Legal document concerning an enslaved woman named Zaire in Jamaica
date: label: Date
content: February 8, 1811
name: label: Written by
content: Martin Gordon
label: Subject of
content: Marie Anne Valdec
label: Subject of
content: M Joubert, French
label: Subject of
content: Nicholas Charles Van Eeckhout, German, 1751 - 1821
notes: label: Description
content: Two handwritten depositions from a court case, Valdec v. Gravier in Kingston, Jamaica. Document a is Nicholas Charles Van Eeckhout’s deposition and b is a deposition given by an unidentified person with the surname of Gravier who appears to be the defendant. It appears that Doctor M. Joubert sold an enslaved woman, Zaire to Marie Anne Valdec when the British entered Port-au-Prince, Haiti during the Haitian Revolution. After this English invasion, it seems that Zaire went missing. She may have been sold to an American Captain who took her to Jamaica, or she may have ended up in Havana, Cuba.
label: Description
content: The two statements given on these documents relate to the same events however the accounts of the events differ.
label: Description
content: The first document (a) is signed at the bottom by Nicholas Charles Van Eeckhout. The back of the document has the filing notes for the case, entitled [Valdec v Gravier]. The subject matter [Deporting] is written alongside these two names. The papers were filed February 8, 1811 by Martin Gordon.
label: Description
content: The second document (b) is signed by the unknown individual with last name Gravier.
label: Description
content: Both documents are torn vertically down the middle and an additional piece of paper has been added to the back of each document as support. These missing portions leave out large gaps of writing in the depositions. The ink from the documents has also bled over time, which has expanded the script. Both documents are very frail.
place: label: Place used
content: Kingston, Jamaica, Caribbean, North and Central America
label: Place depicted
content: Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Caribbean, Latin America, North and Central America
label: Place depicted
content: Havana, Cuba, Caribbean, Latin America, North and Central America
label: Cultural Place
content: England, Europe
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: British colonialism
label: Topic
content: Business
label: Topic
content: Colonialism
label: Topic
content: Law
label: Topic
content: Slave trade
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Slavery and Freedom Objects
label: Classification
content: Documents and Manuscripts
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2010.1.227ab
objectType: label: Type
content: documents
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No Known Copyright Restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: ink on paper (fiber product)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (2010.1.227a): 14 3/4 × 16 13/16 in. (37.5 × 42.7 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (2010.1.227b): 14 3/4 × 16 13/16 in. (37.5 × 42.7 cm)