Issued by
Smith, William, American, 1797 - 1887
Munford, George W., American
Subject of
Confederate States of America, 1861 - 1865
Date
1864
Medium
ink on paper (fiber product)
Dimensions
H x W (folded): 11 × 8 5/8 in. (28 × 21.9 cm)
Description
A circular with letters from William Smith, Governor of Virginia, and George W. Munford, Secretary of the Commonwealth, to County Courts throughout Virginia. The document consists of printed black text on a single sheet of paper, folded to form four pages and then folded again into thirds.
The first page of the document is a letter from the governor establishing his authority to requisistion enslaved men and put them to work building fortifications. It is dated [January 22, 1864] in the top right corner and addressed at left to [To the Honorable the County Courts / of the several Counties named in the annexed schedule]. It notes [The President has asked for the number of slaves as apportioned in the annexed schedule. You will please make provision for the number assessed to your County.].
The second page contains a letter from the Secretary of the Commonwealth that outlines instructions for sending the requested impressed enslaved men to Col. W. H. Stevens in Richmond. Among other instructions, the letter notes that railroad companies should be given three days notice and that "the expenses of Sheriffs or others in collecting slaves will be paid on production of receipts" as well as to "send meat for their slaves, when possible."
The third and final page of the document titled [List of Counties, with the number of Slaves called for, being the third Call under Act passed March 13, 1863] and consists of a schedule of Virginia counties and how many enslaved men they are ordered to send. The schedule has columns for the population of enslaved persons in the 8th census, the number of enslaved persons assessed in 1862, the number of enslaved persons between 18 and 55 years, the calculation of 20 percent of the number of enslaved persons falling in that age category, the "No. of slaves furnished" in former calls and under the act of October 3, 1862, the quota caleld for in the first call under the March 1863 act and the quota now called for with this document.
Place depicted
Richmond, Virginia, United States, North and Central America
Classification
Slavery and Freedom Objects
Documents and Manuscripts
Type
letters (correspondence)
circulars
Topic
Finance
Government
Law
Military
Slave hire system
Slavery
U.S. History, Civil War, 1861-1865
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2019.28.14.3
Restrictions & Rights
Public domain
Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd587fb23e8-1a88-4061-94e8-8ac0b25f4488

Cataloging is an ongoing process and we may update this record as we conduct additional research and review. If you have more information about this object, please contact us at NMAAHCDigiTeam@si.edu

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