Sylvester Magee

Sylvester Magee is believed to have been the last surviving American slave. Born in Carpet, North Carolina, he was sold at Enterprise, Mississippi at the age of 19. He is believed to have served in the Civil War at both the Siege of Vicksburg and Champion's Hill. Few records exist to support his life's claim, yet some stated that the detail and clarity with which he recounted his experiences would have been impossible for a person who could neither read nor write without having experienced them first-hand. Although he did not like to recount the worst of his earlier days, he said that his faith helped him endure them, and he has been regarded as perhaps the last citizen of the United States with first-hand knowledge of both institutionalized slavery and the Civil War.

Foxworth, Mississippi · United States