In Slaves for Hire, John J. Zaborney overturns long-standing
beliefs about slave labor in the antebellum South. Previously,
scholars viewed slave hiring as an aberration -- a modified form of
slavery, involving primarily urban male slaves, that worked to the
laborer's advantage and weakened slavery's institutional integrity.
In the first in-depth examination of slave hiring in Virginia,
Zaborney suggests that this endemic practice bolstered the
institution of slavery in the decades leading up to the Civil War,
all but assuring Virginia's secession from the Union to protect
slavery.
Moving beyond previous analyses, Zaborney examines slave hiring
in rural and agricultural settings, along with the renting of
women, children, and elderly slaves. His research reveals that,
like non-hired-out slaves, these other workers' experiences varied
in accordance with sex, location, occupation, economic climate, and
crop prices, as well as owners' and renters' convictions and
financial circumstances. Hired slaves in Virginia faced a full
range of oppression from nearly full autonomy to harsh
exploitation.
Whites of all economic, occupational, gender, ethnic, and age
groups, including slave owners and non-slave-owners, rented slaves
regularly. Additionally, male owners and hirers often transported
slaves to those who worked them, and acted as agents for white
women who wished to hire out their slaves. Ultimately, widespread
white mastery of hired slaves allowed owners with superfluous
slaves to offer them for rent locally rather than selling them to
the Lower South, establishing the practice as an integral feature
of Virginia slavery.
General
Imprint: |
Louisiana State University Press
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Release date: |
October 2012 |
First published: |
February 2013 |
Authors: |
John J. Zaborney
|
Dimensions: |
216 x 140 x 25mm (L x W x T) |
Format: |
Hardcover - Cloth over boards / With dust jacket
|
Pages: |
232 |
ISBN-13: |
978-0-8071-4512-8 |
Categories: |
Books
|
LSN: |
0-8071-4512-2 |
Barcode: |
9780807145128 |
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