Robert E. Lee and Me: A Southerner's Reckoning with the Myth of the Lost Cause

by Ty Seidule

capital. Custis owned two other enslaved labor farms—Romancoke and White House. A year after marrying Mary Custis, Lee inherited enslaved workers from his mother’s estate. During his many years in the army, Lee hired out those enslaved workers and pocketed the profit, creating wealth. By the time he wrote his only will as a U.S. Army officer in 1846 as he headed to fight in Mexico, he estimated his net worth at $40,000 in stocks, bonds, and property, including enslaved workers, or more than $1.3 million today. His salary as a second lieutenant was $62.50 a month (about $1,700 today). That increased to $126 as a captain in 1846 (about $4,000 today). Lee invested well in stocks and bonds, and the proceeds from hiring out enslaved servants helped build his substantial nest egg.56 During his army years, Lee used enslaved labor borrowed from Arlington. Of course, his father-in-law never charged him, despite the large fees the enslaved servants could have generated. When Lee’s wife, Mary, accompanied him on his many army assignments, she brought even more enslaved servants from Arlington, far more than most army officers. Up to 1857, Lee benefited financially from hiring out his enslaved workers, while he also had the use of his wife’s enslaved