Register of Deeds Office to Display Records of Slavery

After one year on the job, Buncombe County Register of Deeds Drew Reisinger was surprised to learn that in the holdings of his department were not only legal documents that transferred pieces of land from a seller to a buyer but also, prior to 1865, Bills of Sale that conveyed enslaved people from one person to another.  Once he located the oversize red-leather-bound book with the hand-scripted documents in the archive, he knew it needed to see the light of day.

Working with other Buncombe County government leaders, he has arranged for a public display of these documents at the 35 Woodfin St. Register of Deeds office from February through April, at which point the exhibit will move to Pack Memorial Library for display until June. In addition, Clerk of Court Steve Cogburn located a 150-year-old book that contains the Last Wills and Testaments of citizens prior to 1865 who conveyed, on their death, slaves to various family members. This book will also be part
of the exhibition.

In addition to the public exhibition, the deeds have been digitized and are available on-line at the Buncombe County Register of Deeds website under genealogical information.