Alice Elisa Kane
(1848 – 1895 ?)
Elisa Kane’s (Cane) life at Sotterley illustrates what life was like before, during the Civil War, and after her emancipation in 1864. How much did it change?
Alice Elisa Bond Kane married Hilry Kane at the age of fifteen, both were enslaved. They had thirteen children all born at Sotterley Plantation. Elisa was a spinner and a laundress for the family of the owner, Dr. Walter Hanson Stone Briscoe. Dr Briscoe also ran a boarding school for girls and Elisa was responsible for the laundering needs of the students.
The Kane’s time at Sotterley lasted for thirty years. Hilry, Elisa and their family remained on Sotterley during the Civil War. Maryland adopted a new constitution that freed her slaves on November 1, 1864. Elsa was 16 years old when she became free. After being emancipated the Kanes lingered on at Sotterley. They worked as a tenant farmer and a domestic servant. They remained with Dr. Briscoe until about 1879, when they moved from the plantation to establish a home of their own in Hollywood, Maryland. Hilry and his wife, Elisa, died between 1885 and 1889.
Additional Resources
“A Guide to the History of Slavery in Maryland, Historic Sotterley Plantation and the Kane Family pages 19-21 http://mdslavery.net
Sotterley Plantation | back2past
Chapter Four Sotterley – “Equals at Last” Copyright, 2015, by Samuel C.P. Baldwin, Jr. equals-at-last-1.pdf (baldwinbriscoe.com)
The Evening Sun, Baltimore, MD, Tuesday, July 10, 1990, Page 4
