Thomas Clagett (b. 1790 - d. 1873)
MSA SC 5496-2793
Slave Owner, Prince George's County, Maryland
Biography:
Thomas Clagett was a Prince George’s County slave owner during the Antebellum period. He was born on January 10, 1791 to Thomas and Sarah White Clagett. Clagett inherited Weston, the family plantation near Upper Marlboro, and built a brick house over the ruins of the original dwelling that had burned down during the Revolutionary War. In the War of 1812, Clagett served as a private until he was wounded in the arm. Around 1812, he married Harriet White, the daughter of Joseph and Lucy Clagett White and his cousin on both sides. Thomas and Harriet had eight children, of whom only Thomas William (born in 1815), Thomas White, Lucy Ann, Eliza, Charles (1819), and Robert (1826) survived into adulthood. Harriet died in 1836, leaving him a widower with six children. On November 13, 1838, Clagett married Adeline Mundell, the widow of Alexander Mundell and the daughter of Dr. Thomas Ramsey and Sallie Clagett Hodges. Thomas and Adeline had five children; Sarah Hodges (born in 1839), Thomas (1840), Gonsalvo (1843), Adeline, and Rachel. The Clagetts belonged to Trinity Church, an Episcopal Church in Upper Marlboro.
According to the 1850 census, Thomas Clagett held 66,140 dollars worth of real estate. In that same year, he reported owning ninety-four slaves. Clagett was known as an astute businessman, whose complicated will stipulated certain investments for the purposes of earning the accrued interests as well as dividing up his many properties. By the time he died, Thomas Clagett not only owned Weston, the large family estate, but also Strawberry Hill, Osbourne Farm, properties that he had purchased from the estate of Colonel David Crawford and Stephen Belt. These lands altogether added up to over eight hundred acres. With these vast assets, Clagett was able to support his widow, all ten living children, and their families after his death. Clagett, however, was only able to turn a tobacco farm into an economic empire with hard work by his slaves.
As a large slave owner, Thomas Clagett had many slaves run away from Weston. Some slaves ran away multiple times, including William Burgess or Gassaway (who ran in 1848, 1849, and 1850), Leonard or Len (1849 and 1851), Henry Carroll (1852 and 1854), and Nat Burgess (1850 and 1852). Other slaves seemed to have only run away once, such as Isaac (who ran in 1849), Charles or Washington Burgess (1850), George (1853), Mathew Smallwood (1855), Lewis (1856), and Bill and Isaac Brown (1857). It is interesting to note that despite his large number of slaves and a relatively even ratio of males-to-females, Clagett did not report any female fugitive slaves. This may be mostly a reflection of the fact that male slaves attempted escape much more often than did female, who often had children to care for. It may also indicate that Clagett did not as actively pursue runaway women or that Clagett’s female slaves were more content to remain at Weston than were his male slaves. In either case, this finding is illustrative of gender distinctions on Clagett’s plantation.
Thomas Clagett died on
August 27,
1873 at the age of eighty-two. He was
buried at Weston, in the family cemetery.
According to Stones and Bones: Cemetery Records of Prince
George’s
County Maryland, his tombstone describes him as “an upright man
that feared
God.” His eldest son, Thomas William,
inherited Weston, which is presently owned by his descendents who raise
thoroughbred horses there.
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