SILVIA HECTOR WEBBER
EARLY LIFE & ARRIVAL IN TEXAS
SILVIA HECTOR WEBBER
EARLY LIFE & ARRIVAL IN TEXAS
SILVIA HECTOR WEBBER was born enslaved in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana. Her early life was hard, as all enslaved children's lives were in the era of chattel slavery. In 1815 she was sold for the first time &separated from her mother Sarah, at the age of 8. In spite of the system that bound her, Silvia used her life experiences, the knowledge she gathered & her intellectual conceptions of freedom to survive. She utilized these
understandings that shaped her across that Bill of Sale, Silvia is sold again at age 12, 1819 bustling &
booming Mississippi river-
Enslaver Silas McDaniel took Silvia
adjancent region where she was born as tools from Louisiana to the Missouri to craft her freedom fighting visions. Territory & sold her to a planter named Morgan Cryer in 1819. Cryer's son, John Cryer, trafficked Silvia into Mexican Texas in 1826. Shortly thereafter, Silvia met John F. Webber, an a man from Vermont who petitioned for land to settle in Mexican Texas. Webber
assisted Silvia in securing her freedom Flat bottom boat on Mississippi River & they would not only spend the rest of These flat bottom vessels are much like those their lives together, but went on to she operated as ferries from her properties in have numerous children & a long line Texas; vessels very similar the ones her of descendants.
enslaver used along the Mississippi River.
Silvia was a fighter. Her fight for her freedom & the freedom of her children is visible in the negotiations shown on her Freedom Papers. Her in input & influence, in securing these is undeniable. Her Freedom Papers are powerful testimony of Silvia's strength
& resolve. They are unique in their composition because they showcase that John never owned Silvia nor their children. This evidences that what was purchased was their freedom, not them as chattel property. Additionally, the price set for their freedom was out of the ordinary.
Her enslaver did not ask for money. He requested to be paid with two enslaved children under the age of 3. A payment that neither John, nor
Silvia, were willing to
make. Ever. Instead, in 1850, the couple chose to forfeit their entire holdings of land at Webberville, Texas,
along with $900 in interest, to settle that debt. Silvia Hector Webber's Freedom Papers, 1834
After obtaining freedom for herself & for their first 3 children, Silvia & John established a home in Webberville, 16 miles south ofAustin.Silvia's
reputation for taking care of the wounded, hungry any person
suffering became well known. These
acts of kindness are documented in various first hand accounts of Texas settlers who knew Silvia throughout her life in Texas.
ravis County Record showing the Webber's forfeiture of their land at Webberville, 1850.
THE COST OF FREEDOM
FINDING SILVIA HECTOR: THE JOURNEY BEFORE 1819
SILVIA HECTOR
THE JOURNEY BEFORE 1819
Georgia
Before Silvia was sold to Morgan Gryer on March 10, 1819, much of her early history remains unknown
Finding Silvia's early history and details are a project for us all.
Uncovering Silvia's story is a project for us all.
This research effort is a call to descendants, historians, and community members to help uncover her early life.
Through genealogical research, oral histories, archival discovery, and DNA connections, we are piecing together the foundation of a legacy forged in courage and survival.
We invite you to be part of this historical restoration-because every thread helps complete the story of a woman who helped shape freedom in Texas
Join our growing community of descendants, historians, educators, and researchers as we trace the earliest chapters of Silvia Hector's life-before her sale on March 10, 1819.
Participate in our monthly virtual workshops, contribute to DNA discovery sessions, and preserve family legacies through oral history interviews.
Your voice, your story, and your insight could help complete the tapestry of Texas freedom history.
