n September of 1861, the U.S. Coast Survey published a large map, approximately two feet by three feet, titled a “Map showing the distribution of the slave population of the southern states of t
At the dawn of the American Revolution, 20 percent of the population in the thirteen colonies was of African descent. The legalized practice of enslaving blacks occurred in every colony, but the econo
In some ways enslaved African American families very much resembled other families who lived in other times and places and under vastly different circumstances. Some husbands and wives loved each othe
The Irish were slaves too; slaves had it better than Northern factory workers; black people fought for the Confederacy; and other lies, half-truths, and irrelevancies.
Slavery was deeply woven into the fabric of the United States and challenged the meaning of democracy. Enslaved people’s work formed an economic engine producing half of all U.S. exports and providi
Slavery in what became the United States probably began with the arrival of “20 and odd” enslaved Africans to the British colony of Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619. It officially ended with t
Public officials, slave owners, and others in eighteenth-century Virginia judged freed slaves a “great inconvenience” as they were frequently suspected of receiving stolen goods and encour
Contrary to popular belief, slavery has existed for the majority of human history. Early examples of slavery can be found in the Bible and Ancient Greek and Roman history, thousands of years before th
Published in 1802, Opinions of Several Gentlemen of the Law, on the Subject of Negro Servitude, in the Province of Nova Scotia, is a small surviving piece of the history of slavery in Canada. The pam
The Understanding Slavery initiative (USI) is a national learning project which supports the teaching and learning of transatlantic slavery and its legacies using museum and heritage collections. Over
