Household Slave Personal Maid Mother

Life Story

Sukey ca. 1795–after 1848

Household Slave The enslaved handled cooking, cleaning, ison’s wardrobe, helped her dress and change Mother ukey was born into slavery on laundry, and other chores, just as George several times a day, fixed her hair, inspected There is no record of what Sukey thought Montpelier, the Madison family’s Washington’s and Thomas Jefferson’s slaves and repaired her clothes after each wearing, or felt . Unlike Paul Jennings, she did Virginia plantation . As children, she had done in their administrations . But carefully washed the most delicate items, and not learn to read and write . There are and Paul Jennings, also enslaved at Sukey does not appear in Dolley’s letters put everything away for the next use . To Dolley no images of her either . The watercolor SMontpelier, became part of James and Dolley until James was no longer president and they Madison, her clothes meant fashion and power . painting included here portrays a different Madison’s household staff in Washington . were all back at Montpelier . Mentioning To Sukey, they meant work . Theirs was an inti- black woman from the same period, a her for the first time in mate relationship between two women whose cook about Sukey’s age . Most of what is a letter in 1818, Dolley condition and status could not have been more known about Sukey comes from the letters wrote that Sukey had different . Sukey would have known details of her owner, Dolley Madison, and from been stealing from every that few others did: that Mrs . Madison had Paul Jennings, who once called her “sister room in the house, and painful rheumatism and trouble with her eyes, Sukey ”. Historians now believe Sukey had that Dolley had sent her that she was sometimes lonely and depressed . at least five children: Rebecca in 1824, away to one of the other followed quickly by Ben, George, and Madison farms: “[I] find William . The youngest, Ellen, was born it terribly inconvenient to in 1833 . They used the surname Stewart, do without her, & suppose Dolley Madison’s Silk Satin and when they were old enough, they I shall take her again . . . . Open Robe . The National became house servants to the Madisons . Museum of American History, I must even let her steal Smithsonian Institution . from me, to keep from Sukey continued to serve Mrs . Madison labor myself—more than for many years, and she attended Mr . my strength will permit ”. Madison in his final illness . After James died, when the widowed Dolley began to spend more time in Washington, Personal Maid Sukey went with her . She was there in Mrs . Madison did take 1844, when news arrived that her son Sukey back, and later William was dying . Her daughter Rebecca called her “my most ef- was sold that year . Ben, and possibly ficient House servant ”. George, had been sold the year before . Every person the Madisons enslaved in the mansion And then, in late 1847, Mrs . Madison was a “house servant,” but tried to sell Sukey’s last child, 15-year-old Sukey had a special role: Ellen, for $400 . She made arrangements she was Dolley’s personal with slave traders to send Ellen to the maid . Her precise tasks are public well, where they could seize her . The Baroness Anne-Marguerite-Henriette Hyde de Neuville, Martha Church, Cook in “Ordinary not known, but she proba- traders bungled the operation, however, Costume,” ca . 1807–1814 . Watercolor, graphite, and brown ink on paper . New-York Historical

Saving Washington: The New Republic and Early Reformers, 1790–1860 © Copyright 2017 New-York Historical Society A the proceeds “to puthisclothesinorder promised tosendhersonPayne someof sold by Mrs.Madison for$400.Dolley andsoon imprisoned withotherrunaways, Southern waters.Ellen Stewart was The Pearl wascaptured before itescaped Sukey vanished from thepublicrecord . to alocal Washington family intoarageandsold flew Sukey onthespot heard thefollowing thenews morning,she Jennings helpedplan. When Mrs.Madison Philadelphia inamassive slave escapethat set saildown thePotomac River toward schooner Pearl undercover ofdarkness and whoboardedone ofseventy runaways the then free .On April 15,1848,Ellen was had helpfrom Paul Jennings, whowas for thenextsixmonths.She maywell have recaptured slaves closely, abolitionists Following ofthe Pearl’ thestory left afair, ifnotlargeproperty general impression thatMr very sounds queerinourears. It hasbeena life a-going,we donotknow for potatoes,beansandpork, tokeep must exchange themembersofherfamily is [so]reduced anddestitute,thatshe thought oftheideathatoldMrs.Madison that Dolley maybe wasbroke: “What The newspaper Liberator scoffedatnews the attemptedPearl escape,theabolitionist continuing toown slaves . Two weeks before the Madisons, andDolley especially, for bolitionists hadlongbeencriticalof . With this, . It certainly . .Madison s ” . ” the Underground Railroad(New York: William Morrow, 2007). KayRicks, EscapeMary onthePearl: The Heroic Bid for Freedom on American Nation (New York: HenryHolt andcompany, 2006); Allgor, Shulman, ed.,University of Virginia .Additional sources: Catherine by historiansatThe Dolley Madison Digital Edition, Holly C. Madisons (New York: St .Martin’s Press, 2012),andonresearch Dowling Taylor’s Sources: story ofthe story girls aboard thePearl, seethelife For oftwootherteenage thestory was reported tobeinBoston,livingfree . pen’s owners .Soon after, Sukey’s daughter and $75fortheexpensesincurred by the the originalpricepaidtoMrs.Madison, slave penfor$475.Thisfigure included to buyEllen Stewart from aBaltimore July 1848,enoughmoneyhadbeenraised mother is overwhelmed withgrief sisters, topitythepoorchild.Her me askthegoodwomen,mothersand Ellen’s behalf on began amassive fund-raisingeffort A Perfect Union: Dolley Madison andtheCreation ofthe Significant details in this life story are based on Elizabeth areSignificant basedon detailsinthislifestory Elizabeth A Slave inthe White House: Paul Jennings andthe Edmonson Sisters .Onewrote: newspaper “Let Sukey . ca. 1795–after1848 . ” By

Life Story ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ experiences ofwomenlikeSukey? touncovernecessary thelives and todothework Why isitimportant life? person accountstolearnaboutSukey’s Why dohistorianshave torely onthird- enslaved women? these episodesreveal aboutthelives of displeasing Dolley Madison? What do What punishmentsdidSukey endure for household? Sukey’s responsibilities intheMadison As anenslaved female domestic,whatwere Discussion Questions continued Saving Washington: The NewRepublic andEarlyReformers, 1790–1860