Archiving Project: The Thomas Satterwhite Noble Archiving began in the Spring of 2022. The focus of the project is to digitally document correspondence, images and other original source documents related to Thomas Satterwhite Noble. These include hundreds of letters written by Thomas Satterwhite Noble to his wife during their courtship (1866-1868) through his death. The content of these letters provide insight into the artists approach to his art, politics surrounding his art and relationships with other artists and benefactors.

The initial focus to scan, transcribe and annotate hundreds of "courtship letters", written by Thomas Satterwhite Noble to his future wife Mary Caroline Hogan between 1865-1869, was completed in the Spring of 2024. A sampling of these transcriptions is including on this website.

Genealogy Project: A specific focus of the genealogy project for Thomas Satterwhite Noble (TSN) is on his connections to Black cousins through DNA analysis and family tree work. From current direct descendants of TSN, over 150 distant (three or more generations back) Black cousins have been identified as from the his family line. Given the likelihood of the ancestors of these cousins being enslaved, the presumption is that these cousins are products of rape from white male relatives or ancestors of TSN. The goal of this project is to explore if TSN’s anti-slavery art (with its focus on breaking up of families and, specifically, separation of “mixed” enslaved persons) was informed by his exposure to observing the separation of enslaved women and children within his own family experience. His letters (Archiving Project) may also provide information regarding his experience or his knowledge/acknowledgement of his families legacy as enslavers.

The Genealogy project is focused on two areas: 1)Documenting and familiy enslavers and names of enslaved persons that TSN would have grown up with; and, 2) Analyzing connections between shared groups of black cousins and white cousins who share DNA to determine which ancestor they descend related to TSN. This project is focusing on a likely direct DNA connection between these cousins and descendants of TSN and the Waller and Chew families in Virginia who owned and managed massive plantations in Virginia.

Transcription and Original of Letter Dated 22 January 1868