With its sprawling lawns, mature trees and pristine historic gardens, Ashland: The Henry Clay Estate serves as a peaceful place of respite for many Lexingtonians. But, for the past few years, Ashland’s staff has been working on a project that highlights an element of the estate’s history that is less than idyllic.
Tour offerings at the historic home – which reopened in June following a several-month-long hiatus due to COVID-19 – now include what organizers say is the only guided tour in Kentucky focusing on slavery. Traces: Slavery at Ashland, a 45- to 60-minute tour, invites attendees to “follow in the footsteps” of the more than 120 men, women and children who were enslaved at the Kentucky statesman’s estate.
Cameron Walpole, Ashland’s manager of tours and education, describes the new tour as an informed, community-driven effort. Utilizing a Local History Trust Fund Grant administered by the Kentucky Historic Society, the estate enlisted consultants Ashley Smith, director of Black Soil: Our Better Nature, and Dr. Amy Taylor, a University of Kentucky professor and leading academic on 19th-century history in the South, to help shape the project. Organizers also culled together a community advisory board with about a dozen members, who provided valuable insight and perspectives while crafting the tour.“
This image of Charles Dupuy, who was enslaved at Ashland, was recently obtained by the estate. The drawing is now displayed inside the entrance of the home. Photo by Cameron Walpole
“We hope that this is an opportunity for people to see more of the history, and for us to provide this information and education to children,” Walpole said.
While known for his diplomatic efforts to hold the country together before the onset of the Civil War and, eventually, for being an outspoken advocate for abolition, Henry Clay was also known for his duplicitous personal stance on slavery. He expressed an understanding that slavery was inherently wrong, yet refused to free enslaved people at his own estate until his final will and testament.
Using a variety of media, including historic artifacts, documents and storytelling, the tour aims to trace the stories of the enslaved people who lived at Ashland, centering on the stories of one particular family: Aaron and Charlotte “Lottie” Dupuy, and their children Charles and Mary Ann. In 1829, Charlotte Dupuy sued Clay for her freedom, 28 years before the more famous Dred Scott case. (While the lawsuit was unsuccessful at the time, Charlotte and both of her children were eventually granted freedom, though not without many additional years of being enslaved by the Clay family.) A highlight of the tour is an audio reenactment of a speech refuting the popular conception of Clay as a “kind master,” given by Lewis Richardson, who escaped Ashland in 1846 and fled to Canada. Audio for the reenactment is provided by Lexington actor and vocal performer Whit Whitaker, director of The Lyric Theatre.
“Part of this is giving voice to people who were voiceless – combatting this idea of erasure by not talking about something,” said Jim Clark, director of the estate.
Cameron Walpole, manager of tours and education at Ashland, The Henry Clay Estate, conducts the new tours that will provide a more complete picture of the history of the estate. Photo furnished
Smith added that the tours aren’t meant to detract from Clay’s history, but to provide a more complete picture of the history of the estate in context by honoring the contributions of people whose stories might otherwise be forgotten.
“Just as Henry Clay was able to live and thrive and retain his attributes and contributions historically, we want to lift up the people who were enslaved here at this estate, and enable their contributions and their accomplishments to also gain recognition and awareness,” Smith said.
While the tour covers difficult aspects of history – including episodes of violence – the primary themes of the tour are “resistance and resilience,” Walpole explained.
“We have instances of escape, of Charlotte Dupuy suing the secretary of state for her freedom – those are kind of big instances of resistance and resilience,” she said. “But then we have the everyday resistance of average enslaved people who are living their lives with dignity. We cover both of these themes on the tour.”
The impetus for the historical deep dive can be traced in part to an email the estate received several years back from a woman who had visited the estate, and was writing to express concern about a historic marker that seemed to provide a one-sided interpretation of Clay’s stance on slavery. When the local organization Kentucky Hempsters approached Ashland in 2018 to explore the idea of creating a demonstration plot of hemp, which was a lucrative commodity for the estate, a discussion about the slave labor that fueled the production of that crop provoked more questions.
Two years of research, conversations and the acquisition of new artifacts has resulted in a tour that, in tandem with other tours offered at Ashland, helps provide a more holistic look at the history of one of Lexington’s most iconic historic homes.
“It’s an interesting row to hoe, so to say – presenting history in a multi-faceted way, that doesn’t just talk about this pretty house in the Antebellum South and how charming it was,” Clark said. “In order to have all that charm and beauty, there were a lot of people who suffered and died. We’re telling a more complete story, and we’re hopeful that people will find that engaging.”
Photo by Bob Wilcutt
Traces: Slavery at Ashland
Traces: Slavery at Ashland tours are offered at 1 p.m. Tues.-Sun. At this time, all tours at Ashland will only take place outdoors only, due to COVID-19. For more information on the Traces tour and other tours offered at Ashland – as well as the organization’s safety precautions and policies in light of the pandemic – visit www.henryclay.org/tours.