Letter to the priest of Monserrat requesting burial for the newborn baby Theresa, daughter of the Black Theresa, slave of Manuel Menéndez, 1864 November 24

The collection, which spans the second half of the nineteenth century, includes letters from slave owners to the priest of the church of Montserrat in Havana, Cuba. In these letters they report the death of their slaves and ask for burial arrangements. The collection also includes death certificates of slaves, runaway slaves, and free persons of color issued by the Real Hospital de Caridad de San Felipe y Santiago. Both types of documents provide extensive detail on the slaves, such as their names, racial classification, ages, origin, and cause of death. The letters are manuscript; the death certificates are completed printed forms. The collection also includes a notice of baptism and the death certificate of a Spaniard issued by the Hospital General Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes de La Habana.