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How to Submit DEEDS

"What are Deeds?"

Deeds are legal documents that transfer ownership of land and/or slaves from one person to another. Deeds usually contain very detailed descriptions of the land owned by a planter, farmer, etc. and sometimes mention names, ages, and familial relationships of slaves.
Deed of Trust: When the property owner owes a debt on their property, they could transfer the ownership to a trustee (usually a close relative or friend) so that the trustee could take on resposibility for paying the debt. The property is held (by the trustee) in trust for the original property owner.
Deed of Gift: When land and slaves were given to a close relative or friend as "gifts" (to help establish a new plantation or farm, for instance) legal ownership of that property had to be transferred as well.

"How do I format my deed submission?"

Please send the your estate record information via e-mail. Copy and paste the text below into the appropriate fields of your e-mail.

TO: kh_art@yahoo.com SUBJECT: Deed Submission BODY:   (Information marked by a * is optional) Hi Sankofa, I would like to contribute the following slave data that I have abstracted from a deed. My name is: E-mail: Name of property owner: Date of record: State and county of document: Type of deed (if known): Plantation name (if known): *Notes about this record: Slaves named in this document... Name: Description: Ownership transferred to: Name: Description: Ownership transferred to: Document Source/ Reference:

View an Example

 

"There is very important information in my record that is not shown in the example."

In this case, please include that information. Use your best judgement to place it in a logical spot within your text.

"I have a bunch of deeds. How do I send all of them at once?"

Put all of the information into a single e-mail or .txt file. This type of submission is similar to the format shown above. View this Example to see how a multiple record submission should look.

"I have a complete electronic transcription of the deed. Can't I just send you the whole thing?"

Yes. You may send the entire transcription(s) as an attachment via e-mail. Please send .txt files only.

"I found a whole collection of deeds at a website. Can I send you those?"

Please do not send information that has been published on the web, unless you are the author. You may send me the web address (URL) of the site/ page(s) via e-mail and I will try my best to place a link to it in the appropraite place on this site. Please be specific in your link submissions...not all deeds mention slaves.

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