During the eighteenth century alone, approximately 44,000 Africans were transported annually on European ships (mainly from Great Britain, Holland, Portugal, Spain, and France) to the New World. Most of these people went to the West Indies to work on sugarcane plantations. Others went to Brazil and other Latin American countries. Only about five percent ended up in the thirteen colonies in North America where many worked in the fields planting and harvesting crops such as tobacco, indigo, rice, and cotton. It was customary for European settlers to choose only slaves who were fit and in the prime of life. There were more black men transported than women. Many slave women avoided having children so that neither they nor their children would be sold. Less than half of the Africans came from the same societies that sold them. Many of them were outcasts from close-knit systems, or were convicted of crimes; others owed debts. Some were captured in war and sold to other Africans or Europeans who desired to buy slaves.
The captain of a Dutch ship brought the first group of twenty Africans to Virginia in August of 1619. That was one year before the arrival of the Pilgrims on the Mayflower. African people were enslaved from more than two centuries. Even though the first Africans were slaves, they were treated more like indentured servants. Many did extra work for their owners or neighbors and earned enough money to buy their freedom. One such slave was Anthony Johnson from Chesapeake, Virginia who bought 250 acres of land, grew tobacco and raised livestock. Johnson hired indentured servants and owned at least one slave called Castor. Many freed men and women participated fully in their communities. They paid taxes, took out loans, voted, served on juries and sued whites in court. Unfortunately, this system did not last for long.
All this changed by the late seventeenth century when the institution of slavery became profitable. Laws were passed that stripped blacks of their rights. At the same time, planters in the north bought slaves who were working on sugar plantations in the British and Dutch West Indies. Additional slave labor came from West African nations that had well-established court systems and flourishing markets. Today, these areas include countries such as Nigeria, Ghana, and Senegal. Not all Africans were common laborers in their homeland; many were doctors, warriors, priests, and royalty. Many families were captured and separated on the long journey from their ancestral homeland to the Americas.
Creole slaves born in North America were encouraged by their owners to feel superior to the Africans. Owners felt that if there were some division among the slaves, then it would lessen the chance of having rebellions on the plantations. They also reinforced the idea that the lighter-skinned slaves were superior to those who were dark-skinned. Because the slaves came from various regions in Africa, they spoke different languages. This made it difficult for them to communicate with each other and their owners. They then developed a Creole dialect which is a mixture of African and European words. Today, French, English, and Spanish Creole dialects are spoken in many countries with people of African descent.
There were many levels in slave societies in the Americas (
Berlin, 1988
). Those who earned money for themselves, mainly the highly skilled slaves, were at the top. On plantations, drivers who drove the pace of the slaves with a whip were at the top. Very often, drivers were of mixed race. Next in line were those with special skills and the domestic slaves. Some domestic slaves considered it a privilege to work in close proximity to their owners in the house while others found it to be a special burden. Many women had jobs as cooks, housekeepers, and nannies; men were bricklayers and barrel-makers. The vast majority of slaves, the field hands, were at the lowest level of society.
As Africans adapted to the British North American culture, they also adopted the Christian religion. Many gave their children Christian or English names instead of the traditional African names. Sometimes the slave children were named after their owners. There were some Africans who resisted Christian teachings that instructed them to be obedient to their masters and mistresses. Local ministers would often read to slaves from the Bible and try to give them religious instructions. In order to make the new religion more suitable to their needs, many slaves focused on the idea of a God who would bring them freedom from the evils of slavery. Many religious songs called spirituals, connected slaves to God and each other. These songs had a message that they were chosen by God and would inherit heaven. Worship services were filled with singing, shouting, and the clapping of hands. There were joyful screams and much animation as they felt the "Spirit" during worship. Although this was a joyous occasion for the slaves, many masters forbade this kind of worship because they feared that the slaves would use these gatherings to plan revolts. As a result, church meetings were held in secret. Special codes were devised to announce the meetings. On one plantation, if slaves began singing the spiritual,
Steal Away to Jesus
, others knew that a religious meeting was scheduled for that evening. The influence from the African tradition of worship is still found in African American congregations today.
Slave women sewed warm and beautiful quilts. Sometimes quilting parties were organized jointly by plantation mistresses and female slaves. It was believed that if slaves covered their heads while sleeping, they would ward off evil spirits who might be lurking in the dark. African tradition stated that beds were positioned east to west so that people would not sleep in "the crossways of the world." Women also sewed clothes for their own families and the master's family. Shoes made from crude materials of cardboard and sheepskin often caused painful feet so slaves preferred to walk barefooted in spring and summer.
Brightly colored clothes was popular. For many Africans tribes, red was a royal and religious color. It signified blood and was regarded as sacred. For women, red meant life and fertility; for men, it meant war and the hunt. The creativity of the Africans caused many to make dyes to change the color of their clothing for various occasions such as work, church or other special events.
Masters gave out rations of food during the weekend in time for Sunday dinners. These small portions were often supplemented with rabbits, squirrels, possums and other hunted animals. Squirrel pie served with dumplings was considered a delicacy. Catfish, trout, crabs were caught from nearby streams and rivers. The slaves planted gardens with vegetables such as potatoes, beans, cabbage squash and okra. Slaves also raised chickens to feed their families. The use of spicy peppers, oils, and vinegars came from Africa and
the Caribbean. It was believed that sesame seeds, which came from Africa, brought good luck so it was added into every baked goods from breads and rolls to cookies.
Slaveholders would summon a doctor when slaves became seriously ill. Many slaves did not trust the "white" medical practices so they would resort to the use of various kinds of herbs to heal their conditions. These treatments often used in Africa and the Caribbean, combined medicine and magic. It later became common for the masters to use these folk remedies instead of calling on the doctor.
When a slave died, funeral arrangements began almost immediately. Friends and relatives would stay with the family of the deceased. They would sing and chant over the body that was never left unattended. The body was washed and wrapped in clean white cloth. It was then placed on a cooling board, which looked like an ironing board until it was placed in the coffin. Funerals were often held at night so that slaves from neighboring plantations could attend this community effort. At the gravesite, mourners would sing, chant, and shout. Some funeral rituals maintained West African traditions so that the ghosts would not bother those who were alive or help the dead on a safe spiritual journey. Many believed that the soul would return to Africa to join their ancestors.
Contributions in Science
African-Americans made significant contributions in the field of science during colonial times. Cotton Mather was a leading clergyman who lived in Massachusetts and owned slaves. In 1721, one of Mather's slaves, Onesimus, told him about a method that African doctors used to protect people from diseases during epidemics. People would be injected with a mild dose of the disease and this would prevent them from becoming seriously ill later on. This led to the invention of a smallpox vaccine in colonial America.
The first black doctor to practice medicine was James Derham who was born a slave. Derham's owner was a doctor who encouraged him to read his medical books and watch him and other doctors as they worked. Derham later became a leading practitioner in New Orleans.
The well-known scientist Benjamin Banneker, who was never a slave, was born near Baltimore, Maryland in 1731. This brilliant man had a keen interest in science and math from the time he was a boy attending school. Although he had never seen a clock before, at the age of twenty-two years old, he built an instrument that kept accurate time for fifty years. Banneker is most famous as one of the surveyors who helped to build Washington, D.C.