SYMHC Classics: Lettuce, Slavery, and the Bibb Legacy

Summary

Stuff You Missed in History Class: SYMHC Classics: Lettuce, Slavery, and the Bibb Legacy

Hosted by Holly Fry and Tracy V. Wilson | Release Date: July 5, 2025

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I. Introduction

In this compelling episode of Stuff You Missed in History Class, hosts Holly Fry and Tracy V. Wilson delve deep into the intricate legacy of the Bib family, intertwining the seemingly innocuous story of Bibb lettuce with the profound and often troubling history of slavery and emancipation in 19th-century Kentucky.

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II. The Bib Family and Bibb Lettuce

a. John Bigger Bib: Biography

John Bigger Bib, born on October 27, 1789, in Prince Edward County, Virginia, emerges as a central figure in this narrative. Raised in Kentucky from the age of nine, Bib's early life was marked by education under Joshua Fry, a pivotal educator in Kentucky's history. After studying law under Judge H.P. Broadnax, Bib's promising legal career was interrupted by the War of 1812, where he served valiantly, rising to the rank of major after the Battle of Thames in October 1813. However, his military career was cut short, likely due to health issues, leading him to close his law practice in 1816.

b. Development of Limestone Lettuce

Bibb's passion for horticulture led him to purchase land in 1845, where he established Gray Gables in Frankfort, Kentucky. Here, he cultivated what he termed "limestone lettuce," a variety uniquely adapted to Kentucky's limestone-rich soil. This lettuce was not only pest-resistant and tender but also compact in growth, making it ideal for the region. Importantly, Bibb did not commercialize his lettuce; instead, he generously distributed seeds and plants freely during his lifetime. It wasn't until 1919 that Greenhouse of Louisville began selling Bibb Lettuce commercially, long after Bibb's death in 1884.

Notable Quote:

Holly Fry [07:24]: "Bibb was not cultivating this crop for profit. He gave most of it away."

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III. Richard Bibb and Slavery

a. Richard Bibb's Background

The wealth that facilitated John Bibb's horticultural pursuits was built upon the labor of enslaved individuals owned by his father, Major Richard Bibb. Born on April 13, 1752, in Goochland County, Virginia, Richard Bibb served as a Major in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. Upon relocating to Kentucky, he established significant agricultural enterprises, leveraging a substantial enslaved workforce. By 1829, Richard Bibb was the second-largest slaveholder in Prince Edward County, Virginia.

b. Emancipation Plan and the American Colonization Society

Influenced by his religious convictions and connections with the American Colonization Society—which advocated for relocating freed Black individuals to Africa—Richard Bibb made a controversial decision. In 1829, he announced the emancipation of 29 enslaved people, intending to send them to Liberia. This decision was framed as a benevolent act, influenced by his friendship with Henry Clay, a founder of the society.

Notable Quote:

Tracy V. Wilson [08:53]: "Major Bibb freed 29 of his slaves in 1829 and sent them to Liberia."

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IV. Emancipation of Slaves and the Journey to Liberia

a. Accounts and Challenges

The emancipation was not without its tragedies. The group of emancipated individuals, primarily descendants of Lucy and Keziah—enslaved by the Bibb family—embarked on a grueling journey aboard the brig Ajax in April 1833. The voyage was marred by a cholera outbreak, resulting in the deaths of approximately 30 to 40 individuals. Reports from the time, such as those from a minister named Abel Long, suggest that survivors faced immense challenges, with some even retreating into the Liberian jungle.

Notable Quote:

Tracy V. Wilson [17:06]: “The account… puts Major Bibb in a very, very kind light.”

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V. The Will and George Bibb's Opposition

a. George Bibb's Letter

Upon Richard Bibb's death in 1839, his will mandated the emancipation of enslaved individuals, providing them with land and financial support. However, George M. Bibb, Richard's son and a U.S. Senator, contested this will. In a detailed 12-page letter to his brother John, George argued that the emancipation provisions were impractical and financially burdensome. He expressed skepticism about the executors' ability to manage the funds fairly, insinuating that freed individuals might mismanage their inheritance.

Notable Quotes:

George Bibb [25:27]: "I would not, for the property bequeathed by the will for all the Negroes, nor the value 10 times told, insult the memory of our father by, and attempt to set aside the writing he has published as his last will and testament."

Holly Fry [35:21]: "George Bibb makes clear in his letter that he believed his father was wrong in emancipating slaves."

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VI. Legacy and Modern Reflections

a. Sikh Museum and Reunions

The legacy of the Bibb family, particularly the stories of those emancipated, is preserved at the Sikh Museum (Struggles for Emancipation and Equality in Kentucky). This museum, housed in Major Bibb's former property, serves as a poignant reminder of the intertwined histories of wealth, slavery, and emancipation. In 2019, a significant reunion brought together descendants of both the Bibb family and the enslaved individuals, shedding light on the complex and often painful legacy of their ancestry.

b. Linnae O'Neill's Article

Journalist Linnae O'Neill's article, "The Bitter Harvest of Richard Bibb: A Descendant of Slavery Confronts Her Inheritance," provides a raw and honest exploration of the emotional and generational impacts of the Bibb legacy. The piece underscores the lingering effects of slavery and the challenges of reconciling historical narratives with present-day realities.

Notable Quote:

Holly Fry [42:24]: "It's one of those things where you realize… this cute story about food is really about the people that made it possible for a white guy to have leisure time to make that food."

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VII. Conclusion

This episode masterfully unravels the dual narratives of agricultural innovation and the dark underpinnings of slavery that supported it. While Bibb Lettuce stands as a testament to John Bigger Bibb's horticultural legacy, it simultaneously serves as a reminder of the human cost of such endeavors. The Bib family's story encapsulates the complexities of American history, where progress and prosperity were often built upon the suffering and oppression of others. Through meticulous research and heartfelt discussion, Holly Fry and Tracy V. Wilson illuminate the enduring impact of these historical legacies on contemporary society.

Notable Quote:

Tracy V. Wilson [38:56]: "It's an important example of how anti-abolitionists could make a case that it was in everyone's best interests not to give enslaved black people full emancipation or assets."

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Additional Resources

• Sikh Museum: seekmuseum.org
• Linnae O'Neill's Article: "The Bitter Harvest of Richard Bibb"

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Transcript

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[Holly Fry]

Hello and Happy Saturday. So the Bib family has popped up a couple of times in recent episodes, and we actually talked about this family and its legacy in our episode where we also covered the development of the variety of lettuce named after them.

[Robert]

The Bib Lettuce.

[Holly Fry]

That episode ran on July 5, 2022. During that episode we referenced the work of Lanae O' Neill and she recently published a book about the story and her connection to it titled Bib Unearthing My Family's Secrets of Land, Legacy and Lettuce that book is out now and it is in my audiobook queue. I am very much looking forward to reading it. And we are rerunning that 2022 episode on the Bib family today. Enjoy. Welcome to Stuff youf Missed in History Class, a production of iHeartRadio. Hello and welcome to the podcast. I'm Holly Fry.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

And I'm Tracy V. Wilson.

[Holly Fry]

Tracy, this episode was supposed to be another installment of eponymous food.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

Yeah, it went a different way though.

[Holly Fry]

It is not. It is little, but as I got into the story of one of those foods, it really unfurled quite quickly into a much bigger and much more important story about the family of a man who cultivated lettuce in his later life. Just as a heads up, I promise there's another eponymous food coming at some point, but it's not today. This story is, I think, really important because it offers a snapshot of a very rich person's choice to emancipate his enslaved workforce, the way his family received that information, and how their legacy, both good and bad, is all tied to having enslaved people building their familial wealth. Heads up. We are going to read a lot from writings that were composed in the 1800s, so of course some of the language there is a bit outdated. But first we are going to talk about bib lettuce and the man who cultivated it.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

Yes, I love it when episodes go in totally different directions from what they were planning.

[Holly Fry]

Just a hard left.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

So John Bigger Bib was born on October 27, 1789 in Prince Edward County, Virginia. His parents, Richard Bibb and Lucy Booker Bibb, moved from Virginia to Kentucky when John was about 9 years old. We're going to get back to Richard in a moment and talk about him a lot more. They shifted around Kentucky for a bit. First they lived in Fayette county and then in Bullitt, where Richard Bibb purchased a salt works. Then they went to Logan county and established a large and successful farm. Bibb's early education was largely under Joshua Fry, that was a fellow Virginian who had moved to Mercer County, Kentucky. Fry is a pretty interesting figure in Kentucky history because when he moved there, he didn't think there was an adequate education system, so he opened up a school out of his house. And then a lot of prominent people in Kentucky's history were educated by Joshua Fry.

[Holly Fry]

After his primary education, John Bibb studied law under Judge H.P. broadnax. But before he could get his law career underway, The War of 1812 began and the 23 year old Bibb joined the 4th Kentucky Volunteer Brigade. He began as a private and was promoted to the rank of major after the Battle of Thames in October of 1813, although the war continued into 1815. John Bibb was discharged just a month after his promotion and returned to Kentucky. And it's a little unclear, at least in the documents that I had available to me, why he was discharged so soon after being made major. It very well might have been a health issue, though this is supported by the fact that although he passed the bar right after returning to Kentucky and opened his practice, he closed it down just a couple Years later, in 1816, due to poor health.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

In 1827, Bibb ran for a seat in the Kentucky House of Representatives as a Whig and won. He was reelected in 1828 and then ran for the Kentucky Senate, won again. He served in the state Senate for four years, from 1830 to 1834. During that time, he also married Sarah P. Horsely. Their wedding was on August 24th of 1831.

[Holly Fry]

Bibb was an amateur horticulturalist, and in 1845, he purchased land to support his hobby. He built his home, Gray Gables, on a property in Frankfort, Kentucky, on Wapping street, that's usually touted as he built it for his wife. And it included a large greenhouse, and there was a substantial garden. And today that's known as the Bibb Burnley House, and it has a historical marker. And it was there that he started working with lettuce.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

Over time, Bibb developed something he called limestone lettuce. It was a lettuce that grew well in Kentucky's limestone rich soil. It was naturally resistant to a number of pests, including plant lice. It's also really tender, and it grows in a pretty compact head.

[Holly Fry]

And Bib was not cultivating this crop for profit. He gave most of it away. And it actually was not renamed Bibb Lettuce and commercially sold until decades after his death, which happened in 1884. He had, during his late lifetime, given away both lettuce and seeds. That was in the latter half of the 19th century, and subsequently, area farmers had started growing limestone lettuce for themselves. In 1919, the green wine Greenhouse of Louisville was the first to sell the lettuce with the name Bib attached to it.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

So that's the pretty benign story of where Bibb lettuce came from. Now we have to take a look at the deeper legacy of slavery within the Bibb family and John B. Bib's role within that. To do that, we have to go back to his father, Richard Bibb.

[Holly Fry]

So there's a historical marker outside of Major Richard Bibb's townhouse in Russellville, Kentucky. It was placed there by the Kentucky historical society in 1975 and that marker reads quote Bibb, a Revolutionary War soldier, was born in Virginia, 1752. He came to Lexington, Kentucky in 1798, moved to Logan county the next year where he built Bibb's Chapel. Later erected this house for his wife. Major Bibb freed 29 of his slaves in 1829 and sent them to Liberia. He died in 1839 and his will provided for the release of his other slaves and gave them land.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

Here's the more detailed story. Richard was born in Goochland County, Virginia on April 13, 1752. His parents were John Bibb and Susannah Bigger Bibb. And during the Revolutionary War, Richard joined the Continental army and rose to the rank of Major.

[Holly Fry]

When Richard moved his family to Kentucky, he brought with them a large number of enslaved people. He had actually been the second largest slaveholder in Prince Edward County, Virginia.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

In 1817, the American Colonization Society was formed in the U.S. its goal was to provide an alternative to emancipation within the U.S. for Black enslaved people that had the option of being shipped to Africa. This has come up in several previous episodes, most recently in our episode on Paul Cuffy. There were supporters of this idea who believed that it would truly be a viable option for free black people. There were also people who just saw this as a solution from a racist standpoint. It would get those free, free black people out of the United States. Both abolitionists and pro slavery white people used similar rhetoric about free black people never truly assimilating into white society. So for the pro slavery crowd, this was seen as a condition of emancipation. The emancipated person would then leave the country. Did not matter if they had been born and raised in the United States and had no real ties to Africa at this point.

[Holly Fry]

Point and Major Richard Bibb. So again, Lettuce John Bibb's father, had at some point in his later life realized that the institution of slavery was wrong. This was a position that is usually attributed to his religious studies and becoming a minister. There are some versions of his life story that indicate that one of the people that he enslaved had been the one to encourage him to become a Methodist minister. After he had initially been on a path to be an Episcopalian minister and.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

He had connections to the American Colonization Society. He was friends with Henry Clay, who was one of the society's founders. Richard eventually decided that the plan to relocate emancipated black people to Africa was a good idea. So in 1829 he announced that he was emancipating one third of his enslaved workforce on the condition that they would be sent to Liberia.

[Holly Fry]

There is a little bit of fractured logic about why only one third were going to be manumitted, and it's sometimes cited as Major Bibb's reasoning here. He had just short of 100 enslaved people working for him in 1829. Some of those were entire families self contained within the Bibb family's holdings, but many were married to enslaved people who were owned by other families. So according to this Logic, he selected 31 that no other white family could claim ownership over, believing that that would be better than breaking up families. Yes, there is some logic to that, but it also conveniently ignores the fact that Major Bibb almost certainly possessed the wealth to purchase and manumit any number of enslaved people had he wanted to keep families together. The one exception to this whole scenario was a man named Richard Morton. He had been owned by Bib's son in law, Dr. Bonarogas Roberts, and he was married to a woman named Hannah who was part of Major Bib's enslaved workforce. According to a number of accounts, the enslaved people that Bibs selected were ones who also wanted to go to Liberia rather than remain enslaved. Although there is no way to verify that and sometimes it reads very conveniently. In retellings of this story, we're going.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

To talk about the only account of Bib's emancipation announcement by a person who was there in just a moment. First though, we'll pause for a quick sponsor break.

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[Holly Fry]

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[Holly Fry]

So there is an account of that announcement that this group of enslaved people would be emancipated, and it is the only firsthand account that we have. It is not without problems, and we'll talk about that in a moment. This account was given by a formerly enslaved man named Andrew Bibb, who relayed it to a reporter in late 1897. Andrew would have been 73 at the time, and he would have been 5 in 1829 when the events that he recounted took place. And we're going to read this account, but before we do, please know that it is really very romanticized. It puts major Bib in a very, very kind light.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

So this account reads in part, in the center of the yard stood an old gentleman with uplifted hands, and beside him was a barrel on end, on top of which was placed a Bible and a hymn book. In front and around him were nearly 100 slaves. 29 of these were about to start as free men and women in the land of their fathers in far off Africa. After several generations of servitude in America, the old man asked a divine blessing upon them. Since his youth he had cared for them, and before that they or their parents had belonged to his father. He believed slavery was wrong and was taking the initial step toward putting into execution a long, cherished plan. He was about to send one third of his slaves to Liberia. The others he intended to liberate at his death. He had read a chapter in the Bible and had given out a hymn. And when his prayer was finished, many a blackface was bathed in tears, and the slaves gathered about and shook old Master's hand for the last time and heard the accent of his kindly voice. This goes on to say that the people chosen for the journey were, quote, shiftless and refractory, obstinately resistant to authority or control, unruly. So that last quote, of course, contradicts the framing that Bibb was selecting the people who wanted to go to Africa. Africa.

[Holly Fry]

So Andrew Bibb's story was published in the Courier Journal of Louisville, Kentucky. It was written by a reporter named M.B. morton. Sometimes this story, as it's relayed, is told as though it's a direct quote from Andrew. I don't think that was ever the intention. It's a direct quote of MB Morton about the story as told to him. And we don't know if the account was edited or altered, although it certainly seems likely. I. I don't know anybody who speaks in such prosy.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

You know what I mean?

[Holly Fry]

Nobody. MB Morton, we should say, kind of made a career out of talking about slave narratives. He went on to write extensively about Kentucky's enslaved population, including in a book he wrote called Kentuckians Are Different. That didn't come out until 1938. So almost 40 years later, that's also a book that he dedicated to the state's enslaved population as his educators. So there's a lot to unpack there. I just want to acknowledge sort of what was going on with it.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

We do know that it took several years for the plan to move all of those people to actually be executed. They were taken to Clarksville, Missouri by wagon, then boarded a steamship for New Orleans. In New Orleans, they were taken aboard a brig called the Ajax on April 20, 1833. The oldest member of the group Bib sent was a man in his 30s named Andrew, and the youngest was just a little over six months old. All of them. According to research done by Michael Morrow, museum director for the Sikh Museum that now exists on Bib's former property, all the people Bibb emancipated for this journey were the direct descendants of enslaved people known by the names Lucy and Keziah. That couple had been enslaved by the Bibb family, going all the way back to Virginia.

[Holly Fry]

We also don't know exactly why it took two and a half years to get them onto this ship after the announcement. That's all a little unclear in these retellings. And there doesn't seem to be like a journal or anything kept by any of, like, the wagon driver, anybody that explains why that took two and a half years. Even then, that seems like an extraordinarily long time. The voyage of the Ajax was paid for with funding from the American Colonization Society and the Kentucky Colonization Society. And in addition to Lucy and Keziah's family from the Bib properties, there were one hundred and eighteen other enslaved people being emancipated through this journey. They were mostly from Kentucky. There was also a white missionary and an agent of the Tennessee colonization society named H.D. king. This journey was really rough. There was a cholera outbreak on the ship which killed several dozen people. Those numbers are usually quoted as between 30 and 40, but it's not 100 clear. A black minister named Abel Long visited Liberia years later, and he reported that he was unable to make contact with any of the people from the Bib group, although he was told that two of the women had survived and had gone into the jungle to live. That account is very strange. I read it in one newspaper and it it's also very sensationalized. There's language I did not care to include here. The rest of the people who went appear to have died.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

When Major Bibb died, as was indicated on that historical marker we mentioned earlier, he did, as promised, emancipate his remaining enslaved workforce. He once again indicated a desire for some of them to go to Liberia. And he also offered an alternate plan. Here's the pertinent passage from his will. Quote. I do hereby emancipate all of my slaves from and after the first first day of January next after my death, and desire that all of them who have not wives or husbands in bondage be sent to Liberia. I give to my slaves hereby emancipated, $5,000 to be divided out among them and paid out to them from time to time according to the discretion of my executors and all of my stock of horses, cattle, sheep and hogs, farming tools, wagons and carts and crops made the year of my decease, or that may be on hand, and each slave hired out to the hire due for the year in which I shall decease. I also give to said slaves all my lands which are unsold or undisposed of in the county of Grayson of this state. The land in the county of Logan conveyed to me by Benjamin Tompkins, Ralph E. Norse, and Robert Norse, is to be divided among them at the discretion of my executors and also the land in Logan conveyed to me by Mark hardin and about 30 acres adjoining it. Conveyances to be made by my executors or either of them, and they are hereby authorized to sell and convey any of the land or either property hereby given to my emancipated slaves, and divide or lay out the money for their benefit. I give to my Aaron the house and lots on which he lives in Russellville, and his carpenter tools as his portion of the legacies left. My emancipated slaves I give to my woman Clarissa's Biz, that part of most remote from the dwelling house to include the smith's shop.

[Holly Fry]

Major Bibb then included a long list of names of the emancipated enslaved. They are listed only by first name. This part of the will then concludes with quote, I give to my slaves by this will emancipated my two lots under the knob near MB Morton's and two fractional lots in Saunders, addition to Russellville near James Bell's stable and a fractional lot near William Duncan's and William First's near the public square, to be divided and conveyed to them at the discretion of my executors.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

When Major Bibb died, his son John wrote two letters to his older brother, George M. Bibb, who had been a US Senator and was serving as a judge of the Jefferson County Court of Chancery when their father died. The first letter informed George of the Major's passing, and then the second asked for George's thoughts on the will, because George's expertise and wills and trusts was just unmatched. George's response was 12 pages long, and he did not agree with his father's wishes. But he also knew he couldn't really contest the will, although the advice that he gives to his brother is not in the interest of the people that Major Bibb named for emancipation. We're not gonna read this whole thing again. It is 12 pages long. That would be the whole podcast, really. We'll read some excerpts of it, though, to show how George Bibb made the case to his brother that he could hang on to assets that were mentioned in the will for as long as possible.

[Holly Fry]

Yeah, this. I have feelings about this letter. George's letter opens with some niceties towards John, discusses that their father has died, and early on it includes this passage, quote, what effect the experiment our father has made in sending Negroes to Liberia and in setting out some to work for themselves near him, might have had in changing his mind upon the subject of emancipation. I did not know. The will which he has left shows that his mind was unaltered. It is done, poor as I am struggling at my time of life, by the most intense application to the duties which does not afford any surplus at the year end above the expenses of my family. Yet I would not, for the property bequeathed by the will for all the Negroes, nor the value 10 times told, insult the memory of our father by, and attempt to set aside the writing he has published as his last will and testament. Whoever suggested an intention on my part to oppose the will or to endeavor to break it did but little understand my thoughts or temperaments spoke at random, without color of authority from me, and did me great injustice.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

At this point in his life, George had enjoyed a lot of success, but he had, for reasons that are kind of nebulous, gotten to the point where his finances were pretty lean by the time his father died. The only reasons he cites when discussing his financial problems were the banking system and quote my own confiding temperament. So while you might understand his dismay at his father giving so much land and money toward his emancipation provisions and why people expected that he would try to contest the will, it's also reported that Major Bibb left his children well cared for financially. It was even mentioned in his death announcement.

[Holly Fry]

Yeah, I'm always suspicious of anyone who's.

[Robert]

Like, even though I am in the worst position, I would never try to do anything like when that's your open, I'm gonna lean back.

[Holly Fry]

Aside from insisting that he would never insult his father's memory, George makes his opinions pretty clearly known in this letter about how he believes the will should be executed. And we are going to dig into all of that after we first take a little break and hear from the sponsors that keep stuff you missed in history class going.

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[Holly Fry]

Listen to your elders, honey.

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[Holly Fry]

George Bibb makes clear in his letter that he believed his father was wrong in emancipating slaves. He did not side with abolitionists. This writing is for me, infuriating to read, and it includes the following quote the emancipation of a large number of Negroes, male and female, helpless and infirm, old and young, would provide a nuisance to society as well as an injury to the Negroes. And he hints that the key to managing the situation in the way he thinks would avoid problems is in the executor's hands, although he also adds, quote, the extent of discretionary powers given to his executors is not clear of difficulty.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

So remember, George Bibb was an expert in wills. He had practiced law, was able to build a case. And as he continues with this, it definitely seems like he's trying to show his brother John that there is just so much gray area in the will when it comes to the specifics of the apportionment. So he continues, quote to apply these rules to the will, I give to my slaves hereby emancipated $5,000 to be divided out amongst them and paid to them from time to time according to the discretion of my executors. The extent of the discretion which the executors are to exercise under the clause respects first, the division amongst these collegiaries, second, the time of the payments. The important question is, may the executors divide the money in unequal shares if the shares are to be equal share and share alike to each legatory? If the executors cannot exercise the discretion by giving 5 shillings to one and $80 to another from time to time, graduated by the incapacities, families and infirmities which enter into the question of the respective abilities or inabilities to labor for self support there, the sentence would be no more operative by the presence of those words divided out amongst them than if those were expunged and the testament left with the words to be paid to them from time to time according to the discretion of executors. By denying a discretionary power to the executors to make the division amongst the collegiaries in unequal portions, the one member of the sentence would be made expletive with no effect whatever, contrary to the rule that every word shall have effect if consistent with the other parts of the testament.

[Holly Fry]

After this, George invoked a 1794 law that Kentucky had passed regarding provisions for emancipating enslaved people. That law stipulated that anyone trying to manumit an enslaved person had to quote writing under his or her hand and seal, attested improved in the county court by two witnesses. That paperwork had to be filed with the court and the quote court shall have full power to demand bond and sufficient security of the emancipator, his or her executors or administrators, as the case may be, for the maintenance of any slave or slaves that may be aged or infirm, either of body or mind, to prevent their becoming chargeable to the county. So, in short, if someone wanted to manumit a person, they had to promise and make provisions to ensure that the manumitted person would not become a burden on the state.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

George wrote of the law and reminded his brother John that this responsibility fell to him as executor and that it cost money just to file the paperwork. He noted that for every certificate of emancipation, the law authorizes the clerk to charge a fee of 5 shillings. Then he reminds his brother that there are 54 people named in the will for emancipation.

[Holly Fry]

Yeah, you can see him building his case like, this is a huge burden on you. We gotta protect you. And he follows up by trying to show John that maybe their father really didn't think the money part through in other ways. Writing, quote, but then again in another part of the testament, to each slave hired out, the hire due for such slave for the year ensuing the death of the testator is specifically devised to that slave, which shows the equality of legacies to each slave emancipated was not in the mind or will of the testator, but that emancipation was the general object of the will and not the fund of money as well as the lands placed at the discretion of his executors was not for the purpose of of equality of legacies to each slave, but an absolute and unconfined discretion to be exercised by his executors for support of the many according to circumstances such as he himself would have exercised if he in this lifetime would have emancipated them and come under the positive engagement to the courts to keep them from becoming a charge to the county.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

Next, George Bibb warns John that being the executor of their father's fortune is going to bring out the worst people, adding, quote, you and your brother Richard are to have some trouble in the execution of the trust, in all probability, by reason of the interference of low minded ignorance and interested knavery by persons who will stimulate the negroes and speculate upon their interests in poverty. If you do not have so such, you are fortunate above the condition of society here in Louisville. Then he talks about how the funds have to be carefully managed in a way that ensures that all the desires of the testator have been met as the executor sees best, and that if all the assets are distributed, then the executor is left on the hook for any additional funds that are needed because of any emancipated people aging or no longer being able to work, because that's an injustice.

[Holly Fry]

He literally uses that word. This all sums up to a man urging his brother to not distribute everything, but instead to hold the funds in reserve to manage and dole out over time. The implication here is that the emancipated people wouldn't handle the money they were given properly. And then the Bibb family would be on the hook to make good financially with the county and state. He spells this out pretty clearly in this passage. Quote the time of payment and applications of the sum of $5,000 specifically denoted being left by the will uncertain to be judged by the executors according to the circumstances. The executors cannot be chargeable for interest unless for manifest delay and abuse contrary to the trust. If the executors exercise the power of selling the land, such funds so raised as shall not be divided or intended to be divided in their discretion presently after received ought to be put out to interest until such division shall become proper.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

We're going over this document and quoting it so closely because it's an important example of how anti abolitionists could make a case that it was in everyone's best interests not to give enslaved black people full emancipation or assets, even when it was somebody's will that they do so. It's also important because it informed decisions that shaped an entire community and in ways that are still felt today.

[Holly Fry]

John Bibb did take in this letter, and he did start manumitting his father's enslaved workforce in waves starting in February of 1840. It was about a month after that emancipation was supposed to start. According to the will, the first group was 10 people. They went as a group to the Logan county courthouse for their freedom papers. And they did get them. And these were followed by additional groups. None of the emancipated people chose to go to Liberia. Many of them moved to the land that had been set aside for them in Major Bib's will. It's an area that became known as Bib Town. That's actually two communities, Upper Bib Town and Lower Bib Town. But even so, the actual deeds to those lands were not fully granted until the late 1870s. So nearly 40 years after major Bibb had died, presumably some of those people that had been emancipated had died. In that interim 40 years, other people left the area and moved to larger cities like Louisville or out of the state entirely.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

And it's important to remember that even once those who stayed had been emancipated and were living on land that had been set aside by Major Bibb. Even if they didn't own that land outright, these were still free black people living in a slave state before the Civil War. It was not safe for them. There was always a risk of being re enslaved or being targeted with violence.

[Holly Fry]

And we have to go back to the lettuce. Because in having been left very comfortable when his father passed, John Bibb was able to have leisure time with which to cultivate his plants and develop that limestone lettuce. Listen, no shade to Bib lettuce. I like it. But that inheritance that afforded all of that was possible due to the work of the hundreds of enslaved people his father had owned over the years and who had worked on his land, enabling him to amass a huge amount of wealth. Major Bibb is often cited as one of the richest men in Kentucky today.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

Major Bibb's home is a museum, the Sikh Museum, which stands for struggles for emancipation and equality in Kentucky. It's actually spread out among six buildings on two sites. The buildings have been restored and the museum's mission is to tell the stories of the enslaved people emancipated by Major Richard Bibb.

[Holly Fry]

In 2019, there was a reunion at that museum and anyone who was related to Bib, both black and white, was invited to attend. And that's because it is highly likely and widely believed that some of the enslaved children on the Bibb property prior to Major Bibb's death had absolutely been fathered by him. There are quite a few articles written about that reunion. A lot of them are very feel good, but I would recommend one by journalist Linnae o', Neill, which was written for the site andscape and it's titled the bitter harvest of Richard Bibb, a descendant of slavery confronts her inheritance. It is a very frank piece of writing about the pain of such scenarios. Things like this big feel good reunion for some of the black attendees.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

There's another reunion planned this fall. It's 2022, this is in September for Bib's descendants. And there will be a new documentary debuted at that one titled invented before you were born, which examines the issues of the BIB story and its legacy. And you can get more information about that [e-mail] that's S E-E K museum.org.

[Holly Fry]

Yeah, not about lettuce, sort of about lettuce. I just. It's one of those things where you realize like, oh, this, this cute story about food is really about the people that made it possible for a white guy to have leisure time to make that food.

[Tracy V. Wilson]

Thanks so much for joining us on this Saturday. If you'd like to send us a note, our email address is historypodcastradio.com and you can subscribe to the show on the iHeartRadio app. Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.

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[Tracy V. Wilson]

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