The decision that exposed the real Ulysses Grant years before he fought for the Union

Grant’s Mysterious Decision to Free William Jones

Ulysses S. Grant left the army in 1854 after spending two years away from his wife Julia and kids while working on the West Coast.

He moved his family to White Haven, a plantation near St. Louis owned by Julia’s father Frederick Dent. Grant planned to make a living farming 80 acres Julia got as a wedding gift.

He built a simple log cabin called “Hardscrabble” himself, with help from slaves who lived on the plantation. Grant soon began running the entire 850-acre property, working with both hired workers and slaves owned by the Dent family.

Grant Quit the Army to Try Farming

Ulysses S. Grant left the army in 1854 after spending two years away from his wife Julia and kids while working on the West Coast. He moved his family to White Haven, a plantation near St. Louis owned by Julia’s father Frederick Dent.

Grant planned to make a living farming 80 acres Julia got as a wedding gift. He built a simple log cabin called “Hardscrabble” himself, with help from slaves who lived on the plantation.

Grant soon began running the entire 850-acre property, working with both hired workers and slaves owned by the Dent family.

Twelve Enslaved People Worked at White Haven

Twelve slaves owned by the Dent family worked at White Haven plantation. Grant worked in the fields alongside these slaves while also watching over their work.

Neighbors often said Grant seemed “helpless when it came to making slaves work” and that he “wouldn’t whip them” like other slave owners usually did. Things changed in January 1857 when Julia’s mother died.

This sad event forced Grant and his family to move from their small cabin into the main house at White Haven, where Grant took over running the plantation.

Crop Failures Pushed Grant Toward Bankruptcy

Grant worked hard as a farmer but found little success despite his long hours in the fields. The nationwide money crisis called the Panic of 1857 caused crop prices to drop sharply, hurting farmers everywhere.

Bad weather ruined many of Grant’s crops, making his money troubles worse.

By Christmas, things got so bad that Grant pawned his gold watch for $22 just to buy his children presents. The family kept falling deeper into debt, and Grant saw no way to make the farm make money.

A 35-Year-Old Man Became Grant’s Property

Grant got ownership of William Jones from Frederick Dent in the late 1850s.

Records describe Jones as “of Mullatto complexion,” about 35 years old, and five feet seven inches tall. We don’t know exactly how Grant got Jones, whether he bought him, got him as a gift, or through some other deal.

This made Grant personally involved in slavery beyond just managing the Dent family’s slaves. William Jones became the only person that records clearly show was owned directly by Grant himself.

Real Estate Work Failed to Pay the Bills

Grant quit farming in early 1859 because he kept losing money and his health started suffering.

He tried a new job by partnering with Julia’s cousin Harry Boggs to start a real estate and debt collection business called Grant & Boggs.

Grant found the work hard and uncomfortable since he never liked confrontation or asking people for money. The business brought in very little cash.

Grant stayed in the city during weekdays and walked back to White Haven on weekends to see his family, until they all moved to a small rental home in St. Louis.

Selling Jones Would Have Solved Grant’s Money Problems

By March 1859, Grant faced terrible money problems as his business kept struggling. He could have sold William Jones for between $1,000 and $1,500, which equals more than $43,000 today.

This money would have paid off many of Grant’s debts and helped support his family for months. Other slave owners in St. Louis regularly bought and sold slaves at the city’s slave market.

Grant faced a choice between selling Jones to fix his money troubles or following what seems to have been his personal feelings about slavery.

Grant Wrote Jones’s Freedom Papers Himself

On March 29, 1859, Grant walked to the St. Louis Courthouse and wrote out a legal document freeing William Jones from slavery.

The freedom paper, written in Grant’s own handwriting, stated: “I Ulysses S Grant do hereby manumit, emancipate and set free from Slavery my negro man William, sometimes called William Jones.”

Grant noted in the document that Jones was “purchased by me of Frederick Dent.”

This act made William Jones the last slave ever owned by someone who later became President of the United States.

St. Louis Offered Limited Freedom for Black Americans

Missouri in 1859 had a growing number of free Black people, especially in St. Louis.

Records show that 49 slaves got their freedom in St. Louis County during 1858, which was unusual for Missouri at that time.

Free African Americans faced many legal limits and hate from white residents. The city offered more chances than rural areas but stayed dangerous for freed people.

Grant freed Jones during a time when fights over slavery grew stronger across the nation, just two years before the Civil War started.

Jones Vanished From Historical Records

Grant never mentioned William Jones in his memoirs, letters, or any other writings. We don’t know what kind of relationship they had or why Grant chose to free him rather than sell him.

Two main ideas exist about what happened to Jones after getting his freedom. He might have stayed in St.

Louis, as a city list from 1860 shows a “William Jones (Col’d)” working as a horse driver. Another possibility connects him to Henrietta Jones, a slave who lived at White Haven.

After his freedom, William Jones disappears from records like many former slaves.

The General Ended Up Working in His Father’s Store

Grant freed Jones during his worst money troubles before the Civil War. His real estate business with Harry Boggs kept struggling throughout 1859.

By 1860, Grant had no choice but to ask his father Jesse for help. Jesse Grant agreed to hire his son only if Ulysses moved to Galena, Illinois.

Grant took this offer and became a clerk in his father’s leather goods store.

This humble job fell far short of what people expected from a West Point graduate and former Army captain.

The Last Presidential Slave Owner Made a Surprising Choice

William Jones represents the final direct connection between a U.S. president and slave ownership. Grant’s decision to free rather than sell Jones suggests he felt uncomfortable with slavery, despite growing up in a time when it was common.

This act happened just two years before the Civil War began.

Grant’s experiences with slavery at White Haven may have shaped his later attitudes as a Union general and president.

Jones’s story shows how individual enslaved people often fade from historical records, leaving us with questions about their lives before and after slavery.

Visiting Ulysses S. Grant Home, Illinois

The Ulysses S. Grant Home at 500 Bouthillier Street in Galena offers tours Wednesday through Sunday from 9am to 4:45pm. You’ll pay a $5 suggested donation for adults and $3 for children.

The 20-30 minute interpreter-led tours are limited to 16 people and showcase 90% original Grant family furnishings.

Here you can learn about Grant’s decision to free William Jones, the last enslaved person owned by a U.S. president, in 1859 despite his financial struggles.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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