Chapter 6 Supplemental Notes

Plantation System

Located Along the coasts of the South Near deep water rivers Height of plantations system 1730s-1890s Each plantation like a small town “Big House”- home of the plantation owner Row of outbuildings: barrel makers, blacksmiths, cabins for house slaves, kitchen, well, smoke house Fields behind the big house with row of slave cabins for slaves working in the fields

Some characteristics of slave life Worked from sun up to sun down 6 to 6.5 days a week and only 1-2 days off a year Received 1-2 sets of clothes a year & 1 thin blanket Each plantation had an overseer and driver Overseer was white and managed the plantation for the owner Driver was a slave appointed by the overseer to maintain discipline in the fields and quarters

Ways slaves stopped work nonviolently Day-to-day small acts of rebellion Sang songs to set a slower pace Broke tools/machinery for the plantation Faked illness Playing dumb/not understanding the directions

Tobacco Cultivation The introduction and successful cultivation of tobacco was the most significant development in colonial VA New crop to the area- required trial and error The steps involved in planting, cultivating, harvesting and preparing tobacco required a large labor force It was believed African slaves could provide this labor force because it was thought that the slaves could withstand the heat and humidity better and were less susceptible to diseases than the Indians

By 1675 Virginia had become England’s most profitable colony Exported more than ten million pounds of tobacco to England each year By 1758, exported 70 million mounds 70,000 Hogsheads Hogsheads= barrels they shipped the tobacco in The demand for tobacco increased the demand for slaves By 1790, VA had 293,000 slaves By 1860, 490,865 slaves (highest of any southern colony)

Steps of Tobacco Cultivation: Took four months to grow the tobacco Began preparing seedbeds in January/February Took the seedlings from the seedbeds and planted them in May Knee-high hills were made every 3-4 feet Until the plan was knee-high, weekly cultivation was needed to remove weeds and worms In June the plants had to primed and topped Grew to be 6-9 feet tall by early September and was ready to be harvested Had to be harvested at the right time or would lose value Cut the tobacco and left it to be cured for 4-6 weeks, hung upside down in a warehouse

After it was dry, it had to “sweat” by being laid on the damp floor for 1-2 weeks Sorted the crop, had absorbed the right amount of moisture and was the right texture Was inspected by the government before being exported Once dry, the leaves were twisted and rolled and then put into barrels called a “hogshead” Problems: Dried out the soil and did not use crop rotation Only one crop meant the colony’s economy was very fragile