1. Slavery and the Civil War

2. Slavery Comes to America
The taking and holding of slaves has occurred in human history for thousands of years.
Ancient Greece, Rome and Egypt
African and Muslim states
The Atlantic Slave trade began in earnest around 1502.
Portugal began buying slaves from Africans and transporting them to new colonies in the New World.
Eventually all the major European powers joined in
Spain
France
England
The Netherlands

3. Slaves in North America
The Atlantic slave trade was well established by the time English settlers came to Virginia.
A shortage of labor drove the desire for slaves
Native peoples were too susceptible to European diseases
Indentured servants weren’t efficient
African slaves proved the most effective and lucrative
Lots of land meant that even poor immigrants could be land holders soon and would need labor

4. Triangle Trade Three continents were involved in the slave trade
Europe
The Americas
Africa
Europe: Manufactured goods (guns, cloth, iron)
The Americas: Commodities (Sugar, molasses, rice, silk, cotton)
Africa: Human labor and resources (slaves, gold, spices, hardwoods)

5. The Middle Passage
The voyage from Africa to The Americas became known as “The Middle Passage”
Conditions on ships were extremely harsh
Nearly 13 percent perished on the journey
estimated that Europeans were bringing an 80,000 slaves to the Caribbean yearly.
About 500,000 Africans were imported into what is now the U.S. between 1619 and 1807
The City of Nashville has about 600,000
Slaves worked in all facets of life in the North and South
Slavery was outlawed in most of the North by 1800.

6. Life of a Slave Its difficult to paint one picture of “slave life”
Slave labor could be divided into two categories:
House work
Cooks
Maids
Nannies
Drivers
Butlers
Field work
Crop cultivation and processing
Butchers
Blacksmiths

7. African-American Slave Culture
Africans brought to America came from rich cultural traditions
Many customs stayed with slaves particularly in the early colonial days.
Archeologists have found drums and other musical instruments that were similar to ones found in Africa
African slaves were forbidden to learn to read or write
The bible offered an opportunity to gain some education
Women would make beautiful quilts, baskets and rugs
Men would work with iron or wood

8. African-American Slave Culture
Many foods that we consider “southern” were foods passed down from African culture
Slaves cooked meals and they became popular in white culture
Music was a big part of slave life
Field workers would sing during the day
Slaves sang biblical songs
On Sundays slaves were allowed, even encouraged, to sing and play music.
The creation of “negro spiritual”

9. Slaves Revolt
Despite white fears, there were very few instances of slave revolts
Nat Turner
Stono Rebellion
Slaves resisted in other ways
Work stoppage
Broken tools
Creating lives for themselves
Spirituals