Slaveholdings recorded in probate deeds explain descendants’ unexpected birthplaces

Evidence

Under item 9 of the probate record B. F. Taylor writes, “To my daughter Annie W. Mazyck, I give and bequeath the following slaves and their increase: Marian, Tena, Betsy, and Nora.” Records reflect that Annie was born in Columbia but lived and died in Charleston, where my great-grandfather Renty Taylor Thompson was born in or about 1851. Therein lies the answer to the elusive question raised by Renty Taylor Thompson’s death record, which indicated a Charleston place of birth, not Columbia. Renty’s birth coincided with the death of Benjamin Franklin Taylor, whereas Tena’s increase was also bequeathed to Annie Mazyck of Charleston. — Tamara Lanier, From These Roots, 1154

Categorization

• XREF: The genealogical reconstruction against archival obstruction connects to Lanier’s method of reading probate and death records against the grain, echoing her brick-wall breakthroughs earlier in the book.