Existing comment:
A Silent Witness:
Mary Robinson, the enslaved cook for the Dents and Grants, observed and reflected upon household activities. In one respect, she was considered part of the family; nonetheless, Mary became invisible to her owners as she carried out her duties, entering and exiting rooms without disrupting conversations.
Mary and other Dent slaves understood that tensions developing in the home and throughout the country in the 1850s revolved around slavery. During the war, they fled White Haven, freeing themselves from bondage before Missouri abolished slavery in January 1865.
"While [Grant's] regiment was encamped in Illinois... he paid his father-in-law... a short visit... He and Mr. Dent sat up talking all night. I heard part of their conversations, and can remember what was said very distinctly... Dent was opposed to Lincoln, and tried to induce Grant not to fight with the Union army. He wanted him to cast his destiny with the South. This Grant refused to do... The interview... was a very long and heated one. It was not very satisfactory to either, I imagined, at the time."
-- Mary Robinson |