Say Their Names

As genealogists, we often remind ourselves that the societal norms of the past were very different from those of today. Even so, there are moments in our research that remain deeply uncomfortable. For me, that is especially true when working with deeds and wills that involve slavery. While I wish this part of history had never existed, it did—and ignoring it does not honor the people whose lives were shaped by it.

When enslaved individuals are named in the records I am transcribing, I feel a responsibility to record and preserve those names. They mattered. Too often, they are reduced to property descriptions or dollar values, and their identities are lost to time. Bringing their names forward is one small way to acknowledge their humanity.

I recently transcribed an 1834 Augusta County, Virginia will for Jane Brown that identifies several enslaved individuals by name, sometimes alongside family relationships or circumstances. Those named in the will include:

• Jinny
• Frankey and her child
• Enslaved persons previously sold to [Runniel]
• Mitchel
• Eliza, noted as pregnant at the time of the will

What follows is the full transcription of Jane Brown’s will, presented so that the names and circumstances of these enslaved individuals are preserved exactly as recorded.

In the name of God Amen . I Jane Brown relict of James Brown
decd being weak in body but of sound mind do make & ordain my
last Will & Testament in manner & form following to wit
Item first I will & bequeath to my son William , my negro woman
Jinney & her two youngest Children all of which he has in possession
but I will & order that my son William pay to my son Thomas ,
one hundred dollars out of the price of said negroes
Item second , I will & order that my negro woman Frankey & her
Child which are with my Grand Daughter Peggy Wilson , shall be
sold and the price of them equally divided between my two Grand
Daughters Peggy Wilson & Sarah Brown children of my son James
Item third , I will & bequeath to my son James all the ballance
of my Estate of every kind namely my household & Kitchen fur
niture the price of the Negroes he sold to – [Runniel] , one negro
boy named Mitchel & one negro girl named Eliza together with
any increase that may be , except that in this bequest . I receive
to my Daughter Peggy Herron any single article of my house
hold furniture he may select which said article I will to her as
a keepsake if she thinks proper to take any
Item fourth , I request that my son James if he shall find it
convenient shall give to each of my grand daughters Sarah & Mary
his own children ) some small part of the price of the negro
girl Eliza willed to him whatever he may think right
Lastly I hereby , I appoint my son James , Executor of this my
last will & testament , hereby revoking all former wills by me
made & establishing this as my last Will and Testament
In Testimony
whereof I have herunto set my hand J and seal this
12th day of February 1834
Jane (her mark)Brown
┃ Signed sealed & declared
in presence of us
Joseph Brown
David Sterrett

Augusta County Court October Term 1834

This last Will & Testament of Jane Brown decd was presented
in Court and proved by the oaths of the witnesses thereto & ordered to
be recorded , and in motion of James Brown the Executor there
in named , who made oath thereto according to law and togeth
er with Joseph Brown his security entered into and acknowledg
ed their bond in the penalty of $ 2000.00 conditioned as the law
requires which bond is ordered to be recorded Certificate , is gran
ted the said James Brown for obtaining a probat of said Will
in due form
Tester
Jefferson Kinney CAC

“Augusta, Virginia, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9P7-3S2B?view=explore : Jan 23, 2026), image 80 of 268; . Image Group Number: 007643874

This transcription cannot undo the injustice that shaped the lives of the people named in Jane Brown’s will. But by recording their names and preserving the words that document their existence, we ensure they are not erased from the historical record. These individuals—Jinny, Frankey and her child, Mitchel, Eliza, and the unnamed child she carried—were more than entries in an estate inventory. They lived, labored, formed families, and endured circumstances they did not choose.

As genealogists, we often focus on ancestors whose names appear generation after generation. Yet responsible research also asks us to acknowledge those whose stories survive only in fragments, often written by others. When we encounter enslaved individuals in our sources, naming them may be one of the few acts of recognition we can offer. It is not enough—but it is something.

By including this transcription, I hope to honor their presence in the record and to encourage others to do the same when such names appear in their research. Remembering them matters.