The Buncombe County Register of Deeds Office exhibit to commemorate the 150-year anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation and to remember those who were enslaved and their immeasurable contributions to our community has moved to Pack Memorial Library in downtown Asheville.

The exhibit, located in the North Carolina Collection Room, downstairs at Pack Library will remain on display thorugh August of 2013.

In every county in North Carolina, the Register of Deeds played a role in cataloging the transactions of slavery in handwritten books. Contained in these handwritten files from the early 1800s are deeds documenting the trading of slaves as property.

One of the stories highlighted in the Slave Deed exhibit is of a slave named Sarah Gudger. Ms. Gudger was born into slavery in Old Fort, North Carolina but spent the majority of her life in Reems Creek. Her story is one of the only first-hand accounts that we have of slavery in Buncombe County.

The exhibit includes a 15 minute video produced by Buncombe County Television featuring the words of Ms. Gudger and comments from local citizens regarding our history.

Buncombe County displays this documentation for the purpose of historical research, family genealogy, education, and to acknowledge that slavery was a part of our County's history.

For more information, please go to www.buncombecounty.org/slavedeeds.