John Armfield (abt. 1797 - 1871)

Born about 1797 in Guilford, North Carolina, United States

Ancestors

Died 20 Sep 1871 at about age 74 in Beersheba Springs, Grundy, Tennessee, United States

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Gina Jarvi [send private message] and Jen Berg [send private message]

Biography

John Armfield is Notable.

John Armfield was born in 1797 to lapsed Quakers, Nathan Armfield and Jane Fields, who farmed several hundred acres in North Carolina and owned a small number of enslaved people. Armfield spent his early adulthood pursuing a variety of unsuccessful ventures, including a small mercantile shop — which he was forced to abandon when he was chased away from a county in North Carolina for fathering a child out of wedlock, according to Joshua Rothman, a professor of history at the University of Alabama who is writing a book on the slave traders Isaac Franklin, John Armfield and Rice Ballard. ^[1]

He became interested in the slave trade within the United States, and started a slave trading business with Isaac Franklin headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia. Together they built the largest slave trading firm on the continent. At its peak, the company sent ships from Alexandria, Virginia, to New Orleans and Natchez twice a month during the prime shipping season of October through March. They sold more enslaved people, separated more families and made more money from the trade than anyone else in America. Between 1820 and 1840, the two men reigned as the “undisputed tycoons” of the domestic slave trade.^[2][3]

See Slaves Transported by Franklin & Armfield on the Ship UNCAS

In 1834, the two men became family when Armfield married Franklin’s niece, Martha Franklin^[4].

Armfield’s marriage never yielded any children, but they adopted a child, Blanche Franklin. ^[5] He has at least one direct black descendant, Rodney Williams, who wrote about his heritage - which he discovered through DNA testing - in an essay included in Slavery's Descendants,^[6] published in May 2019.

Census Records

In the 1800 census John was in Salisbury, Guilford, North Carolina.^[7]

In the 1820 census John was in Gallatin, Sumner, Tennessee, United States.^[8]

John Armfield in the 1840 census, Alexnadria District, Washington D.C.^[9]

In the 1850 census John (age 48), Farmer, was in District 7, Sumner, Tennessee, United States.^[10]

In the 1860 census John (age 63) was in District 10, Grundy, Tennessee.^[11]

In the 1870 census John (age 73), Retired Farmer, was in District 10, Grundy, Tennessee.^[12]

John passed away on 20 Sep 1871. ^[13]

Slaves

• Slaves of John Armfield, Tennessee
• Slaves of John Armfield, Virginia
• Slaves Transported by Franklin & Armfield on the Ship UNCAS
• Slaves Transported on the Brig Tribune

The following are a family who were transported from Alexandria, Virginia to New Orleans, Louisiana in September 1835:

1. Rachel, 35, b. 1800
2. Charles, 21, b. 1814
3. Eliza, 14, b. 1821
4. Joseph, 12, b. 1823
5. Ellen, 9, b. 1826
6. William Henry, 7, b. 1828
7. Ann, 1, b. 1834

• John Armfield held 1 enslaved person in the 1860 slave schedule in Nashville, Davidson, Tennessee, United States.^[14]

• John Armfield held 22 enslaved people in the 1860 slave Schedule for District 10, Grundy, Tennessee, United States as a slave owner of 22 enslaved people.^[15]

1838 Slave Sale

1838 Sale of Slaves

In the list of Sales from the estate of Thomas Cramphin, filed December 18 1835, Armfield is one of the largest buyers,^[16] buying about 163 people out of 214 or more of the enslaved from the estate. More research is needed to confirm that John is his first name.

Research Notes

• Rodney Williams needs a profile.

• Thomas Cramphins probate records never give a first name of Armfield, on my hunt for this buyer, with only a last name, i find a few John Armfield's a couple in North Carolina, atleast one in Tennesee and Mississippi, and one that really stands out in D.C. and Alexandria. searching LOC.gov for "John Armfield" filtering by District of Columbia, 1800's, the Alexandria Gazette in the 1830s are the majority of the results, alot of the articles give little detail on the man in question but they are hitting on a lot of "Franklin & Armfield", one in particular is Dec. 12 1834, an advertisement titled "CASH FOR 400 NEGROS", Franklin and Armfield are looking to buy servants of both sexes, 12-25 years old.^[17]. Knowing there is a possible Armfield in the D.C. area i found John Armfield on "O Say Can You See: Early Washington, D.C., Law & Family",^[18] this site has documents of 11 cases relating to John Armfield in D.C., many petitions to freedom.

On Ancestry i have found a John Armfield, in the New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S., Slave Manifests, 1807-1860, listing his residence as Alexandria, D.C.^[19], aside from John Armfield's name written on the side of the image is Isaac Franklin. and a long list of slaves.

Sources

1. ↑ Washington Post Article. They were once America’s cruelest, richest slave traders. Why does no one know their names?. By Hannah Natanson. September 14, 2019.
2. ↑ Smithsonian article. Retracing Slavery’s Trail of Tears. By Edward Ball. November 2015.
3. ↑ A Troublesome Commerce: The Interstate Slave Trade, 1808-1840, by Robert Harold Gudmestad, 1999.
4. ↑ Marriage: "Virginia, U.S., Select Marriages, 1785-1940"
   Original data: Virginia, Marriages, 1785-1940. Salt Lake City, Utah: FamilySearch, 2013; FHL Film Number: 33031
   Ancestry Record 60214 #452903 (accessed 14 January 2024)
   John Amfield marriage to Martha R. Franklin on 16 Nov 1834 in Orange, Virginia.
5. ↑ Memorial: Find a Grave (has image)
   Find A Grave: Memorial #129800983 (accessed 14 January 2024)
   Memorial page for Blanche Franklin Archer (15 Jul 1834-17 Feb 1919), citing Churchville Presbyterian Church Cemetery, Churchville, Harford County, Maryland, USA; Maintained by PAC (contributor 46915292).
6. ↑ “Slavery’s Descendants,”. Strauss, Jill. Slavery's Descendants: Shared Legacies of Race and Reconciliation. Rutgers University Press, 2019.
7. ↑ 1800 Census: "1800 United States Federal Census"
   Year: 1800; Census Place: Salisbury, Guilford, North Carolina; Series: M32; Roll: 31; Page: 669; Image: 626; Family History Library Film: 337907
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 7590 #321480 (accessed 14 January 2024)
   John Armfield in Salisbury, Guilford, North Carolina.
8. ↑ 1820 Census: "1820 United States Federal Census"
   Fourth Census of the United States, 1820; Census Place: Gallatin, Sumner, Tennessee; Page: 264; NARA Roll: M33_124; Image: 158
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 7734 #1017062 (accessed 14 January 2024)
   John Armfield in Gallatin, Sumner, Tennessee, USA.
9. ↑ Year: 1840; Census Place: Alexandria, Alexandria, District of Columbia; Roll: 35; Family History Library Film: 0006700. https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/14287854?mark=7b22746f6b656e223a22314255306635424e506e4b36675533466235366a6c3447764f6a324346436d4c6f743549736d7a396e69773d222c22746f6b656e5f76657273696f6e223a225632227d
   Free White Persons - Males - 15 thru 19 - 1
   Free White Persons - Males - 40 thru 49 - 1
   Free White Persons - Females - 20 thru 29 - 1
   Free Colored Persons - Males - Under 10 - 2
   Free Colored Persons - Males - 24 thru 35 - 1
   Free Colored Persons - Females - Under 10 - 2
   Free Colored Persons - Females - 24 thru 35 - 1
   Slaves - Males - Under 10 - 1
   Slaves - Males - 24 thru 35 - 1
   Slaves - Females - Under 10 - 1
   Slaves - Females - 24 thru 35 - 1
   Persons Employed in Navigation of the Ocean - 1
   Free White Persons - Under 20 - 1
   Free White Persons - 20 thru 49 - 2
   Total Free White Persons - 3
   Total Free Colored Persons - 6
   Total Slaves - 4
   Total All Persons - Free White, Free Colored, Slaves - 13
10. ↑ 1850 Census: "1850 United States Federal Census"
    The National Archives in Washington D.C.; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29; Series Number: M432; Residence Date: 1850; Home in 1850: District 7, Sumner, Tennessee; Roll: 897; Page: 248b; Line Number: 6
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 8054 #6946039 (accessed 14 January 2024)
    John Armfied (48), Farmer, in District 7, Sumner, Tennessee, USA. Born in North Carolina.
11. ↑ 1860 Census: "1860 United States Federal Census"
    The National Archives in Washington D.C.; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29; Series Number: M653; Residence Date: 1860; Home in 1860: District 10, Grundy, Tennessee; Roll: M653_1252; Page: 457; Family History Library Film: 805252
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 7667 #19183696 (accessed 14 January 2024)
    John Armfield (63) in District 10, Grundy, Tennessee. Born in North Carolina.
12. ↑ 1870 Census: "1870 United States Federal Census"
    Year: 1870; Census Place: District 10, Grundy, Tennessee; Roll: M593_1532; Page: 491A
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 7163 #4596094 (accessed 14 January 2024)
    John Armfield (63), Retired Farmer, in District 10, Grundy, Tennessee. Born in North Carolina.
13. ↑ Memorial: Find a Grave (has image)
    Find A Grave: Memorial #7661778 (accessed 14 January 2024)
    Memorial page for John Armfield (1797-20 Sep 1871), citing Armfield Cemetery, Beersheba Springs, Grundy County, Tennessee, USA; Maintained by Shiver (contributor 46539565).
14. ↑ Slave Schedule: "1860 U.S. Federal Census - Slave Schedules"
    The National Archives in Washington, DC; Washington, DC, USA; Eighth Census of the United States 1860; Series Number: M653; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 7668 #94147851 (accessed 14 January 2024)
    John Armfield, slave owner of 1 enslaved people, in 1860 in Nashville, Davidson, Tennessee, USA.
15. ↑ Slave Schedule: "1860 U.S. Federal Census - Slave Schedules"
    The National Archives in Washington, DC; Washington, DC, USA; Eighth Census of the United States 1860; Series Number: M653; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 7668 #94196851 (accessed 14 January 2024)
    John Armfield, slave owner of 22 enslaved people, in 1860 in District 10, Grundy, Tennessee, USA.
16. ↑ "Maryland Register of Wills Records, 1629-1999," images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9TBG-SHD5?cc=1803986&wc=SNYH-ZNT%3A146535001%2C146761701 : 20 May 2014), Montgomery > Accounts, inventories, wills 1838-1840 vol W > image 44 of 296; Hall of Records, Annapolis.
17. ↑ Image 3 of Alexandria gazette (Alexandria, D.C.), December 12, 1834. Image provided by: Library of Virginia; Richmond, VA. Link to the full image: https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn85025007/1834-12-12/ed-1/?dl=page&q=%E2%80%9CJohn+Armfield%E2%80%9D&sp=3
18. ↑ Thomas III, William G., Kaci Nash, Laura Weakly, Karin Dalziel, and Jessica Dussault. O Say Can You See: Early Washington, D.C., Law & Family. University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Accessed September 11, 2015. http://earlywashingtondc.org
    John Armfield, https://earlywashingtondc.org/people/per.000866
19. ↑ Ancestry.com. New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S., Slave Manifests, 1807-1860 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. This collection was indexed by Ancestry World Archives Project contributors.
    Original data: Slave Manifests of Coastwise Vessels Filed at New Orleans, Louisiana, 1807–1860; NAID: 5573655; Microfilm Publication M1895, 30 rolls; Records of the U.S. Customs Service, 1745 - 1997, Record Group 36; The National Archives in Washington, D.C.
    Link: https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/7922054?mark=7b22746f6b656e223a226336653742717241714170687448354246386354596d48323558476a49314c64463175466f505430366a383d222c22746f6b656e5f76657273696f6e223a225632227d

• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/7661778/john-armfield : accessed 20 May 2022), memorial page for John Armfield (1797–20 Sep 1871), Find a Grave Memorial ID 7661778, citing Armfield Cemetery, Beersheba Springs, Grundy County, Tennessee, USA ; Maintained by Shiver (contributor 46539565) .
• Wikipedia: John Armfield
• "United States Census, 1860", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M8TF-4Q6 : 12 December 2017), John Armfield, 1860.
• 1860 Census: "1860 U.S. Federal Census - Slave Schedules"
  The National Archives in Washington DC; Washington DC, USA; Eighth Census of the United States 1860; Series Number: M653; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29
  Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 7668 #94196851 (accessed 20 May 2022)
  John Armfield in District 10, Greene, Tennessee, USA. (32 enslaved in Grundy, Tennessee).