1 Reply Latest reply on Feb 18, 2021 2:42 PM by Cara Jensen

Seeking social status of freed vs enslaved blacks

Lisa March Feb 14, 2021 4:15 PM

I am currently researching the parents of Sallie OVERTON (of Emery BILLUPS and Isabella OVERTON) and her marriage to Ivey MITCHELL, (abt 1894) . On a VA Marriage record she stated her surname was Overton and listed her parents was E & I Overton, when in reality their surname was Billups. Was there greater social status (and use of surnames) for descendants of free Blacks vs. enslaved Blacks? Isabella (Isabelle) and her parents Nathan and Sally Overton were free Blacks, based on census records.

Re: Seeking social status of freed vs enslaved blacks

Cara Jensen Feb 18, 2021 2:42 PM (in response to Lisa March)
Dear Ms. March,

Thank you for posting your request on History Hub!

We searched online and located several articles and other publications that might be relevant to your research:

Tracing Your Roots: Were Slaves' Surnames Like Brands?
The Complexity of Slave Surnames
Social Stratification and the Free Coloured in the Slave Society of the British Windward Islands
Social Divisions in Antebellum North Carolina
Black America and the Class Divide
CHILDREN'S SURNAMES, MORAL DILEMMAS: Accounting for the Predominance of Fathers' Surnames for Children

We hope this is helpful. Best of luck with your research!
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