Background Information and Guide for K-12 Field Trip
Theme: Who’s Who: Race, Class, and Gender
House Museum: Aiken-Rhett
Grades: 8-High School
The Antebellum period in Charleston was often times called
the golden age of Charleston, but this time was characterized
by stark contrasts: free and enslaved, white and black, rich
and poor, city and suburbs. By touring the Nathaniel Russell
House and/or the Aiken-Rhett House, students will learn who
exactly these people were and how they fit into the society.
This program is suitable for 8th grade and high school social
studies classes.
Before You Visit
The Aiken-Rhett House was built in 1820, right in the middle of the Antebellum Period and the
same family lived in it for 142 years. The house is often called an “urban plantation” because of
its size, amount of residents, and livestock on the property. William Aiken Jr., a successful
businessman, rice planter, politician, and governor of South Carolina, used this house as his
primary residence with his wife. This house represents many of the things that characterized the
Antebellum Era: white elite men and their many slaves, urban vs. plantation living, male
dominance vs. female subordination ,and fine living vs. living with nothing. The house still has
its original outbuildings including slaves’ quarters which further illustrate the rising tensions of
the period. Before the trip, ask students to think about some of the themes of the period and what
life was like in Antebellum Charleston and the South as a whole. Who were the different people
living here and how did they interact? How would life for men and women be different in the
19th century? How would a rich person live verses a poor person?
During the Visit
Students will arrive at the Aiken-Rhett
House and learn about the house’s
residents and the role they played in
shaping the Antebellum South and how
they were similar to other families
during the time. The tour will start in
the main house where the Aikens will
be discussed and students should pay careful attention to indicators of social class and gender
roles. Next, the group will continue into the slaves’ quarters and hear about slavery in South
Carolina and how economically dependent planters and farmers were on their labor and how this
differed from what it was like in other parts of the country. Students should be looking for clues
in and around the house and outbuildings to tell them how all of the occupants lived and worked
in the space and what these facts can tell us about what the Antebellum Era was like for people
living during it. Men and women lived very
separate lives and the house illustrates
many of these differences. After the tour,
the group will participate in a hands on
activity and lesson. Students will examine
political cartoons from the period to
explain what the major issues of the era
were for male and female members of the
aristocracy, middle class, lower class, and
slaves. They will break into groups and
answer questions about the picture then
present to their class and explain why the
issue was significant in the Antebellum
Period. Students will finish their visit by commenting on how the Aiken-Rhett House illustrates
race, class, and gender of the Antebellum Era and reflects some of the wider issues going on in
South Carolina and the whole country.
After the Visit
Encourage students to research other historic houses from other time periods to see how the
house can tell a story about the family that lived there and what was going on in the time period.
George Washington’s Mount Vernon, Robert E. Lee’s Stratford Hall, and Theodore Roosevelt’s
Sagamore Hill are good examples. What social class were these people from and how do their
homes explain what their life was like? Does the house provide any commentary to what life was
like in the U.S. during that time period? Have
students use the information they learned on their
tour of the Aiken-Rhett House help answer some
of these questions. Additionally, have students
take what they learned in their hands on activity
and write a report on it. Students can do further
research on more political cartoons from the 1800s
of their choosing and write about how the media
can shape people’s thinking and perceptions of a
political or economic issue. They can find images
illustrating the frustrations of slaves, women
fighting for their rights, small farmers struggling
to complete with wealthy planters etc. Students
can make a chart of each race, class, and gender and their occupation/jobs, education, and type of
home to further illustrate the differences of the period. Your students can share their charts with
the class or keep them to help study the period and reflect how the Nathaniel Russell House
shows how the men, women, wealthy, and enslaved of the Antebellum period lived and worked.