A Guide to the Rogillio Family Papers, 1821-1933

Biographical Note

Elizabeth (Tannehill) Rogillio, known as Eliza, was born on December 19, 1805 and died on August 10, 1886. She was the daughter of George Tannehill and Elizabeth Foster. On November 14, 1822 in Claiborne County, Mississippi, she married Emanuel Rogillio. Emanuel Rogillio was born on September 27, 1795 in the Natchez District, Adams County, Mississippi and died on December 12, 1862. He and Eliza had the following children: Tennessee, Emanuel, Thomas S., Margaret, William J., Serena Catherine, Adeline Mary, Elias Julian, and Barbara Helen. Emanuel's father Ysidoro Policarpo Reguillio was born on January 26, 1766 in Lezuza, Province of Albacate, Spain and died on August 30, 1832 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Emanuel's mother Margaret (sometimes given as Marguerita) Thomas was born on October 8, 1768 in the Natchez District, Adams County, Mississippi and died on May 5, 1829 in the East Feliciana Parish, Louisiana. Emanuel Rogillio had eleven siblings. After his death, Eliza took over the management of the family plantation.

Emanuel and Eliza's daughter Barbara Helen Rogillio was born on July 20, 1846 and died on November 12, 1932. She married Melvin (also spelled Melvine) Gibson, a farmer and cotton plantation owner, on September 20, 1866. According to the 1880 Mississippi census, Gibson's birth year was estimated at 1845. He and Barbara Helen lived for a time in Pine Ridge, Mississippi, and assumed management of the Rogillio family plantation after Eliza's death. They had the following children: James H., Elias J., Lavinia P., Mollie, and Eva

Scope and Contents

The Rogillio family papers trace the history of the Rogillio family cotton plantation and its owners in Mississippi. They follow the plantation's evolution from 1821 through the death of original owner Emanuel Rogillio and the travails of the Civil War to the emancipation of the plantation slaves under the capable direction of his wife Eliza and the plantation's eventual transfer to Emanuel's son-in-law, Melvin Gibson.They include several ledgers detailing every aspect of the plantation's finances, receipts for the sale of cotton and the purchase of farm supplies, contracts, deeds, scrapbooks, printed material, and a small amount of correspondence. The scrapbooks contain short newspaper clippings, printed recipes and holographic poetry. Among the printed materials are an 1893 Butterick pattern catalog and a 1904 Gold Medal Flour cookbook. The papers document both the Rogillio and Gibson families, and are geographically centered on Natchez, Mississippi. The plantation itself produced mainly cotton and a small amount of wool. The collection spans from 1821-1933, with the bulk of the records dating from ca. 1830-1890.

Of the Gibsons' children, Elias J. was the most frequent correspondent. There is also some record of correspondence between Eva Gibson and her son by her second marriage, Charles Wilson, Jr. Melvin Gibson corresponded with his sister A. C. Flowers, a teacher in Mississippi, and A. N. Clarke, a dental surgeon in St. Joseph, Louisiana.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions

Unrestricted access.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Rogillio Family Papers, 1821-1933, Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.

Detailed Description of the Papers