James CONLEY^[1]

Abt 1800 - Aft 1850  (~ 51 years)

• Photos

  James Conley abt 1800 and family (3).jpg

  
  

• Name	James CONLEY  [2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
  Born	Abt 1800	of Cumberland, Cumberland County, North Carolina, USA
  Gender	Male
  Died	Aft 1850	of Limestone, Alabama, USA
  Person ID	I679	Green Tree
  Last Modified	29 Jul 2022

  
  

  Father	John Oldham CONNALLY,   b. 7 Sep 1783, Chapel Hill, Orange, North Carolina, USA ,   d. 11 Mar 1845, Huntsville, Madison, Alabama, USA  (Age 61 years)
  Mother	Likely Slave
  Family ID	F209	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Jane,   b. Abt 1801, Prince Edward County, Virginia, USA ,   d. Yes, date unknown
  Children	1. Harriett CONLEY,   b. Abt 1817, Huntsville, Madison, Alabama, USA ,   d. 1892, Huntsville, Madison, Alabama, United States  (Age ~ 75 years)   2. Felix CONLEY,   b. 1819, Madison County, Alabama, USA ,   d. 1899, Madison County, Alabama, USA  (Age 80 years)   3. Washington CONLEY,   b. 1820, Madison County, Alabama, USA ,   d. 1899, Madison County, Alabama, USA  (Age 79 years)   4. John J. CONLEY,   b. 1821, Prince Edward County, Virginia, USA ,   d. 1880-1885, Limestone, Alabama, USA  (Age 64 years)   5. Jesse Paschell CONLEY,   b. 6 Jan 1822, Madison County, Alabama, USA ,   d. 1883, Madison County, Alabama, USA  (Age 60 years)   6. William 'Bill' CONLEY,   b. Abt 1824, Prince Edward County, Virginia, USA ,   d. Yes, date unknown   7. James CONLEY,   b. 1828, Madison County, Alabama, USA ,   d. 27 Mar 1893, Oxford, Chenango, New York, USA  (Age 65 years)   8. Lucy CONLEY,   b. 1829, , , Alabama ,   d. Abt 1898, , Madison, Alabama, USA  (Age 69 years)   9. (John) Hamilton CONLEY,   b. Oct 1834, Alabama ,   d. Aft 1900, Madison County, Alabama, USA  (Age ~ 66 years)   10. Paralee Fanny CONLEY,   b. Abt 1840, Alabama ,   d. Jul 1879, Madison, Madison, Alabama, United States  (Age ~ 39 years)
  Last Modified	29 Jul 2022
  Family ID	F205	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  James and Jane were likely mulattoes to account for most of their children being called black or mulatto in census records. I am noting this so I can hopefully find out more about James' family. James is likely one of the 10 freed males that his father had living on his famous horse ranch in the 1840 census. Perhaps all of the 10 freed males were his children. I do not know. John Oldham Conley's son, James, was raised to be a talented blacksmith. After John Oldham Conley died in 1845, James was able to start a blacksmith business in nearby Limestone County, Alabama. His assets were worth $5000 by 1850, which is significantly higher than many other blacksmiths in the area. The only records so far after extensive searches that I have of any James Conley is in the 1850 Slave Schedules for Limestone County, Alabama. James owned two slaves in the 1860 Slave Schedules, a male and a female, ages of 60. He is listed as James Conley in the following 1850 slave schedule: 1 female - age 60 1 male - age 18 2 females - age 18 1 female - age 11 1 male - age 17 In an inventory of farms in the 1850 slave schedules is where James is listed as a Blacksmith worth $5000.00. The job of a blacksmith was typically the job of the greatest wealth in communities of the time. There were multiple blacksmiths in District 3 of Limestone. They were: Armstead Burkes, John Riley, Henry Kindle, Joseph G. Fogg, Thomas Gibbs, Jesse Sargeiner, John Swope, and Jacob D. Armstrong on the same page as James Conley. There was also a John Conley (his likely son) who was a wagonmaker on this same page. In the 1860 slave schedules, a J. Conley owned 2 slaves, a male and female, age 60 and employed 2 other slaves. This might be our James or it more likely refers to his son John b. 1821. This John was in the 1850 census also as a wagon maker who owned slaves. This J. Conley employed a 12-year-old boy who was owned by an Adkinson of Madison County, Alabama. Limestone's capital and Madison County were only 22 miles apart. J. Conley also employed a 30-year-old male who was owned by a Benton (Sanding). We don't know James and John's motivation, but in both cases, they could have been giving these people a trade and life of protection from the harshness of some other masters. They were and are a respected family whom has carried down memories of them. They had an artist whom has sketched different family oral histories and photographs in some cases of these early generations of freed black ancestors. These sketches are maintained in a Conley Trust.

  
  

• Sources

  [S3630] Ancestry Family Trees, (Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members.), 1,1030::0., Ancestry Family Tree (Reliability: 0). [S150] 1800 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com, (Ancestry.com Operations Inc Date:2010 Place:Provo, UT, USA), 1,7590::0., Year: 1800; Census Place: Cumberland, Cumberland, North Carolina; Series: M32; Roll: 31; Page: 368; Image: 327; Family History Library Film: 337907 (Reliability: 0). [S319] 1860 U.S. Federal Census - Slave Schedules, Ancestry.com, (Ancestry.com Operations Inc Date:2010 Place:Lehi, UT, USA), 1,7668::0., The National Archives in Washington DC; Washington DC, USA; Eighth Census of the United States 1860; Series Number: M653; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29 (Reliability: 0). [S320] 1850 U.S. Federal Census - Slave Schedules, Ancestry.com, (Ancestry.com Operations Inc Date:2004 Place:Lehi, UT, USA), 1,8055::0., The National Archive in Washington DC; Washington, DC; NARA Microform Publication: M432; Title: Seventh Census Of The United States, 1850; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29 (Reliability: 0). [S105] U.S., Selected Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, 1850-1880, Ancestry.com, (Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Date:2010 Place:Provo, UT, USA), 1,1276::0., Census Year: 1850; Census Place: District 3, Limestone, Alabama; Archive Collection Number: M279; Roll: 27; Line: 1; Schedule Type: Industry (Reliability: 0). [S105] U.S., Selected Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, 1850-1880, Ancestry.com, (Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Date:2010 Place:Provo, UT, USA), 1,1276::0., Census Year: 1850; Census Place: District 3, Limestone, Alabama; Archive Collection Number: M279; Roll: 27; Page: 9; Line: 37; Schedule Type: Agriculture (Reliability: 0).