Key Facts

Snapshot:	farmer, slave owner
Parents:	720William Black His mother is unknown.
Born:	circa 1775 Georgia
Last known record:	1850 census Emanuel County, Georgia
Buried:	unknown

360Robert Black was born in Georgia circa 1775.1 His father is 720William Black, as proven by 720William's will.2 *

These excerpts from 720William Black's will prove that he is 360Robert's father.* Full page.2

Problem: Unresolved Who is 360Robert's mother? 720William Black's will mentions "my wife Jane Black." 2 It's possible that Jane is 360Robert's mother. However, we don't know when 720William and Jane married, so one cannot be certain that 720William didn't have some other, earlier, unknown wife who could be 360Robert's mother. 720William's will also mentions "my daughter Jane Hodge" and her "presant [Husband] Samuel Hodge." 2 The repetition of the name Jane suggests a possible mother-daughter relationship. Therefore, one might consider using Jane's (the daughter's) birth-year to demonstrate that 720William and Jane were married at the time, and (hopefully) thereby reinforce the hypothesis that Jane is 360Robert's mother, too. Unfortunately, though, Jane's birth-year is uncertain: Although the 1860 census suggests that she was born circa 17743 (and thus before or around the same time as 360Robert), the 1850 census instead suggests 17854 (well after 360Robert's birth). The 1830 census again suggests that Jane was born sometime in the 1780's5 (although I'm less confident that this record pertains to the correct person).

He married 361Viny (or Vicy?) Bruton in Warren County, Georgia on 18 March 1795.6

1795: 360Robert marries 361Viny Bruton. Full page.6

Jefferson County's 1796 tax digest shows that 360Robert lived adjacent to his father's land. Their entries both mention Grants Creek, but I can't find this creek on a modern map; it's not in Paul K. Graham's Atlas of East and Coastal Georgia Watercourses and Militia Districts, page 29.

1796: 360Robert and his father in Jefferson County. Full page.7

360Robert is mentioned in several Screven County land records from the early 1800's: In 1800 he purchased 450 acres there from his father 720William,8 and in 1805 he was granted 1000 acres.9 When he later sold these two tracts, his wife—whose name is given as "Vicey"—is included on both deeds.10,11 360Robert was apparently still in Screven County on 3 January 1816, when he witnessed a record of his father's purchase of a slave girl.12

360Robert may have moved to Jefferson County later that year (i.e., 1816): On 10 September 1816 he and 361Vicey sold three slaves; the sales occurred in Jefferson County but were recorded in Screven.13 360Robert subsequently appears in Jefferson County tax digests for 1819, 1820, and 1821,14-16 and the 1820 census shows his family there. The numbers below represent, respectively: 2 boys age 0-9; 3 boys age 10-15; 2 young men age 16-25 (which would include his son 180William Black); 1 man age 45+; 2 girls age 0-9; 4 girls age 10-15; 3 young women age 16-25; one woman age 45+; 3 people engaged in agriculture; 1 person engaged in manufactures.17

1820: 360Robert's household in Jefferson County, Georgia. Full page.17

360Robert is missing from Jefferson County's 1822-1828 tax digests,18 so he presumably relocated. Neither Screven nor Warren County, where 360Robert had some history, has extant tax digests from this period. 360Robert re-emerges in Jefferson County's 1829 and 1830 digests,19,20 and the 1830 census shows him there.21

1830: 360Robert's household in Jefferson County. Full page.21

360Robert's father 720William had died in early 1826. On a probate court record we see (what I think is) 360Robert's actual signature.22 From his father 360Robert inherited two slaves named Peter and Peggy.23 He presumably sold them soon thereafter since no subsequent document shows 360Robert as a slaveholder. His father's probate documents also mention "four tracts of lands in Jefferson + Screven counties containing 2000 acres," 24 so 360Robert presumably received 500 acres, but no document explicitly states so, and I haven't scoured property records to confirm.

1826: 360Robert's original signature (I think) on a court document, alongside those of two of his siblings and a brother-in-law. Full page.22

360Robert inherits two slaves from his father. Full page.23

In 1836 360Robert sold 500 acres in Emanuel County to his son James J. Black.25 (I've seen no record that explicitly identifies James as his son, but an 1831 tax digest strongly implies so.26)

By 1840 360Robert was in Emanuel County, just he and his wife 361Vicy.27 The 1850 census names his wife explicitly and thus confirms it's the same couple.1 The 1850 agriculture schedule shows that he owned 10 swine and had produced Indian corn and sweet potatoes.28


1840: 360Robert's household, now in Emanuel County. Full page.27

1850: 360Robert and 361Viny, still in Emanuel County. Full page.1

The 1850 census is the last record I've found of 360Robert. Neither he nor 361Vicey is in Emanuel County's 1851 tax digest.

Footnotes:

*

The counties Screven (where 720William wrote his will in 18261) and Jefferson (where 360Robert lived for many years, including in 182017 and 183021) are somewhat distant from each other, so it's not immediately clear that the Robert Black named in the will is our 360Robert Black. However, both 360Robert and his father 720William have extensive ties to both counties and to each other, as demonstrated above. Also consider that the 1820 and 1830 censuses suggest that there were only two other adult men named Robert Black in Georgia at the time, and both lived much further to the northwest.29-32

Sources Cited:

1: 1850 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). District 28, Emanuel County, Georgia. Page 472 [stamped] right side, dwelling 395, family 395, Robert Block household. NARA microfilm publication M432, roll 68. Internet Archive, <https://archive.org/details/7thcensus0056unit/page/n472/mode/1up?view=theater>.

2: Chatham County, Georgia. Estate records (wills, estates, administrations, bonds, etc.) B for the years 1777-1852, box 2 (Bell-Boyle), folder of loose documents pertaining to the estate of William Black (1826), the will of William Black. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-893T-XWGF?lang=en&i=525> et seq., accessed 7 June 2025.

3: 1860 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Militia district 259, Screven County, Georgia. Page 85, dwelling 171, family 171, Jane Hodges household. NARA microfilm publication M653, roll 136. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MZM5-F4P?lang=en>, accessed 18 June 2025.

4: 1850 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). District 74, Screven County, Georgia. Page 1B, dwelling 21, family 21, Jane Hodges household. NARA microfilm publication M432, roll 82. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MZYZ-TF5?lang=en>, accessed 18 June 2025.

5: 1830 U.S. Federal Census. District 36, Screven County, Georgia. Page 306, Jane Hodges household. NARA microfilm publication M19, roll 20. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9YBS-9MHD>, accessed 18 June 2025.

6: Warren County, Georgia. Marriages book A (1794-1814), page 2, an entry dated 18 March 1795 for Robert Black and Viny Bruton. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-8BZ3-YX?view=index&lang=en&groupId=>, accessed 25 May 2025.

7: Jefferson County, Georgia. Tax digest book for the year 1796, page 51, Louisville district, entry #88 for Robt Black. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSKK-C9FP-G>, accessed 4 June 2025.

8: Screven County, Georgia. Deeds and mortgages book A (1794-1805), part 2, pages 227-228. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS4X-R9B8-Z>, accessed 10 June 2025.

9: Screven County, Georgia. Plat book for the years 1793-1812, page 263. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSKK-C87M>, accessed 7 June 2025.

10: Screven County, Georgia. Deeds and mortgages book A (1794-1805), part 1, pages 320-321. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS4X-R9B6-W.

11: Screven County, Georgia. Deeds and mortgages book A (1794-1805), part 2, pages 524-525. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS4X-R9Y1-L>, accessed 10 June 2025.

12: Screven County, Georgia. Deeds and mortgages book I (1810-1817), pages 336-337. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSLC-B93Y-H>, accessed 10 June 2025.

13: Screven County, Georgia. Deeds & mortgages book K (1817-1824), pages 247-248. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSLC-B93K-3>, accessed 11 June 2025.

14: Jefferson County, Georgia. Tax digest book for the year 1819, page 25, line 1, Robert Black. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS4K-VZZV-6>, accessed 24 May 2025.

15: Jefferson County, Georgia. Tax digest book for the year 1820, page 25, entry 7, Robert Black. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS4K-VZH1-W>, accessed 24 May 2025.

16: Jefferson County, Georgia. Tax digest book for the year 1821, page 33, entries #180 for Robert Black. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS4K-VZDX-Z>, accessed 24 May 2025.

17: 1820 U.S. Federal Census. Jefferson County, Georgia. Page 12, Robert Black household. NARA microfilm publication M33, roll 10. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9YB8-6Y1?view=index&personArk=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AXHG6-L6Z&action=view&cc=1803955&lang=en&groupId=>. Since the 1820 census often lacks column headers, you may find this template helpful.

18: Jefferson County, Georgia. Tax digest books for the years 1822-1828, indices at the front of each back, sections for surnames beginning with B. These links will guide you to each: 1822, 1823, 1824, 1825, 1826, 1827, 1828.

19: Jefferson County, Georgia. Tax digest book for the year 1829, page 2 (which pertains to Captain Woods' militia district 83), entry 79, Robert Black. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSLZ-K2G3>, accessed 25 May 2025.

20: Jefferson County, Georgia. Tax digest book for the year 1830, page 1 (which pertains to Captain Woods' militia district 83), entry 28, Robert Black. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSLZ-K2JH>, accessed 25 May 2025.

21: 1830 U.S. Federal Census. Jefferson County, Georgia. Page 408, line 3, Robert Black household. NARA microfilm publication M19, roll 18. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYB7-F7N.

22: Chatham County, Georgia. Estate records (wills, estates, administrations, bonds, etc.) B for the years 1777-1852, box 2 (Bell-Boyle), folder of loose documents pertaining to the estate of William Black (1826), an undated petition document. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-993T-XWZR?lang=en&i=529>, accessed 28 May 2025.

23: ibid., <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L93T-X468?lang=en&i=532>.

24: ibid., <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-993T-XW3W?lang=en&i=531>, accessed 7 June 2025.

25: Emanuel County, Georgia. Deeds and mortgages book B (1830-1846 and 1853), page 255. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C3QP-T9HW-Q>, accessed 28 May 2025.

26: Jefferson County, Georgia. Tax digest book for 1831, page 3, entries for Robert Black immediately followed by "for J J. Black minor." FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSLZ-K2QS?view=index&lang=en&groupId=>.

27: 1840 U.S. Federal Census. District 55, Emanuel County, Georgia. Page 192, line 21, Robert Black household. NARA microfilm publication M704, roll 41. Internet Archive, <https://archive.org/details/populationsc18400041unit/page/n12/mode/1up>.

28: 1850 U.S. Federal Census (Agriculture Schedule). District 28, Emanuel County, Georgia. Page number is illegible, line 22, Robert Black farm. Ancestry.com (U.S., Selected Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, 1850-1880 / Georgia / Agriculture / 1850 / Emanuel / District 28 / images 10 and 11 of 15), accessed 4 June 2025.

29: 1820 U.S. Federal Census. Walton County, Georgia. Page 248, Robert Black household. NARA microfilm publication M33, roll 10. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYB8-DS6>, accessed 7 June 2025.

30: 1820 U.S. Federal Census. Captain Byrd's district, Hall County, Georgia. Page 153, Robert Black household. NARA microfilm publication M33, roll 6. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYB3-98ZK?lang=en&i=1>, accessed 7 June 2025.

31: 1830 U.S. Federal Census. Jackson County, Georgia. Page 347, Robt Black household. NARA microfilm publication M19, roll 18. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYB7-NDT>, accessed 7 June 2025.

32: 1830 U.S. Federal Census. Newton County, Georgia. Page 11, Robert Black household. NARA microfilm publication M19, roll 20. !FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYBS-975Z>, accessed 7 June 2025.