Was it commonplace for free Blacks to own slaves in Virginia, prior to 1865? Professor John Henderson Russell (born 1884) has surprising answers in his short 12-page work titled "Colored Freemen as Slave Owners in Virginia," first published in 1916.

In describing one motive for freed slaves to purchase other slaves, Russell writes:

"During the last quarter of the eighteenth century slaveowners in Virginia possessed unrestricted powers to bestow freedom upon their slaves. Under such circumstances free blacks became instrumental in procuring freedom for many of their less fortunate kinsmen. They frequently advanced for a slave friend the price at which his white master held him for sale and, having liberated him, trusted him to refund the price of his freedom. A free member of a colored family would purchase whenever able his slave relatives."

About the author:

John H. Russell, Ph.D., (born 1884) was Professor of Political Science, Whitman College, Walla Walla, Washington