David Talton (1812 - bef. 1895)

Born 1812 in South Carolina, United States

Descendants

Died before 1895 before age 83 in Lee, Georgia, United States

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Biography

David Talton is a part of US Black heritage.

David was born into enslavement in about 1812, as was his wife Scylla and daughter Bettie. All three came into Georgia from South Carolina. Their former slaveholder in Georgia Orren Woodward and his extended family held a substantial amount of enslaved individuals. Was it the same Woodward slave holder family in South Carolina as it was in Georgia? We don't know. South Carolina had a huge and notorious slave trade business prolific in human trafficking, so it is impossible with just a paper trail to identify their exact beginnings. Being that David's daughter Bettie was also born in South Carolina, tells us this family was brought into Georgia after 1845. Did David and Scylla have the opportunity to know their parents? Or any of their heritage, family stories and lore? How many generations of their family had been enslaved? … We can only speculate.

When the civil war broke out, David after having lived 50 years under the biddings of another man, escaped along with his son-in-law Peter (and possibly other enslaved men from that same plantation). In an act of courage they fled on foot, approximately 80 miles through perilous Confederate territory. This was a now or never moment and he was determined that even if it meant going down to his grave, he would break the chains of slavery. After arriving in Troup County they join the union army encampment.

Scylla too had to stay strong and couragous. Would her beloved David get caught and without doubt shot or hanged? Would he survive the harsh years of war? What would happen if the Union didn't win the war? How were she and Bettie treated once it was found out Davey and Peter had broke free? Unquestionably there were many sleepless nights.

When the war finally ended, David, his family, son-in-law and 74 now freed individuals from their former Monroe County slave holder, made the move 115 miles down to Lee County, GA to make a fresh start.

Lee County, by all accounts, was a fertile and lush environment for growing agriculture. Prior to the war it had seen the establishment of large plantations growing cotton and corn as well as other produce. David’s family and the group of Freedmen relocating from upstate were not the only ones who settled in the area. According to the 1860 Federal Census, Lee’s population was 2,242 whites, 7 free colored, and 4,947 enslaved. After the war, by 1870 the census showed a decrease in the white population to 1,924 and a whopping increase in the “colored” population to 7,643. This mass influx without doubt were hoping, with great anticipation, that it would be the land of opportunity … but that was not to be … It appears they jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire. Lee and the surrounding counties have a horrific and infamous reputation for race relations.

Additionally, our Talton family settled in the Starkville area of Lee County. Today this town no longer exists. Nevertheless, this quote is from a historical article published in the Albany Herald by Jon Gosa and the local historians Jim Wright and Kevin Morey …

“”Starkville, the original county seat of Lee County, was a riotous, boisterous place prone to violence and lewd behavior, and in its heyday rivaled many of the Wild West towns of American history.” … “Starkville had a three-story brick courthouse, four gambling halls and a brothel called the Primrose Path, … It was a wild place ...”

An excerpt on Starkville from the Inventory of the County Archives of Georgia said. “During the year preceding the Civil War and afterwards, Starkville was a wide-open, rip-snorting town and was the mecca for all kinds of sporting events. Twelve saloons supplied the thirsty. Four wideopen gambling halls were in operation. There was no curfew to ring, and bars and joints were all-nighters... The old town was the scene of many heartbreaking tragedies, and homicides were of frequent occurrence.””

So in that environment, what was life like for them?? … By the late 1860's and as of the 1870 federal census record, we only find one child remaining and that was Bettie. Considering the circumstances, it is likely David and Scylla had other children but they either were seperated or died. David's former slave holder owned 31 slaves in Monroe County, GA in 1860. And that same family had additional slave schedules in the surrounding Butts and Crawford Counties.

There isn’t a whole lot of information from 1870 to 1890. Records do show though, that all 77 Freedmen from Monroe county filed a complaint with the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands against O. L. Woodward, their former slave holder, for unpaid wages during the year of 1867. It took some time before they got their money. From that settlement, David in 1868 received 3 payments of $80.83, $70, and $10. Additionally, during his tenure in the civil war, records indicate David suffered from and had been treated for chronic rheumatism. However, he had no opportunity to give into pain nor was he inclined to.

On the 1870 federal census David, now heading into his 60's, is starting over as a farm laborer. New beginnings from scratch built on a strong back.

The 1870 census record is extremely hard to read. The census taker misspelled the last name probably due to accents or being illiterate. There are three additional females with the last name Robinson, 21 years old and under, living in their household. But we don't know who they are at this time. Possibly grandchildren from an unknown child or maybe they took in orphans who lost their parents. The Talton's had extended their hardworking hands to the unhoused and hungry.

In 1880 David is still listed as a farm laborer. However, he and Scylla are now living with their daughter and son-in-law and their 7 grandbabies. After decades of heartache and hard times, what a joy that must have been.

David filed for a pension in 1890 and his widow updated the application in 1895. That would indicate he passed away sometime between 1890 and 1895 in his early 80's.

All and all, with a brave heart, tenacity, hard work, and endurance they prevailed. David was a hard working man until the day he laid down in his grave to rest. Scylla too had passed by 1900. Today many of the old historical cemeteries are grown over and forgotten to history. I spoke with one county official who stated he had 9 overgrown unnamed cemeteries. How I would love to walk those cemeteries, clean them up. Bring to life the histories of people who fought hard to live and breathe. One thing I always take away from genealogy research is how precious and fragile life is. Had David or Scylla died during slavery, their descendants would not live today. Moreover, those same descendants are the offspring of only one surviving child. With so many twists and turns along the way, thank you for life and breath!!

Sources

• United States Civil War Soldiers Index, 1861-1865", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FSVX-3MQ : 25 August 2021), David Talton, 1861-1865

• United States, Freedmen's Bureau Hospital and Medical Records, 1865-1872," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKKS-N835 : 9 March 2018), David Talton; citing Residence, Albany, Dougherty, Georgia, United States, M1903, NARA RG 105

• United States, Freedmen's Bureau, Records of Freedmen's Complaints, 1865-1872," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2QR-M9CV : 9 March 2018), David Talton, 1865-1872; citing Residence, Georgia, United States, NARA microfilm publication M1903, Records of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, 1861-1880, RG 105, (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 62; FHL microfilm 1,574,270: Amounting to $70

• 2nd Freedman's Bureau Records amounting to $80.83

• United States Census, 1870", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MC38-454 : 28 May 2021), Daniel Tauntin, 1870

• United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M8G8-V5G : 13 January 2022), Davy Talten in household of Peter Shiloh, Starksville, Lee, Georgia, United States; citing enumeration district , sheet , NARA microfilm publication T9

• United States General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJDP-KBLH : 20 February 2021), David Tallton, 1890