Zebulon Mitchell (b. 1787 - d. 1861)
MSA SC 5496-51896
Property and Slave Owner, Dorchester County, Maryland
Biography:
Zebulon Mitchell, Sr. was a property owner in Ross's Neck, Dorchester County, Maryland.1 He was born around 1787. Mitchell was married to Casander Mitchell (1801-1855) and one of their children was Martha Catherine Mitchell (1845-1851).2 According to the 1830 census, Mitchell had a total of nine persons (free white, slave, and free colored) in his household. There were seven free white persons and two slaves in the household.3 Ten years later, in 1840, Mitchell was residing in District 4 with a household of 14 individuals. Two out of the 14 were slaves.4 In 1850, was residing with his family of 13 in District 1 of Dorchester County, Maryland. Mitchell was listed as a 64 year old farmer with a $3000 estate value.5 By 1860, Mitchell was residing with nine family members who were presumably his children. These individuals were: Ann (25), Mary (16), Robert (18), Amanda (19), Thomas (30), John (26), George (24), Shadrack (22), Zebulon (28). At this time, Mitchell had built a substantial fortune as a farmer. His personal estate value was $6,000 and his real estate value was $6,000.6
On August 28, 1824, Mitchell posted a runaway advertisement in the Cambridge Chronicle for a slave named Alley saying that she escaped "on Sunday, the 22d instant," just six days earlier.7 Mitchell referred to his slave as "Alley," but she went by Azley Green. Mitchell described her as being "about twenty years of age, and took with her a female Child, about fifteen months old."8 Presumably, this was Alley's child whom she sought freedom for as well. Mitchell continued "Alley is a tolerable bright mulatto, a common size; slow spoken, and has a down look when spoken to, supposed to have had on when she went away, a striped yellow and white cotton frock, and a yellow silk hat; she took with her, a lead colored cloth shawl, which stole from her mistress."9 Mitchell provided a detailed description of Alley and also accused her of stealing a shawl. Mitchell believed that Alley made her way to Baltimore, as she had relations in that area. Mitchell offered proposed reward amounts of ten dollars if she was taken in the neighborhood, twenty dollars if taken in the county, and twenty five dollars if taken out of the state of Maryland.
Zebulon Mitchell died on December 19, 1861 and was buried in Greenlawn Cemetery, located in Cambridge, Dorchester County, Maryland.10
1. "Twenty-Five Dollars Reward." Cambridge Chronicle. August 28, 1824.
2. "Zebulon Mitchell." Find A Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=mitchell&GSfn=zebulon&GSbyrel=all&GSdyrel=all&GSob=n&GRid=50018523&df=all&
4. U.S. CENSUS BUREAU (Census Bureau, MD) 1840. "Zebulon Mitchell." Dorchester County, Maryland. Line 2. Page 3. Film Reel: SCM 4719. MSA SM61-109.
5. U.S. CENSUS BUREAU (Census Bureau, MD) 1850. "Zebulon Mitchell." Dorchester County, Maryland. Line 41. Page 59. Film Reel: SCM 1505-1. MSA SM61-164.
7. "Twenty-Five Dollars Reward." Cambridge Chronicle. August 28, 1824.
8. Ibid.
9. Ibid.
10. "Zebulon Mitchell." Find A Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=mitchell&GSfn=zebulon&GSbyrel=all&GSdyrel=all&GSob=n&GRid=50018523&df=all&
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