Read on Twitter
I finally got hold of a copy of Green Unpleasant Land @corinne_fowler @ColonialCountr1 thanks to my lovely local bookshop @WordBookshop. I'm especially struck by Corinne's creative response – a poem – to the grave of an enslaved woman, buried in Oxhill, 1705, named Myrtilla –
It's the same name of my 6x great-grandmother who was enslaved on Auchenbeddie plantation, Jamaica (aged 24 in 1817) – later baptised Sarah Church with her children Bessy & Henry. She was 'African' rather than 'Creole' in the records, indicating she'd survived the middle passage.
Myrtilla & her children were owned by Taylers–their mistress was Sarah Church, a free woman of colour & 'housekeeper' of Thomas Weir Tayler–she received £215 16s 5d as compensation in 1833 for her enslaved property. My ancestor was, of course, baptised with her mistress' name.
This (not unusual) story is still remarkable to me – it was poignant to find out that this all took place in Manchester parish – the namesake of the place that my Jamaican family, Myrtilla's descendants, now live in. I went on this family history journey with my cousin –
& it meant a lot to us both to make this discovery. It wouldn't have been possible without @LBS_at_UCL but also without the work that many scholars inc @corinne_fowler have done to spark broader public interest in history & histories of family & empire. Finis.
You can find out more about Sarah Church & Auchenbeddie plantation here: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/person/view/24783
