The Slave Deeds of Asheboro, NC: Volume I (The SydTek University Stacks Book 47)

In The Slave Deeds of Asheboro, NC: Volume I, historian Justin Goldston offers the first in-depth, illustrated edition of Randolph County’s earliest slave-sale records. This volume begins with Document I – the sale of the slave “Reubin” (Book 29, p. 111; July 14, 1849), in which estate administrators sell a young boy named Reubin to Sarah Craven. Goldston presents high-resolution facsimiles of the original 1849 deed, a diplomatic transcription, and an annotated modern-English translation that decodes the legal formalities—from “highest bidder” procedures to the administrators’ title warranty—that turned human lives into property.

This foundational volume lays the groundwork for a multi-part series that will reveal the personal names, ages, family connections, and legal instruments—bills of sale, gift deeds, manumissions—documenting the lived experience of enslavement in the Piedmont. The Slave Deeds of Asheboro, NC is indispensable for scholars of legal and social history, genealogists tracing African-American lineages, and any reader determined to confront and understand the enduring legacy of slavery in small-town America.

Acknowledgments
This project would not have been possible without the pioneering archive at SlaveDeeds.org, created by Wil Braswell with support from the Randolph County/Asheboro NAACP and its President, Clyde Foust; Chuck Egerton; Ty Breuilly; and Jane Braswell. Their dedication to preserving and sharing these vital records has opened a new window on our collective past.