Death Certificates for Enslaved and Free Africans in Havana
Scope and Contents
This collection includes eleven manuscript death certificates for enslaved or formerly-enslaved Black Cubans, mostly in Havana between 1861 and 1864. The certificates contain the subject's origin (for example, Congo, Lucimi, or "Africa"), age and marital status, the name of the slaveholder (if there was one) and occasionally the cause of death. Certificates such as this were required for burial, and typically include the stamp or mark of either a medical or civil institution.
Among those named in this group of certificates are Silvestre, an emancipated man who had been held at the slave depository; Matias from the Congo, a fifty- year-old slave of Joaquin Lahuerta of Calzano (the oldest present); a man named Rafael who had a sudden seizure and was unable to receive his last rites; and Dolores Verdugo, married to one "of the same class," Lynaeio Alonzo. Also among the certificates here is one for Rosalia, an emancipated woman from the Congo who succumbed to a “nervous fever” and who had been in the “Department of the Demented.” Another of the deceased, Juan Omello, was a free Black man of the Lucimi Nation who had worked on Havana’s sea wall.
Dates
- Creation: 1861 - 1864
Conditions Governing Access
The physical materials from this collection may be viewed only in the reading room of Vanderbilt’s Special Collections and University Archives. Materials should be requested two to three days in advance to facilitate easier access. Contact specialcollections@vanderbilt.edu to schedule an appointment.
Biographical / Historical
Cuba relied heavily on enslaved labor from the early days of Spanish colonization until slavery was finally outlawed in 1886, particularly in the cultivation of sugar cane. Interestingly, this group of certificates dates from between 1862 and 1864, just before slavery would be abolished in nearby Florida. The pressure exerted by the sudden abolition of slavery in the United States is credited as one of many factors which contributed to the bloody and ultimately unsuccessful Cuban revolution of 1868.
Full Extent
0.1 Linear Feet (1 folder)
Language of Materials
Spanish; Castilian
- Title
- Death Certificates for Enslaved and Free Africans in Havana Finding Aid
- Status
- Completed
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Vanderbilt University Special Collections and University Archives Repository
Special Collections Library
1101 19th Ave. S.
Nashville TN 37212 United States
specialcollections@vanderbilt.edu
About this Site
This site contains collection guides, or finding aids, to the archival collections held by Vanderbilt University Special Collections and University Archives, the History of Medicine Collection, and the Scarritt Bennett Center. Finding aids describe the context, arrangement, and structure of archival materials, allowing users to identify and request materials relevant to their research.
Requesting Materials
Each finding aid contains a link to request materials from the collections. Collections can also be requested by emailing the repository directly through the library website. Each repository has its own location, hours, and contact information. Please consult the repository with questions about using the materials. Collections are non-circulating and must be used in the repository’s reading room. In many cases, the collections are stored off-site and require advance notice for retrieval.