Tazewell

Tazewell was a child born at Sherwood Forest to an enslaved woman named Elsy on March 24th, 1854. [1] Another record indicates that this child died the following year on December 1st, 1855, apparently from severe burns. The cause of death is reported as “Burnt.” [2] Enslavers like John and Julia Tyler required enslaved mothers to attend to countless tasks that often prevented them from caring for their own children, leading to tragedies such as the one that resulted in Tazewell’s death.

[1] Transcript of Charles City County Birth Register, 1853-1861, Richard M. Bowman Center for Local History, Charles City County, Virginia.

[2] Transcript of Charles City County Death Register, 1855, Richard M. Bowman Center for Local History, Charles City County, Virginia.