From NKAA, Notable Kentucky African Americans Database (main entry)
Casey County (KY) Enslaved, Free Blacks, and Free Mulattoes, 1850-1870
Casey County was created from Lincoln County in 1806, named for William Casey, the great-grandfather of Samuel Clemens [Mark Twain]. William Casey, from Virginia, was a veteran of the Revolutionary War. Casey County is surrounded by seven Kentucky counties; Liberty is the county seat.Prior to the development of Casey County, the land had been given to war veterans as payment for their military services. President Abraham Lincoln's grandfather was one of the settlers in the area around 1780.
There were 514 persons [heads of households] counted in the 1810 Census, and the population had increased to 5,800 by 1860, excluding enslaved people. Below are the numbers for the slave holders, enslaved, and free Blacks and Mulattoes for 1850-1870.
1850 Slave Schedule
- 121 slave owners
- 598 Black slaves
- 37 Mulatto slaves
- 24 free Blacks
- 35 free Mulattoes
- 110 slave owners
- 582 Black slaves
- 84 Mulatto slaves
- 24 free Blacks
- 33 free Mulattoes
- 507 Blacks
- 34 Mulattoes
- About 31 U.S. Colored Troops listed Casey County, Kentucky as their birth location.