Chapter 13 The Slave System

Module 15 Lesson #2 The Slave System

Multiple Choice

What crop was being harvested in the last picture?

• Corn

• Wheat

• Tobacco

• Cotton

Slaves and Work

• Most slaves worked on farms and plantations of the South

• Most slaves worked in the fields and some worked in the homes of their owners

• Overseers or drivers would manage the slaves many of whom were once slaves themselves

• Gangs of slaves would work from sun-up to sun-down and ate their food as they worked

• Men, women, and children 10 and over were expected to work in any conditions and even when they were sick

• Home slaves had better working conditions, food, but were on call 24/7

• Some slaves were taught a skill like being a blacksmith, cooper, or carpenter

Multiple Choice

There were three types of slaves: field slaves, house slaves, and skilled slaves.

• False

• True

Life Under Slavery

• Slaves were bought and sold at auctions

• Slave families were often broken up and sold to other slave owners for a profit

• Free African Americans were kidnapped by slave catchers and sold back into slavery until the person could prove they were no longer a slave

• Slaves lived in houses that had dirt floors, little furniture, rough clothing, and small food rations.

• Some slaves were allowed to grow their own gardens, some fished, and some picked wild nuts and berries for extra food.

• Slave codes and punishments were very severe to get slaves and owners to behave a certain way.

• Whippings and beatings were common

Multiple Select

Which of the following would you expect if you were a slave in the 1800s? (Pick 3)

• You would work for ten years and pay off your debt and be free

• You would live in a house with a dirt floor

• You would work long hours

• You would be allowed to grow extra food if you behaved

Multiple Select

Which food was not in the last video?

• Corn

• Chicken

• Oranges

• Hot Peppers

Slave Culture

• Family and community was everything to a slave

• Slaves feared family separation more than being beaten for doing something they did wrong

• Many slaves were Christians and learned different parts of the Bible that they could relate to such as Abraham leading the Jews from slavery in Egypt back to Israel.

• Many slaves would sing spirituals or songs and they learned to communicate with each other without their owners knowing what they were doing.

• Many slaves would run away if their owners were angry or if they wanted to go visit a family member on another plantation

• Some slaves grew tired of their condition and fought back

Multiple Choice

A slaves biggest fear was getting beat for doing something wrong.

• True

• False

Slave Uprisings

• There were over 80 slave rebellions in the United States before slavery was made illegal

• Gabriel Prosser planned a rebellion in Richmond, Virginia

• Denmark Vesey planned a rebellion in Charleston, South Carolina

• Both rebellions failed and their leaders and followers were put to death

• Nat Turner Rebellion was the most violent of the rebellions

• In 1831 Nat Turner led a slave rebellion that resulted in 60 white people being killed

• Turner and his men were captured after six weeks and all were put on trial and executed

Multiple Select

Which four of the following were slave rebellions in the South?

• Stono Rebellion

• Gabriel Prosser Rebellion

• Franklin Slave Rebellion

• Denmark Vesey Rebellion

• Nat Turner Rebellion