sal•us pop•ul•i
/sah-loos paw-poo-lee/
Latin phrase meaning "will of the people"
1. "salus populi suprema lex esto" [the will of the people is supreme law]
—State Motto of Missouri
2. Motto featured on a Missouri USCT regimental flag
3. The title of our public humanities project. Because by making archives more accessible, we aim to make the will of marginalized people more visible on the historic record—and, in the process, to interrogate the changing historical meanings of the people.
ABOUT US
In 1860, one-third of the people enslaved in Missouri lived in just seven of 144 counties: Boone, Calloway, Chariton, Clay, Lafayette, Howard, and Saline. Consequently, these counties have historically been known as "Little Dixie." Many of the people enslaved here were among the eight thousand Black Missourians who served in the United States Colored Troops (USCT). After the war, these servicemen, their widows, their parents, and their children applied for military pensions. In the process, they confronted discriminatory eligibility laws. They called on fellow veterans, neighbors, and family to provide supportive testimony. Their pension files provide critical information about the soldiers’ enlistments, marriages and families, experiences of enslavement, and post-war occupations and challenges. They make visible Black veterans’ complex post-war social networks. And above all, they allow us to study how servicemen and their families remained vigilant in their fight for equality during Reconstruction and beyond.
Hover over the map to highlight the counties that historically comprised "Little Dixie" (from left to right): Clay, Lafayette, Saline, Chariton, Howard, Boone, Calloway.*
Map: Edwin Leigh, "A View of the Slave Population of the Several Counties of Missouri, Showing the Whole Number of Slaves in Each County," from Bird's-eye Views of Slavery in Missouri (St. Louis: Woods, et al., 1862) in St. Louis Mercantile Library at the University of Missouri-St. Louis (digital).
*Note: map hovering may not work on mobile devices
Our project members are conducting extensive research to locate and digitize these Black Civil War veterans', widows', and children's pension files. In addition to rendering the files searchable, we will create corresponding social network webs and family trees for veterans mentioned in the files, as well as digital maps of their wartime and post-war worlds.
By doing so, we aim to make USCT narratives more accessible to descendants, historians, archivists, librarians, genealogists, educators, and students.
CURRENT STATUS: RESEARCH & DISCOVERY PHASE
We have transcribed and completed data entry for 92% of our preliminary records, which allowed us to identify 350+ pension files. We anticipate locating approximately 700 by the end of the discovery phase. After we finish gathering and digitizing documents, we will proceed to transcription and contextualization, before featuring the files on an archival site.
Want to learn more about our current work? Use the top menu to navigate to "News."
OUR MISSION
WE BELIEVE STORYTELLING IS A POWERFUL TOOL TO PROMOTE RESTORATIVE JUSTICE.
WE KNOW DESCENDANTS, GENEALOGISTS, RESEARCHERS, AND STUDENTS CAN ONLY ENGAGE WITH STORYTELLING WHEN WE PRIVILEGE ARCHIVAL ACCESSIBILITY.
SO WE ASPIRE TO EDUCATE BY CREATING A LIVING ARCHIVE: ONE THAT USES DIGITAL TOOLS TO ALLOW RESEARCHERS TO ENGAGE WITH PENSIONERS' HISTORICAL CONTEXT, GEOGRAPHIC WORLDS, AND SOCIAL NETWORKS, AS WELL AS DESCENDANTS' ORAL HISTORIES.
IN OTHER WORDS, WE BELIEVE THE ARCHIVE IS NOT A PLACE, OR A COLLECTION, BUT A CACOPHONY OF VOICES WHICH HAVE BEEN BURIED BY PREJUDICED AND UNDERDEVELOPED ARCHIVAL INFRASTRUCTURE. IT'S TIME TO LISTEN.