SLAVERY IN
AMERICA
THE AUCTION
• Once off the boat from Africa, slaves would be thrown into
pens and be sold at an auction
• Most families would be split up as many bidders didn’t
want to buy the whole family
• Many slaves were “doctored” (greased up and added with
tar) to make them look more desirable. The better you
looked, the more money you’d bring as more people
would want to buy you.
TYPES OF AUCTIONS
• There were two types of auctions• Highest bidder
• Grab and Go Auctions
• Highest Bidder
• Raised on a platform, inspected and sold at the highest
price
• Grab and Go
• Buyers would pay a set amount of money for a number of
slaves.
• When the pens opened, the buyers would grab the slaves
they wanted.
RESPONSE
What would your response be if you
were being sold at an auction? How
would that make you feel as a human
being?
UNDERGROUND
RAILROAD
• The terms “underground” and “railroad” are symbolic
terms – There really wasn’t a railroad that went
underground.
• The UGRR was an organized system to assist runaway
slaves to freedom, particularly to the North.
• ELEMENTS TO THE UGRR
• “Depots” or “Stations” – homes/businesses where slaves
would rest/eat
• “Stationmaster” – person who ran a depot or station
• “Stockholder” – those who contributed money or goods
• “Conductor” – Person responsible for moving slaves from
one station to the next
UGRR CONT.
• Many individuals participated – many whites, but
predominantly blacks (free or not) ran the UGRR
• Methods of escape:
• Slaves would travel through routes that were told by word
of mouth, through stories or through songs.
• Most travelled at night on foot and went from station to
station
THOUGHTS
What do you think would happen
to those if they were caught
helping runaway slaves?
SLAVE LIFE
Clothing – Slaves were not well-clothed
• Children wore long shirts
• Many slaves were provided with four shirts all year (2 for
winter and 2 for summer), a pair of pants. Clothing was
poorly made
Home Life
• Plantation slaves would have small cabins
• Dirt floors, rotting wood, leaky ceilings.
• Disease spread easily
SLAVE LIFE
Diseases
• Hot and humid temps led to a disease filled environment
• Lack of medical knowledge led to many deaths
• Malaria, pneumonia, dysentery and more
Food
• Imbalanced meals
• Barely enough to live off of
PICTURE RESPONSE
Why do you think a slave owner
would allow a slave family to have
a large number of children?
THOUGHTS
Put yourself in the shoes of a slave,
how would your life be different if you
lived during the 1800’s?
PUNISHMENT
Slaves had no rights – Owners could do whatever they liked
with their slaves (harsh punishments)
They could be punished for many things
• Resisting, laziness, excessive talking, stealing, killing and
running away
Punishments included:
• Shackling, pain contraptions, chained to the ground,
whipped, walking/marching or being hung
THOUGHTS
How does it make you feel
emotionally when you see/read
these punishments that were
used on slaves? Why?
ABOLITIONIST
MOVEMENT
Abolish – to get rid of
An abolitionist is somebody who wants to get rid of slavery
Abolitionists claimed that slavery was:
• Anti-Christian – All men are created equal
• Goes against the American way of life, which is freedom
• It was a waste of physical labor, lives and goodwill
• Politically dangerous and a harm to our country’s safety.
Slaves would likely revolt and start a war
THOUGHTS
If you lived during this time
period, would you be a part of
the abolitionist movement?
Why/why not?