One Man Bought Freedom From Slavery At Unusual Price

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FRANKLIN, Tenn. - A Williamson County slave used the common chair to break down racial barriers. A Maury County exhibit is bringing Dick Poynor's story to life.

Between the rolling hills of Leipers Fork, a name and a date is all we know of most who lie beneath. There is an exception with a black headstone, a single chair and the name Dick Poynor born in 1806.

"He was accepted by the white community in Williamson County. He was the member of a white church. He is buried in a cemetery that was more befitting to white people considering the time period in which he lived," said Tom Price, James J. Polk Museum.

It was a time when civil war ripped through the south, when slaves were bought and sold like cattle and when men died in the fight to keep slavery alive. Somewhere in between was Poynor, the slave born to a white master, buying his freedom with a most unlikely tool.

"This particular exhibit is called Chairs for Freedom, the life and craft of Dick Poynor," said Price. "At first blush they're seeing a room full of chairs which by itself isn't particularly exciting until you start to learn the story of Dick Poynor, the slave who was able to buy his freedom by making chairs."

Poynor learned the craft from his master in Williamson County, creating unique mule back chairs with African art.

They sold so quickly that Poynor bought his way off his master's list of property, opened a factory and advertised in the Western Weekly Review.

"Through the dark days of the civil war, he was able to prosper still as a man of color in Williamson County," said Price.

Poynor's daughter and the rest of his family were finally freed by using money from the chairs that captured the heart of a community.

As the years passed on, Poynor's skill seemed to dissolve the color of his skin. He found respect in the midst of a war against his kind. He found prosperity when even white people lived in poverty. He found a way to relate to the people that once oppressed him.

"The chairs perhaps were the vehicle for Dick Poynor to cross the racial barriers in a time when those barriers were much greater than any other time in American history," said Price.

The same tool that bought Poynor's freedom also helped him bridge the divide between black and white.

The Chairs for Freedom exhibit is open through March.