This page displays a small sampling of the collection of primary historical documents uncovered in our research. Many of them date back to before the Civil War, when the names of enslaved African Americans appeared only on census records, military enlistment documents, newspaper advertisements, and bills of sale.

The purpose of this work is to honor the African Americans buried in this sacred land, not just in marking their death, but in remembering their lives. As we acknowledge the African American experience in Liberty, we include evidence of slavery because it is an integral part of that experience. The institution of slavery in America stripped Africans of their familial names, tribal languages, and culture, attempting to reduce them to property. Most enslaved persons were given the last name of their enslaver, with their first name only appearing in sale advertisements, property deeds, bills of sale, estate plans, and wills, some of which we share here. Because enslaved persons were not considered a legal citizen but property, they are not named on census records, but rather entered on “Slave Schedules” under the name of their enslaver, identifiable only by their age, sex, color, and a few other factors as you will see below. This oppression means the history of an enslaved person can be difficult to uncover, and is often only traceable through the documents of their enslaver.

In 1860, Clay County was one of eight counties in Missouri whose population consisted of more than 25% enslaved Africans. As such, many of the founding families of this town held enslaved peoples. Today, many of the members of the African American community in Liberty have ancestors who were enslaved here in this town, where they live life alongside descendants of those who enslaved their ancestors. We do not share this information to shame the descendants of enslavers. We share these documents to show the historical paper trail that is available to us, to highlight and further confirm the first names of the persons buried in the cemetery, to acknowledge the struggle of their history, and to recover their stories.

On January 11, 1865, Missouri ratified the 13th amendment, declaring the emancipation of all enslaved persons. With this freedom, Black Americans were able to obtain a legal marriage license, and we include some of those records here. Many of them had already been married before their families and the eyes of God, some already having children. But obtaining a marriage license was a way to legitimatize that union and declare their own personhood, as these records are the first, and sometimes only, legal document that the previously enslaved persons willingly gave over their own personal information for. These marriage records remind us that the story doesn’t end with emancipation. Moving into the 20th century, the African Americans of Liberty paved the way to building a strong community of faith, business, and education. By acknowledging the hardship of the past, each and every achievement becomes all the more worthy of our attention.

Click here for more in-depth explanation of the research.