A gentleman by the name of Ron Peavey reached out to me regarding my blog. I responded, and we have been actively sharing and comparing information for well over a week now. Thoughtful consideration of the information that Ron shared, made me want to take a second look at everything that I’d gathered in the last few months. I’ve made the decision to go back to the beginning and start all over again. There may, perhaps, be details that I’ve overlooked, misinterpreted, or just plain ignored.
My second look starts again with George Askew and the 1860 United States Federal Census – Slave Schedule for Henry County, Georgia.
Looking at this again, the 60-year old, black female is likely Ludi (confirmed by my father that her name was indeed Ludi, and not Lida). According to the 1880 Census, George Askew was estimated to be born about 1836, which means the likelihood of the 34-year-old, mulatto male is being him is high. Although the information that I have on Jackson Askew is close to nothing, I’m still going to continue with the assumption that the 31-year-old, mulatto male is him.
After finding Ailsey on the 1870 Census with her birth year recorded as 1834, I knew there was no way possible that the 16-year-old, mulatto female was her. Who is she then, if not Ailsey? And again, who is the three-year-old, mulatto male?
I was so focused on interpreting the information on the slave schedule that I didn’t even notice that prior to 1860, George Askew had already fathered two children with Harriett Berry (assumed), Bud Askew and James Askew. Where are they? And, the biggest chunk of information I overlooked was Harriett not being listed. Where was Harriett Berry and the two oldest sons at the time of enumeration?
My hypothesis: Basing this on the year that James Askew was born, I believe the three-year-old, mulatto male is him. Approaching this with the scientific method, I have to find and provide proof that this is true.
Skinfolk and Kinfolk 