Author: martino

An archive is often a necessary step in a research project, but it can be daunting to organize a successful trip. One trip alone might not be enough to fully grasp the materials on hand, and online resources could be scarce. That’s why creating a dialogue with the staff of the archive is necessary. Archivists know their collections better then anyone and can point you toward materials you might not have considered. Equally important is organizing your thoughts and research goals before you go. Archival research is rarely straightforward, and you may find that your subject does not appear in the collection as you’d hoped, or the exact document you’re searching for simply is not there. It can be difficult to approach this kind of uncertainty with an open mind, but it’s an essential part of the process. Explore peripheral materials, related collections, or contextual documents that might offer insight in unexpected ways. Sometimes the absence of a document can be as telling as its presence. Ultimately, archival research requires patience, creativity, and flexibility and some of the most valuable discoveries often come from what you did not set out to find.

Cumberland County Historical Society

The Butchers were a prominent Black family that settled in Carlisle after the Civil War around 1870. In particular, John Butcher, the head of the family and the father of nine children, was well regarded in the community.[1] I have spent the last three journal assignments tracing their history back to its origin, and now I am attempting to develop that history with the help of the Cumberland County Historical Society archives (CCHS). It was clear to me that the Butchers would most likely not appear in the Dickinson College archives, another option for archival research available to me, and since the wayside marker I discovered the Butchers from pointed to the CCHS, that is where I set my sights. I knew documents from the Butchers would be very difficult to come by. Both John and Charlotte, his wife, were illiterate and former slaves, which indicated to me that written material would not be an option.[2] However, I did not know what the CCHS had on hand. Looking at their online website, I saw they had a listing of notes on the Butchers. I was ignorant to the fact that this was not necessarily a collection of records, but instead a more broad account of the very limited resources on their family not a box of primary sources ready to be analyzed.

The first step I took in approaching the CCHS was setting up a visit. On their website, they had an online visitation form, which negated the need for sending an email or making a phone call. This introduction was the only form of contact ahead of my visit, and it was likely this that added some confusion to the eventual event. When I arrived, they laid out the requested materials, along with a few extra documents. “Notes on the Butcher Family of Carlisle” is a binder containing a biographical account of the family’s history, originating in Virginia. It is an expansion of an article I had already found online, published by the Gardner Digital Library and written by Jane Black.[3] This expansion is not published anywhere online and, as I explained in a previous journal post, it stands as an excellent example of the type of research necessary for uncovering the Butchers’ history. The problem was that most of the materials did not add any new information about John Butcher’s life that I had not already understood. Unfortunately, the resources available at the CCHS that related directly to the Butchers, and specifically to John, did not provide new revelations. So, I started by tracing back the sources cited in Black’s paper.

The Photos

A picture of John J. Butcher in the 1910 edition of the Negro Business Directory of Pennsylvania (Taken by Oskar Martin)

Jane Black wrote a unique piece of scholarship that helped guide me in my research, and finally holding the full version of the vague online article was crucial. The rest of the notes included photocopies of the entire collection of direct sources relating to the Butchers. They included pictures of census records and newspaper articles from Newspapers.com, all of which I had investigated prior to my visit. The only primary sources the binder held that were not available online were a series of documents regarding the relinquishment of property to Charlotte Butcher after John’s death, a picture postcard of Charlotte Butcher, and a business directory that includes a picture of John and four of his children.[4] These are the only photos specifically attributed to the Butchers in the archive. I wanted to search for more photos, specifically images of potential groups John Butcher was a part of, and so I began my search for his church.

Picture of Charlotte Butcher (taken by Oskar Martin in Cumberland Country Historical Society)

The Churches

At this point, I asked the archivists for any information on Black churches in Carlisle from the 1860s to the 1920s. This is where the gaps in my knowledge and the lackluster explanation of my visit might have caused some confusion. They gave me two boxes of photo books of members of the Third Presbyterian Church, all dated in the mid-twentieth century. Suffice to say, this was not what I was looking for. I decided to search for any evidence of what church John Butcher had been a part of. After a confusing thirty minutes, during which the archivists on call went back and forth about potential churches, since his obituary stated he was a “member of the Baptist church.”[5] The Archivists then indicated to me that this was referring to the Bethel A.M.E. Church.  They seemingly did not have any significant collection of documents on the Bethel AME Church. Perhaps I was not insistent enough or confident enough in my requests, but they specifically pointed me to the church itself, indicating a lack of tangible files on-site. This search for a photo of church members, or any broader context for John Butcher’s life, ultimately came up short. I was left with nothing but a name and another lead.

John Butchers Obituary as appears in the Carlisle Evening Harald on March 13th 1919. (Screen capture of downloaded document taken from newspapers.com, taken by Oskar Martin)

The selection of Milton Flower papers provided to me by CCHS (Taken by Oskar Martin)

The “Skedaddle Ground?”

Going back to Jane Black’s notes, I decided to trace her contextual research on the Black experience during the time of the Civil War. In her work, she mentions “the Skedaddle Ground” and cites it to the Milton Flower papers.[6] When I asked the archivists for the specific citation, it exposed a conundrum that led to yet another lead. Milton Flower was a professor at Dickinson College who produced a large collection of Civil War research and primary source documents that ultimately went unpublished. When Jane Black was writing the notes on the Butchers, the archivist explained that they must have still been processing the Milton Flower papers, as the direct source listed in Black’s article did not exist. I was, however, provided with the closest match to the citation, and I spent an hour searching through the boxes trying to figure out where this article had gotten the term “Skedaddle Ground” from.[7] At this point, I had two scholars and two unique examples of research seemingly in conversation with each other — but I couldn’t find the link. After more discussion with the archivists they directed me towards the Dickinson College archive perhaps they had the final unpublished manuscript. This discovery of the dubious nature of Blacks mention of the Skedaddle Ground perhaps casts doubt on her article. If anything else I ended my archive trip already thinking about my next one.

Stack of papers. The top two being on the left a Civil War era letter and on the right a scrap of notes from Milton Flower’s unpublished manuscripts (Taken by Oskar Martin)

Takeaway’s

There were three major portions of my time at the CCHS, two of which raised more questions than answers. I did not find the unconsidered document I had hoped for, and perhaps this is because I had not fully explored the background of Carlisle and the history of the Black community there. This was my first time visiting an archive, and I wasn’t prepared for the kinds of questions I needed to ask to receive the best support. It’s crucial, when approaching an archive visit, to understand your subject and, at the very least, some context. Secondly, it’s vitally important to plan a wide range of questions and get creative in your approach. My trip, however, was not unhelpful. Amidst the new information Jane Black provided and the research I had already done on Newspapers.com, I now have potential grounds to stand on for my next visit. For instance, John Butcher’s obituary mentions his former employer, George Hench, and Black’s article mentions Frank Butcher, one of John’s sons, who was apparently a janitor at Dickinson College. However, this is improperly cited to the 1910 census, which does not list Frank’s employment at the College. Ultimately, I come away from this trip with a resolve to rectify the mistakes I made in my approach. I’m determined to plan a second, more successful trip to both the Dickinson and Cumberland County archives [8].

[1] Jane Black, “Notes on the Butcher Family of Carlisle, by Jane Black,” 2015, Catalog Number L2015.052.001, Cumberland County History Collection, Cumberland County Historical Society, Carlisle PA.

[2] “John Butcher in the 1910 United States Federal Census,” Carlisle, Cumberland Pennsylvania, Thirteenth Census of the United States, 1910, Record of the Bureau of the Census, RG 29, National Archives, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM]

[3] Gardner Digital Library, “John J. and Charlotte Roy Butcher,” (Gardner Digital Library: Cumberland Historical Society, 2014). [GDL]; Jane Black, “Notes on the Butcher Family of Carlisle.”

[4] Jane Black, “Notes on the Butcher Family of Carlisle,” page 1; “Black History of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania 1865-1976,” Cumberland County Historical Society, Carlisle Pa, page 74; Butcher, Charlotte, Identified Women, Cumberland County Historical Society, Carlisle PA.

[5] “Once a Slave Well Known Resident Died Today,” Carlisle Evening Harald, March 13th, 1919. [NEWSPAPERS.COM]

[6] Jane Black, “Notes on the Butcher Family of Carlisle,” page 2.

[7] The Papers of the Milton Embick Flower Collection, MG-207 Box 12, Cumberland County Historical Society, Carlisle PA, The Papers of the Milton Embick Flower Collection, MG-207 Box 13, Cumberland County Historical Society, Carlisle PA.

[8] “John Butcher in the 1910 United States Federal Census,” Carlisle, Cumberland Pennsylvania, Thirteenth Census of the United States, 1910, Record of the Bureau of the Census, RG 29, National Archives, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM];, obituary, and notes where frank is mentioned.

Tracing the journey of formerly enslaved individuals across America during the tumultuous years of the Civil War is a daunting task. Because many were illiterate, personal documents are often scarce, making it difficult to reconstruct their lives. Understanding their unique stories requires a combination of educated guesswork, primary documents, and extensive secondary research. Ancestry.com serves as a valuable resource, offering a vast collection of records, including birth and death certificates, enlistment papers, and other official documents. Depending on the depth of available records, it can help piece together a rough timeline of an individual’s life. However, enslaved people were not included in the census, as they were not recognized as citizens. It is only after the Civil War, with the abolition of slavery, that newly emancipated individuals began appearing in official records. John and Charlotte Butcher exemplify both the successes and challenges of using Ancestry.com to uncover the lives of those who were minimally documented. Their story highlights the complexities of historical research and the importance of persistence in uncovering the past.

The False Positive 

The timeline presented to the view on Ancestry.com. Red indicates false positive. (Screen Capture, of Ancestry.com timeline)

Finding an individual on Ancestry often begins with a simple timeline of events accompanied by corresponding records. After your search Ancestry directs you to a separate page where all the relevant documents are plainly laid out. When researching the Butchers, I knew he had lived in Carlisle, and so I narrowed my search and found John Butcher. However, when I looked at the documents Ancestry displayed, apparently John Butcher lived in Suffolk, England before Carlisle.[1] This could not have been the case, but this particular false positive managed to sneak past the perimeters of my search. Evidently, two John Butchers were born in the 1830s and both married women named Charlotte, and the documents Ancestry had for John J’s English counterpart just so happened to plug the holes in his story. This particular false positive demonstrates the necessity of caution and thorough examination. While I knew the specific context of the Butchers that made this false positive entirely unconvincing, this might not always be the case. Successful researchers should take care to confirm every document displayed to them from Ancestry as often things can slip through the cracks.

Tracing Backwards

John and Charlotte Butcher’s journey across America is well documented. Since the Butchers had a recorded residency in Carlisle, locating the family was relatively straightforward. By searching for John Butcher in the Ancestry database with Carlisle, Pennsylvania, as a filter, I was able to eliminate most false positives. The Butchers were residents in Carlisle until at least the 1960s, with the death of Alice B. Butcher, after which their properties were sold by their remaining family members.[2] John Butcher died in 1919 after appearing on three censuses the 1880, 1900, and 1910, respectively.[3] His wife, Charlotte Butcher, died in 1941 after appearing in three more censuses than her husband.[4]

The grave lists 1835 as John J Butchers birthday (Image from Findagrave.com)

However, like any source, census records are not infallible. For instance, John Butcher’s birth date varies across multiple documents in Ancestry. In the 1880 census, he was listed as 43 years old, which would place his birth year at 1837. Similarly, in the 1910 census, he was recorded as 73, again suggesting a birth year of 1837. However, the 1900 census does not provide an age for John Butcher—only that he had been married to Charlotte for 39 years, dating their marriage to 1861. Looking at his death certificate from 1919, John’s birth year is recorded as 1831, and he is listed as 87 years old at the time of his death. Yet, his tombstone states that he was born in 1835. Which date is correct? The census records also reveal that John and his wife could not read or write, and at the time, census data was collected by representatives going door to door. Could each consecutive census have been inaccurate? What about his death certificate—who recorded that information, and who provided it? And why does his gravestone list 1835, a birth year that does not appear in any of the census records?[5] The story becomes clearer when John and Charlottes history as slaves is investigated.

The death record for John Butcher (Pennsylvania, U.S., Death Certificates, 1906-1971 for John J Butcher)

Joseph M Barton

In a previous journal assignment, I set out to explore the wayside marker at the site of the former Butcher family residences, now a tot lot. Through this exploration, I uncovered their story—tracing their journey from enslavement in Virginia to their settlement in Cumberland County via secondary sources. During my research for that journal assignment, I discovered a series of sources from the Gardner Digital Library. In particular, the article “John J. and Charlotte Roy Butcher” became central to my effort to trace the Butchers’ history.[6] Initially, I used the information to summarize their lives. However, upon reexamining it for a more in-depth analysis of their experiences and historical context, I found myself interpreting much of the article in a new light. Interestingly, the article has John Butcher born in 1932 which is consistent with the death certificate. Nonetheless, the principal interest this article has for my Ancestry search was the similar research the Gardner Digital Library performed. They used the Ancestry records plus records from the Cumberland County Historical Society to push past the boundaries of Ancestry.com alone. For instance, they had access to John and Charlotte’s obituaries in The Evening Sentinel, sources that required a trip to the Cumberland County Historical Society Archives. I did not make this trip during my research for this project, instead choosing to focus on the sources I had access too on Ancestry. Most importantly the Gardner Digital Library uncovered an account in The Evening Sentinel describing an encounter John had with Joseph Barton, his former slave owner.[7]

Born in 1835 in Virginia, Joseph Marx Barton lived in Frederick County, where a Slave Schedule from 1860 records him as the owner of three enslaved individuals: a 28-year-old male, a 29-year-old male, and a 19-year-old female. While their names were not listed, the Gardner Library’s article suggests that the 28-year-old male and the 19-year-old female were most likely John and Charlotte Butcher.[8] I credit much of this discussion to the Gardner Library’s research. Their article serves as a strong example of how to piece together a story with limited documentation, as they continue to explore the Butchers’ lives within the broader context of enslaved individuals following the Union army’s occupation of Frederick County in 1863. Through secondary source research on slave refugees, they also trace the Butchers’ subsequent journey to Cumberland County.[9]

A list of slave owning genders and ages of their slaves. John and Charlotte Butcher aged 28 and 19 respectively. (1860 U.S. Federal Census – Slave Schedules)

Takeaway’s 

Through Ancestry.com and the support of a secondary source, I was able to solidify my understanding of the Butcher family timeline. However, like all research topics, Ancestry.com left me with more questions than I had initially. Moreover, the Gardner Library provided little information on Joseph Barton or the interactions between John and his former master. This is the central question that has captured my attention. It must have been a profound experience to encounter someone who had once claimed ownership over you. How did this meeting between former master and former enslaved reflect race relations after the Civil War? How does this one experience relate to others like it? The answers to this question cannot be found on Ancestry. If there is one key takeaway from this journal entry, it is that while Ancestry is an excellent starting point, it is ultimately limited. Tracing the Butcher family’s journey from slavery to freedom in Carlisle will require far more research beyond census and death records.

[1] “John Butcher in the 1861 England Census,” Lowestoft, Census Returns of England and Wales, 1861, Public Record Office, The National Archives of the UK, London, England. [ANCESTRY.COM]

[2] “Alice B Butcher in the Pennsylvania, U.S., Death Certificates, 1906-1971,” series 11.90, Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Health, RG 11, Pennsylvania Historical and Medical Commission, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. [ANCESTRY.COM]; Gardner Digital Library, “The Butcher Family Children and Legacy,” (Gardner Digital Library: Cumberland Historical Society, 2014). [GDL]

[3] “John Butcher in the 1880 United States Federal Census,” Carlisle, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, Tenth Census of the United States, 1880, Record of the Bureau of the Census, RG 29, National Archives, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “John Butcher in the 1900 United States Federal Census,” Carlisle, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, Twelfth Census of the United States,  1900, United States of America, Bureau of the Census, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “John Butcher in the 1910 United States Federal Census,” Carlisle, Cumberland Pennsylvania, Thirteenth Census of the United States, 1910, Record of the Bureau of the Census, RG 29, National Archives, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “John J Butcher in the Pennsylvania, U.S., Death Certificates, 1906-1971,” series 11.90, Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Health, RG 11, Pennsylvania Historical and Medical Commission, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. [ANCESTRY.COM]

[4] “Charlotte Butcher in the 1880 United States Federal Census,” Carlisle, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, Tenth Census of the United States, 1880, Record of the Bureau of the Census, RG 29, National Archives, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “Charlotte Butcher in the 1900 United States Federal Census,” Carlisle, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, Twelfth Census of the United States,  1900, United States of America, Bureau of the Census, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “Charlotte Butcher in the 1910 United States Federal Census,” Carlisle, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, Thirteenth Census of the United States, 1910, Record of the Bureau of the Census, RG 29, National Archives, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “Charlotte Butcher in the 1920 United States Federal Census,” Carlisle, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, Fourteenth Census of the United States, 1920, Record of the Bureau of the Census, RG 29, National Archives, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “Charlotte Butcher in the 1930 United States Federal Census,” Carlisle, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, Fifteenth Census of the United States,  1930, United States of America, Bureau of the Census, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC.[ANCESTRY.COM]; “Charlotte Butcher in the 1940 United States Federal Census,” Carlisle, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, Sixteenth Census of the United States,  1940, United States of America, Bureau of the Census, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “Charlotte Roy Butcher,” Union Cemetery, Cumberland County, Carlisle, Pennsylvania. [FINDAGRAVE]

[5] “John Butcher in the 1880 United States Federal Census,” Record of the Bureau of the Census. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “John Butcher in the 1900 United States Federal Census,” Bureau of the Census. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “John Butcher in the 1910 United States Federal Census,” Record of the Bureau of the Census. [ANCESTRY.COM];  “John J Butcher in the Pennsylvania, U.S., Death Certificates,” Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Health. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “John J Butcher,” Union Cemetery, Cumberland County, Carlisle, Pennsylvania. [FINDAGRAVE]

[6] Gardner Digital Library, “John J. and Charlotte Roy Butcher,” (Gardner Digital Library: Cumberland Historical Society, 2014). [GDL]

[7] Gardner Digital Library, “John J. and Charlotte Roy Butcher.” [GDL]

[8] “Joseph M Barton in the 1860 United States Federal Census,” Population Schedule Frederick County, Virginia, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM]; “1860 U.S. Federal Census – Slave Schedules,” District 8, Frederick, Virginia, Eighth Census of the United States, 1860, Bureau of the Census, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC. [ANCESTRY.COM]

[9] Gardner Digital Library, “John J. and Charlotte Roy Butcher.” [GDL]