Black Marriages of St. Mary’s County, 1795-1864

This website compiles all the marriages during the era of slavery from Agnes Kane Callum, Black marriages of St. Mary’s County, Maryland, 1800-1900 (Baltimore: Mullac Publishers, 1991), as well as marriages found in Margaret K. Fresco, Marriages and deaths, St. Mary’s County, Maryland, 1634-1900 (self-published, 1989).

The Fresco book omitted all marriages when the bride and groom were noted as persons of color (either enslaved or free) or mixed race (mulatto), prompting Agnes Kane Callum to write Black Marriages, and include the marriages skipped by Fresco.

However, by utilizing other sources (the Federal Censuses, the 1843 Census of Free Persons of Color, the 1864 Slave Statistics, and certificates of freedom), this list adds 21 marriages that were listed in Fresco, but the original record did not note race or status of the bride and groom.

When the status is in italics, this indicates information that was gleaned by using the additional sources mentioned in the preceding paragraph, with this status not listed in either Callum or Fresco. Sometimes the status is only “person of color,” when the enslaved or free status cannot be determined. For sources, the Agnes Kane Callum book is abbreviated as AKC).

Primary Sources for the Landscape of Slavery, St. Mary’s College of Maryland Archives

Kent Randell, St. Mary’s College of Maryland, June 2018

Alphabetized by groom

Richard Acty (person of color) mar. Permelia Key (person of color) 1864 Apr 27 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Enders, S.J.]

George Adams (free person of color) mar. Anna Rebecca Woodland (free person of color) 1855 May 15 [Source: AKC, Sacred Heart Ch.]

Stephen Adams (free person of color) mar. Joanna Cooper (free person of color) 1853 Dec 27 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Woodley]

John Armstrong (person of color) mar. Rachael Brooks (person of color) 1864 Feb 11 [Source: AKC, by B.H. Smith]

Henry Bailey (person of color) mar. Guillan Millard (enslaved by Anne Fowler) 1854 Dec 26 [Source: AKC, St. Joseph]

Abraham Barnes (free person of color) mar. Sophia [no surname given] (free person of color) 1845 Oct [Source: AKC, Medley Neck]

Benjamin Barnes (free person of color) mar. Sarah Ann Chesley (enslaved by Benjamin Gwinn Harris) 1845 Dec 25 [Source: AKC, St. Andrew’s]

Charles Barnes (free person of color) mar. Emily Wileman 1850 Jun 3 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Creighton, Medley Neck]

David Barnes (enslaved by Mrs. Edmund Plowden) mar. Maria Burroughs (enslaved by Dr. William Plowden) 1856 Oct 11 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

David Barnes (enslaved by Edmund Plowden) mar. Maria Burroughs (enslaved by Dr. William Plowden) 1856 Oct 11 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

George Washington Barnes (free person of color) mar. Patricia Ann Cadden (free person of color) 1854 Apr 17 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Creighton, St. Johns]

Hanson Barnes (free person of color) mar. Eliza Watts (free person of color) 1846 Feb 24 [Source: AKC ]

George Beal (free person of color) mar. Mary B. Hall (free person of color) 1831 Feb 3 [Source: Fresco, St. Mary’s Co. Circuit Court]

Charles Henry Bennett (person of color) mar. Rachel Annie Briscoe (person of color) 1855 Dec 26 [Source: AKC, William & Mary]

Joe Biscoe mar. Matilda Dunkinson 1849 Apr 26 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Thomas Lilly, S.J., Newtown]

William Edward Blackistone (enslaved by Mr. Dillow) mar. Caroline Williams (non-Catholic, enslaved by Mr. Keys) 1854 May 20 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Creighton, Leonardtown]

Benedict Bowling (free person of color) mar. Mary Ann Washington (free person of color) 1857 Aug 10 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

James Alex Branson (person of color) mar. Annie Miles (person of color) 1842 Jan 12 [Source: AKC]

John Henry Branson (free person of color) mar. Henrietta Collins (free person of color) 1859 May 15 [Source: Fresco, Catholic Records for Northern Part of St. Mary’s Co. 1858-]

Henry Brown (free person of color) mar. Susan Butler (free person of color) 1831 Jan 3 [Source: AKC]

John Brown (free person of color) mar. Mary Donsima Lee (free person of color) 1846 Jan 25 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Enders, S.J., St. John]

Levi Brown (enslaved by George H. Morgan) mar. Pamelia [no surname given] (enslaved by Lansden Thomas) 1862 Mar 29 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings, “witnessed by 162 negroes”]

Noah Brown mar. Sarah Cadden 1856 Mar 28 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings (mis-indexed as “Cathen”)]

Noah Brown (free person of color) mar. Sarah Catham (free person of color) 1856 Mar 28 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

John Bryan (free person of color) mar. Catherine Lawrence (free person of color) 1819 Jul 15 [Source: Fresco]

Richard Bryan (free person of color) mar. Elizabeth Reed (free person of color) 1833 Dec 25 [Source: AKC]

William Bryan mar. Elizabeth Mason 1812 Jul 18 [Source: Fresco]

William Bryan mar. Tippett Delia 1829 Nov 5 [Source: Fresco, St. Mary’s Co. Circuit Court]

William Edward Bryant (free person of color) mar. Ataway Somerville (free person of color) 1841 Apr 1 [Source: AKC, Medley Neck]

John Bush (free person of color) mar. Ann Elizabeth Wilder 1843 Aug 16 [Source: AKC, Oakley, All Saints Ep Ch (Chronicles, 1955 Nov)]

Benedict Butler (free person of color) mar. Mary Rachel Butler (free person of color) 1854 Jan 3 [Source: AKC, Sacred Heart Ch]

Charles Butler (free person of color) mar. Mary McConelin (free person of color) 1831 Jun 7 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. J.A. Neill, S.J., Newtown]

Henry Butler (free person of color) mar. Josephine Washington (free person of color) 1854 Jan 29 [Source: AKC]

Henry Butler (free person of color) mar. Elizabeth Butler (free person of color) 1832 Jan 16 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. J.A. Neill, S.J., Newtown]

Moses Butler (enslaved by Sylvester Costigan) mar. Eugenia Mills (enslaved by James Spalding) 1858 Feb 7 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings, St. Aloysius]

Norris Butler mar. Eliza Thomas 1854 Dec 26 [Source: AKC, St. Joseph]

Thomas Butler (free person of color) mar. Milly Mason (free person of color) 1808 Apr 23 [Source: AKC]

Aloysius Thomas Carter (free person of color) mar. Jane Anna Adams (mixed race) 1851 Jan 6 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Ignatius Carter (free person of color) mar. Eleanor Spink (free person of color) 1823 Feb 3 [Source: Fresco, St. Mary’s Co. Circuit Court]

James Carter (free person of color) mar. Elizabeth Harris (free person of color) 1846 Dec 30 [Source: AKC, Oakley, All Saints Ep. Ch. (Chronicles, 1955 Nov)]

James Carter (free person of color) mar. Eliza Stewart 1841 Apr 25 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Enders, S.J., Newtown]

Jesse Carter (free person of color) mar. Clare Higdon 1811 Feb 3 [Source: Fresco, St. Mary’s Co. Circuit Court]

Joseph Carter (free person of color) mar. Betty Ann Thomas (free person of color) 1856 Mar 28 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Sylvester Carter (free person of color) mar. Mary Ann Adams (free person of color) 1854 Jun 15 [Source: AKC, St. Joseph]

Thomas Carter (free person of color) mar. Elizabeth Boarman (enslaved by James T.M. Raley) 1854 May 21 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Nota, St. Jospeh’s]

George Catherson (free person of color) mar. Sarah Maria (or Sally Maria) Holly (free person of color) 1856 May 5 [Source: AKC]

Joseph Collins (free person of color) mar. Elizabeth Curtis (free person of color) 1856 Jul 30 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Joseph Henry Combs (free person of color) mar. Mary Dorsey (free person of color) 1851 Jan 23 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Newtown, Fr. Woodley]

John Contee/Countess (free person of color) mar. Rosie Jackson (enslaved by John B. Abell) 1862 Feb 21 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Miller]

Lewis Cooper (free person of color) mar. Ann Butler (free person of color) 1819 Feb 2 [Source: Fresco, St. Mary’s Co. Circuit Court]

James Woodland Curtis (free person of color) mar. Maria Trest (free person of color) 1856 Mar 26 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Phillip Davis (free person of color) mar. Louisa Thomas (free person of color) 1859 Jan 5 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings, St. Aloysius]

John Dorsey mar. Chloe Ann Key 1855 Jul 31 [Source: AKC, St. Joseph]

Peter Henry Drury (free person of color) mar. Christina Saxton (free person of color) 1857 Jul 28 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Richard Gough mar. Pakerner Baker 1848 or 1849 May 13 [Source: AKC, Newtown]

James Greenwell (enslaved by Steven Gough) mar. Ann M. Harris (enslaved) Dr. F.C. Neale) 1857 Dec 26 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Francis Guyther mar. Louisa Guyther (person of color) 1851 Feb 2 [Source: AKC, St. Andrew Epis. Ch.]

William Francis Hall (free person of color) mar. Liza Carter (free person of color) 1857 Dec 29 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Thomas Harper (free person of color) mar. Susanna Curtis (free person of color) 1856 Mar 24 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Henry Hayden (enslaved by William Hayden) mar. Lucy Forrest (enslaved by B. Gough) 1846 Oct 3 [Source: AKC]

Henry Hayden (enslaved by Bernard Hayden) mar. Martha [no surname given] (enslaved by Henrietta Love) 1862 May 24 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

John Hill (enslaved) mar. Juliana Jordan (enslaved) 1851 Dec 25 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. St. Andrew Epis. Ch.]

John Holly (free person of color), age 55, widower mar. Matilda Dyson (person of color), age 50, widow 1861 Dec 10 [Source: AKC]

Joseph Holly (free person of color) mar. Priscilla Mason (free person of color) 1816 Jul 20 [Source: Fresco]

Thomas Holly (free person of color) mar. Ann Shorter (free person of color) 1844 Nov 30 [Source: AKC, Newtown]

Thomas Holly mar. Ann Bean 1816 Mar 15 [Source: Fresco]

William Holly (free person of color) mar. Mary Butler 1854 Jan 3 [Source: AKC, Sacred Heart]

John Holt (free person of color) mar. Mary Holly (free person of color) 1820 Jul 30 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Edelin, Newtown]

John Holton (free person of color) mar. Betty A. Garner (free person of color) 1862 Jul 11 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Ignatius Hutchins (free person of color) mar. Clara [no surname given] (enslaved by John H. Sothoron) 1840 Feb 29 [Source: AKC, Sacred Heart]

Samuel Hutchins (free person of color) mar. Eliza Curtis (free person of color) 1854 Mar 23 [Source: AKC, St. Joseph]

Gabriel Jackson (enslaved by Mrs. Abell) mar. Sarah Forrest (enslaved by James McElvie Hammett) 1844 Aug 4 [Source: AKC]

Shedrick Jones (free person of color), a Protestant mar. Mary Holly (free person of color) 1841 May 22 [Source: AKC, Newtown]

Henry Jordan (enslaved by William A. Combs) mar. Katty Simms (enslaved by William A. Combs) 1835 May 3 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Newtown, Rev. R.B. Hardy]

Frank Lee Kelley (enslaved by Chapman Billingsley) mar. Celeste Butler (enslaved by Sylvester Costigan) 1853 Dec 31 [Source: AKC, St. Josephs]

John Lawrence (free person of color) mar. Nancy Mason (free person of color) 1797 Mar 28 [Source: Fresco]

John Lawrence (free person of color) mar. Rebecca Mason (free person of color) 1814 Jan 10 [Source: Fresco]

William F. Lawrence (person of color) mar. Susan Somerville (person of color) 1839 Jun 25 [Source: AKC]

George Washington Maddox (free person of color) mar. Jane Butler (free person of color) 1854 Apr 18 [Source: AKC, Sacred Heart]

Benjamin Mason (free person of color) mar. Harriet Holly 1816 Nov 5 [Source: Fresco]

John Mason (free person of color) mar. Charity Butler (free person of color) 1815 Mar 23 [Source: Fresco]

Joseph Mason mar. Sarah Holly 1802 Oct 30 [Source: Fresco, St. Mary’s Co. Circuit Court, William & Mary Parish records]

Richard Mason (free person of color) mar. Eliza Jane Bowman (person of color) 1851 Dec 25 [Source: AKC, St. Andrew’s]

Michael Mills (enslaved by Robert Manning) mar. Lucy Ann Blackistone (enslaved by Miss Polly Ford) 1835 May 3 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. R.B. Hardy, Newtown]

Daniel Henry Moore (free person of color) mar. Rosa Dorsey (free person of color) 1854 Jun 3 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Woodley, Newtown]

John Murray (free person of color) mar. Elizabeth Bryant (free person of color) 1850 Jun 20 [Source: AKC]

John Murray (free person of color) mar. Nancy Cole 1809 Jan 23 [Source: Fresco, St. Mary’s Co. Circuit Court]

John Murray mar. Ann Crawley 1835 Dec 22 [Source: Fresco]

Jackson Patterson (free person of color) mar. Katy Long (free person of color) 1862 Jul 18 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Luceon L.B. Pipseco mar. Mary T. Rustin (mixed race) 1856 Sep 8 [Source: AKC]

Jeremiah Rhyman mar. Nancy Holly 1798 Nov 28 [Source: Fresco]

Jeremiah Rhyman mar. Ann Bullock 1795 Apr 28 [Source: Fresco, St. Mary’s Co. Circuit Court]

George Sewell (free person of color) mar. Stone Jane (free person of color) 1830 Apr 19 [Source: AKC]

William Shammel (free person of color) mar. Julia Ann Butler (free person of color) 1854 May 30 [Source: AKC, St. Joseph (by William Shamwell “of Chaptico”)]

Thomas Shaw (free person of color) mar. Miley Dickerson (free person of color) 1846 Dec 26 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Enders, St. John’s]

Jacob Smith (free person of color) mar. Maria Ready (free person of color) 1846 May 5 [Source: AKC]

Washington Smith (enslaved by Benjamin Harris) mar. Mary Johnson (enslaved by William Combs) 1847 Jan 2 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Enders, St. Johns]

Thomas Benedict Somerville (free person of color) mar. Ann Priscilla Shaw (free person of color) 1854 Jan 3 [Source: AKC, St. Joseph’s]

William Somerville (free person of color) mar. Eliza Ann Somerville (free person of color) 1845 Mar 23 [Source: AKC, St. Andrew’s]

Alexander Stephens (enslaved by Dr. Frank Neale) mar. Lisa Butler (enslaved by James Wilkerson) 1856 Nov 19 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Henry Thomas (free person of color) mar. Catharine Butler (free person of color) 1821 Feb 23 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Leonard, Newtowne]

John Thomas (mixed race) mar. Mary Cole (free person of color) 1858 Jan 17 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. J.C. Moore, St. Aloysius]

James H. Trice (free person of color) mar. Ellen Lansden (free person of color) 1855 Nov 4 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Samuel Watts (enslaved) mar. Eliza Guyther (enslaved) 1850 Nov 3 [Source: AKC, St. Andrew Epis. Ch.]

James Wilson (free person of color) mar. Jane Harris (free person of color) 1840 Sep 3 [Source: AKC]

Yokol Wilson (free mixed race) mar. Sally Ann Briscoe (free mixed race) 1860 Jan 1 [Source: AKC, St. Aloy]

Richard Winter (enslaved) mar. Juliana Stuart (free person of color) 1862 Feb 22 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Ignatius Woodland mar. Mary Elizabeth Adams 1854 Nov 23 [Source: Fresco, Catholic Records for Upper Part of St. Mary’s Co. 1819-1857]

John Woodland (free person of color) mar. Catherine Brown (enslaved by Mrs. Medley) 1854 Aug 19 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings, Sacred Heart]

John Thomas Woodland (free person of color) mar. Christian Thomas (free person of color) 1852 Jun 18 [Source: AKC, Fr. Woodley]

Primus Woodland mar. Ann Wood 1809 Mar 21 [Source: Fresco, St. Mary’s Co. Circuit Court]

Thomas Yates (enslaved by W.T.A. Reeder) mar. Ann Delia Dotson (enslaved by Landsden Thomas) 1854 Aug 13 [Source: AKC, St. Joseph]

Henry Young (enslaved by Bernard Hayden) mar. Delilah (enslaved) 1856 Nov 9 [Source: AKC]

James Young (free mixed race) mar. Christiana Farr (free mixed race) 1857 Nov 19 [Source: AKC, records of Fr. Cottings]

Alphabetized by bride