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Slavery in Antebellum America

Slavery in Antebellum America. The 3 Souths. Border South: DE, MD, KY & MO. 22% of families owned on average 5 slaves 1% of South’s ultra-wealthy 6% of large (20+ slaves) plantations found in region. Slaves made up 17% of the population; 21% of African American population free.

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Slavery in Antebellum America

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  1. Slavery in Antebellum America The 3 Souths

  2. Border South: DE, MD, KY & MO • 22% of families owned on average 5 slaves • 1% of South’s ultra-wealthy • 6% of large (20+ slaves) plantations found in region. • Slaves made up 17% of the population; 21% of African American population free.

  3. Border South: DE, MD, KY & MO • Little cotton cultivation; tobacco, grain & industrial products. • Unionists prevailed after Lincoln’s election & throughout Civil War.

  4. Middle South: VA, NC, TN & AR • 36% of families owned on average 8 slaves • 14% of South’s ultra-wealthy • 32% of large (20+ slaves) plantations found primarily in eastern VA & western TN. • Slaves made up 30% of the population.

  5. Middle South: VA, NC, TN & AR • Different sections, some resembling Deep South, others Border South. • Some industry: Tredegar Iron Works used slave labor. • Unionists prevailed after Lincoln’s election, but Secessionists prevailed after Fort Sumter & early hostilities.

  6. Deep South: SC, FL, GA, AL, MS, LA & TX • 43% of families owned on average 12 slaves • 85% of the South’s ultra-wealthy • 62% of large (20+ slaves) plantations • Slaves made up 47% of the population.

  7. Deep South: SC, FL, GA, AL, MS, LA & TX • Most slaves concentrated in the “Black Belt,” especially along river valleys • 95% of the South’s cotton & almost all of its sugar, rice & indigo grown in Deep South. • Secessionists prevailed immediately after Lincoln’s election.

  8. Historiography The “Peculiar Institution” in Antebellum America

  9. Main Debates on History of “Peculiar Institution” • Which came first slavery or racism? • Was slavery economically viable? • Was it an economic system of labor exploitation or a social system for racial control? • What were the tools of oppression? Centrality of violence? • What were the tools of resistance? Revolts & escapes?

  10. Positive Paternalism • Earliest interpretation, developed by U.B. Phillips & Southern historians analyzing multi-racial communities of the South • Argued that slaves & masters loved & respected each other. • Slavery served as essential civilizing institution. • Clearly racist aspects have been excised but romantic notion of the Southern “Lost Cause” persists.

  11. Factories in the Fields • Economic interpretation proposed by Marxist historians, such as Kenneth Stampp. • Saw mode of production as the motor of history; • Slaves were workers & nothing more; defined by lives in the fields. • Minimized racial purpose of slavery & presented hopeful vision of post-slavery America once economic system changed.

  12. American Concentration Camps • Historians led by Stanley Elkins utilized understanding of human nature based on recent history of the Holocaust. • Saw absolute nature of slavery & its impact on slaves— infantilization, creation of “Sambo” archetype. • Saw little room for autonomy in slave existence. • Presented pessimistic vision of post-slavery America.

  13. Oppressive Cage of Paternalism • Paternalism existed as a tool of oppression & survival. • No real love & respect between slaves & masters, except in a few individual, isolated instances. • Institutional support of system—religion, slave culture, etc.—designed to reinforce these relationships.

  14. Oppressive Cage of Paternalism • Complexity of social & cultural forms in slave life defined by • Type of production (Gang or Task system) • Regions (Tidewater, Black Belt) • Different Worlds (Sunup-Sundown & Sundown-Sunup)

  15. Oppression • Centrality of Violence • Need not be everyday or extreme; • Threat of violence or token violence; • Women often the target of sexual violence. • Absolute authority of the master is unquestionable. • Threat of Sale & Separation • Economic reality & necessity; • Threat & use of sale as a tool of control. • Perhaps more absolute than violence.

  16. Oppression: The Very Nature of Slavery • “It’s bad to belong to folks that own you soul an’ body. I could tell you ‘bout it all day, but even then you couldn’t guess the awfulness of it.” • “There was no such thing as being good to slaves. Many people were better than others, but a slave belonged to his master & there was no way to get out of it.”

  17. Resistance • Planned Rebellion • Gabriel Prosser & Nat Turner in Virginia; • Denmark Vesey in Charleston, SC. • Very Rare • Individual Violence--Frederick Douglass • Perhaps more prevalent • Hard to quantify

  18. Resistance • “Weapons of the Weak”: • Sabotage & work slowdowns; • Putdowns & snide remarks. • “Grand Theft” & the “General Strike”--Escape • Cultural Autonomy--The ultimate resistance?

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