Freedom Papers: An Atlantic Odyssey in the Age of Emancipation

286 Pages·2012·1.62 MB·English

by  Rebecca J. Scott

FREEDOM PAPERS

FREEDOM PAPERS
AN ATLANTIC ODYSSEY
IN THE AGE OF EMANCIPATION
Rebecca J. Scott and
Jean M. Hébrard
harvard university press
Cambridge, Massachusetts
London, En gland
2012
Copyright © 2012 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Scott, Rebecca J. (Rebecca Jarvis), 1950–
Freedom papers : an Atlantic odyssey in the age of emancipation / Rebecca J. Scott
and Jean M. Hébrard.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-674-04774-7 (alk. paper)
1. Tinchant family. 2. Creoles—Atlantic Ocean Region—Migrations.
3. Creoles—Atlantic Ocean Region—Social conditions. 4. Creoles—Atlantic Ocean
Region—Biography. 5. Blacks—Atlantic Ocean Region—Migrations. 6. Blacks—
Atlantic Ocean Region—Social conditions. 7. Blacks—Atlantic Ocean Region—
Biography. I. Hébrard, Jean M. II. Title.
E29.C73S36 2012
305.896'0163—dc23 2011038130
For our spouses,
Peter Railton and Martha Jones

CONTENTS
Prologue: The Cigar Maker Writes to the General 1
1 “Rosalie, Black Woman of the Poulard Nation” 6
2 “Rosalie . . . My Slave” 20
3 Citizen Rosalie 49
4 Crossing the Gulf 65
5 The Land of the Rights of Man 83
6 Joseph and His Brothers 100
7 “The Term Public Rights Should Be Made to Mean Something” 121
8 Horizons of Commerce 139
9 Citizens beyond Nation 161
Epilogue: “For a Racial Reason” 173
Notes 193
Ac know ledg ments and Collaborations 243
Index 253
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Three Generations of the Vincent/Tinchant Family MichelEtienne HenriMarie FrançoiseMarie FrançoiseouisNicolas François JosephditeRosalieVINCENT[VINCENT]diteSuzette BAYOTDUHARTTINCHANTca. 1730–1804ca. 1767–?ca. 1778–18401772–18491766–? JacquesPierre DUHARTMarie-Louise Étienne HilaireLouis AlfredJuste ThéodoreÉlisabethditeDieudonné TINCHANT1810–1877diteRésinetteditCadetDUHARTVINCENTca. 1798–18711814–18701799–1883 Antoine ÉdouardFrançois Louis[José]]TINCHANTPierreFrançois Ernest JosephJuste [JulesTINCHANTTINCHANT1839–1923TINCHANTTINCHANTTINCHANTMarried to Hubertine Plomdeur1827–18991836–19021824–19001833–18661841–1915Married toMarried toLater married to Married to Octavie RieffelStéphanie GonzalesMarie Catherine Léonardine YonckLouise Debergue Notes:The terms ditand dite, meaning “called,” were used in French-language legal records to indicate a nickname or alias. A solid line (—) has been used to denote a marriage recognized by the state; a broken line (--) has been used to signify a conjugal relationship not recognizedby the state.Names by which individuals are most often identified in the text are underlined.
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