In the late 1930s the federal
government, through the Works Progress Administration (WPA), interviewed
thousands of black Americans with the goal of documenting their past history as
former slaves. A considerable emphasis was also placed in these interviews on
learning about how these individuals are currently living.[1] Comparing
a small set of these narratives by geographic location has the potential to
reveal noteworthy differences in the economic conditions former slaves
experienced in the postbellum era.
In this analysis, four narratives will be
analyzed: two from Maryland (a border state that remained loyal to the Union)
and two from North Carolina (which seceded with the rest of the Upper and Lower
South). It is possible that these interviews may
shed light on how former slaves were able to preserve through the economic challenges
they experienced during Reconstruction. This is important, given that many former
slaves were not able to do so. One historian has hypothesized that over one
million black Americans experienced disease and illness associated with food
insecurity during this time period, with over ten thousand perishing as a
result.[2]
Annie Young Henson of Maryland
revealed in her interview that upon receiving her freedom at the end of the war,
she initially tried to return to her master’s plantation before realizing she
could no longer live there. She eventually found work as a flour merchant in
Baltimore, earning $6.00 per month (which is the equivalent of roughly $140
today).[3] While Henson
did not further elaborate on whether or not this provided her with enough money
to live comfortably, this seems highly unlikely.
Dennis Simms, also of Maryland,
recalled that many of his fellow slaves chose to work for their former master
after obtaining freedom. Simms displayed a certain sense of pride at what he
reported as continuous good luck and good health. While Simms was vague about
details, he claimed to still be working despite his old age.[4] Perhaps
it can be said that he preferred the daily routine associated with consistent
labor, but it seems more likely that Simms continued to work because in order
to provide for his daily needs.
Henry Bobbitt and Adeline
Crump, former slaves from North Carolina, reported in separate interviews that
they had lived in the state their whole lives. They also suggested that since
being freed they continued to live in impoverished conditions, making do only
through charity and/or the help of family. Bobbitt was especially critical of
Abraham Lincoln when asked about the former president. In his interview he
claimed that Lincoln acted without considering the consequences of what black
Americans–now set free but without knowledge or the means to care of
themselves–would be able to do next. After he gained his freedom Bobbitt could
not find stable work, and he usually slept at night in the woods or–if
allowed–in the barns of generous farm owners.[5]
Crump recalled a similar
experience of escaping slavery. She remarked that her former master was a good
man, and that she and many other blacks wanted to stay with him after being freed
but were prevented from doing so. While Crump’s interview is lacking key
details, she did mention that after the death of her husband “many years” ago,
she worked relentlessly to be able to take care of her children.[6] Most
notably, she indicated she had been relying on “charity” for “a long time” in
order to meet her basic needs.[7]
While not explicitly mentioned
by any of the four interview subjects, their poor economic conditions are possibly
the result of never having the opportunity to own land and property of their
own. In Durham County, North Carolina got example, in 1900—35 years after the
abolition of slavery—only 9% of farms were owned by black Americans.[8] It is
logical, then, why former slaves felt they were perpetually in need of assistance
from the federal government and from charity.
As a final point, it should be
noted that despite living in poverty, none of the four former slaves complained
in their interviews about their present situation. This could be due to a
willingness on their part to avoid a confrontational interview, or perhaps to a
certain resignation and acceptance that nothing they say–in the twilight of their
lives–is likely to change anything.
The results of this study
suggest a certain uniformity in the harsh living conditions experienced by all
former slaves, regardless of their location. No significant differences were
found between the two individuals studied North Carolina and their counterparts
from Maryland. To verify this claim, though, additional narratives need to be
analyzed. One recent scholar has lamented that nearly all former slaves during
this time period were “illiterate” and lived in “destitute” conditions.[9] As a result,
very few historical artifacts are available today to tell the full story of the
economic hardship they experienced.[10] The interviews
conducted by the WPA during the 1930s provide a small but important glimpse
into the economic lives of former slaves, and as such merit further examination
by historians.
[1] "Slave Narrative Collection of the Federal Writers' Project," in The American Mosaic: The African American Experience, ABC-CLIO, 2023, accessed January 25, 2023, https://africanamerican2-abc--clio-com.eu1.proxy.openathens.net/Collections/Display/2280163?sid=1573828&sTypeId=5.
[2] Durham Food History, “Sharecropping, Black Land Acquisition, and White Supremacy (1868-1900),” https://wfpc.sanford.duke.edu/north-carolina/durham-food-history/sharecropping-black-land-acquisition-and-white-supremacy-1868-1900/, accessed January 25, 2023.
[3] "Maryland: Annie Young Henson Narrative," in The American Mosaic: The African American Experience, ABC-CLIO, 2023, accessed January 26, 2023, https://africanamerican2-abc--clio-com.eu1.proxy.openathens.net/Collections/Display/2280163?sid=1583821&sTypeId=5.
[4] "Maryland: Dennis Simms Narrative," in The American Mosaic: The African American Experience, ABC-CLIO, 2023, accessed January 25, 2023, https://africanamerican2-abc--clio-com.eu1.proxy.openathens.net/Collections/Display/2280163?sid=1583830&sTypeId=5.
[5] "North Carolina: Henry Bobbitt Narrative," in The American Mosaic: The African American Experience, ABC-CLIO, 2023, accessed January 26, 2023, https://africanamerican2-abc--clio-com.eu1.proxy.openathens.net/Collections/Display/2280163?sid=1653640&sTypeId=5.
[6] "North Carolina: Adeline Crump Narrative," in The American Mosaic: The African American Experience, ABC-CLIO, 2023, accessed January 26, 2023, https://africanamerican2-abc--clio-com.eu1.proxy.openathens.net/Collections/Display/2280163?sid=1653655&sTypeId=5.
[7] Ibid.
[8] Durham Food History, “Sharecropping, Black Land Acquisition, and White Supremacy (1868-1900).”
[9] Douglas A Blackmon, Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II (New York: Doubleday, 2008), 9.
[10]
Ibid.
