Mary Kile (formerly Mary Burns) searching for her brothers

Mary Kile, of Argenta, AR, searching for her brothers, from Culpeper Courthouse, VA. Their names were Isaac, Daniel, John, and Robert Henry Burns. They were formerly enslaved by Presley Rixey.

Mary Kile placed an ad, searching for the same brothers, in The Richmond Planet, Richmond, VA, (December 27, 1902, page 1). The Richmond Planet ad is torn and partially illegible. The ad reads:

"Do You Know Them?

I desire to know the whereabouts of [torn] brothers. I came from Culpeper [torn] and was sold in Richmond, my [torn] and I. My name was Mary Burns. [torn] sister's name was Georgianna, we [torn] four brothers Isaac, John, Daniel [and] Robert Henry Burns. We belonged to [Pres]ly Ricksey. Our mother died when [torn] very young, I had an uncle by the [torn] of Reuben Reynolds and Henry [torn]ds. Any information will be [torn] received. Please write to Mary [torn] [40]7 Orange St., Argenta, Ark."

* SEE ALSO MARY KYLE'S AD IN THE RICHMOND PLANET, FEBRUARY 4, 1899, which can be found here: https://informationwanted.org/items/show/2777. It mentions a sister Georgiana and her father, Wesley, along with the four brothers.

The 1906 Argenta, AR city directory (part of the Little Rock, AR city directory) including this entry, page 881 (ancestry.com):

"Kyle Mary (c) [colored], res 407 Orange."

The Daily Arkansas Gazette (Little Rock, AR), 12 Jun 1909, page 12 (newspapers.com) contains this obituary for Mary Kile/Mary Kyle:

"AGED EX-SLAVE DIES.
Mary Kile, a negress, who had lived in Argenta 44 years, died Thursday at her home, 407 Orange street. She was around 80 years old, born in Virginia and came to Argenta from Pine Bluff, where she was a slave, after the war."

But the 1880 U.S. census, which enumerates "Mary Kyles" and her husband, "Henry Kyles," in Pulaski County, AR, indicates that Mary was born ca. 1845 (age about 64 in 1909, when she died).

Information Wanted Ad

Argenta, AR

Culpeper County, VA

Jesse Nasta

Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress