Yeah dummy! pausing for a moment, I’m sure gonna miss his stories, Luke said. They have an oak tree like us? James asked. You know, like he be doin’ here, thinking for a moment, ’Dat, and maybe sittn’ ‘round by the fire at the old oak tree at night. Na… they just probably make Old Moses do the garden. You think they be mean to them? James asked. Still swinging his feet off the ground, Luke looked up replying, My daddy say they dun been sold to Master Henry at Five Oaks. Where they be goin’? James asked inquisitively. Successfully reaching the other end, he jumped down and slung the upper part of his body over the second rail, letting his feet come off the ground. After their morning chores, it was like every other summer day, too hot to do much besides fighting boredom.īetcha can’t walk the top rail of this here fence! James said, slapping his hand against the top rail.Īccepting the challenge, Luke climbed to the top rail, and with outstretched arms for balance, began the slow walk. James and Luke were two 12-year-old boys that lived in the quarter with their parents. Fifteen two-room wooden cabins with roofs made of cedar shakes fashioned from trees harvested in the swamp, were aligned on a secondary road leading to the fields. A section of the road has a split rail fence to keep the horses from straying, and beyond the fence just over the rim of the hill, are the quarters. Spanish-Moss, an air plant that’s a muted olive green and gray in color, hangs from the branches like a shroud, moving gently at the slightest breeze. The road coming in is lined on both sides with 100-year-old oak trees, their thick branches extending across the road almost touching, made it appear as though they were holding hands. Two wrought iron gates at the entrance of the main road were secured by two brick columns that stood like sentries guarding the old plantation. The main house stands like a white monument, with its wide front porch roof supported by four white columns. It’s bordered by a swamp on one side, and 100 acres of forest on the other. His wife Joan died childless 10 years ago and without siblings to pass it down to, the old mansion was auctioned off.Ĭliveden, a 600-acre cotton plantation, is situated at the edge of the Mississippi Delta, 55 miles northwest of the city of Biloxi. Augustus Dubois, the last connection to the plantation had just died. The rich history of Cliveden can be traced back throughout its 150 year Dubois family dynasty. Could he be the solution to one of David's biggest problems? Little did he realize, Frank wielded such immense international connections, stretching from New York, Washington, D.C., Cuba, and beyond. Edward his future father-in-law, a prominent figure in New Orleans and wealthy sugar plantation owner in Cuba, advises him to seek the help of an unassuming character in Havana, by the name of Frank. With the blockade of southern ports eminent, David turns to Edward Atchison for advise. With the impending Civil War over abolishing slavery, plantation owners realized there would be a devastating effect on their businesses of growing cotton and tobacco. Wealthy enough to possess any woman freely, what was the underlying force fueling his overwhelming desire for her? Realizing Tom's disadvantage, David barters for the beautiful slave girl, Elizabeth who works in the kitchen at Cliveden. His primary business is shipping and trade, but occasionally dips into the institution of the slave trade, a necessity for keeping a plantation going. Not fully understanding the depth of responsibility that goes with owning and operating a plantation, he has difficulties, which leaves him no alternative but to seek further financial assistance from David.ĭavid, wealthy in his own right, owns a shipping dock in Biloxi, and half interest in a dock in New Orleans. With the financial help of his older brother David, he was able to buy at auction, Cliveden, a 600-acre property on the edge of the Mississippi Delta. For Tom Stewart, 1850 was the year his dream of owning a plantation came to fruition.
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