I was born in Powhatan County, Virginia, on the plantation of George Larrimore.  Sen., at a place called Mount Pleasant, on the 16th of May 1805.  May father was the slave of an orphan family whose name I have forgotten, and was under the care of a Mr. Brooks, guardian of the family.  He was a native of Africa, and was brought over when a mere child, with his mother.  My mother was the slave of George Larrimore, Sen.  She was nearly white, and is well known to have been the daughter of Mr. Larrimore himself.  She died when myself and my twin brother Meshech were five years of age—­I can scarcely remember her.  She had in all eight children, of whom only five are now living.  One, a brother, belongs to the heirs of the late Mr. Brockenbrough of Charlottesville; of whom he hires his time, and pays annually $120 for it.  He is a member of the Baptist church, and used to preach occasionally.  His wife is a free woman from Philadelphia, and being able to read and write, taught her husband.  The whites do not know that he can write, and have often wondered that he could preach so well without learning.  It is the practice when a church is crowded, to turn the blacks out of their seats.  My brother did not like this, and on one occasion preached a sermon from a text, showing that all are of one blood.  Some of the whites who heard it, said that such preaching would raise an insurrection among the negroes.  Two of them told him that if he would prove his doctrine by Scripture, they would let him go, but if he did not, he should have nine and thirty lashes.  He accordingly preached another sermon and spoke with a great deal of boldness.  The two men who were in favor of having him whipped, left before the sermon was over; those who remained, acknowledged that he had proved his doctrine, and preached a good sermon, and many of them came up and shook hands with him.  The two opposers, Scott and Brockley, forbid my brother, after this, to come upon their estates.  They were both Baptists, and my brother had before preached to their people.  During the cholera at Richmond, my brother preached a sermon, in which he compared the pestilence to the plagues, which afflicted the Egyptian slaveholders, because they would not let the people go.  After the sermon some of the whites threatened to whip him.  Mr. Valentine, a merchant on Shocko Hill prevented them; and a young lawyer named Brooks said it was wrong to threaten a man for preaching the truth.  Since the insurrection of Nat.  Turner he has not been allowed to preach much.

My twin brother was for some time the property of Mr. John Griggs, of Richmond, who sold him about three years since, to an Alabama Cotton Planter, with whom he staid one year, and then ran away and in all probability escaped into the free states or Canada, as he was seen near the Maryland line.  My other brother lives in Fredericksburg, and belongs to a Mr. Scott, a merchant formerly of Richmond.  He was sold from Mr. Larrimore’s plantation because his wife was a slave of Mr. Scott.  My only sister is the slave of John Smith, of King William.  Her husband was the slave of Mr. Smith, when the latter lived in Powhatan county, and when he removed to King William, she was taken with her husband.