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Very Early Details and Census Data
*(One of Louisville Settlement's First Families were John and Martha Donne, child: John, and slave Uncle Cato.) Cato Watts, the first slave in Louisville owned by Captain John Donne, was hanged for the murder of John Donne in the early 1780s. *York (a Clark family slave) b. 1772 – d. 1832 Accompanied the Lewis and Clark Expedition , 1803-6, as the first African American to cross the U. S. coast to coast. After the expedition he lived in Louisville and worked as a wagon driver. He was freed after 1815.
1800s African-American Census and Records *By the 1850's Kentucky was annually exporting between 2,500 and 4,000 of it's slaves down river. Jefferson County Census 1810 4,347 Slaves, 1 Free Black, 13,399 Whites, 113 Indians. Louisville Population: 1,357. 1830 6,934 Slaves, 17,055 Free Blacks. Louisville Census (all population numbers from US census unless otherwise noted) Total Free Blacks Slaves 1790 200 1800 359 1810 1,357 1820 4,012 93 1,331 1827 7,063 ** 1830 10,341 1835 19,967 ** 1840 21,210 619 3,430 1845 37,218 ** 1850 45,194 1,538 5,432 1860 68,033 1,917 4,903 1870 100,753 1880 123,758 1890 161,129 1900 204,731 ( **number from Ben Casseday's History of Louisville 1852)
 *Matt Garrison's Slave Pen There has been some confusion on it's exact location. Some have recorded it to be located at First and Jefferson Streets, others have reported it on 2nd between Main and Market. To prevent escapes, traders kept slaves shackled in pens when not being displayed to buyers. Matthew Garrison was a Kentucky slave speculator..
*Arterburn Brothers Slave Pen S.E. corner of 2nd & Main The Arterburns advertised cash for farm hands and others
*Kentucky Nonimportation Act of 1833 halted the transfer of blacks for resale but was repealed in 1849..
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Sources:
Kentucky Historical Society http://migration.kentucky.gov/kyhs/hmdb/
The Louisville Directory for the Year 1832 Published By Richard W. Otis. James Virden, Printer. 1832.
*census,gov
*History of Louisville: From Its Earliest Settlement Till the Year 1852 By Ben Casseday Published 1852 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Invisible Louisville History
Researched & Edited By Misty M. Coston
*2011 - 2012 Edition |
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Slavery Era |