Slaves of John McHenry, North Carolina

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: [unknown]

Slaves of John McHenry, Rowan/Iredell Counties, North Carolina, and Rutherford County, Tennessee

The purpose of this page is to identify and document the slaves owned by John McHenry (bef.1752-abt.1823), to help connect them to their families.

John's will made in Rutherford County, Tennessee, and proved there on 12 September 1823, identifies the following eleven slaves that he owned at the time he made his will:^[1]

• Lissie, bequeathed to John's surviving widow Rachel during her life, then to Abeline Brown
• Lot (female), bequeathed to daughter Peggy Hall, previously disposed of by William Hall
• Jim, bequeathed to daughter Peggy Hall
• Andy, bequeathed to grandson William Hall
• Patsy, bequeathed to daughter Jenny Wilson
• Eliza, bequeathed to daughter Jenny Wilson
• Mary, bequeathed to granddaughter Nancy Wilson
• Joe, bequeathed to son John McHenry
• Rodger, bequeathed to son Silas McHenry
• Jo ("boy child"), bequeathed to son Silas McHenry
• Jo ("old man") (granted his freedom in John's will, which also provides that he was to be provided for by John's sons John and Silas if Jo could not support himself)

The census data indicates the following counts of slaves in John's households during the period 1790-1820:

• 1790 - 1^[2]
• 1800 - 4 ^[3]
• 1810 - 6 ^[4]
• 1820^[5]
  • Females, under 14: 2
  • Females age 14-25: 1

Sources

1. ↑ Rutherford County, Tennessee, Record Book 5, pp. 332-335; images, FamilySearch, (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99G1-6GYJ : accessed 23 Jun 2023); FHL 380,487, DGS 7,642,461; typed transcription available here, citing Tennessee State Library & Archives; FHL microfilm 24,809, FHL DGS 4,769,048.
2. ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, Heads of families at the first census of the United States taken in the year 1790 : North Carolina, (GPO: Washington, 1908), 158; images, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/headsoffamiliesa00unit/page/311 : accessed 14 May 2019); Salisbury District, Iredell County, col. 2, John McHenry.
3. ↑ 1800 U.S. census, Rowan County, North Carolina, Salisbury District, p. 332 (penned), John McHenry; image, FamilySearch.org, (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9R8F-J8J : accessed 1 Jan 2020); citing NARA microfilm publication M32, roll 33.
4. ↑ 1810 U.S. census, Rutherford County, Tennessee, Jefferson township, p. 47 (penned), Jn. McHenry; image, FamilySearch.org, (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9YY6-SG72 : accessed 1 Jan 2020); citing NARA microfilm publication M252, roll 63.
5. ↑ 1820 U.S. census, Rutherford County, Tennessee, [township not stated], p. 83 (stamped), John McHenry Senr; image, FamilySearch.org, (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYB9-SVY9 : accessed 1 Jan 2020); citing NARA microfilm publication M33, roll 124.