Mysteries
Hulda Lacey (~1866 - ) and Wiley Lacey (~1861 - ) are first listed in the 1870 Federal Census as servants in the household of Jas P Lacey. Also listed in this household is Francis Lacey, who we know to be daughter of Ben Lacey. Further, we know from legal documents that Hulda and Wiley were orphans. Jas P Lacey was charged with their care and education, for which he received compensation from Shelby County. We do not know how Hulda and Wiley were treated by Jas P Lacey, whether they endured indentured servitude as near slaves or whether they were well treated and taught to read and write as was Jas P Lacey's duty for the compensation received. It is worth noting that in the 1970 Federal Census, both Hulda and Wiley are marked as unable to read or write. Were Hulda Lacey and Wiley Lacey part of the Lacey family by blood or did they simply acquire the Lacey name though their adoption by Jas P Lacey? In the adoption court papers, Hulda and Wiley are referred to as Laceys so it may be that they already had this name and were indeed Laceys by blood. But then why weren't they taken in by their blood relatives? So far, no information has been uncovered to shed light on Hulda and Wiley's birth parents.
Samuel Lacey (~1832 - ) is fist mentioned in the 1866 Alabama Census. Unlike the other members of group 1, he is often listed as mulatto in census listings, a different designation from black. This raises the question to what extent did Jas P Lacey father some of the African-American Lacey family with his slaves. This is a vexing question that only DNA testing can affirmatively answer. It is one of the sad realities of slavery that the slave masters did not restrain themselves from using their slave property for sexual gratification, and there was little that slaves could do to resist such abuse. The resulting children were often treated harshly by the wife of the slave owner as a constant reminder of their husband's infidelities, and mother and child were often sold off to remove this disturbance to domestic tranquility. However, such unions were less common than is popularly imagined. Was Sampson the result of the union between slave owner and slave? There is some evidence that Samuel Lacey was bought by Jas P Lacey and arrived in New Orleans from Florida in 1853 aboard the John J Taylor ship (see manifest). How Samuel got to Florida, we may never know.
Espie Ulysses Carter (~1897 - 1981) is the son of Cora Lacey (~1878 - ), but not with her husband Ben Smith. Cora had Espie before her marriage to Ben. Family lore has it that the father of Espie was lynched. Is there any truth to this story? Espie Ulysses Carter's social security records list his father as "unknown" and there are no records that indicate who Cora was married to before Ben Smith. A search of lynchings in Alabama does show that a Walter Carter was lynched in 1903, six years after Espie Ulysses Carter's birth. However, Cora Lacey married Ben Smith in 1902, before Walter Carter's lynching, perhaps creating some doubt that Walter Carter could be Espie Ulysses Carter's father. Is Walter Carter be the missing father of Espie Ulysses Carter?
Ben Lacey (~1820 - ) is the first Lacey at the root of the Lacey Family History. Census records show that Ben Lacey's mother was Mariah Lacey (~1795 - ), and possibly his father was Jacob Lacey (~1792 - ). Ben also had a sister, Julia Lacey (~1829 - ), who married John Sneed (~1822 - ) giving rise to the Sneed branch of the Lacey family. From court records we also know of a Mariah Lacey with children Lewis Lacey (~1819 - ), Edie Lacey (~1821 - ), Giles Lacey (~1825 - ), Lucinda Lacey (~1826 - ) and Druecilla Lacey (~1828 - ). Are these two Mariahs one and the same? Ben Lacey was born in about 1820 and Julia in about 1829. Lewis Lacey was born in about 1819 and Druecilla in about 1828. If these two Mariahs are the same, why are Ben and Julia not mentioned in Deed of Trust that mentions Lewis and his siblings? Given this evidence, it seems that perhaps these two Mariahs were not one and the same, but we will never know for sure. Certainly, Mariah must have had other children between Ben and Julia, but we do not know who they are.