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Robert and Rebecca (Thorne) Howard in the 1880 federal census
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| Image from 1880 federal census for Charleston, SC |
And there are Valeria's parents (Jane's great-great-grandparents), Robert and Rebecca Howard, on the third and fourth lines.
But let's take a step back to see how the census entries work. The name at the top of the census entry is the head of the household being enumerated. Everyone in the group below that name is defined by his/her relationship to the head of the household.
Thus, the head of the household here is Rebecca's father, Philip M. Thorn (the final "e" in "Thorne" is there more often than not; this is a "not"), "Mu" for "mulatto," age 66, and he's "at home," meaning that he's not working. In this instance, the explanation for this is given in the next column, which I didn't have room to include: he has apparently been disabled by rheumatism.
The next name down is "Elizabeth." Because she has the same last name as the person above her, her last name is omitted. She's also "Mu" for "mulatto," a female, age 55, and is "keeping house."
As already noted, there is Robert Howard, third down from the top. He's also identified as "Mu" for "mulatto," is 35 years old, and is identified as "son in law," and is a tinsmith by trade.
Underneath Robert Howard's name is his wife, Rebecca. Since Robert is a "son-in-law," the implication is that the Rebecca who shares his last name "Howard" is pretty clearly Philip M. Thorne's daughter. And of course that information is corroborated by Valeria's death certificate, which we saw here. Rebecca is also "Mu," is 28 years old, and is a dressmaker by trade.
And underneath Rebecca's name is the first of two granddaughters, Cecelia, age 12, and Valley, age 10. "Valley" is of course our "Valeria": Jane's great-grandmother.
There is another clue that is immediately useful to us here and that is the number "7" at the top left. This page of the census covers Henrietta Street in Charleston, and that's their house number: 7 Henrietta Street.
So we've gotten one census hit and have learned a lot—in fact, from Philip M. Thorne's age of 66 in 1880, we're already back almost at the very beginning of the 1800s: Rebecca's father was born around 1814.
What else does the federal census tell us about Rebecca Thorne Howard's family in Charleston? The federal census is done every ten years. There was no point in looking for them in the 1890 census because that's the one that was destroyed by water damage in the wake of a 1921 fire at the Commerce Building in Washington. So the only other step would be backwards to 1870.
And there they are again, although this time, they are being enumerated as a second and apparently separate household from Phillip and Elizabeth Thorne. But I'm not so sure that they in fact lived separately: note that underneath Rebecca Thorne Howard's name are two more "Thornes": Harriet and Thomas. They turn out to be the youngest children of Phillip and Elizabeth Thorne, which makes them Rebecca's siblings.
Underneath their names is one "George Smith" and I haven't a clue who he is. But underneath George's name is Cecilia Howard: Valeria's older sister. (Remember that Valeria wasn't born until after this census was taken.)
The 1870 census doesn't identify street addresses for households, but we know from other sources that the Thornes were living at 7 Henrietta. The census of course reflects the American preoccupation with race: the third column following each name is marked with an "M" for "mulatto", i.e., mixed-race.
The next census to be checked would be 1860, one year before the beginning of the Civil War. But the Civil War stands like a giant blank stone wall across most African-American family histories. The reason that the Civil War is this incredible roadblock is slavery itself. It's appallingly and immorally simple: slaves were not enumerated by name in the federal censuses taken before the Civil War. Almost all of them were known familiarly by a first name only (no last name), and when they were counted in the federal census, it was only as a warm body of a certain age, gender, and race. The slave owner would be listed by name, followed by only the number, gender, and age of each slave.
Here is a random example from the slave schedule for Charleston in the 1860 federal census:
Here we have a Charlestonian (Ward 3) slave-owner named Susan Armstrong who owned three slaves, all black: a female aged 55, a male aged 30, and another female aged 28. No names. No other trace of their humanity here, for that blotting out of humanity is part of how slavery worked.
If you're doing African-American family history, how do you know if one of these slaves is your ancestor? The answer is that it can be very difficult and in many cases impossible to know. The best bet is to try to triangulate sources such as slave schedules in the census, probate records of slave-owners, and bills of sale. But one can spend a long time at it and not come up with much in the way of results.
I would suggest two additional resources. The first would be the reference/local history librarian at your local public library. I've yet to run into one who doesn't absolutely love to help answer questions like these. If they don't know the answers directly, they should be able to point you in the direction of someone who does. The second would be the local chapters of genealogy clubs and the like—African American genealogy clubs in particular, because they will have the most experience in trying to break through the "brick wall" of African American family history that is slavery.
So what about the Thornes of Charleston in 1860? We already know that Rebecca's father Phillip goes back as far as 1814. (Note also that his wife, Elizabeth, apparently only aged six years in a decade; nevertheless she seems to have been born in the early 1820s.) What—if anything—will the 1860 federal census tell us about them?
But let's take a step back to see how the census entries work. The name at the top of the census entry is the head of the household being enumerated. Everyone in the group below that name is defined by his/her relationship to the head of the household.
Thus, the head of the household here is Rebecca's father, Philip M. Thorn (the final "e" in "Thorne" is there more often than not; this is a "not"), "Mu" for "mulatto," age 66, and he's "at home," meaning that he's not working. In this instance, the explanation for this is given in the next column, which I didn't have room to include: he has apparently been disabled by rheumatism.
The next name down is "Elizabeth." Because she has the same last name as the person above her, her last name is omitted. She's also "Mu" for "mulatto," a female, age 55, and is "keeping house."
As already noted, there is Robert Howard, third down from the top. He's also identified as "Mu" for "mulatto," is 35 years old, and is identified as "son in law," and is a tinsmith by trade.
Underneath Robert Howard's name is his wife, Rebecca. Since Robert is a "son-in-law," the implication is that the Rebecca who shares his last name "Howard" is pretty clearly Philip M. Thorne's daughter. And of course that information is corroborated by Valeria's death certificate, which we saw here. Rebecca is also "Mu," is 28 years old, and is a dressmaker by trade.
And underneath Rebecca's name is the first of two granddaughters, Cecelia, age 12, and Valley, age 10. "Valley" is of course our "Valeria": Jane's great-grandmother.
There is another clue that is immediately useful to us here and that is the number "7" at the top left. This page of the census covers Henrietta Street in Charleston, and that's their house number: 7 Henrietta Street.
So we've gotten one census hit and have learned a lot—in fact, from Philip M. Thorne's age of 66 in 1880, we're already back almost at the very beginning of the 1800s: Rebecca's father was born around 1814.
What else does the federal census tell us about Rebecca Thorne Howard's family in Charleston? The federal census is done every ten years. There was no point in looking for them in the 1890 census because that's the one that was destroyed by water damage in the wake of a 1921 fire at the Commerce Building in Washington. So the only other step would be backwards to 1870.
Robert and Rebecca (Thorne) Howard in the 1870 federal census
Here are Robert and Rebecca (Thorne) Howard in the 1870 federal census: |
| Image from 1870 federal census for Charleston, SC |
Underneath their names is one "George Smith" and I haven't a clue who he is. But underneath George's name is Cecilia Howard: Valeria's older sister. (Remember that Valeria wasn't born until after this census was taken.)
The 1870 census doesn't identify street addresses for households, but we know from other sources that the Thornes were living at 7 Henrietta. The census of course reflects the American preoccupation with race: the third column following each name is marked with an "M" for "mulatto", i.e., mixed-race.
The next census to be checked would be 1860, one year before the beginning of the Civil War. But the Civil War stands like a giant blank stone wall across most African-American family histories. The reason that the Civil War is this incredible roadblock is slavery itself. It's appallingly and immorally simple: slaves were not enumerated by name in the federal censuses taken before the Civil War. Almost all of them were known familiarly by a first name only (no last name), and when they were counted in the federal census, it was only as a warm body of a certain age, gender, and race. The slave owner would be listed by name, followed by only the number, gender, and age of each slave.
Here is a random example from the slave schedule for Charleston in the 1860 federal census:
 |
| Image from the slave schedule for Charleston, Ward 3, of the 1860 federal census |
If you're doing African-American family history, how do you know if one of these slaves is your ancestor? The answer is that it can be very difficult and in many cases impossible to know. The best bet is to try to triangulate sources such as slave schedules in the census, probate records of slave-owners, and bills of sale. But one can spend a long time at it and not come up with much in the way of results.
I would suggest two additional resources. The first would be the reference/local history librarian at your local public library. I've yet to run into one who doesn't absolutely love to help answer questions like these. If they don't know the answers directly, they should be able to point you in the direction of someone who does. The second would be the local chapters of genealogy clubs and the like—African American genealogy clubs in particular, because they will have the most experience in trying to break through the "brick wall" of African American family history that is slavery.
So what about the Thornes of Charleston in 1860? We already know that Rebecca's father Phillip goes back as far as 1814. (Note also that his wife, Elizabeth, apparently only aged six years in a decade; nevertheless she seems to have been born in the early 1820s.) What—if anything—will the 1860 federal census tell us about them?
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