Starting Again

After the war many people sought compensation from the government for damages suffered during the war. An important aspect of being eligible for government aid was establishing that you supported the Union, and not the Confederacy, during the war. Friends and neighbors often had to testify that you were a “Union Man” during the war and did not fight for or support the Confederacy.

In a claim filed with the Southern Claims Commission in 1871, James Robinson reported that after the second Battle of Manassas troops made off with food and supplies which amounted to $2,608 in damages. Robinson received $1,249 from the Southern Claims Commission.

The federal funds, along with Robinson’s continued hard work, paid off. By the late nineteenth century he was the third wealthiest African American in Prince William County.