Plantation Production On-site Activities

Plantation Production - On-site Activity/Interpreter Led

Grade Level: 8
Content Area: History
Time to Complete: 1.5 hours (maximum)
Title of Lesson: Plantation Production

South Carolina State Standards Addressed:

8-1.4

Explain the growth of the African American population during the colonial period and the significance of African Americans in the developing culture (e.g. Gullah) and economy of South Carolina, including the origins of African American slaves, the growth of the slave trade, the impact of population imbalance between African and European Americans and the Stono Rebellion and subsequent laws to control the slave population.

8-1.6

Explain how South Carolinians used natural, human, and political resources to gain economic prosperity, including trade with Barbados, rice planting, Eliza Lucas Pinckney and indigo planting, the slave trade, and the practice of mercantilism.

Lesson Description:

This program will discuss the plantation system, its resulting economy, and early agricultural practices associated with rice and indigo production. The many different roles that slaves had will be discussed along with their contributions to the plantation society.

Focus Questions for Students:

1.	How did the plantation system influence settlement patterns in South Carolina?
2.	What is a cash crop?
3.	How did plantation owners show off their wealth from cash crops?
4.	Who made up the labor force on Hampton Plantation in colonial and antebellum times?
5.	What were some of the many jobs that slaves performed on plantations?
6.	How did the emancipation of the slaves and the onslaught of technology affect the plantation system?

Culminating Assessment:
See post-site activities

Materials/Equipment/Resources Included:
Rice mortar and pestle, RICE
Fanner basket
Rice trunk
Indigo chunks and pictures of the process
Map of Hampton
Pictures of outbuildings from “Back of the Big House”

Procedures:

I.	Introduction and Welcome (Parking Lot)
1.	Your name
2.	Safety issues
3.	Divide into groups if necessary

II.	What is a PLANTATION? (Picnic area)
A.	Definition
1.	a large estate or farm on which crops are grown, often by resident workers.
B.	What makes up a plantation? (Show pictures of outbuildings and the map)
1.	Buildings, people and land. Each building is for a specific use, each person has a certain job, and everything is placed on the land in certain spots. (Ex. Kitchen near the house, smokehouse near the kitchen, etc.)
2.	Compare a plantation with today’s homes. Are the uses the same or different?

III.	Plantation Products (Boardwalk Area)
A.	Where does the money come from that supports a plantation?
1.	Natural Resources: pine trees(naval stores, masts for ships, lumber, fuel), deer skins
2.	Cash Crops: rice and indigo
B.	Rice
1.	Discuss the origins of rice in South Carolina and it’s importance to the colony.
•	First experiments failed due to lack of knowledge.
•	Seeds from Madagascar worked.
•	Labor force needed to grow rice. Choose Africans because they know how to grow rice.
•	Why here? Our topography and climate make it a perfect location for growing rice.
2.	There are three ways to grow rice. Locate fields on map. Discuss methods.
•	Upland/Dryland Cultivation
•	Inland Swamp Cultivation
•	Tidal Cultivation
3.	Explain how a rice field is constructed.
•	Location of fields
•	Clearing and shaping of land. Discuss challenges of working in swamps.
•	Tools used
•	Labor used. Both indentured and slave.
•	How did they get the water? Explain what a rice trunk is, how it works, and show the model.
4.	Planting Process
•	Season. Early spring, April.
•	Seeds rolled in clay and planted in rows. Discuss reasons for rolling seeds.
•	Flooded 3 to 4 times during growing. Explain reasons for flooding. Must use fresh water. Who monitored the water?
•	Harvest time, August or September. Cut, tie in bundles, and dry out.
•	Removal of rice process. Flailing, beating, winnowing, polishing.
•	Rice ended in this area around 1910 for several reasons.
•	Lack of labor
•	Modern machinery too heavy for swamp land
•	Three major hurricanes in late 1800’s that put salt in the fields.
5.	Demonstration.
	Use sickle, mortar and pestle, and fanner basket to demonstrate the removal of rice. Let some of the students do it if you feel comfortable.
C.	Indigo
1.	Discuss the origins of indigo in South Carolina and it’s importance to the colony.
•	Experiments in 1670’s.
•	Eliza Lucas Pinckney perfects process of extracting dye in 1740’s.
•	Native strain in South Carolina. It’s a weed.
•	Why here? Soil is good, and no one else is growing it in the colonies. Monopolize the market. England only buyer.
2.	Planting process
•	Season starts
•	Season ends
•	Process for extracting the dye. Show pictures and finished product.
•	Why did the market fail? Revolutionary War.

IV.	Plantation Labor (Field, facing Alston Chimney)
	Note: Some of this material will probably be discussed during the program, but reiterate the info to make sure everything is covered.
A.	You have discussed what a plantation is and where the money comes from to run it, now discuss who does all the work.
•	Indentured Servants – 7 year contracts, but most ran away. Couldn’t make people come over here.
•	Africans – cheap source of labor, permanent, no place to run away to, malaria advantage, language barrier.
B.	Slaves
1.	Slaves did not only work in the fields. List some other jobs they were responsible for.
•	Blacksmith
•	Carpenter
•	Cook
•	House servant
•	Nannies
•	Drivers
•	Boatmen
2.	Field hands. Because of the large amount of crops grown on a plantation most slaves were field hands. There were 2 ways to work in the fields.
•	Task System – slaves were given tasks, or chores, at the beginning of the day and had the whole day to complete. If finished early the rest of the day was yours. Some slaves helped out others to get the work done faster. On their own time they worked in gardens, made things to sell, hunted, or visited other plantations if they had family there.
•	Gang System – A group of slaves worked side by side and were only allowed to stop when the overseer said they could. Compare the 2 systems.
3.	Gender Roles. Both men and women worked in the fields. Some jobs were only for males and some for females. Out of the jobs listed which ones were for males, females, or both?
4.	Quarters. Slaves worked together and lived together.
•	Their quarters were separate from the main grounds. Most were close to the fields.
•	They had their own little community.
•	Family was very important. (Read To Have and To Hold for more info on the topic)
•	African Traditions were passed down. Some became intermixed with European traditions. Storytelling, dancing, medicine, etc.
•	Passive Resistance – some slaves were happy with their owners. Some owners were not as nice. Slaves had ways of retaliating without getting caught. Spitting in food, stealing, breaking equipment, etc. Ask students if they can think of others.

V.	Plantation Operation (At the Big House)
A.	Overseers/Drivers/Owners.
	These are the people who keep everything organized and running. They hand out the assignments and care for the slaves. Not every plantation operated the same way. Some were not too good whereas others were fairly decent.

VI.	Conclusion (Inside the house)
A.	The house is a result of all the labor of the slaves and the money received from the cash crops.
B.	Daniel and Harriott Horry first owners
•	364 slaves
•	Added the wings and portico
•	Left during the summer months
C.	The house c.1740’s
•	Georgian Architecture. Symmetry. Fake windows and front entrance.
•	Materials used to construct house
•	Type of construction (Show roman numerals) Lath and plaster.
•	What the rooms were used as. Refer to inventory. Material possessions bought with rice money.