Outbuildings / ~150 Years Ago—Colored Troops

Outbuildings / ~150 Years Ago—Colored Troops (HM2AUI)

Location: St. Louis, MO 63123 St. Louis County
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Country: United States of America
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N 38° 33.133', W 90° 21.109'

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Inscription
(left panel)
Outbuildings

Operating an 850-acre slave plantation required numerous outbuildings. Col. Frederick Dent's enslaved African-Americans labored in these outbuildings and kept the farm self-sufficient prior to the Civil War.

An ice house was necessary for storing perishable foods. Thick stone walls and a steep-pitched roof provided insulation and drainage while keeping out warm air. Laborers cut large blocks of ice from rivers and ponds and packed them with sawdust inside the ice house, which usually kept perishable foods fresh through mid-summer.

Most farms kept at least fifty chickens on a half-acre to produce enough eggs for family use and sale. Enslaved cook Mary Robinson used Grant's dog to help catch chickens for dinner while Julia raised several special breeds as pets during her formative years. Hired laborers worked on the White Haven farm after the Civil War and earned about $400 a year selling chickens and eggs.

The ice house (left), the chicken house (right) and the stone building (next to house) with laundry and summer kitchen serve as reminders of the work necessary to operate the White Haven plantation.

(right panel)
~150 Years Ago—Colored Troops

In May 1863 the U.S. War Department established the



Bureau of Colored Troops. This allowed men who labored as slaves on farms like White Haven to become soldiers fighting for the Union and thus for their own freedom. Slave owners could avoid being drafted by paying a fee and substituting one of their slaves for themselves. Five Regiments of Colored Troops were raised in Missouri serving from 1863 through 1866.
>Ulysses S. Grant understood the value of using the Colored Troops. In July 1863 after the victory at Vicksburg he wrote Brigadier General L. Thomas, "I am anxious to get as many of these negro regiments as possible and to have them full and completely equipped... I am particularly desirous of organizing a regiment of Heavy Artillerists from the negroes to garrison this place..."
Details
HM NumberHM2AUI
Tags
Placed ByUlysses S. Grant National Historic Site
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Monday, August 27th, 2018 at 8:02am PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)15S E 730767 N 4270412
Decimal Degrees38.55221667, -90.35181667
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 38° 33.133', W 90° 21.109'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds38° 33' 7.9800000000002" N, 90° 21' 6.5400000000001" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)314, 636
Which side of the road?Marker is on the right when traveling North
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 9060 Whitehaven Dr, St. Louis MO 63123, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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