Thomas Frost, Company D

Sometimes former owners (or their children) offered testimony about the lives of formerly enslaved persons i.e. age, parentage, ‘slave marriage,’ names/ages of children, and identities of previous owners. Violet Frost called upon people she’d grown up with, neighbors, relatives, in-laws and the daughter of the man who’d owned her. 

 

Invalid — 1,027,625 / 782,625
Widow — 840,375 / 611,397, Wylette Frost

Secondary Proof of Marriage, Wylette Frost, 27 December 1905
“My maiden name was Wylette Nichols, that I was lawfully married under slave law, married to said deceased at Richard Swamp, Norfolk County, Virginia … I have had thirteen chilldren by said marriage, Fannie, Letticia, and Susan. …
“That I am unable to procure a copy of the record of my marriage as none is known to exist; that I cannot obtain the affidavit of the party who performed the marriage ceremony because that sd marriage ceremony was performed other that what is heretofore stated; that my said husband died on 23 Dec 1905; that I lived with the deceased from my common law marriage up to the date of his death.
“Witnesses: Lavinia Cuffee, Percy Chapman
“and also at the same time appeared Mrs. Lucinda Murry of the County of Elizabeth City and State of Virgina … that I have known the claimant Wylett Frost and her deceased husband Thomas Frost … for 48 years … ; that claimant’s maiden name was Violet Nickols and that she was married to said Thomas Frost of Richwood Swamp,” at Norfolk County, in the State of Virginia, give away by the master Saml Smith on or about January 1857 … that claimant had by said marriage 13 children … whose names and ages are as follows: Fanie was born in 1858, Susan, Letticia.
“Witnesses: Lavinia Cuffee, Percy Chapman”

 

General Affidavit, Christina Cuffee, 27 December 1905
50 years old; resident of Phoebus, Norfolk County, Virgina; post-office address,  Hope Street, 31st [?] … “II have known them for 15 years …”
“Witnesses: Lavinia Cuffee, Percy Chapman”
[She ‘marked’ with ‘Mrs. Christina Cuffee — Leslie]

 

Deposition, Miles Murray, 4 June 1906 
about 72 years old; farming; post-office address, Soldiers’ Home … “I first knew Thomas Frost in 1867, the year I was discharged from the Navy. He was then living at Deep Creek, Va. and I was living in Berkeley, Va., in same county. I also got acquainted with his wife at the same time. I never visited at Deep Creek but I know that they lived together as man and wife and were  so recognized from the time I first knew him until he died. The reason I know so much about them is my wife Lucinda and Thos. Frost were cousins, and his wife came to Phoebus, Va. and stayed with us two or three months at a time when he was in this home.”

“Personally, I don’t know if either of them was married before but I understand that neither was married before.”

 

Deposition, George H. Wilson, 5 June 1906
60 years old; farm work; post-office address, Deep Creek, Va. …”I have known the claimant Violet Frost since I was 10 or 11 years old, when I first known [sic] her in 1857 or 8 she was known and recognized as the wife of Thos. Frost. They were both slaves and lived in this county towards Great Bridge. … They lived in and near Deep Creek from the time he returned from the army till he went to the Soldiers Home.”

“The claimant’s correct name is ‘Violet’ though some people call her ‘Wylette.'”

 

Deposition, Wylett Jones, 5 June 1906
about 65 years old; occupation, work in field; post-office address, Deep Creek, Norfolk County, Va. … “My fulltime and correct name is Violet Frost not Wylette. … widow of Thomas Frost, who died on December 23, 1905 at the Natl Soldiers Home, Va. I was right there when he died. … I knew Thos. Frost from a child up. We were both raised in same neighborhood in this county at Richards Swamp near Great Bridge. My first owner was Young Olds. His daughter Sarah married Sam’l Smith, and I was given to her when a little child. Thos. Frost belonged to David Smith, father of Sam’l Smith, and they lived on adjoining farms. I became the wife of Thos. Frost in 1857, don’t know the month, according to slave custom when I was 16 years old.

Q. “How did you become his wife?”
A. “He asked my mistress and master for me, and they consented. There was no marriage ceremony of any kind. I stayed at my master’s and he at his til during the year, then I was sent to Norfolk City, in company with my husband Thos. Frost.
“He, Thos. Frost, enlisted at Norfolk Va. I was with him at the recruiting office. Richard London got him to enlisted [sic]. He was in same Regt. London is dead. His first Captain was named Bone (?) I think. He went to Ft. Monroe with his company. I went there to see him. I did not go with him when he went to Texas. He came to see me on furlough several times.  While he was in Texas I lived at Deep Creek – went there before he went to Texas – while he was at the front near Richmond or Petersburg.
“As soon as he was discharged he came right home to me. I was then living in the village of Deep Creek. I was living by myself with my children. I had four then, all small. I lived with Thos. Frost as his wife and was known and recognized as such from 1857 till his death.
“In April 1898, Thos. Frost in answer to an inquiry from the Pension Bureau stated that he was not married and had no children living.

“Q. How do you explain that?”
A.  We were not married by law, not by ceremony but I was certainly his wife with consent of owner, about 48 years.
“I had 13 children – every one of them the child of Thos. Frost. There are but three living, the oldest one Fanny born Jany 20, the year after the ‘big snow’ [1858]. She was a good-sized child when her father enlisted in the Army.

“I surely was Thos. Frost’s wife and he so recognized me all the time. While he was in the army, he had letters written to me. (He could not write.) I have some of the letters yet and some I know Mrs. Mitchell (now dead) wrote to him for me. While he was in Texas (Deponent produced six letters signed Thos. Frost, Co D 1st USCC and four signed Violet Frost and two envelopes which appear genuine and will be found with the papers — Exmr).

“No sir I was never married nor did I have a husband before I became the wife of Thos Frost. He had no wife before he had me. The soldier has no brothers or sisters living. My master is dead but my mistress Sarah Smith was living in Berkley when I last heard of her I think all of the fellow slaves of my husband are dead. I have not seen them since the war. Lucinda Murray knew my husband from a boy. She was a cousin. Miles, her husband did not know him or me tll after the war. Geo. H. Wilson knew us before the war and since. Isaiah Harris also knew us long before the war.

“I have no property or income except from my labor. C.M. Cordon, Natl Soldiers Home is my attorney.  My papers were made out over there. I and my witnesses were sworn to the statements we made by some man in a bank in Phoebus. I don’t know what his name is. He put his seal on the papers and I paid him two dollars. I ain’t paid Cordin anything, nor promised to pay him, or made a contract to pay a fee to anyone.”

 

Deposition, Isaiah Harris, 5 June 1906
67 years old; occupation, farmer; post-office address, Deep Creek, Va…. “I knew Thos. Frost from about 1854 or 5. He belonged to Smith at Great Bridge. I lived about 2 miles from him. He never had any wife but the claimant Violet Frost. If he had any wife before he had her I would have heard of it. We used to be together, were friends all the time. He became the husband of Violet Frost before the Civil War, according to slave custom, by consent of owners, but I cannot give the year they commenced living together. I knew Violet but not well before she became Thos. Frost’s wife. She was right young then and never had any other husband. She belonged to Sam’l Smith who lived near at Richard’s Swamp.

“I have lived near them all the time. I helped to send him to the Soldiers Home as he got sick, not able to take care of himself. The claimant stayed there with him a long time, was there when he died.”

“He was married by slave custom. He could not get lawfully married while he was a slave. He was certainly claimant’s husband some years before the war up to the time he died. … I saw him while he was a soldier, as soon as he was discharged he returned to claimant at Deep Creek.”

 

Deposition, Sarah E. Smith, 9 June 1906
74 years old; widow of Sam’l Smith; post-office address, 128 Liberty Street, Berkeley, Va. … “I have known the claimant Violet Frost from a child. She came to me from my father’s estate when she was a young girl. My father was the late Young Old, and lived 4 or 5 miles south of Great Bridge, Va.

“This claimant became the wife of Thomas Frost with my consent and the consent of the owner of Thomas Frost, before the Civil War, don’t know the date. He was her first and only husband.

“She lived at Deep Creek from the time she became free, as far as I know. When she left me she had three children. She has been to see me with Thos. Frost since the war. They were known and recognized as man and wife by all who know them. Violet Frost was Thos. Frost’s first and only wife. I married his master’s son in 1854, and he was about the house a good deal. The claimant and Thos. Frost were never divorced that I ever heard of. He went to the Soldiers Home because he was disabled, I believe, but he went to Deep Creek at times to see his wife. He would stop and tell us how he was getting along and how his wife and children were.

“The claimant is a good, truthful, honest woman, was so with me, and I believe is yet. She was not over 10 years old when she first came to me. The claimant’s name is Violet, she first went by the name of Old, then Smith and after she became the wife of Thos. Frost she was called Violet Frost.”