Building on research by Lisa Fager of the Black Georgetown Foundation and staff members at Dumbarton House, my students and I are researching the life and legacy of Grace (Gracy) Ann Duckett, born c. 1791 in Maryland, deceased July 28, 1874 in Georgetown, District of Columbia. Gracy appears to have spent the majority of her adult life, from around 1820 until 1862, enslaved by the Whitall family of upper Georgetown. She then resided as a free woman in the home of her daughter Julia Ann Duckett Cartwright and Julia’s husband Rev. Lewis Cartwright, in their nearby home (31 West street, currently 2620 P street, NW) up until her death in 1874
It seems likely that Grace was initially owned by the Eversfield family of Prince George’s County, Maryland. The enslaver Charles Eversfield of Nottingham Town owned around 30 people when he died at some point in 1820. Around that time, Grace was probably acquired by the merchant Samuel Whitall. Whitall, who was in the process of moving his fishing interests from New Jersey to the Potomac region, rented Bellevue House of north Georgetown, in 1820 from the heirs of Charles Carroll. The house, previously known as the Jackson House of Cedar Hill had earlier been occupied by Joseph Nourse, the first Registrar of the US Treasury, from 1804 until around 1817, when Nourse acquired the tract of land he termed Mount Albans, now the land occupied by the National Cathedral and St. Albans Church. (I have traced some of the the enslaved people owned by the Nourse family in various publications, including: https://gloverparkhistory.com/population/slaves-population/mount-alban-highlands/)
As noted, it seems likely that Whitall purchased Grace from the Eversfield family of Prince George’s County around 1820-22. In 1824, Charles Eversfield’s son and heir John Thomas Eversfield placed Grace’s daughters Juliann (Julie Ann) and Emeline as term-limited indentured servants with Samuel Whitall, providing that they be freed at age twenty. Perhaps Whitall, a member of the Society of Friends (that is to say, a Quaker) harbored some qualms about the excesses of the slavery system and sought to reunite Grace with her young daughters. It should be noted that the 1822 probate inventory of Charles Eversfield’s property, mentioned below, does not mention Grace, so her sale, if it took place, either happened before Charles Eversfield’s death or before the probate inventory was completed.
The first written reference I know of Grace dates to 1826. On 9 February 1826, Samuel Whitall mortgaged “Grace”, later known as Gracie or Gracy Duckett, and her children Henry, Emeline and Julia to help settle a debt owed to Caleb Newbold of Philadelphia. Among the collateral property listed is “1st One black woman named Grace with her child [Henry], and the time of two colored (sic) girls named Emeline Ducket & Julian Ducket until (sic) they arrive at the age of twenty years.“ (The original mortgage is at the DC History Center MS 0725.1298.) Whitall must have settled his debts, since Grace and her children remained in his possession, and Julia was ultimately freed.
The 1830 census records that Samuel Whitall owned seven slaves in Georgetown. Grace may have been the enslaved female aged 24 through 35. (The 1830 and 1840 censuses only list age range for free and enslaved people;.)
The next explicit reference we see to Grace Duckett is in the membership register of Mount Zion Methodist Church in Georgetown, in 1836. The Church was near the household of Samuel Whitall, who resided, as noted, in the Bellevue House of upper Georgetown from 1820 until his death in 1855.
The same register, under January 6, 1836, lists Grace’s daughter Julia Duckett as a member of the church.
The 1840 census for the household of Samuel Whitall lists five slaves, including an enslaved woman, aged between 36 and 54, who is likely to be Grace.
A decade later, it seems likely that Grace is the 56 year old enslaved woman listed as the oldest of six slaves of Samuel Whitall in his 1850 slave schedule, which enumerates the age. sex, and color of the enslaved.
In the 1860 census, although she was still enslaved at the time, Grace Duckett is listed by name as if she were a free person, residing in the home of her enslaver Lydia (nee Newbold) Whittall. the widow of Samuel Whitall. who had passed away five years earlier. The 1860 slave schedule does not record any any enslaved people in the Whitall household.
As I have discussed elsewhere, in May 1858, Lydia Whitall decided to manumit two enslaved brothers, Stephen and James Bennett, the sons of the free woman Minn or Jemima. (see: https://markauslander.com/2024/01/26/in-search-of-stephen-and-james-bennett-manumitted-from-belle-vue-georgetown/) Lydia did not however choose to manumit Gracie at this point. My understanding is that Grace was the very last enslaved person owned by Lydia Whitall. (The 1860 slave schedule, as noted, does not list any slaves belonging to Lydia; instead, Grace is listed in the regular Federal Census, which in principle enumerates free people only.)
In early 1862, the enslaved Grace was manumitted by the will of Lydia Whitall, the widow of the Georgetown merchant Samuel Whitall, who had previously owned her. (Lydia Whitall Will, page 1, “[Item] 2nd. I discharge from slavery my servant woman Grace & direct my Executors to pay her out of my Estate the sum of thirty dollars annually during the term of her life, in half yearly payments”. The manumission took place several months before the Act of Compensated Emancipation in the District of Columbia, which freed all 3,200 enslaved individuals in the District. (Presumably, if Lydia Whitall had lived until mid-April 1862, Grace would have received nothing.)
Eight years after her manumission, Gracie is recorded in the 1870 census in the household her daughter and son in law, Julia Ann Duckett Cartwright and Reverend Lewis Cartwright on West street, later P street, in Georgetown.
Gract;s death notice, notes that she died on July 28 [1874] “in Georgetown, in ther residence of her daughter, Julia Cartwright, Gracy Duckett, in her eighty-third year. Funeral this (Thursday) afternoon at 3 o’clock, from her daughter’s residence, No 31 West street. Relatives and friends are invited to attend.”
Gracie’s well preserved headstone in the Female Union Band Society section (Mt Zion West) of the cemetery, reads:
“In Memory of
GRACY DUCKETT
The mother of
JULIA CARTWRIGHT
Died July 28, 1874
Aged 83 years
A loved companion faithful and true,
In the work that her master gave her to do,
Sweet be thy rest in that home bright and fair,
… my Savior…”
Who was the father of Gracie’s children?
Some have speculated that Augustus Duckett (c. 1800-1879) was husband to Gracie and father to her daughters Julia Ducket Cartwright, Emeline Ducket and Henry Duckett . However, the 1850 census implies that Augustus was married to Lucy Duckett, age 50, and father to Edward Duckett, 21 and Mary Duckett, 17. This is consistent with the 15 April 1853, will of Lucy Duckett’s who leaves her property to her husband Augustus and after his death, to their children, Edward, Mary and William (Lucy may be same person as the Lucy Duckett liberated by the last will and testament of Ann Hall, in Prince George’s County, bearing te date May 15, 1815, and recorded in a 1852 freedom certificate.)
The 1871 city directory shows Augustus Duckett residing at 1149 23rd St NW in the West End, while Gracie according to the 1870 census was residing in the household of her son in law Rev Lewis Cartwright at what was then 21 West Street (later 2620 P Street) in Georgetown. So the preponderance of evidence is that Augustus and Gracie were not married, although they may have been siblings or cousins.
One possibility may be that Julia and Emeline were fathered by the enslaver John Eversfield, and that for this reason he was willing to place the two girls in an indentured situation with Samuel Whitall of Georgetown, on June 19, 1824. with the provision that they be freed upon reaching the age of twenty.
Duckett Enslavers
The white Duckett family of Maryland has a long enslaving history. Richard Duckett Sr. (1675–1754) settled in Maryland from England and had many slaveowning descendants, among them his grandson Baruch Duckett (d. 1810) of Fairview. Queen Anne Parish, Prince George’s County, who owned 59 slaves in 1800, and Federal Circuit Judge Allen Bowie Duckett (1775 – July 19, 1809), who presided over some of the important Queen cases, of an enslaved family seeking freedom. It seems likely that many of the Black Ducketts in Maryland and DC have historical connections to this extensive line of white Ducketts.
Among the best known of the enslaved people with the Duckett surname is Benjamin Duckett, who as described in William Still’s The Underground Railroad escaped in 1856 from Zach Berry (misidentified by Still as Sicke Perry) in Prince George’s County. Benjamin escaped to Philadelphia and then presumably made his way north to Canada. We do not know if Benjamin and Gracie were related to one another.
The Eversfield-Duckett Connections
The Eversfield family were long time slave owners in Prince George’s County. Rev. John Eversfield (bef. 1707-1781), a major enslaver and the rector of St. Paul’s Parish, owned the land that is now the site of the University of Maryland basketball arena. His will is summarized at: https://colonial-settlers-md-va.us/getperson.php?personID=I107562&tree=Tree1
Rev. Eversfield’s grandson, John Thomas Eversfield (b 13 August 1790, d 18 December 1857, Prince George’s County) of Prince George’s County owned several enslaved people who used the surname Duckett. :
—On 30 August 1815 The Daily National Intelligence notes that the Hartford Count sheriff has captured a Black man named Jim Duckett or John Douglass, who “says he belongs to John Eversfield near Bladensburg. “ (Hartford County is more or less due north of Bladensburg, and would have been a possible route to Pennsylvania and freedom).
—On 17 October 1829, John Eversfield advertises that 31 year old Charles Duckett, born around 1796, has escaped from near Rossburg, in Prince George’s County.
-On 3 September 1838 runaway slave advertisement makes references to a Nancy Ann Duckett, who escaped from John Eversfield, who lived near Bladensburg. Eversfield explicitly notes that her sister is enslaved at Samuel Whitall’s in Georgetown; she must have been Gracie.
Under the terms of an 1824 indenture agreement between John Eversfield and Samuel Whitall, Gracie’s daughter Juliann was to be manumitted on 17 October 1838 (perhaps significantly, a month after her aunt Ann’s escape) . But in fact it was not until 10 July 1841 that Samual Whitall actually manumitted Julia Ann (The Free Negro Register, Registration No. 1883, Volume 3, page 362 describes Julia’s enslavement and manumission by Samuel Whittall at age 24, to substantiate her status as a ‘free Negro). This was about two months after Julia recorded marriage to Lewis Cartwright, on 19 May 1841.
The widow of John Thomas Eversfield, Ann Perrie Eversfield, in 1867 applied (unsuccessfully) for compensation for 27 enslaved people, who had been emancipated by the new Maryland Constitution on November 1, 1864. Among these were ten people with the surname Duckett: Harriet Duckett, age 50 (born about 1814). Lucy Duckett, age 36 (b. 1828); Charles Duckett, age 36 (b 1828), Emily Duckett age 25 (b. 1839), Henry Duckett, age 20 (1844), Maria Duckett, age 20 (so born about 1844).. Mary Duckett, age 10, (so born 1854), Louis Duckett, age 7 (1857), Ben Duckett, age 7 (b. 1857), Amelia Duckett, age 6 (b 1858)
Note that none of these were named Nancy or Ann, so the sister of Grace may have successfully escaped in 1838, or have died in the interim. (The son of John Thomas Eversfield, John T Eversfield Jr, applied for compensation for about 46 slaves, none of whom had the Duckett surname)
The probate inventory of Charles “Charlie” Eversfield, youngest son of Rev. Eversfield and the father of John Thomas Eversfield, in February 1822 in Prince George’s County lists the thirty enslaved people (17 male, 12 female). Only first names are given, not surnames:
Frank, aged about 60 years
Jim, 60
Nace 60
Billy, 49
Paul, 28
Jim, 23
Matthew, 24
Harry, 22
Jim, 20
John, 19
Anthony, 15
Nace, 13
Jupiter, 8
George, 4
Henry, 10
Ned, 8
David, 6
Ceale 60
Beck, 50
Racel, 33
Nancy 35 (valued at $300)
Jeanly? , 30
Henny, 27
Lucy, 25
Clarisa, 20
Barbara 20
Sarah, 18
Susan, 16
Caroline, 15
Julia, 8 (valued at $100)
As noted Grace is not mentioned in this inventory, so seems likely to have been sold or transferred to Samuel Whitall before the inventory was assembled.
Nancy, age 35, may be the sister of Grace who escaped from Charles’ son and heir, John Eversfield in 1838. Julia, age 8, might be the same person as the Julia Ann Duckett transferred by John Eversfield two years after the inventory, to Samuel Whitall of Georgetown. (The ages do not quite match, since the inventoried Julia was 8 years old in 1822, and supposedly 5 years old in 1824.)
Tracing Gracie’s Children
I have not yet seen a record of Grace’s daughter Emeline Duckett, following the 1824 indenture by John Eversfield and the 1829 mortgage by Samuel Whitall.
There are several references to a Henry Duckett, probably the son of Gracie, in the Freedman’s Bureau records in 1867, evidently while working at Fort Monroe, near Hampton, Virginia.
He may be the same Henry who married Mary Walker on 18 Dec 1877 in DC. In 1885, Henry is listed in the City Directory as a laborer residing at 816 G Street, SW. He died a year later on 30 September 1886, at 611 Virginia Avenue SW, suffering from pneumonia and asthma. He was buried in Graceland cemetery. I am not sure if the couple had children; there are several subsequent Henry Duckett’s listed in the city directory and death records, who may be related.
There is much more thorough documentation of Gracy’s daughter Julia Ann Duckett, who married Rev. Lewis Cartwright on 19 May 1841, about two months before her freedom was formally affirmed by Samuel Whitall on 10 July 1841. Lewis was the son of Rev. Joseph Cartwright (d 1851) known as a pioneer of Methodism in the DC Black community, who played a prominent early role in Mt Zion Church. He purchased the freedom his enslaved wife, Susanna, and their children, Lewis, Joseph Jr., and Norah.
Lewis and Julia Cartwright lived as a well respected couple in Georgetown. Rev. Lewis Cartwright died 4 March 1875 and was buried in Mount Zion. Julia Ann survived him by 26 years and continued to reside in their house at 31 West street (now 2620 P Street).
—Their son Lewis Cartwright, Jr. died 8 July 1850, age two months, and was buried in Mt Zion.
—Their daughter Matilda Cartwright died 29 January 1863 at age 15, and was also buried in Mt Zion.
—Their son William Henry Cartwright, b, 1854, opened his own bank account in the Freedman’s Bank at age 17. He married Mary Jane Lambert, daughter of Louis Lambert, on 17 August 1871. By 1880, however, Mary Lambert Cartwright is listed as a widow, once again living with her father Lewis. Also residing with her is her evident daughter Rosie Cartwright, born 1875.
William Henry appears to be the Black man William Cartwright who died September 16, 1875 of a previously undetected brain tumor; he was found by his landlord Mrs Jordan, 307 12th street, SW. The Washington Chronicle notes he left a wife from whom he was separated, but no children. Perhaps at the time of his death, Mary was pregnant with Rosie. In any event, I have not been able to trace Rosie subsequent to 1880.
—Rev Cartwright and Julia Ann’s daughter Margaret Ann Cartwright, b 1843, married Henry Burgoyne, on 18 Jan 1869 in Manhattan, New York City. She later remarried, to a Joseph Holden, in 1889 and remained in the New York area. She died in her home in Jersey City, NJ, on 19 February 1920. The death notice makes no notice of any children
—Rev Cartwright and Julia Ann’s daughter Annie S Cartwright was born in June 1858, On 18 Feb 1886 she married Charles W. Boyd. (I have not found his death certificate but one source lists his death as 11 September 1888). The 1900 census lists Anna as widowed and living in her mother Julia’s home, with her siblings. Anna is listed as buried in Mt Zion (location Q H10 380A), but I am also unsure of her death date.
—Their daughter Alice Victoria, b. June 1858. married Fenton C Harris on 6 November 1879. Fenton was active in Emancipation Day activities and was funeralized at Mt Zion Methodist upon his death in 25 June 1905. His widow Alice Victoria Cartwright Harris continued to live in her parents’ former home . 2620 P Street, until her death on 19 June 1920. She was buried in Mt Zion Cemetery and her headstone is still visible.
Julia Ann Duckett Cartwright’s first will, in 1880, bequeaths her house at 2620 West Street (now P street) to her daughter Annie D Cartwright and Alice Victoria Harris, with the understanding that Annie and Alice would share an interest in the property with their sister Margaret Ann Burgoyne. In a 1886 codicil of the will she named Alfred Pope, a prominent neighbor and Georgetown Black businessman, as executor of the estate.
By the time Julie Ann died, 14 Mar 1901, her daughter Margaret had remarried and was known as Margaret Holden. Anna had married and was known as Anna Boyd. Alice remained Alice Victoria Harris.
Descendants of Alice Victoria Cartwright Harris
Alice Victoria and Fenton Harris’ daughters included Grace Henrietta Harris Brown, 1885-1955. and Victoria Harris Morris, 1886-1948.
Grace Henrietta Harris married George Henry Brown, 1872-1920 on 7 November 1901. Their children were Milton Cartwright Brown, 1902-1967; Margaret Henrietta Brown, 1905-1981, and George Brown, b 1910-1931.
—Milton Cartwright Brown married Ruth E. Wooten in Pittsburgh, PA on 11 December 1940, and was buried in Highwood Cemetery, Pittsburgh
—Margaret Henrietta Brown, was born 8 November 1905 • Washington, District of Columbia and died 5 June 1981 • Oakland, Alameda, California. She graduated from the University of Pittsburg and married Amater Zeale Traylor, Sr. the son of Joseph Henderson Traylor, in Pittsburgh on 17 August 1929. He was a graduate of Morehouse College in Atlanta, and pursued graduate work at the University of Chicago, Carnegie Institute of Technology and Atlanta University. They had distinguished careers as educators in Atlanta, Georgia. After Margaret Henrietta Brown Traylor died in 1981, Amater Sr remarried, to Amanda Cummings, and passed on 11 September 1988.
Some of the children of Margaret Henrietta and Amater Zeale Traylor settled in the San Francisco Bay area. Descendants remain there to this day, we understand
My students and I hope to continue to illuminate more of the life of Grace Ann Duckett and to trace her descendants.
Acknowledgements: I am grateful to Isabella Kiedrowski, Archives and Collections Manager at Dumbarton House, for her many insights into Samuel Whitall’s business activities and for access to Whitall family records in the Dumbarton House collection. Mary Lesher, former program manager at Dumbarton House, kindly shared related documents with the Black Georgetown Foundation.
Mark Auslander 