African American
Urban Slaves a Little-Recognized Part of The Southern Economy
1776-1835
In my experiences teaching United States history, students have a misconception that American slavery was strictly an agricultural institution. The slave labor experience, in particular, is considered one that existed entirely on plantation fields, sowing, tending, or harvesting cash crops — tobacco, cotton, or rice. Not all rural slaves worked on plantations, though; many toiled on smaller farms with a workforce of five to 10 field hands.
Richard Etheridge
Richard Etheridge was the first African American to command a lifesaving station in the United States. Lifesaving stations on the Atlantic Coast were responsible for rescuing people from shipwrecks in the late 1800s. Etheridge also fought for the Union in the Civil War and continued to fight for civil rights for the African American community...
James H. Harris (1832 – 1891)
Described by W.E.B. Du Bois as a politician of “great ability,” James Henry Harris was perhaps the most consequential black political leader in nineteenth-century North Carolina.[1] By the time of his death in 1891, Harris had served as chair or president of several state and national equal-rights conventions, a delegate to the 1868 North Carolina...
Rosenwald Schools
North Carolina once had about 800 Rosenwald schools. These schools, made possible by Julius Rosenwald, president of Sears & Co., taught African American children in the early 1900s, when public schools in the South were segregated and poorly funded.[1] However, today these schools are little known to the public. In 1915, North Carolina’s first Rosenwald...
Anna Julia Cooper (1858 – 1964)
Anna Julia Cooper was born in Raleigh, North Carolina, in 1858. It is believed she was the daughter of her enslaver, Fabius J. Haywood. Cooper was emancipated when she was nine years old and in 1867 enrolled in Saint Augustine’s Normal and Collegiate Institute in Raleigh with the aid of the Freedmen’s Bureau. At Saint...
Latta University
The Rev. Morgan L. Latta was the founder and president of Latta University, located in Oberlin Village, which is now part of Raleigh, North Carolina. Born in 1853, he was enslaved on the Cameron Plantation in Durham County. Fifty years later (in 1903) Latta published his autobiography, which tells, among many things, about how he...
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical University (NC A&T)
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, more commonly known as NC A&T, is the largest historically black college or university (HBCU) in the country, with 13,885 students in the fall of 2023.
Thomas Day (1801 – ca. 1861)
Famous for his craftsmanship, Thomas Day, a free African American, became one of North Carolina's most prolific and respected furniture makers in the state. Born to free parents in Dinwiddie, Virginia, Day and John Jr., his brother, were well-educated.
Albion Tourgée (1838 – 1905)
Reconstruction was a turbulent time, filled with significant political and social change, violence, and controversy. One controversial figure was Albion Tourgee, an Ohioan who moved to North Carolina for economic opportunities.
Freedmen’s Bank Served Blacks in Post-Civil War Economy
After the Civil War, former slaves were encouraged to participate in a free-labor economy. But much of the South lay in ruins. It was difficult to find work, much less start enterprising careers.
Urban Slaves a Little-Recognized Part of The Southern Economy
In my experiences teaching United States history, students have a misconception that American slavery was strictly an agricultural institution. The slave labor experience, in particular, is considered one that existed entirely on plantation fields, sowing, tending, or harvesting cash crops — tobacco, cotton, or rice. Not all rural slaves worked on plantations, though; many toiled on smaller farms with a workforce of five to 10 field hands.
Reconstruction Bibliography
A list of important sources and further readings on American Reconstruction and Reconstruction in North Carolina.
Segregation Did Not Stifle Self-Help Efforts in Black Communities
Self-help efforts are fascinating and laudable stories. A particularly interesting one is how, in an age of de jure segregation, charitable and creative African-Americans were agents of change in their communities and were able to alleviate various economic and social problems.