It was just a simple family photo from 1872, but take a closer look at the sister’s hand.

By matching with municipal records, documents of former slaves and tax archives, a name finally emerges: James Washington, owner of a small plot of land in Richmond from 1873, lived there with his wife Mary and their five children.

The age indications are consistent. The little girl with that time on her wrist is called Ruth.

From silent suffering to transmission:
Archives show that the Washington family was enslaved on a nearby plantation before the civil war. Contemporary reports describe particularly harsh “control methods”, especially towards children, to prevent mothers from taking them to the fields.