At times overlooked is the history of slavery in the 18th-century Spanish Colony of Florida. Near what is now Jacksonville, Florida, England-born Quaker, and slave-trader Zephaniah Kingsley, Jr. established several plantations, one of which would be known as Kingsley Plantation. The home, located on Fort George built around 1798 by enslaved labor, establishing it as the oldest plantation home in Florida. In 1806, the 41-year-old Kingsley traveled to Havana, Cuba, and purchased a 13-year-old Wolof (now Senegal) slave named Anta Majigeen (Anna Jai) Ndiaye. The white slave owner Kingsley would manumit and marry Anna Jai five years later when she turned 18. At least four children are known to have been born into this union. Anna Jai petitioned and was successfully granted five acres of land by the Spanish government. For this property, she would purchase her own slaves, thus establishing her as a slave owner. As her husband’s wealth and landownership increased, she would assist in the operations of his plantations. The Kingsley’s would reside at the Kingsley Plantation for 25 years, during which fruit, indigo, and cotton were cultivated by enslaved labor. Records suggest that there were 32 slave cabins on the property, which were distantly located a quarter of a mile past the “Big House” and the number of enslaved owned on the property throughout the years reached near 200. The tabby-constructed cabins were built with porches. Early archaeological research (1952) suggested that one of the larger slave cabins on the property may have been the housing quarters for the “driver,” an enslaved man who did the job of an overseer. After Florida became a U.S. territory in 1821 and the birth of their fourth son, the Kingsleys’ concerns regarding interracial marriage, manumissions, and racism increased. In 1837, Anna would leave Florida with the intention of establishing a new plantation in Haiti. By 1843, Zephaniah was deceased, and a court battle ensued brought on by his white relatives who were contesting his will, leaving his estate to Anna and their children. Ultimately, the courts decided in favor of Anna and her children as being the rightful heirs.
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