Jane Uncles testifies that her formerly enslaved daughter was sentenced to fifteen years in prison for defending herself during a beating by her enslaver
Dublin Core
Title
Jane Uncles testifies that her formerly enslaved daughter was sentenced to fifteen years in prison for defending herself during a beating by her enslaver
Description
Affidavit of Jane Uncles, who says that in 1863 her 15 year old daughter was convicted of striking her mistress & sentenced to 10 years in prison; Uncles says that her daughter defended herself from the beating which her enslaver was in the process of administering to her; the daughter is still in jail. The endorsement notes the right of any of God’s living creatures to defend themselves.
Date
10/21/1865
Coverage
Howard Co, MD
Alternative Title
A-9884
Text Item Type Metadata
Text
Affidavit of a Maryland Freedwoman
District of Columbia City of Washington 21st day of Oct 1865
I Jane Uncles a resident of Brookville Montgomery County Maryland having been duly sworn doth depose and say that on or about the 1st of May 1863 my daughter Hanna Warfield, who was then held as a slave by one Thomas Dorsey of Hoods Mills Howard County Maryland, was tried, convicted, and sentenced to the State Penitentiary at Baltimore Maryland for the term of ten (10) years I was not present at the trial but understand that my child was sentenced to the Penitentiary for striking Mrs Dorsey and knocking her down. They made it appear that my daughter (so I understood) Hanna made an unprovoked attack upon Mrs Dorsey when the truth was that Mrs Dorsey was whipping her and my daughter goaded by the lash struck her
Hanna when sentenced to the Penitentiary was fifteen (15) years of age.
her
Jane X Uncles
mark
[Endorsement] Office Supt R.F. and A.L. Dist of Columbia Oct 21st 1865 Respectfully forwarded for the consideration of Col Jno Eaton Jr Ass't Com'r Dist of Columbia with the opinion expressed that the ends of Justice have most certainly been satisfied. This girl having been incarcerated 2 yrs and five months for doing that which any of Gods living creatures have a right to do defend themselves against brutal assaults come from where they may Wm. F. Spurgin Capt Supt Dist of Columbia
Affidavit of Jane Uncles, 21 Oct. 1865, Unregistered Letters Received, ser. 457, DC Asst. Comr., RG 105, [A-9884]. Sworn before a Freedmen's Bureau agent. A notation on the outside of the file reads "Action taken in this case."
District of Columbia City of Washington 21st day of Oct 1865
I Jane Uncles a resident of Brookville Montgomery County Maryland having been duly sworn doth depose and say that on or about the 1st of May 1863 my daughter Hanna Warfield, who was then held as a slave by one Thomas Dorsey of Hoods Mills Howard County Maryland, was tried, convicted, and sentenced to the State Penitentiary at Baltimore Maryland for the term of ten (10) years I was not present at the trial but understand that my child was sentenced to the Penitentiary for striking Mrs Dorsey and knocking her down. They made it appear that my daughter (so I understood) Hanna made an unprovoked attack upon Mrs Dorsey when the truth was that Mrs Dorsey was whipping her and my daughter goaded by the lash struck her
Hanna when sentenced to the Penitentiary was fifteen (15) years of age.
her
Jane X Uncles
mark
[Endorsement] Office Supt R.F. and A.L. Dist of Columbia Oct 21st 1865 Respectfully forwarded for the consideration of Col Jno Eaton Jr Ass't Com'r Dist of Columbia with the opinion expressed that the ends of Justice have most certainly been satisfied. This girl having been incarcerated 2 yrs and five months for doing that which any of Gods living creatures have a right to do defend themselves against brutal assaults come from where they may Wm. F. Spurgin Capt Supt Dist of Columbia
Affidavit of Jane Uncles, 21 Oct. 1865, Unregistered Letters Received, ser. 457, DC Asst. Comr., RG 105, [A-9884]. Sworn before a Freedmen's Bureau agent. A notation on the outside of the file reads "Action taken in this case."
Collection
Citation
“Jane Uncles testifies that her formerly enslaved daughter was sentenced to fifteen years in prison for defending herself during a beating by her enslaver,” Black Maryland in the Civil War—A Microedition of the Freedmen and Southern Society Project, accessed June 8, 2026, https://fssp.artinterp2.org/items/show/18.