By Bill Bynum
The Old Brunswick Circuit Foundation was honored to have Bill Bynum, archivist from the Library of Virginia, as their featured speaker at their annual meeting on November 13, 2021. Mr. Bynum’s topic was Edward Dromgoole, Sr.–Emancipator and Enslaver. Having published an article on Edward Dromgoole, Sr., in his presentation Bynum shared the results of his research which he had gleaned from the Dromgoole Papers at the Library of Virginia. He has been very generous and has given us permission to publish a written version of his presentation here.
Bynum is the son of a United Methodist minister in the South Carolina Conference. Born in Darlington, S.C., he grew up in Cheraw, Chesterfield, and Charleston. He holds a BA in history from Wofford College and an MA in history from the University of Virginia, with a concentration in early America. He served for many years as research historian and acting director of the former Presbyterian Historical Society office in Montreat, N.C. Since 2007 he has been a reference archivist at the Library of Virginia, where he has contributed articles to the ongoing Dictionary of Virginia Biography. Bill and his wife, Michele, live in Midlothian, Virginia.