Affra Harleston (d. ca 1699 [1])
The Ball family’s slaveholding history begins with John Coming. Coming, a mariner from Devon, England was employed making round trips from England to the fledgling Carolina colony, carrying passengers and cargo. On one such trip he met Affra Harleston, who left her affluent family in Ireland to become a settler in Carolina. John and Affra were married aboard the ship or shortly after arriving in Carolina. [2]
In 1698, John and Affra began building a foundation in Carolina. On one visit to England, John contracted with six indentured servants and brought them on his return trip to Carolina [3]. The Fundamental Constitutions, the guidelines for the settlement of Carolina, provided 150 acres of land for each laborer brought to Carolina. After contracting with the indentured servants, John received a warrant for 900 acres of land. [4]
John and Affra originally settled in town on a small lot. After redeeming several land warrants, they settled on land in the fork of the Cooper River which came to be known as Coming’s T. In marshes below the T, the tides determined the level of water. Above the T, the water ran fresh. [5]
Over the years, the name of John and Affra’s plantation would change in popular usage from Comings T to Comingsteee, and eventually to Comingtee, as it is known today. After the servants’ indentures expired, John Coming began purchasing chattel slaves. [6]
John and Affra never had children, and at some point John began to think about passing along the stake he had built in Carolina to an heir. He and Affra settled upon leaving their estate to one of John’s nephews and one of Affra’s nephews.
John Coming died 1 Nov 1695. In his will, dated 20 Aug 1694, John left all of his property to Affra and made her sole executrix of his estate. [9]
Affra Coming died about 1699. In her will, dated 28 Dec 1698, Affra bequeathed her estate to nephews John Harleston and Elias Ball, to be divided equally between them. Although her estate inventory is not among the earliest filed in Carolina, Affra’s bequest of “all my Negroes and Indian servants” suggests that both Africans and Native people were among the enslaved at Comingtee. [7]
Associated Plantations
Will
Will of Affra Coming [8] (on FamilySearch.com, opens in a new window)
References Cited
[1] Ball, Edward 1998 Slaves In the Family. New York: Ballantine Books, p. 40.
[2] Ball, Edward 1998 Slaves In the Family. New York: Ballantine Books, pp. 26-27.
[3] Ball, Edward 1998 Slaves In the Family. New York: Ballantine Books, p. 30
[4] Ball, Edward 1998 Slaves In the Family. New York: Ballantine Books, p. 34
[5] Ball, Edward 1998 Slaves In the Family. New York: Ballantine Books, p. 35
[6] Ball, Edward 1998 Slaves In the Family. New York: Ballantine Books, p. 36
[7, 8] “South Carolina Probate Records, Bound Volumes, 1671-1977,” Database online at FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1919417: accessed 27 Mar 2013), Will of Affra Coming, Wills, 1671-1724, Vol. 001, p. 14. (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1-19388-33138-15?cc=1919417&wc=9386003)
[9] “South Carolina Probate Records, Bound Volumes, 1671-1977,” Database online at FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1919417: accessed 27 Mar 2013), Will of John Coming, Wills, 1671-1724, Vol. 001, p. 58. (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1-19388-40941-59?cc=1919417&wc=9386003)
