About the Collection
The Ellinor P. Gadsden Family Papers, 1848-1970, contains a small bound volume kept by Ellinor Cordes Porcher (1810-1888) that records the baptisms performed on enslaved people, both alive and deceased, between 1848-1853. These enslaved men, women and children belonged to Major Samuel Porcher (1768-1851) and Dr. Thomas W. Porcher (1807-1889), and baptisms were performed by Reverend William Dehon and Reverend Christopher Gadsden at Walworth and Leamington Plantations. The end of the book contains entries recording the enslaved persons who underwent the rite of confirmation.
