[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.His patrons like his paternity were white, and he might be aslikely to turn the conspirators in as he was to join their cause.But rumorheld that Cowley was already more than one hundred years old.PerhapsGabriel hoped that a man so close to the shades would have little to fearfrom white authority and might be willing to help free those of his mother srace.Jupiter and Gabriel called at Cowley s home, and they later told Gil-bert they had viewed the arms stored in the capitol.That may have beena boast, but the insurgent leaders were clearly determined to bring Cowleyinto the fighting; Jupiter assured Gabriel that Cowley would be at the Capitolon the night they were to rise & have all the arms in readiness. 26By April, Gabriel spent every Sunday in Richmond trying to procureammunition and discover where the military stores were deposited. Sev-eral times, he insisted, Cowley had given him the keys so he could examinethe muskets.This declaration may could have been little more than bravewords to calm the fears of his followers.Most likely, Cowley knew of the plotbut was noncommittal.Several slaves, including Judith Owen s Michael,refused to join the conspiracy but allowed that should [they] see the busi-ness progress well [they] would afterward join the fight.The ancient door-keeper may have made a similar pledge.Gabriel, in all events, was confi-dent that if the rebels successfully made it into town, Cowley would havelittle choice but to hand him arms out. 27From the perspective of the leaders, their recruitment technique was flaw-less.Using their relative freedom, they contacted only those whose talentsand skills made them self-sufficient and nearly free in their unique urbanworld.The Henrico and Richmond conspirators were the most likely to de-mand total freedom and were in the best position to benefit from that free-dom should it come.But in order for their plot to include enough blacks toassure success, the rebels had to reach beyond the urban elite tothe slaves on nearby farms and plantations.Having few cultural or eco-58 Richmond 1800 nomic ties to the out landish plantation field hands as George Smithcalled them many of whom were Africans or their less assimilated chil-dren, the insurgents failed to persuade the rural slaves to join their ranks.Gabriel believed that he had at least the tacit acceptance of nearly all ofthe negroes in town, but when asked how he come on in the country, hesimply shook his head sadly.Until the last moment Gabriel s conspiracywas completely urban, the only plot of its kind in southern history.28Petersburg was an altogether different story.As it grew increasingly clearthat few agrarian slaves would join Gabriel s ranks, it became imperativeto seek numbers among bondmen in other Virginia towns.The DinwiddieCounty town just twenty miles below Richmond was his next goal. [A]ll thenegroes from Petersburg [are] to join [me], Gabriel confided to Ben, after[I].commence the Insurrection. To convert this hope into reality, SamByrd was ordered to head south.Byrd agreed.He told Woolfolk that he intended hiring his own time from his owner, Jane Clarke, for the greaterpart of the ensuing summer, which would enable him to go about and en-gage a number of men [in] Petersburg. The trip would not be difficult; slaveswere allowed to travel by stage, provided they carried a pass, and by 1800coaches made daily round trips between Petersburg and Richmond.29If Richmond presented visitors with a dilapidated appearance, the ham-let of Petersburg wore an even more woeful expression.Located just belowthe falls line on the Appomattox River, the town housed 3,521 souls.Threehundred buildings crept along the river for more than one mile.Streets ranonly two blocks deep, and the crude frame houses were built without anyregularity. Petersburg, however, conducted a very flourishing trade withthe lower counties and even with North Carolina.Vessels of sixty tons sharedthe wharves with smaller craft.Like Richmond, the city had a black major-ity; indeed, Petersburg had the highest percentage of free blacks of anyVirginia city.Many prospered as barbers, caterers, blacksmiths, or boat-men.Most free blacks clustered together in the old suburb of Pocahontas.30Among those residing in Pocahontas were Reuben and Jesse Byrd, twofree men of colour who were also Sam Byrd s uncles.Both were light-skinned mulattoes, and Reuben, a successful mason and carpenter, wasalternately listed by the Petersburg tax assessor as Free black and white. Both men evidently did well in their trades and were respected by the blackcommunity, but neither prospered enough to acquire taxable property.Theylistened intently to what their young nephew had to say and promised toinlist men in their neighborhood
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]