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Black History at Rock Hill/Connemara

Carl Sandburg Home NHS was created to preserve the legacy of 20th-century writer and social activist Carl Sandburg. Yet, this site, known as Rock Hill (1838-1900) and later Connemara (1900-present), was built in the 1830s. The construction was possible partially through the labor of enslaved Africans. There are few markers to recognize their contributions. Documents provide limited information as many of their names were not, or are only partly, recorded. Recording a person's full name was a recognition of personhood. In a slave-based society, enslaved people were considered property by enslavers. Not recording full names reinforced the power structure of slave-based society. We still feel the effects of this today. Often historians struggle to interpret an enslaved person's history. Many Black Americans cannot trace their heritage before the Civil War. After emancipation many Black Americans chose their own, new names to celebrate their freedom. A beautiful practice, adding another layer of challenge for Black History researchers today.

After emancipation, African Americans often continued working in similar jobs they previously did. This was a common reality for many newly free Black Americans, though not all. Financial necessity, predatory contracts, and intimidation by previous enslavers, trapped many Black Americans. In western North Carolina, Black Americans continued running households and working skilled trades. The history at the Sandburg site is no exception to this commonality.
black and white image of James Fisher standing beside a car
James Fisher

James Melvin Fisher

One of the best-documented Black workers at Rock Hill/Connemara is James Melvin Fisher. Born in either 1891 or 1894 in South Carolina, Fisher began working for the Smyth family in 1911 or 1912. Like many young men, he served in the U.S. forces during World War I.

Stationed in Camp Sevier, outside Greenville, Fisher may have encountered racist abuses in the military. Despite segregation in the military, S.C. Official reports from the time outline verbal and physical abuse against Black soldiers. One report quoted: “I can safely say that a colored soldier in this city has no more show, so far as safety or justice is concerned than a jack rabbit. The military police make it their business to interfere with every colored soldier they see on the streets . . .” Fisher survived the Camp and the War and returned to serve the Smyth family once again.

He traveled to Flat Rock every summer with the Smyth family. In 1923 when the Smyths made Connemara their permanent home and the Fishers did the same. He served as Ellison Smyth’s valet and later chauffeur. James and his wife Carrie, the Smyth’s maid, lived in a building known today as the "Swedish House." This structure was originally used as a dwelling for enslaved people before emancipation. By the 1930 census James and Carrie, as well as their two daughters, worked for the Smyths. Mary (age ten) did chores and Benny (age 8) was listed as a servant.

Fisher remained in Henderson County until his death in 1978. He was interviewed by park staff in 1975 and left a record of his life and work here in his own voice. You can listen to a clip of the interview below.

  • James Fisher Interview


    James Melvin Fisher began working for the Smyth family in 1911 or 1912. He served as Ellison Smyth’s valet and later chauffeur. Fisher remained in Henderson County until his death in 1978. He was interviewed by park staff in 1975 and left a record of his life and work here in his own voice. This is an excerpt of his arrival at Connemara.

    Credit / Author:
    NPS Audio
    Audio Transcript
Single story white painted building with 2 doors on the front and 2 windows on the side
Home of enslaved cooks, maids and butlers during the Memminger ownership. The building still stands behind the Sandburg Home today.

Black Women at Rock Hill/Connemara

After the Civil War, many Black women in the South often provided domestic service for wealthy White families. Black men received extremely low wages due to racial discrimination. This financial abuse required Black households to earn two incomes, sometimes more. As a result, unmarried and married Black women alike worked for a living. In a 1912 article, "'More Slavery in the South,' by a Negro Nurse," in The Independent, a nurse wrote about the lives of many Black women in the South in the early 20th century.

"Perhaps a million of us are introduced daily to the privacy of a million chambers thruout [sic] the South, and hold in our arms a million white children, thousands of whom, as infants, are suckled at our breasts…and, whether in the cook kitchen, at the washtub, over the sewing machine, behind the baby carriage, or at the ironing board, we are but little more than pack horses, beasts of burden, slaves! In the distant future, it may be, centuries and centuries hence, a monument of brass or stone will be erected to the Old Black Mammies of the South, but what we need is present help, present sympathy, better wages, better hours, more protection, and a chance to breathe for once while alive as free women..."
Source: "More Slavery at the South," by a Negro Nurse, The Independent, January 25, 1912.

A small structure south of the Main House, built in the 1840s, housed enslaved workers during the Memminger ownership. After emancipation, the Memmingers and the Smyths housed domestic servants in the structure. Smyth Family lore recalls that nurses employed to care for grandchildren lived here. Images of these servants can be found in the gallery below.

Sources:

Oppermann, Joseph K., "Chicken House/Wash House Historic Structure Report," Cultural Resources Division, Southeast Region, National Park Service, September 2007.

David E. Whisnant and Anne Mitchell Whisnant, "Black Lives and Whitened Stories: From the Lowcountry to the Mountains," Historic Resource Study of Black History at Rock Hill/Connemara, Organization of American Historians and National Park Service, 2021.
Click here to download the study, which explores the history of African Americans and the larger racial dynamics at Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site over a period of more than a century, beginning in the 1830s.

"Connemara Main House Historic Structure Report," Historical Architecture, Cultural Resources Division, Southeast Region, National Park Service, September 2005.

"The Swedish House Historic Structure Report," Historical Architecture, Cultural Resources Division, Southeast Region, National Park Service, September 2005.

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Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site

Last updated: October 10, 2023