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Virginians Petition to Prevent the Emancipation of Slaves (with text supports)
The spirit of the American Revolution inspired some slaveholders to manumit, or free, their slaves. In 1782, Virginia passed a law that allowed slaveholders to set slaves free in their wills, where before manumission required a special act of the [...]
"Arrest of Stephen S. Hill"
As this newspaper announcement indicates, the status of slaves in California was unclear and fluid. Even though California was admitted as a free state to the Union in 1850, many southerners, claiming their stay was temporary, brought their slaves [...]
"Arrest of Stephen S. Hill" (with text supports)
As this newspaper announcement indicates, the status of slaves in California was unclear and fluid. Even though California was admitted as a free state to the Union in 1850, many southerners, claiming their stay was temporary, brought their slaves [...]
"Religion in Slavery"
Professor Greg Downs describes religious beliefs and practices among African and African-American slaves.
"House Slave vs. Field Slave"
Professor Greg Downs dispels the common misunderstandings about social tension between "house slaves" and "field slaves" and discusses the fluidity between different roles and jobs for enslaved people on large plantations.
"Slave Associations"
Historian Greg Downs describes how slave communities built associations to resist and survive the conditions of enslavement. His examples including slaves helping runaways, staking out space in outlying woods or other secluded areas, and building [...]
"Slave Patrols"
Historian Greg Downs describes the evolution of the slave patrol system in the American South. He also briefly describes how innovations created by slave patrols were the model for policing in later times.
"Why Non-Slaveholders Fought for the Confederacy"
Historian Greg Downs describes the motivations that drove non-slaveholding white Southerners to fight for the Confederacy and to protect slavery.
"Family Formations in Slavery"
Professor Greg Downs describes the pressures on family formation under slavery and the strategies that enslaved people employed to form and preserve families. He looks at what happened to families that broke up because of sale, westward migration, [...]
"Slavery and Community"
In this podcast, Professor Greg Downs discusses the many ways that enslaved people sought to create community and resist the conditions of slavery.