William Stone Barton, who was a splendid Judge, a fearless soldier and a Christian;
John E. Mason, who executed all the duties of his high office intelligently and conscientiously.
Echoes of the Past
“Ghosts of Dead Hours, and Days That Once Were Fair”
Fredericksburg was, in anti-bellum days, the center of a large number of slave holding land proprietors who lived within its gates, yet cultivated their farms in the adjacent territory, hence the colored population of the town was large; and very much to the credit of these colored people as well as a testimonial to the manner of their treatment, and to the methods of their humane and kind discipline, the colored population was law abiding and polite. They were religious in their tendencies, and church going in their practices. For several years they worshipped in a church of their own situated on the banks of the Rappahannock known as Shiloh Baptist Church—for in this section they were Baptist in their creed. After the war, in consequence of some feuds and factions, they divided up into several churches, all of the Baptist denomination. Clinging to the name, there is now “Shiloh Old Site”—and “Shiloh New Site” and some mild rivalry.
About the Colored People
Among the old time colored brethren were some unique characters. We note a few only: Scipio, or as he called himself, Scipio Africanus from Ethiopia, was very popular; kindly and charitable in disposition he was probably the only infidel among that race. One afternoon, at a Baptizing which always took place in the River, a very fat sister came near being drowned. After she was immersed by the preacher, gasping and struggling, she came up and Scip becoming excited yelled to the colored divine—“Stop there Brother! Stop I tell you! If you douse that gal again some white man goin’ to lose a valuable nigger by this here foolishness!” Needless to say the indignant divine released the sister and turned his wrath on Scipio.
Another colored character was Edmund Walker, who kept a coffee house. He openly proclaimed he wanted no “poor white trash.” Over his emporium in big letters flourished this sign—“walk in gentlemen, sit at your ease, Pay for what you call for, and call for what you please.”