Nicholas Bryar Massenburg daybook

Collection

Identifier: MS 0374

Staff Only

Finding aid note: Stored off-site at the Library Service Center. Please request this material via woodson@rice.edu or call 713-348-2586.

Scope and Contents

The Massenburg daybook covers the years 1852-1861. The daily entries deal primarily with agricultural and weather conditions, and progress reports. Social and personal activities are also noted (marriages, deaths, illnesses, meetings, church sermons, etc.). Sales of land, equipment, and enslaved people are sometimes noted, as well as prices. There are numerous monthly summaries, and a yearly list of all enslaved people and overseers at Massenburg’s farms at Woodleaf (bought in 1830) and Egypt. A list of enslaved people and their ages is at the end of the book. Notations from February 2, 1855 through April 17, 1855 were made by another person as Massenburg was ill with pneumonia.

Dates

Creation: 1852 - 1861

Creator

Massenburg, Nicholas Bryar (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

This material is open for research.

Stored offsite at the Library Service Center and require 24-hour notice for retrieval. Please contact the Woodson Research Center at 713-348-2586 or woodson@rice.edu for more information.

Use Restrictions

Permission to publish materials from this item must be obtained from the Woodson Research Center, Fondren Library, Rice University.

Biographical Note

Nicholas Bryar Massenburg, planter of Franklin County, N.C., owned Woodleaf and Egypt plantations. Massenburg married Lucy Henry Davis in December 1831 and they had nine children who lived to maturity, among them, Lucy Cargill Massenburg.

Extent

0.25 Linear Feet ( (1 bound volume))

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract:

Nicholas Bryar Massenburg, planter of Franklin County, N.C., owned Woodleaf and Egypt plantations. In this daybook, Massenburg describes weather conditions, social activities, and sales of land and equipment. Yearly lists of enslaved people, their ages and overseers are also included.