Photocopy of “The Story of Peter Boyd’s Life” as he told it to Mary C. (Mrs. George E.) Rix, in Keokuk, Iowa; copied by Elizabeth Irwin Elder in 1941. A native of Virginia, Peter Boyd was a former slave of Henry Clay. Boyd’s reminiscences discuss his life in Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Arkansas. He worked in gold mines, tended Henry Clay’s horses, and worked as a blacksmith. He mentions meeting General Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren. During the Civil War he was captured at Arkansas Fort, and taken to St. Louis. He then worked on steamboats, and traveled up the Missouri River to the Idaho gold mines on the steamboat Kilkarney. He was later freed, and settled in Keokuk, Iowa. (9 pages) [accession number 76-0001], 1900 Mar 15
Item — Box: 1, Folder: 6
Identifier: D01386
Scope and Contents
From the Collection:
The Slaves and Slavery Collection is an artificial, or subject-based, collection comprising a variety of documents that have been placed in this collection over the years due to their common subject matter. Approximately half of the documents in the collection are receipts for sales of slaves, some of which were recorded in various courts. The collection also includes deeds of emancipation; personal correspondence; and broadsides offering rewards for the capture of runaway slaves.
Dates
- 1900 Mar 15
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research use.
Extent
From the Collection: 0.25 Cubic Feet ( (7 folders (96 items)))
Language of Materials
English
Repository Details
Part of the Missouri Historical Society Library and Research Center Repository