Slavery in the American Mountain South [Paperback]

This book focuses on slave experiences on small plantations in the American Upper South.Wilma Dunaway breaks new ground by focusing on slave experiences on small plantations in the Upper South. She argues that a region was not buffered from the political, economic, and social impacts of enslavement simply because it was characterized by low black population density and small slaveholdings. By drawing on a massive statistical data base derived from antebellum census manuscripts and county tax records of 215 counties in nine states, on a vast array slaveholder manuscripts, and on regional slave narratives, she pinpoints several indicators that distinguished Mountain South enslavement from the Lower South.Wilma Dunaway breaks new ground by focusing on slave experiences on small plantations in the Upper South. She argues that a region was not buffered from the political, economic, and social impacts of enslavement simply because it was characterized by low black population density and small slaveholdings. By drawing on a massive statistical data base derived from antebellum census manuscripts and county tax records of 215 counties in nine states, on a vast array slaveholder manuscripts, and on regional slave narratives, she pinpoints several indicators that distinguished Mountain South enslavement from the Lower South.Wilma Dunaway breaks new ground by focusing on slave experiences on small plantations in the Upper South. She argues that the region was not buffered from the political, economic, and social impacts of enslavement simply because it was characterized by low black population density and small slaveholdings. Dunaway pinpoints several indicators that distinguished Mountain South enslavement from the Lower South, by drawing on a massive statistical data base derived from antebellum census manuscripts and county tax records of 215 counties in nine states, slaveholder manuscripts, and regional slave narratives.List of maps; Introduction; 1. Slavery's grip on thelcw