Trade Card: Davis, Deupree & Co., Richmond, Virginia

Trade card advertising the slave trading business of Davis, Deupree & Co. in Richmond, Virginia. The card reads: "DAVIS, DEUPREE, & CO., will give their entire attention to the sale of Negros, publicly and privately, Odd Fellows' Hall, corner of Mayo and Franklin Street." This rare card is the only known card from R. H. Davis, a member of a Jewish family of slave dealers based in Richmond. Robert H. Davis and William S. Deupree opened their “Negro Bazaar” auction rooms in Richmond’s Odd Fellows Hall in 1859. The firm was short-lived, bankrupted early in the Civil War. The card is printed on glossy stock and is estimated to date from circa 1850-1855. The Davis family were well-known slave dealers in Petersburg and Richmond, Virginia, with the first generation (Benjamin, Ansley, George, and Solomon Davis) selling slaves beginning in 1838.

Associated People/Businesses

• Davis, Deupree & Co.
• DAVIS, R.H.

Geography

• Richmond

Subjects

• Slavery
• Slave trade
• African Americans
• Jewish merchants

Physical Location

Arc.MS.56, Box 7, Folder 3