Generation I & II: Nimmy + Gilly

Two artifacts noted from the Stagville Plantation mention Nimmy (5x great grandmother) in 1826 & 1832. Preserved by the University of North Carolina digital content Library of the Cameron Family Papers, 1757-1978 (Collection 00133), and provided by the Stagville Historic Site, the following materials give insight on Nimmy and her history on the Stagville Plantation.

Presumed to be a list of ancestors and their chattle price if sold

 The above record dated January 21, 1826, sites (bottom left) Nimmy (age not disclosed), Jack (age 14), Dudley (age 12), Gilly (age 10), Leathy (Lethe/Letty) (age 6), Anthony (age 8), Redin (age 4), and Daniel (infant). Nimmy, and others, are also listed (top right corner) with nominal amounts assigned to their names, which per the Stagville historian Vera Ceceleski, would appear to be chattel prices if sold: Nimmy $280, Jack $300, Dudley $300, Gilly $280, Anthony $280, Leathy $200, Redin $150. In speaking with Vera, this document is introduced at a time in which the plantation was in the process of being divided between the Bennehan and Cameron family, at the time of Richard Bennehan’s death (December 31, 1825). The Stagville historian also notes that this document looks to be scripted by Thomas Bennehan, Richard Bennehans son and heir of the plantation.

Another artifact protected by the University of North Carolina digital library of the Cameron papers, is taken from a memo book written by Thomas Bennehan in 1832. Here it is written “Nimmy Daughter of Gilly”, which lends to the notion that Nimmy named her presumed daughter after her mother, Gilly.

To enslaved people, separation from kin was an ever-present threat. It is often said that slaves were usually unable to choose their own names for their offspring, however in cases where they were permitted, the names they selected for their children reveal both the importance and the fragility of kinship bonds.[1]

 While the first finding suggests that Thomas Bennehan considered selling Nimmy and her family, to whom is unknown, it is widely written that the Bennehan Cameron family held many business ties and maintained the plantation together as partners. Findings above and moving forward suggest that Nimmy’s family remained heavily intact (with the exception of Nimmy’s mother who is no longer mentioned) throughout their remaining time on the Stagville Plantation.

[1] Cody, C. (1982). Naming, Kinship, and Estate Dispersal: Notes on Slave Family Life on a South Carolina Plantation, 1786 to 1833. The William and Mary Quarterly, 39(1), 192-211. doi:10.2307/1923424