Gudgell, Henry
(born: 1829 - died: 1895)Henry Gudgell, born enslaved in Anderson County, KY, became a blacksmith, coppersmith, silversmith, and wheelwright. He and his mother went with Elizabeth Arbuckle Gudgell, the daughter of his father/master, Samuel Arbuckle, to Livingston County, MO.
It was in Missouri where Henry Gudgell carved a walking stick that has also been described as a conjure remedy. At the time, Henry was owned by John Bryan. The stick was thought to be the only surviving work of Gudgell; it is now at Yale University in New Haven, CT. There was, however, a second walking stick discovered at an Indianapolis antique show that was purchased by a buyer in Louisville, KY named Allen Weiss, who also authored a historical piece in the publication Folk Art.
Henry Gudgell was the husband of Chloe Gudgell; the couple had 9 children according to the 1870 U.S. Census. Henry served during the U.S. Civil War with his owner. He and his wife are buried in the Utica Cemetery in Utica, MO. [source: Find A Grave].
For more about the carvings on the cane, see B. J. Crouther, "Iconography of a Henry Gudgell Walking Stick," Southeastern College Art Conference Review, vol. 12, issue 3 (1993), pp. 187-191; and "Missouri Wood Carving," The Afro-American Tradition in Decorative Arts, by J. M. Vlach, Cleveland Museum of Art.
Additional information submitted by Allen Weiss, the author of the article "Finding the other Henry Gudgell walking stick: an odyssey, "Folk Art, Fall 2008, pp. 50-53 (available online). The article provides information about Henry Gudgell, his family, and his owners and their families, as well as the discovery of the second walking stick.