Seeking Family of Rufus Sartor (D. January 1, 1900) Alias Rufus Salter or Farr

This blog post was written on behalf of the Union County Community Remembrance Project (UCCRP) which seeks to document and recognize the history of lynching and racial terrorism in Union County. We seek to foster ongoing collaborative education, justice, and healing.

Contact: Nate Johnson, Park Manager

Rose Hill Plantation State Historic Site

South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism

2677 Sardis Road

Union, SC 29379

864-427-5966

SCPRT.com

We wrote our first blog post about Rufus Salter (D. January 1, 1900) telling you when he suffered death by a "gang of whites" in Rufus Salter (D. January 1, 1900), Negro Farmer, Shot Dead in His Door by a Gang of Whites in Union County, South Carolina. Now in order for you to know more about him, we will let you know what he was called when younger and who he lived with.

Sartor

On the 1880 US Census in Bogansville, Union County, South Carolina, Rufus Sartor was five years old and lived with his uncle Benjamin and Aunt Melinda Sartor:

"United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9YBL-9739?cc=1417683&wc=XCDP-BZ9%3A1589414013%2C1589394973%2C1589414511%2C1589395295 : 24 December 2015), South Carolina > Union > Bogansville > ED 151 > image 37 of 45; citing NARA microfilm publication T9, (National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C., n.d.)

This was the only census Rufus was alive for. He lived in the home with his brother and Sally Gist and her children Mary J., Minnie, and Benjamin. Sally was the daughter of Melinda and Benjamin's step daughter.

Farr

On May 7, 1896, a party of men took Mary Ann Wallace from her house out into the woods and gave her a severe beating. The next morning it was told by Mary Ann Wallace to Rufus Farr. Rufus Farr admitted on the stand that he was "sometimes called Rufus Salter."

I found the "State v. Rice et al" of the Supreme Court of South Carolina on June 23, 1897 in The Southeastern Reporter - Volume 27 - Page 454 below:

Rufus Farr, The Southeastern Reporter - Volume 27 - Pages 453-454, West Publishing Company, St. Paul, 1897

If you or someone you know recognizes Rufus Sartor alias Rufus Farr or Salter, we would like to contact Nate Johnson, Rose Hill Plantation State Historic Site, at 864-427-5966. We would like to remember him on behalf of the Union County Community Remembrance Project of Union County, South Carolina.