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LUCIAN MINOR was known for his involvement in the tobacco industry and his ownership of enslaved people. He and other slaveholders played a major role in the city s economy and its reliance on enslaved people. By 1860, Lynchburg was a major city for buying and selling slaves. One page, 7 ¼ x 9 ¾, ALS, MINOR writes from Lynchburg, January 30, 1852, to Richmond slave trader CHARLES T. WORTHAM inquiring about two slaves he shipped. Minor rites, Let me trouble you to inform me, by a line out to Louisa Cty, whether or not you have heard of the Braque Cora s arrival safe at New Orleans with the negro man & girl that I shipped on board her to Mr. Thomas Bondar. [Bondar was a New Orleans slave trader.] I shall be at home (accidents excepted) next Wednesday. Very respectfully Lucian Minor Mr. C.T. Wortham Integral address leaf with a bold Lynchburg, VA, postmark and original postage. Minor s concerns may have been informed by fears that the ship he used might have been captured. In Richmond, Virginia, during 1852, the Wortham family was engaged in the slave trade, with Richard Chandler Wortham being a prominent merchant involved in the business. Richmond was a major hub for the slave trade in the Upper South, with the Richmond slave market being a significant center for buying and selling enslaved people. The Wortham family's involvement highlights the extent to which slavery permeated the commercial activities of the city. Charles T. Wortham was well known slave trader. Lynchburg s name comes from its founder John Lynch, a Quaker abolitionist and businessman who established a ferry across the James River in 1757. Before emancipation in 1865, thousands of enslaved laborers brought great wealth and fame to Lynchburg through its tobacco and manufacturing industry. Half the city s population was African American until 1900, when the Great Migration and shifting tobacco industry caused many to leave Central Virginia. Folds, toning, light soiling. Small edge tears repaired with archival tape. Everything we sell is guaranteed authentic forever to the original buyer. We also offer a 30-day return policy. If you discover a problem or are dissatisfied with an item, please contact us immediately. Our goal is to please every customer. We are pleased to be members of The Manuscript Society, Universal Autograph Collectors Club, The Ephemera Society, the Southern New England Antiquarian Booksellers and the Preferred Autograph Dealers and Auction Houses. [BL 201].
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