In this recap of the Civil War and Reconstruction Virginia, we begin with two titles addressing the role of slaves in the Civil War, first from a Union perspective in “The Peninsula Campaign and the Necessity of Emancipation”, then from the rebel point of view in “Confederate Slave Impressment”.
Two social histories chronicling the immediate aftermath of the conflict are represented focusing one on blacks, the other on whites, the first in “Intimate Reconstructions” about black and white children, and the second in “The Big House After Slavery” about Virginia’s elite plantation families and their accommodation to defeat and emancipation.
Lastly we look at the political and economic history of the post-Civil War debt controversy in Virginia and West Virginia which was complicated by the devastation of war and additional prospective debt for railroad construction.
The Peninsula Campaign and the Necessity of Emancipation
Glenn David Brasher wroteThe Peninsula Campaign and the Necessity of Emancipation: African Americans and the Fight for Freedom in 2012. It is now available at the North Carolina University Press, on Kindle and online new and used.
Brasher explores the 1862 Peninsula Campaign the Union’s George McClellan, who was an opponent of interference with slavery. But McClellan’s campaign was unable to end the war, in part to Confederate use of numerous slaves to build fortifications. On the other hand, the large numbers of slaves entering Union lines and their troop’s acceptance of their manpower led to Radical Republicans convincing a reluctant Abraham Lincoln to issue an emancipation proclamation.
McClellan at first was persuaded to accept only runaways who had been employed in rebel military labor, preserving private property rights to slaves. But the overwhelming numbers of families fleeing into Union lines and many soldiers’ following Fort Monroe’s commander, Maj. Gen. Benjamin F. Butler advocating for a hard war policy, led to Congressional allies to push Lincoln towards emancipation as a war measure.
To buy “The Peninsula Campaign and the Necessity of Emancipation” on Amazon, click here.
Confederate Slave Impressment
Jaime Amanda Martinez wrote Confederate Slave Impressment in the Upper Southin 2014. It is now available from the University of North Carolina Press, on Kindle and online new and used.
Martinez focuses on Confederate use of slaves to build fortifications protecting troops, cities and ports in Virginia and North Carolina. At first slave impressment took place by local commander initiative, but in the middle years of the conflict, a federalized system of local, state and national governments evolved into a somewhat efficient organization. Slave experience while working on fortifications was extremely arduous with low rations and little medical care.
The result was widespread slave-owner complaints about the health of their returning slaves. Martinez interprets these complaints as “pragmatic” mostly during planting and harvesting seasons, rather than “unpatriotic”. They reflected a concern for owners’ self interest rather than an indication of weak Confederate nationalism. Most owners freely complied with government requisitions of their slaves until Jefferson Davis proposed the national government would buy 40,000 slave laborers and free them once the war was won. Slaves also shaped Confederate policies because by 1864 in Virginia most communities had lost at least 25% of their male slave population, but fewer than 10% ran away under government supervision. Martinez carefully distinguishes between impressed slaves working on fortifications and the mischaracterization of blacks as Confederate soldiers.
To buy “Confederate Slave Impressment” on Amazon, click here.
*O’Brien, John Thomas. From Bondage to Citizenship: The Richmond Black Community, 1865–1867(1990). It is no longer in print, but may be available at your central library or by interlibrary loan.
*Chesson, Michael B. Richmond After the War, 1865–1890(1981). It is out of print. Learn more to buy “Richmond After the War” on Amazon.
*Jackson, Luther Porter. Negro Officer-Holders in Virginia, 1865–1895 (1945). It is out of print, but may be found at your central library or by interlibrary loan.
Intimate Reconstructions
Catherine A. Jones wrote Intimate Reconstructions: Children in Postemancipation Virginia in 2015. It is now available from the University of Virginia press, on Kindle and online new and used.
Jones writes a social history of children and families during post war Virginia’s Reconstruction. Both white and black families faced malnutrition, disease and uncertainty leading to disrupted family life. While the Freedman’s Bureau furnished some material assistance, most officials recognized that the needs of children would be met by private efforts. Nevertheless the Bureau championed strengthened kinship ties within male-headed households.
Large numbers of orphans in cities such as Richmond and Norfolk led to the adoption of apprenticeships that were largely for black children. In practice it facilitated exploitation of child labor and it undermined freedpeople’s efforts to reconstitute families. Advocates of widespread elementary schooling sought education for citizenship, but opponents objected to undermining parental authority.
To buy “Intimate Reconstruction” on Amazon, click here.
The Big House After Slavery
Amy Feely Morsman wrote The Big House after Slavery: Virginia Plantation Families and Their Postbellum Domestic Experimentin 2010. It is now available at the University of Virginia Press and online new and used.
Morsman examines the transition of Virginia planter families to survive the challenges of defeat and emancipation. Economically the planter downsized agricultural speculation and struggled with new labor relations and old financial obligations. Men and women sought to maintain elite appearances in weddings, resort vacations and fashionable attire.
The family hierarchy shifted towards codependency. Many young men sought after the urban middle class while substantial numbers still stayed on the family farm. Elite women sought out teaching as their main occupation in the post-war years. Men and women engaged in politics over the public debt and farm clubs such as the Grangers and Virginia Farmers’ Assembly. Women’s civic organizations included fostering the Lost Cause.
To buy “The Big House After Slavery” on Amazon, click here.
A Saga of the New South
Tarter, Brent, A Saga of the New South: Race, Law, and Pubic Debt in Virginia(2016). It is now available from the University of Virginia Press, on Kindle and online new and used.
Following the creation of West Virginia, how the debt of the pre-Civil War Virginia was to be shared between the two states became a focus of political controversy over he next half century. Virginia and West Virginia each had their own history of race, reconstruction, redemption and the New South movement.
Efforts to expand canal infrastructure had been compromised in the bust cycles of antebellum economy, and Virginia ranked third among states for state debt behind only Pennsylvania and New York. Amidst an entrenched fiscal conservatism, the post-war ambition to build additional railroads held the promise of a prosperous future by rebuilding Virginia’s battle-scarred economy, and Virginia ended up both invested in railroads and readjusting its debt, but at a social cost.
To buy “A Saga of the New South” on Amazon, click here.