In 1670, two hundred colonists founded Charles Town, the city now known as Charleston, on ground they named Carolina, after King Charles II. Enticed by the promise of 150 acres per family member and no taxes until 1689, as well as religious tolerance and political representation, the population of Carolina grew to about 6,600 in 1700, roughly 3,800 whites and 2800 blacks . (Taylor, 224) The Lords Proprietors, the group chartered the lands of Carolina, also promised absolute control over slaves to entice large-scale planters . (Taylor, 225) Upon the discovery of rice, these planters began mass-producing the cash crop whose cultivation they learned from West African slaves. In 1700, 4000,00 pounds were exported and by 1740, a year after the rebellion,
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Slaves were use in all manner of work. They unloaded the ships, did the street cleaning, and transported the fresh vegetables, fish, and game to the markets. There was also no other sufficient, and readily available source of labor for the production of rice (Hoffer, 127). Gradually, the rebellion was forgotten and was rarely talked about. When a European traveler, Alexis de Tocqueville visited South Carolina, he noted “In the southern states there is a silence; one avoids discussing it [Stono rebellion] with one’s friends, each man…hides it from himself.” (Hoffer, 136) The colony was apparently desperate to bury the conflict for good. The revolt was only unearthed again on the eve of the Civil war, when southern leaders warned that abolitionists’ attacks on slavery would leave to revolts similar to Stono. After the end of the war, Stono once again faded into history (Hoffer, 138). The Stono Rebellion was neither the first or the last, over two hundred and fifty, with numbers of 10 or more, have been recorded in the history of America (Apethker, 162). Like the others, Stono revolt was a reminder of man’s desperate need for freedom, but also that the wealth of the new world at the time was founded on the exploitation and enslavement of man and that could not be
Slaves were use in all manner of work. They unloaded the ships, did the street cleaning, and transported the fresh vegetables, fish, and game to the markets. There was also no other sufficient, and readily available source of labor for the production of rice (Hoffer, 127). Gradually, the rebellion was forgotten and was rarely talked about. When a European traveler, Alexis de Tocqueville visited South Carolina, he noted “In the southern states there is a silence; one avoids discussing it [Stono rebellion] with one’s friends, each man…hides it from himself.” (Hoffer, 136) The colony was apparently desperate to bury the conflict for good. The revolt was only unearthed again on the eve of the Civil war, when southern leaders warned that abolitionists’ attacks on slavery would leave to revolts similar to Stono. After the end of the war, Stono once again faded into history (Hoffer, 138). The Stono Rebellion was neither the first or the last, over two hundred and fifty, with numbers of 10 or more, have been recorded in the history of America (Apethker, 162). Like the others, Stono revolt was a reminder of man’s desperate need for freedom, but also that the wealth of the new world at the time was founded on the exploitation and enslavement of man and that could not be