John, would there be information in the 1860 census as to who might have owned him if he was a slave at that time? I'm fascintated by the fact that he apparently worked aboard steamboats. Slave labor aboard the boats was quite common before the war. And, after the war, many former slaves continued to work for their former masters on the boats. An interesting note: Slaves were considered too valuable to work the dangerous job of firing the boiler furnaces--they often used poor immigrants for that job. Roustabouts, or deck hands, did the heavy work of loading and unloading and cutting and loading wood to fuel the boat (which was a much "safer" job). If any more information about his work comes up, I'd sure like to know about it. It's possible that I might be able to chase down what boat he worked aboard if he was on the Missouri River. I will keep my eyes open, and if I find anything, I will try to post it.
Regards,
Maggie
"steamboat granny"