Novel Inspired by Lumpkin’s Jail

by Fran Withrow 08.2021

In 2016, Sadeqa Johnson, new to Richmond, walked with her family along the Richmond Slave Trail. She became fascinated by the story of Robert Lumpkin and his infamous jail where enslaved people were bought and sold. Lumpkin was notorious for his cruelty to the people in his holding pen, so Johnson was surprised to discover that Lumpkin’s wife, Mary, was formerly enslaved. She wondered what life was like for Mary and for the five children she had with Lumpkin. How did Mary learn to live among such heartache, sorrow and misery? Hearing the cries from the whipping room and being next to the horrific odors emanating from the jail where people were denied basic sanitation and decent food must have been horrendous. How did she cope? Johnson’s curiosity led to research, and what she learned led her to write “Yellow Wife.”

In Johnson’s fictional account, Pheby Delores Brown, born in Charles City to an enslaved mother and her white slave owner, leads an atypical life. The owner treats her well and gives her special privileges, and has always promised that he will send Pheby to school up north at the age of 18. However, tragedy strikes before he can do so, and Pheby ends up sold to Rubin Lapier, who rules the notorious Devil’s Half Acre in Richmond, Virginia. Lapier is enchanted with Pheby and forces her to become his mistress. She must also help dress enslaved women so they can fetch the highest prices on the auction block. Pheby cleverly balances placating her erratic, unpredictable owner with protecting herself, the four daughters she has with Lapier, and the son she had with her true love from Charles City, Essex Henry.

Johnson’s descriptions of the plight of the enslaved people who end up at Lapier’s jail, which is closely modeled on Lumpkin’s jail here in our city, are tough to read but important for us to constantly keep at the forefront of our minds. The despair felt by men and women who were tortured, torn apart from their loved ones, and treated without compassion by Lapier and other white jailers is palpable. But their strength and courage is on display as well, and it is with deep admiration that I acknowledge how sensitively and exquisitely Johnson weaves both heartlessness and hope into her narrative.

Pheby is a resilient woman, and so is her beloved, Essex Henry, whom she meets again when he is captured after escaping from Charles City and making his way north. Johnson’s description of how Lapier happily makes Essex Henry’s punishment into a festival for the town is almost beyond comprehension. This is just one example of how Lapier exhibits inconceivable brutality to the Blacks he encounters (including Pheby) but remains loving toward his children and the white community. 

Despite the subject matter, this book has a satisfying ending; realistic yet brimming with promise. And if you haven’t walked Richmond’s Slave Trail yet, reading this book will likely motivate you to at least visit the site of Lumpkin’s jail, and remember those who suffered so much there.