The farm that is now known as Farmington Historic Plantation was once the home of enslaved people. It is located at 3033 Bardstown Rd, Louisville, KY 40205. As early as 1815, the slaves of the plantation lived there. As a result, enslaved people were responsible for the construction of the house. While Nichols doesn’t have an accurate number, it is estimated that a total of 30 people lived and worked at the Farmington plantation.
The home that you see today is the product of decades of work by slaves. The original house was constructed in the late 1816 by Robert Nicholson, a master carpenter. Large numbers of enslaved African Americans worked on the construction of the house, some of them being skilled artisans. The slave life at Farmington was typical of other large plantations in the Bluegrass region. John Speed owned between forty-five and sixty slaves, which is quite large when compared to the five-slave average for the state of Kentucky. Continue reading about Louisville Kentucky.
Before the Civil War, hemp was the primary cash crop on the Farmington plantation. The plantation produced hemp for rope and rough bagging for the cotton trade. It also produced corn, wheat, flax, lamb, and pork. It was also a large contributor of tobacco and dairy products. The Speeds’ slaves worked the plantation, which included a dairy and poultry operation.
Information on slave life at Farmington can be obtained through court records, interviews, and family letters. The slave’s perspective of life at Farmington can be understood from James Speed’s comment in an 1863 interview. James Speed also commented on the lifestyle of the slave family on the plantation. He noted that the slaves were provided with comfortable rooms, bed clothes, and other furnishings. In addition, they were encouraged to cultivate a patch of land and use the profits to improve their clothing and living conditions. Next article to read.
In the early 1800s, Farmington was the site of the hemp plantation owned by John and Lucy Speed. The house was designed by Thomas Jefferson and completed in 1816 by slave labour. The house’s interior features original paint colors, wallpaper, and carpets, which are also indicative of the period. Many of the furnishings and decor were restored, preserving the integrity of the house.
John Speed (1772-1816, the plantation’s owner, married Lucy Gilmer Fry. Speed’s mother, Lucy Gilmer Fry (1788-1874), was a Virginian who had immigrated to Kentucky in 1798. The couple’s daughter, Abby, died shortly after the birth of their last child. The Speeds eventually moved their two daughters back to Mercer County, where they met and married Lucy Gilmer Fry. In early 1810, Speed purchased a large tract of land on Beargrass Creek. The plantation consisted of 554 acres.
