I loved touring here. The house is wonderful. The civil war yes, any war is awful. Carrie and John did the right thing opened her door's gave aid to all who needed it... left a legacy for all of us.
So what are we to make of John and Carrie McGavock actions in November 1862? They owned 44 slaves. Shortly after the preliminary emancipation proclamation was issued, they “shipped” all their slave 5:59 into the deep south to prevent them from escaping North. This statement needs a whole lot more explanation and development. Shipped as in “shipped on consignment” for re- sale? Shipped as in already sold at auction and now delivered? Somehow the words “shipped” and “rather successfully” 6:23 seems to imply that for John and Carrie McGavock this was a profitable shipment of slaves. And just what happened to the individual consigned and shipped slaves? Respectfully, W.S.
The short answer is details are scant. Because the enslaved were sent under military escort it is quite likely they were put to work for the Confederate govt. We do know they did not return to Carnton during the war. John was renting slaves in 1864 because the people he and Carrie owned were gone.
Beautifully done video. This will teach so many, and having this resource is invaluable. After watching this, I feel like I’ve watched the preview for an upcoming blockbuster movie. Thank you to all who put so much time, energy and research into this effort, and Eric Jacobson for your brilliant narrative!
@@wmschooley1234 Eric does a wonderful job of adding nuance to a history that is too often painted only in broad strokes. He did that when he gave my family a personal tour of Carnton. As it happens, my great grandmother Mariah McGavock Otey Reddick (pictured at the 2:26 mark and again later) was one of the enslaved Africans who was shipped (perhaps under military escort per a handwritten message - shown at 5:59 - from John McGavock) further south. Mariah went south pregnant and gave birth to her last child with her first "husband" (as you know, the enslaved were 'matched") while in Montgomery, AL While there she worked in the household of Jeff Davis and, apparently, at a Confederate hospital as well. She also met my great grandfather Bolen Reddick. My mother passed down to me the oral family history that Mariah became a spy for the Union. Wow! Upon visiting Franklin, her grave at the Toussaint L'overture Cemetery and Carnton House with my wife in 2014, I was inspired to tell Mariah's and her family's story in an historical novel. After much research and with information generously shared by Eric Jacobson, local historians and researchers Thelma Battle, Rick Warwick and Tina Cahalan and the author of The Widow of the South, the late Robert Hicks, my wife and I published CLANDESTINE: The Times and Secret Life of Mariah Otey Reddick. The story in Clandestine is told from the vantage point of 'The Quarters' and the enslaved, and delves into Mariah's ancestry - now confirmed by my own DNA testing - in West Africa as well as the many historic events across three centuries, three continents and the Caribbean. Thanks to Eric and his staff (THANKS, @ericjacobson7321 !!), CLANDESTINE is available for sale at Carnton and other historic sites in Franklin as well as online. amzn DOT to/2QM2LFX
