This document, which is called a "finding aid," describes an archival collection.
In the course of daily life, individuals, families, organizations, and businesses create and keep information about their
activities. When such records are no longer needed on a day-to-day basis, a portion judged to possess enduring historical
value may be preserved and maintained as archival collections. Archival records take many forms, including correspondence,
diaries, financial and legal documents, photographs, and sound recordings. Archival materials may also include maps, scientific
data, artifacts, and electronic records such as emails or databases.
Prepared by archival staff, finding aids provide a history of the person or organization that produced the collection, an
overview of the collection, and a detailed list of the collection's contents.
Finding aids are used by researchers to determine whether materials within a collection may be relevant to their research.
While not exhaustive, finding aids help researchers identify the particular boxes or folders that may hold items of interest.
Descriptive Summary
Abstract:
Joseph M. Farr, his wife Mary Behn Farr and their four children were a white, slave and land owning family in Beaufort County.
Two of their slaves were Elizabeth and Robert [Bob] Farr. The latter, as a freed man, served as a private in Company H of
the 104th U.S. Colored Troops. William W. Farr, the oldest son of Joseph and Mary Farr, was a Civil War veteran and later
a banker in Beaufort, who had a long standing relationship with Maria Green, an African American female farmer. Together,
this interracial family had three daughters, Henrietta, Minerva and Grettye Farr.
The Farr Family Papers contain land transactions, slave transactions, legal, financial, and general materials and ephemera.
Title:
Farr Family Papers, 1828 - 1990
Creator:
Farr Family.
Repository:
Avery Research Center at the College of Charleston
Joseph M. Farr, his wife Mary Behn Farr and their four children were a white, slave and land owning family in Beaufort County.
Two of their slaves were Elizabeth and Robert [Bob] Farr. The latter, as a freed man, served as a private in Company H of
the 104th U.S. Colored Troops. William W. Farr, the oldest son of Joseph and Mary Farr, was a Civil War veteran and later
a banker in Beaufort, who had a long standing relationship with Maria Green, an African American female farmer. Together,
this interracial family had three daughters, Henrietta, Minerva and Grettye Farr.
Legal documents, correspondence, financial documents, literary productions, photographs, and ephemera (1828-1990s) document
the lives of the Farr family of Beaufort County, SC. Due to the small size of the collection, materials are arranged within
one series and arranged chronologically within the folders. Materials of particular note include records of land transactions
(1835-1955), slave transactions (1854-1860), and photographs (c. 1860-1990).
Includes the following properties: Riley Tract, a conveyance in Grahamville and the Tickton Plantation, all in the district
of Beaufort. Sold by William C. Sterwart, Henry Goette, and Henry G. and Alice C. Guerard.
Folder 3
Land Records, 1867
Includes a petition to the Bureau of Refugees, Freemen and Abandoned Lands to restore Tickton Plantation, St. Luke's Parish
and property in Coosawhatchie, Gillionsville, Grahamville, and Blufftion; with other documents regarding lands in the estate
of Joseph Farr.
Folder 4
Legal Records, 1875-1955
Invlove William W. Farr, Maria Green and Charles E. Watermann. Contains a plat (1875) of land on road from Beaufort to Port
Royal; Beaufort conveyance (1894) from Farr to Green; conveyance (1900) of Port Royal Island property to Watermann; lien on
Green's crop (1906); plat (1955) of property conveyed from Green to Mrs. Henrietta Farr Watermann.
Folder 5
Slave Transactions, 1854-1860
Contains several bills of sale for men, women and children, a court of equity slave sale, slave sale and mortgage and receipts
of sale from A.J. Salinas, Broker and Auctioneer. With a scrap of paper alluding to a list of 68 slaves owned by farr in
1860, list not present.
Folder 6
Papers Regarding former Farr slaves, 1899-1906
Pertain to Elizabeth and Bob Farr, include materials regarding a pension for his service in Co. H, 104th US Colored Troops,
and a letter from the son of the former slave owner, giving history of Elizabeth and Bob Farr.
Folder 7
Civil War Restitution Claim, 1908
Claim of the heirs of Joseph M. Farr, seeking compensation for stores and supplies taken from the family by the US military
during the Civil War. With a fragment of a United States House of Representatives bill to that effect.
Folder 8
Papers Regarding Maria "Martha" Green, 1890-1899
Includes a receipt of sale (1890) from William W. Farr of blacksmith materials; a sale of receipt for a buggy (1899).
Folder 9
Essays Written by Minerva Farr, undated
Two literary and historical essays focusing on mankind striving to achieve success as well as patriotic notions regarding
the founding of the United States.
Folder 10
Henrietta Edith Farr, 1908, 1964
Include a wedding invitation to Charles E. Watermann, and a church program from her funeral service.
Folder 11
Collie Correspondence, 1900
Regarding the shipping of two Scotch Collies from West Grove, PA to teh William W. Farr residence in Beaufort, includes a
pedigree of the puppies.
Folder 12
Photographs, 1860-1864
Folder 13
Photographs, c. 1900-1920s
Folder 14
Photographs, c. 1950s-1990s
Folder 15
Wallet, 1828-1869
Contains inscriptions by Joseph M. Farr (1828) and by William W. Farr (1869).
The nature of the Avery Research Center's archival holdings means that copyright or other information about restrictions may
be difficult or even impossible to determine despite reasonable efforts. The Avery Research Center claims only physical ownership
of most archival materials.
The materials from our collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. copyright
law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of
copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be
fully credited with the source.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Farr Family Papers, Avery Research Center, College of Charleston, Charleston, SC, USA.
