From Slavery to Freedom

Caroline Terry, known locally as "Sis-tah Cah-line" (1833-1941) was born a slave, perhaps in Southampton County, but spent most of her life in Rappahannock County. She later took the surname Terry. By 1846, Francis Millan of Culpeper had purchased Caroline, her mother Alcey, and her brother, Billy. Millan constructed the Virginia Hotel on Main Street there, then sold it in 1856 and moved to Woodville, about 5 miles south of here. In 1861, he bought the Sperryville Hotel (now Hopkins Ordinary), which still stands nearby on Main Street, and Terry likely worked there as a cook. Several Confederate officers, including Jedediah Hotchkiss, Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's cartographer, stayed there. Millan's sons John and Henry Millan served in Co. B, 6th Virginia Cavalry, a local regiment.

During the war, Terry acquired several military relics, including an 1851 Navy Colt revolver and binoculars she took from the body of a soldier while she assisted with a burial. The Union Army of Virginia occupied Rappahannock County in the summer of 1862, including Sperryville and Woodville, and camped in the fields just behind you while Federal officers occupied the buildings in town. In June and July 1863, about half of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia camped here before and after the Gettysburg campaign. These occupations gave Terry several opportunities to acquire relics.

After the war, she bought a small house near the first Hopewell Baptist Church, which she helped found. Many visitors sat on her porch to listen to her stories. She is buried in the "black cemetery" on Oven Top Road a mile west of here.

(Sidebar): The stories that Caroline Terry told on her porch included her sale to Francis Millan, her reputation as a good cook, and a visit of Union soldiers to her "plantation" home during the war. She also revealed one of the bleak realities of slavery: that her unusually comfortable cabin was called the "honeymoon house" for a reason. Three of her six children were what the slaves termed "gifts of the big house," probably fathered by Millan and one of his sons. One pregnancy occurred in 1863, when she said she took a revolver and binoculars from a dead soldier's body and hid them under her maternity dress. Her descendants still own the relics.

Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.

Show me all markers in:  Sperryville, VA  |  Rappahannock County  |  22740  |  Virginia  |  United States of America

Medical Miracle
John Kiger's Second Lot
John B. Kiger
Pope's Army of Virginia
Sperryville
Cavalry Engagement
Music, Omens, and Destiny
Banks Grand Review
Mosby and Sneden
Marys Rock Tunnel

• GPX
• KML
• LOC

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.