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Francois's room
The slaves’ rooms were very plain compared to the lavishly decorated main house. The walls were whitewashed, the pine floors were bare and unfinished, and the windows were covered with simple muslin curtains. The furnishings were cast-off, broken, and old pieces of furniture that may have once been used in the more elegant parts of the house, but were no longer good enough for the family and guests.
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19th-century sources, including census reports and notarized bills of sale, suggest that the following slaves occupied the slave quarters in 1860: Laurette (female, 42 years old), Rose (female, 25 years old), Julienne (female, 18 years old), and François (male, 16 years old).
François was Julienne’s brother and was purchased along with his sister in 1859. He probably ran errands, did the heavy housecleaning and gardening, and performed other chores, including acting as coachman. |
The indoor plumbing in the house was for the family and their guest, not for the slaves.
The slaves would have carried a small, metal, portable bathtub, such as this one, into the kitchen for use. The handle on the back of the tub allowed it to be hung from a peg if necessary.
Sitz/Hip Bath; galvanized tin; made by John C. Jewett Co., Buffalo, New York. |
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