Research Notes: Searching for Donum Montford: Methods and Mysteries in Researching an African American Artisan

“Donum Mumford was copper-colored, and carried on the bricklaying and plastering business with slaves, a number of whom he owned. Whenever a job was to be done expeditiously, he was apt to be employed, as he could always throw upon it a force sufficient for its rapid completion. He owned a farm in the vicinity, and several houses and lots in town.” Thus wrote Stephen Miller in his 1873 memoir, “Recollections of Newbern Fifty Years Ago,” in which he described the places and people of the town where he lived as a young man from 1822 to 1824. Miller recalled vivid details about many New Bernians, including those usually left out of standard histories. Under the heading of “Free Persons of Color,” he mentioned only four men besides Montford: John Carruthers (John C.) Stanly, a wealthy black barber and entrepreneur; John Stewart Stanly, the schoolteacher son of John C. Stanly; John R. Green, a leading tailor; and Sylvester Pemberton, a butcher—all of whom he described as hardworking and respectable individuals.¹

Decades later, white New Bernian and amateur historian John D. Whitford (1825–1910) assembled accounts of the town where he spent his life, using information from documents, interviews with his elders, and his firsthand knowledge. He too singled out Donum Montford as one of the few people of color mentioned in his writings, describing him as a as “a free negro” and “a dark mulatto, a brickmason and a farmer, and the owner of slaves.” He stated that Montford “had been in the service of” rich white merchant John Wright Stanly, and he related that Montford had been asked to serve with a committee of prominent white citizens and builders to inspect the structural condition of Christ Episcopal Church. He noted that Donum’s wife, the former Hannah Bowers, had served as the childhood nurse of one of New Bern and North Carolina’s most illustrious citizens, state supreme court justice William Gaston (Figure 1).²

These two early accounts called historians’ attention to Montford, as well as to John C. Stanly, both of whom have been featured in histories of black Americans over the years.³ In exploring the topic of African American builders in North Carolina for my article “Black Builders in Antebellum North Carolina” (1984), I found Donum Montford an especially compelling figure.⁴ In part, this was because local memory of him was so strong: he must have been a man of remarkable character to be remembered so long and so well. In part, it was because he succeeded as an artisan, engaged in major building projects, and acquired real estate and slaves. His connections with leading white New Bernians such as William Gaston also raised his profile in his own day and in local memories. Such a man must have had special qualities that enabled him to succeed—and for the grateful historian, such a man often leaves traces in the documentary record. It was also helpful that he had an unusual name (its origins unknown), which made him easier to find than his contemporaries such as James Green or Jacob Harris.

This essay has two purposes: to trace what we can of Montford’s life as a notable building artisan of color in the antebellum South and, beyond that, to use his admittedly atypical example to illustrate some of the processes and resources useful in tracking such a life. For many reasons, tracing the lives of antebellum artisans and other people of color presents special challenges. But in my study (2006–13) of black artisans in New Bern conducted for the book Crafting Lives: African American Artisans in New Bern, North Carolina, 1770–1900, I have found far more information than I imagined possible, including material that became accessible over the period of research.⁵

Figure 1.

New Bern, North Carolina, circa 1830. Buildings featured in the text are starred. Of these, only Christ Episcopal Church still stands, rebuilt after a fire (see Figure 4). Map by Michael T. Southern, 2013.

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