LIFE IN THE SLAVE QUARTERS

Slave Quarters, at the Hermitage

 plantation, Chatham County, Georgia

were separated one by one and were too small for comfort.

         Most of the plantations usually consisted of a "big house", which was where the owner of the plantation lived, and a few hundred yards away was where the Slave Quarters were.  The placement of the Quarters was great enough for privacy but close enough for the whites to easily access it.  Also the Slave Quarters helped the slaves in many ways.  In the Slave Quarters, the slaves had shelter to protect them, privacy to plan and communicate, freedom away from their masters, and opportunity to develop an African community.

Inside a common one room slave quarter, there was

hardly any furniture. There was one clothesline

to dry the few clothing items that the slaves had.

The floor was made up of beaten earth. Also each

Quarter had a fireplace to heat up the room and to

cook food.

             Each Slave Quarter was made up of a one-room small building with a fireplace.  Most of the Quarters were scarcely furnished and usually consisted of one bed or a small table for eating and preparing food.  The fireplace in the Quarters helped the slaves keep warm and cook the food their masters gave them called "rations".  Most of the food came not from the master but from the men and children that farmed and gathered their own food.  Also the men had to hunt and fish for their food.

          In the Quarters the slaves practiced their African heritage and beliefs.  Most of the slaves expressed themselves through music, dance, and religious practice.  While living in the Slave Quarters, slaves used their "expressing music" to hide messages and to communicate in the fields while the master watched over them.  This way they knew what they were talking about while the master had no clue.

          Overall life in the Slave Quarters was mainly a privilege for the slaves that lived there. They had the privacy they needed to practice their beliefs and to continue their culture. Also they could develop their small African community and arrange their events/celebrations. Even though the Slave Quarters were too small for comfort, they still provided shelter and few freedoms.  (Noman H.)
          The kind of life that the slaves led is further revealed by looking into the way children were treated and lifestyle they knew.  (Next section:  Children)