Dates: 1847 - 1893 (bulk 1847 - 1870)
MDAH only has microfilm.

Biography:

James Wistar Metcalfe, son of Dr. James Metcalfe, resided further north on Second Creek at Ingleside Farm (approximately 80 acres). He was married in 1850 to Sarah Jane Semple Young, whose father, Benjamin F. Young, owned the adjoining plantation, Beaux Pres (approximately 450 acres). Her family also owned the plantation, Desert, near Woodville, Wilkinson County, at which Sarah Jane occasionally resided after her marriage, and which James Wistar administered. He also administered the plantation, Ackland, which was located in Catahoula Parish, Louisiana.

Henry Laurens Metcalfe (b. 1829), son of Dr. James Metcalfe, married Eliza C. Kinsey and in 1852 obtained the plantation, The Grove (approximately 1,060 acres), which was located between James Metcalfe's and James Wistar Metcalfe's holdings on Second Creek.

Dr. Orrick Metcalfe, son of Dr. James Metcalfe, was a physician, professor, and trustee of Jefferson College, Washington, Adams County. In 1855 he married Helen C. Gillespie of Egypt Plantation which was located across Second Creek from the Metcalfe holdings. He purchased the plantation, Fair Oaks (approximately 170 acres), adjoining The Grove, in 1856.

After the death of Dr. James Metcalfe in 1867, Henry Laurens Metcalfe administered his father's estate, which included the plantations, Bourbon, Montrose, and York, as well as his own plantation, The Grove.

Scope and Content Note:

The Metcalfe Family Papers contain twenty-one volumes of plantation records and accounts. There are nine journals pertaining to Dr. James Metcalfe's plantations, Bourbon (1847–1848; 1860–1864); Woodland (1855; 1862–1863); and York (1852–1853; 1860–1863; 1865–1870). There are also nine journals, a ration book, and additional information recorded in other journals which document the management of Henry Laurens Metcalfe's plantation, The Grove (1853–1862; 1865–1870). Another journal records the management of the plantation, Berkeley (1861–1862; 1865); and an account book records expenditures of James Wistar Metcalfe at the plantations, Ackland, Beaux Pres, Desert, and Ingleside (1850–1859).

The journals document the management of the Metcalfe plantations, and they also reveal their economic interdependence. Several journals were kept in Thomas Affleck's Cotton Plantation Record and Account Book series. These journals record the amount of cotton produced; contain inventories of plantation implements, stock, stores, and supplies; and include appendices with information on plantation management and the condition of slaves. The appendices usually record the names, ages, births, deaths, and values of slaves, as well as physicians' visits.

The effect of the Civil War on the Metcalfe plantations is also documented. The Bourbon-Woodland journal (1862–1863) records the seizure of Bourbon by Union troops, and the York journal (1862–1863) records the departure of slaves, presumably after the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863. The Grove journals (1865–1870) and the York journals (1868–1870) document the management of the Metcalfe plantations during Reconstruction. The Grove ration book (1867–1870) also contains accounts with laborers.

The journals also document the activities of various Metcalfe family members. The Bourbon account book (1847–1848) contains loose correspondence pertaining to family activities, as do the Bourbon journals (1860–1861) kept by Charles Metcalfe. The York journal (1868–1870) contains a list of books shelved in the "Old Library." James Wistar Metcalfe's account book records his personal expenditures in Natchez, Mississippi, and Trinity, Louisiana, as well as his trip to New York and Newport, Rhode Island, in 1855.

Metcalfe family members have also added other materials to the journals. For instance, The Grove journal (1861–1862; 1865; 1881) contains manuscript copies of letters and a diary kept by James Metcalfe in 1881.

 
Series Identification:

Roll 1 (MF Roll # 36547)
Subgroup 1: Records of Dr. James Metcalfe's Plantations. 1847–1870; n.d. 9 volumes.

Volume 1: Plantation Journal (Bourbon). 1847–1848. This plantation journal kept by James Wistar Metcalfe records the names, activities, and health of slaves; cotton production; and Metcalfe family activities at Bourbon from August 1847 to August 1848. Loose material includes a June 7, 1848, letter from Sarah W. Metcalfe to James M. Metcalfe; accounts; and a recipe.

Volume 2: Plantation Journal (Bourbon). 1860–1861. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal records activities at Bourbon for 1860 and part of 1861, including the disciplining and health of slaves. A portion of the journal kept by Charles Metcalfe discusses family activities.

Volume 3: Plantation Journal (Bourbon). 1861–1862; 1864. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal records activities at Bourbon for 1861, and it includes a list of slaves living on Bourbon as of January 26, 1862, and a list of plantation supplies for 1864.

Volume 4: Plantations Journal (Bourbon and Woodland). 1862–1863. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal records activities at Bourbon until May 1862, when slaves were removed to Woodland during flooding; thereafter, the journal records plantation activities at Woodland for the remainder of 1862 and through July 1863.

Volume 5: Plantations Journal (Woodland and The Grove). 1855; 1866. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal records activities at Woodland between January and March, 1855, during its ownership by Abram B. Kinsey, and activities and cotton production at Henry Laurens Metcalfe's plantation, The Grove, in 1866. Appendices provide additional information relating to Woodland and The Grove.

Volume 6: Plantation Journal (York). 1852–1853. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal records activities at York for 1852 and the number of slaves engaged in each activity. Also included is a January 1853 record of cotton production.

Volume 7: Plantation Journal (York). 1860–1862; 1867; n.d. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal records activities at York from December 1860 to February 1862. The journal also contains scattered essays and other writings of Metcalfe family members, some dating from 1867 and some undated.

Volume 8: Plantation Journal (York). 1862–1863; 1866. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal records activities at York from January 1862 to July 1863.

Volume 9: Plantation Journal (York). 1865; 1868–1870. This plantation journal records the activities at York from January 1868 to January 1870. Included are records of cotton production; field measurements; general expenditures; supplies received from or sent to other plantations; corn transported; accounts and payrolls of laborers; supplies issued to laborers for blacksmithing, carpentry, and tool repair. Also included are inventories of furniture issued to overseers and inventories of plantation implements and tools. A copy of a York labor contract and a record of laborers employed on The Grove are also present.

 

Roll 2 (MF Roll # 36548)
Subgroup 2: Records of Henry Laurens Metcalfe's Plantation, The Grove. 1853–1870; 1881; n.d. 10 volumes.

Volume 1: Plantation Journal (The Grove). 1853–1854; 1862. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal was kept by Henry Laurens Metcalfe, and it records activities at The Grove from January 1853 to January 1854, including information about the disciplining and health of slaves. Appendices contain accounts of plantation supplies, including some dated December 1862.

Volume 2: Plantation Journal (The Grove). 1853. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal was first kept by Henry Laurens Metcalfe and then by his overseer, Joseph Dooley, and it records activities and cotton production at The Grove for 1853.

Volume 3: Plantation Journal (The Grove). 1854–1855. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal was partially kept by Henry Laurens Metcalfe, and it records activities at The Grove from December 1854 through December 1855.

Volume 4: Plantation Journal (The Grove). 1855–1856. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal was partially kept by Henry Laurens Metcalfe, and it records activities at The Grove from December 31, 1855, through December 14, 1856.

Volume 5: Plantation Journal (The Grove). 1857–1858. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal was kept by Henry Laurens Metcalfe, and it records activities at The Grove for 1857. It also includes accounts for 1857 and July 1858.

Volume 6: Plantation Journal (The Grove). 1857–1859. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal was partially kept by Henry Laurens Metcalfe, and it records activities at The Grove from December 26, 1857, to January 4, 1859.

Volume 7: Plantation Journal (The Grove). 1859–1860; 1865. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal was kept by Henry Laurens Metcalfe and other Metcalfe family members, and it records activities at The Grove from January 1, 1859, to January 1, 1860. Included in the back of the journal is a labor contract dated December 30, 1865.

Volume 8: Plantation Journal (The Grove). 1860–1861. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal was kept by Henry Laurens Metcalfe and other Metcalfe family members, and it records activities at The Grove for 1860 and January 1, 1861.

Volume 9: Plantation Journal (The Grove). 1861–1862; 1865; 1881. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal was partially kept by Henry Laurens Metcalfe, and it records activities at The Grove during 1861. It also contains a list of slaves for 1862; a manuscript copy of an 1865 letter by Henry Laurens Metcalfe; and an 1881 diary of James Metcalfe.

Volume 10: Plantation Ration Book (The Grove). 1867–1870; n.d. This plantation ration book records the issuance of stores and supplies at The Grove from 1867 to 1869. Also included are records of cotton picked in 1868; accounts of tools issued in 1868; lists of cattle and sheep in 1869; and accounts of laborers employed by Henry Laurens Metcalfe in 1870.

 

Subgroup 3: Records of the Plantation, Berkeley. 1861–1862; 1865. 1 volume.

Volume 1: Plantation Journal (Berkeley). 1861–1862; 1865. This Thomas Affleck plantation journal records activities at Berkeley from 1861 through February 8, 1862. Also included are a record of sheep killed in 1865 and occasional epigrams and recipes.

 

Subgroup 4: Financial Records of James Wistar Metcalfe. 1850–1859; 1893; n.d. 1 volume.

Volume 1: Account Book (James Wistar Metcalfe). 1850–1859; 1893; n.d. Account book of James Wistar Metcalfe which includes accounts of crop sales from 1851 to 1856; accounts of trips to New York and Newport, Rhode Island, in 1855; accounts of expenses in Natchez, and Trinity, Louisiana, and at the plantations, Ingleside and Beaux Pres, in Adams County; Desert, in Wilkinson County; and Ackland in Catahoula Parish, Louisiana. Also included are lists of laborers and supplies, primarily for Ackland; and clippings, grocery accounts (1893), poetry, and recipes.