
Hugh E. Mosher (1890–1980) of Roanoke served in Company B, First Battalion, 602d Engineers Regiment of the Allied Expeditionary Force during World War I. Section 6 contains a letter, June 1918, written to Mosher's mother, Louisa "Lula" (Upshaw) Mosher, by Anna P. Hiller Jones, from Camp Jackson, S.C., expressing Anna’s relief at being around white rather than African American soldiers.

Mountcastle family papers, 1798–1881. 66 items. Mss1M8643a.
Section one contains a tax collection book, 1799–1849, compiled by Joseph Vaiden (d. 1808) as sheriff of Charles City County concerning the collection of county taxes on land, livestock, and slaves from 1799 to 1803, including payment by cash and in-kind work, such as repairs to county property. Enclosed in the volume is a tax receipt, 1798, on land, livestock, and a slave.

Munford, Beverley Bland (1856–1910), papers, 1907–1908. 6 items. Mss2M9232b.
In doing research for publication, Munford wrote to the descendants and relatives of a number of prominent Confederate leaders to inquire about their opinions on slavery and whether or not the ancestor owned slaves. The responses to his inquiries constitute the core of this collection. The letters are mostly dated 1907 and include responses from descendants or relatives of Joseph E. Johnston, Fitzhugh Lee, William Henry Fitzhugh Lee, A. P. Hill, and J. E. B. Stuart. In addition to providing opinions of prominent southerners on the morality of owning slaves, several of the letters relate anecdotal information about manumissions and phased emancipation plans of various individuals.

Munford family papers, 1799–1964. 351 items. Mss1M9235b.
This collection contains both Munford family papers and research notes of Beverley Bland Munford for his book, Virginia's Attitude toward Slavery and Secession (1909) (see entry immediately above). Munford's research notes are in section 16 and consist primarily of abstracts from court records of wills and emancipation documents. The abstracts trace the manumission of slaves, sometimes unconditionally, sometimes requiring emigration to Liberia, sometimes providing for job skills and training with an indenture, and sometimes through a detailed plan of phased emancipation. Most of the abstracts refer to transactions recorded in the late eighteenth to mid-nineteenth century.

Murray, J. Odgen (1840–1921), papers, 1872–1915. 416 items. Mss1M9645a. Microfilm reel C121.
John Ogden Murray was a newspaper editor, historian, and Confederate veteran of Goshen and later Winchester. Included in section 1 of the collection is a letter to Murray from Thomas C. Chandler (of Washington, D.C.) concerning the presidential election of 1908 and the influence of the African American vote.

Mutter, Mary, papers, 1846–1902. 16 items. Mss2M9848b.
Most of this collection consists of letters, predominantly of a genealogical nature. One item is an 1849 deed of gift from Mary Smith Nelson of New Kent County to Edward P. Chamberlayne for seven slaves, Mary and her six children, all identified by name. Also included is an undated letter from Edward P. Chamberlayne in which he explains that he is returning the deed as a result of considering his obligations to his management of hiring out slaves. He specifically refers to the slaves Peggy and Mary and her family.

Myers family papers, 1763–1923. 202 items. Mss1M9924a. Microfilm reels C301–302.
Catharine Hays Myers and her sisters, Julia and Harriet, issued a pass to their slaves Richard and Narcissa to reside in a tenement on College Street in Richmond in 1855 (section 14).

Myers family papers, 1843–1929. 81 items. Mss1M9924b. Microfilm reel C302.
This collection primarily concerns Gustavus Adolphus Myers (1801–1869), Richmond lawyer and municipal officer, and his son, artist William Barksdale Myers. An 1845 affidavit of Thomas Peyton Gwynn of Amelia County concerns the slave Sally, formerly the property of Ann Graham (section 8). The same section includes a bond, ca. 1843, of William Branch Giles to Eliza G. Lambert of Richmond for the hire of John, and accounts, 1847, of the sale of slaves at auction for the benefit of Gallegher & Oldner of Richmond.

Updated June 4, 2009