In his 1817 will, Major William Beavers left a slave named James to his wife Elizabeth for her lifetime. In 1820, Maj. Beavers is charged with 39 slaves and five free Black females. Of the free Blacks, one was over age 45, one under 45, and three were under the age of 14. This appears to represent three generations who were free from slavery, but living among the Beavers slaves.

Elizabeth died in 1851 and in her estate is Jim, described as the miller who is an “old man,” with a value of $420. A notation in the estate papers state that Jim was “held for her lifetime only as a part of William Beavers’ will” written some 34 years before. Jim’s skill in milling, even though he was old, made him valuable. There are many petitions in court records where owners request that taxes on slaves be reduced or eliminated because in their old age their slaves could no longer be as productive as they once were.

Jim probably spent a lifetime working at the mill. William Beavers operated two water-powered grist mills during his life time until he died in 1822. He operated the Sandy Creek mill (which was later operated by his son Edwin R. Beavers) where he lived most of his life and built and operated a second grist mill on Banister River (later operated by his son John F. Beavers) near Chatham which he built in 1801. It is not clear at which mill Jim worked.