The History of the Grant Family
Of Henry County, Ga
Between 1820 and 1822 my great-great-great grandmother Lucinda was born a slave in Georgia. Her children born between 1854 and 1858 were: Harriet, Gabriel and Amos. But it is in my belief that she was also the mother of Henry Grant born about 1849. Henry was located in the 1870-1880 census with a daughter named Lucinda. At least by the year 1840 she was enslaved by a Mr. William Brown of Henry County and in 1860 she and her children were enslaved by his grandson William P. Grant, age 21. During the prior census year of 1850, William P. Grant, along with his parents (Benjamin Grant/Nancy Brown) were living in the home of the then widowed Margaret Brown; Nancy's mother. Nancy died in November of 1850. Benjamin Grant then moved to Texas soon after and Margaret was left with her grandchildren in Henry County. Benjamin returned to Henry County and married 2nd to Sarah Elizabeth Findly by 1856. In 1860 Margaret died and William shows up in the Slave Schedule with Lucinda and children. Of course the slave schedule does not document the names of slaves, but if you analyze the 1870 census and compare to the slaves he held in 1860 the match up is over-whelming right on down to sex and age with the exception of a small age error for one of the children.
I was contacted a few years ago by a Mrs. Diane Chumbley of Henry County who happens to be the direct descendant of William and Margaret Brown. She also has been researching the Brown/Grant family history for several several years as well. She came upon a query I had posted to the Henry County board at Genforum.com requesting information about William Brown and the slaves he owned. She sent me an email which was the beginning of a good on-line friendship and a wealth of information. Within about a month afterwards, Diane made copies of and sent to me the Appraisement and Inventory of the estate of William Brown dec'd. , signed January, 1841. He had 9 slaves and Lucinda was listed. Still yet to find are the documents that show from whom William acquired the slaves. She also included the Appr. and inventory of his wife Margaret Brown dec'd in 1860. There were no slaves mentioned in this inventory and we are assuming that William P. Grant has Lucinda and the children prior to her death, however no deed could be found. However, in the 1850 slave schedule she did in fact have the original 9 slaves from her husbands estate (again following the sex/age reference) plus 6 additional slaves between the ages of one and nine. In the 1870 census in the Bear Creek district, Lucinda is shown to have a property value of $100.00 and I am still hoping to find her deed to this property. Diane found another bit of information that may prove to he of use. In 1860 a W. B. Welch had a 25 year old mulatto male slave working for him belonging to the estate of Margaret Brown. He lived on the adjoining property near Sandy Ridge. If he was age 25 then this gives him a birth year of about 1835. She also located where William and James Brown were witness to an exchange of slaves between Jesse and Gary Grice; a slave Lucinda about 9-10 months old-December, 1828.
Lucinda has never been shown with a husband in either the 1870 or 1880 census. Neither is there a man listed in the slave schedule with William P. Grant in 1860. The 1850 slave schedule of Margaret Brown (M. Brown p. 292 Henry County, Dist. 42) has in order of age 1 male age 62 (Caesar) and then one female age 32 (Lucinda), 30 years her senior and old enough to he her father. The next is a female 25, a female 22 and so on. The first 9 slaves and their ages are compared to the names and ages given in Em's. inventory of 1840. I will show comparisons to these schedules and inventories on another page. It is the assumption of Diane and I that perhaps William's father Benjamin fathered Lucinda's children, but it still can't be dismissed that Caesar is a possibility also.
The Grants in Henry County never owned slaves between 1820-1860, including Benjamin Grant. There is not even a deed on file showing that William P. Grant legally owned Lucinda and her children. He married in 1859 Elisabeth Amanda and he died 13 February, 1863 Lynchburg, VA during the Civil War. It appears Lucinda was merrily there to aid his new wife at their home. The children were much too young to be of service with anything.
Lucinda died in Henry County sometime after the 1880 census of Henry County and before 1900.