Wesley Payne (1875 1954), who continued to work at Stratford Hall after its acquisition by the Robert E. Lee Memorial Foundation in 1929, provided names of some family members interred here:, Walter Payne (uncle) , Hannah Jackson Payne (mother), c. 1845 1886 , Ardrick [Theodorick] Payne (brother), 1868 before 1880 , Lal [Lawrence] Payne (brother), 1879 1883 , Wesley Payne (great-grandfather) , Ardrick [Theodorick] Payne (great-uncle) , William Payne (great-uncle) , Walter Payne (great-uncle) , Hannah Payne (infant sister) 1886 1886 , Parentheses indicate each family member's relationship to Wesley Payne. Historian delves into slave life at Stratford Hall. If Henry had given his remaining slaves to his son Henry, Jr., who assumed management of Stratford in 1810, Kesey would probably not have remained at Stratford much longer. Some of their names are recorded in family documents, which allows us to interpret their lives more vividly, while the names and details of others have been lost in history. http://www.freep.com/article/20111223/NEWS05/112230427/Does-uncovered-tombstone-tie-black-family-to-Gen-Robert-E-Lee-?odyssey=tab|mostpopular|text|FRONTPAGE. Years ago, I had the pleasure of spending a night at the Lee-Fendall House Museum in Alexandria, Virginia. The house and skilled slaves lived near the Great House in these multi-family houses. With an interesting irony, these were two white women on the floor. 30 seconds . Isabelle Blakemore made the trip from Washington, D.C., to hear the talk. Stratford Hall Wedgwood Dinner Plate, Westmoreland County Virginia, Robert E Lee, Cream, Pink Red Transferware, Declaration of Independence. Below is a runaway slave advertisement I came across while looking through Charleston, SC newspapers conducting research for a past job. 10-? Photos larger than 8Mb will be reduced. An email has been sent to the person who requested the photo informing them that you have fulfilled their request, There is an open photo request for this memorial. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. Learn about how to make the most of a memorial. Tags: Question 13 . This is the reason for using multiple lines of descent among other known survivors of the slaveowners Y-DNA line.I look forward to reading more about this project. At Chantilly Lee grew tobacco, corn, and wheat and raised livestock. The plantation was home to two signers of the Declaration of IndependenceRichard Henry Lee and Francis Lightfoot Leeand was the birthplace of the Confederate general Robert E. Lee. This knowledge was essential in the success of a working plantation. Stratford Hall. The door on the river side opened onto a porch where visitors could dance under the stars. She also utilized information gathered from archeological finds at Stratford Hall. Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. Thank you for fulfilling this photo request. Oral histories are important, particularly to black families who are seeking to trace their history in a world where little documentation survives. Just wanted to pass it onfeel free to share. Stratford Hall acknowledges that we are situated on the traditional and unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh peoples. Existing evidence points to construction beginning in 1738, with the work completed early in the 1740s. This is a . 3000 Commercial Drive Vancouver, B.C. Entrance to Stratford Hall and Shiloh Baptist Church. Thomas Lee died soon after he hired Mynatt and his contract was passed on to Philip Ludwell Lee through inheritance. To use this feature, use a newer browser. Construction on Stratford Hall, Thomas Lee's estate in the Northern Neck of Virginia, is completed, and Lee and his family move into the new residence. Enslaved field hands worked from sun-up to sundown under the supervision of white overseers who set the pace and punished those who fell behind. Colonel Phil made many changes to the Great House. Stratford Hall is a historic house museum near Lerty in Westmoreland County, Virginia.It was the plantation house of four generations of the Lee family of Virginia (with descendants later to expand to Maryland and other states). A CWT marker stands along the path that leads to the Great House at Stratford Hall. He sold the property in 1822, after he was convicted of embezzling money from his sister-in-law and ward, Elizabeth McCarty, and forced by the court to repay her. Hannah Lee was an early proponent of women's rights, and Alice Lee married the prominent physician William Shippen Jr. (17361808) of Philadelphia. A member of the Spotsylvania County school board was arrested Thursday on two charges, including a felony offense. More about this marker. 483 Great House Road, Stratford. Stratford Hall is located in Westmoreland County on the beautiful Northern Neck of Virginia. Through archival and archaeological research and oral history, we are learning more about the lives of the enslaved community at Stratford Hall and are continually updating the tours and interpretation of their history and legacy. William C. Somerville of Maryland purchased the property from Henry Lee IV in 1822. This monument was erected by the Board of Directors of Stratford Hall in 1953. I recalled those times when I would visit these properties and the first thing my hosts wanted to show me was the big house. Only one African American familythe Payne familyhas been identified as having once been a part of the plantations slave population. Their tasks would have included cooking meals, digging and firing clay for bricks, and working as launderers, blacksmiths, plasterers, carpenters, and masons. Built by Thomas Lee in the 1730s, Stratford Hall is one of the great houses of American history. There was an error deleting this problem. What does the current rendition of that group feel of our intent? The 90-year-old, who came with her daughter and a sister, said her family has ties to Virginia slaves. William Lee (17391795) and Dr. Arthur Lee (17401792) were diplomats to England during the turbulent struggle for American independence. Touch for directions. William Payne, born at Stratford in 1833, was a butler and house servant who married Hannah Jackson, from the nearby Popes Creek plantation. Also, Henry Lee inherited some slaves from other Lees, and these estate divisions are recorded in the Westmoreland County courthouse. Philip Ludwell Lee inherited Stratford Hall Plantation at the death of his father Thomas Lee in 1750. This is a carousel with slides. During this period, Caesar, an enslaved man, served as chef. Afterward he turned his attention to the Clifts property, renaming it Stratfordfor his grandfathers estate in Englandin 1734. T: 604 436 0608 | F: 604 436 0616 After Hours Number: 604 436 0608. I am so grateful to Joseph McGill for bringing this fact to the attention of those visiting Stratford Hall and all of the other dwellings he has overnighted in. We both did and it was great. Should space become available, we may consider an application after we have processed the candidates for the September 2023 class. In 1929, a group of women dedicated to preserving the memory of Robert E. Lee and the Lee family joined to form the Robert E. Lee Memorial Association and purchased Stratford Hall from the Storkes' heirs. Tour the Great House with one of our knowledgeable guides or tour at your own pace with a self-guided tour. Blacksmiths, coopers, carpenters, tailors, gardeners, and weavers plied their trades at Thomas Lee's Stratford. Calhoun, Jeanne A. Stratford Hall. I consider it an honor and a privilege that I was able to spend the night in a space once occupied by such venerable individuals. Learn more about managing a memorial . Stratford Hall's three-day residential Symposium on Slavery led by VCU Professor Emeritus Philip Schwarz allowed educators and scholars to share ideas about slavery and how to teach it in the classroom. Richard Henry was later instrumental in guiding the fledgling nation, serving as President of Congress in 178485. By 1860 she had rented out most of Stratfords land, maintaining only enough to grow hay and potatoes for personal use. She is a pioneer, fearless. He lived at Stratford until his death in 1927. None of the slaves in the various inventories and lists mentioned above had the name Kizzie. However, court clerks and persons entrusted by estate administrators and county courts to make inventories often resort to creative spellings of names in official records. The embodied energy of the enslaved Ancestors who made those bricks is in each one of them. Kelley provided for me a nice comfortable cot. Slaves also sold productsbrandy in one Lee family instanceto their owners. Henry Lee III and Matilda Ludwell Lee marry. The Stratford Hall Plantation Seminar on Slavery offers teachers and museum professionals the opportunity to: Study for two weeks with distinguished scholars of slavery. The Lee-Fendall House was the home of Major-General Henry Light-Horse Harry Lee III, the father of Robert E. Lee. Their fourth child, Robert Edward Lee (18071870), was born at Stratford Hall in 1807. * One slave William "Bill" Payne (ca. Henry Lee sold the slaves from Cabin Point to his brother Richard Bland Lee for $2,000 credit against his debt in 1807; Richard Bland Lee hired out the Cabin Point slaves beginning January 1808. Such situations made the lives of slaves precarious and uncertain, KatzHyman said. Robert E. Lee spent only his first four years at Stratford Hall, yet remembered it fondly for . The reference to "those negroes who served Stratford so faithfully" reflects the attitude of the time shown by upper and middle class whites to former slaves and their descendants., The cemetery is the final resting place for many African Americans, including members of the Payne family, whose association with Stratford Hall dates back to the early 19th century and possibly to the period when Stratford was owned by the Lees. Maybe their journey will indeed lead to the Lees of Stratford. His eldest son, Philip Ludwell Lee Sr., Esquire (17271775) inherited Stratford Hall. In 1810, the Federal Census shows that there were only 32 slaves over age 12 at Stratford, a number that had been steadily decreasing as Henry and Ann Lee began selling off acreage not included in the deed of trust to his children by his first wife Matilda. Stratford Hall brings together people from around the world to experience two-thousand . Her great-nephews, Charles and Richard Stuart, inherit the estate. Today, two stone slave cabins are located near the gardens. , This monument was erected by the Board of Directors of Stratford Hall in 1953. A few years later Lee decided to build a dwelling near the Potomac River, where Stratford now stands. Tracing the history of African Americans at Stratford has always been challenging. 14.6 miles from Stratford Hall. Designed by an unknown architect, the brick Great House is a two-story H-shaped structure, surrounded on four corners by attending outbuildings, all of which still stand today. ANational Historic Landmark, Stratford Hall is home to some of America's most influential patriots and the only brothers to sign the Declaration of Independence, Richard Henry Lee and Francis Lightfoot Lee. Quickly see who the memorial is for and when they lived and died and where they are buried. The buyer is Henry Storke. Marker is in this post office area: Stratford VA 22558, United States of America. It was their stolen labor that enabled that big house to be built. Robert E. Lee is born at Stratford Hall, Westmoreland County. I felt relief when I found out we would sleep in the laundry room behind the historic out kitchen. The research library at historic Stratford Hall has information the Payne Family, who are believed to be descended from enslaved African Americans who lived on the plantation. First, it is unknown when the Great Housethe largest and most prominent of the buildings on the propertywas completed, or when exactly work began. Position: Horticultural Intern. Dr. Kelly Deetz is on my shortlist of these people. Negro slave owners were listed in 29 Kentucky counties (see below). Stratford Hall is the boyhood home of two Founding Fathers of the United States and signers of the Declaration of Independence, Richard Henry Lee (1732-1794), and . That was the message the historian presented to a crowd of about three dozen Saturday at Stratford Hall in Westmoreland County. In 1929, a group of women joined together to form the Robert E. Lee Memorial Association who restored the house and opened it to the public as a historic house museum. Facebook; Twitter; Instagram; Eastern oyster shells contain oxygen isotopes that have the potential to be valuable paleoclimate proxies of seasonal changes in the Chesapeake Bay. It was their stolen labor that enabled that big house to be built. A significant historical year for this entry is 1953. John Lees widow, who had life interest in his estate and slaves, died childless in 1802. 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