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“In fall 1857…”

There is no record of a horse race at the Old Mansion track, set in front of the house, in the fall of 1857. However, there is good reason to believe that a tradition of horse-racing on the property would have been a regular occurrence, or had perhaps even became a tradition. More important, evidence shows—as will be documented later—that Anarcha was leased to Charles Tayloe Mason of King George, Virginia, in late 1862 or early 1863. How did Mason come to know of Anarcha, and why was he willing to lease an enslaved woman who had little value and would prove to be unable to work? The answer I provide here is that Anarcha married Lorenzo, who documents would later show to have been connected to Charles Mason, possibly by blood.

The Tayloe portion of Mason’s family went back generations. In fact, it was a conglomerate of Hoomes, the original owner of Old Mansion, and the Tayloes of further north in the state, who had worked to import thoroughbred horses to America from England, including Diomed, described earlier (see “A horse sired by Diomed…,” above). In addition, there would be land deals between the Maurys and the Masons—and Charles Mason’s King George plantation, Alto, also featured a race track.

In short, the tradition of horseracing in Virginia is a highly likely conduit that would see Anarcha introduced to Lorenzo, who was Charles Mason’s favored servant (and was perhaps also his half-brother, as will be documented later). In short, then, the horseracing tradition introduces Anarcha to the man who would become her husband, and it is Lorenzo’s close relationship with his enslaver that explains how Anarcha makes the final transition of her life.