Turn of the Century Black Plantation Workers Photo Archive - 1890s-1900s

African American, Plantation Workers

Photo Archive

[Early Photography] [African American] Despite the abolition of slavery a generation earlier, many rural African Americans were still bonded to the cotton crop through exploitative sharecropping and tenant farming. Archive of 3 silver gelatin photographs of Black plantation workers. 1890s-1900s. Measurements range from 9.5" x 7.5" to 5.5" x 3.5" toOne photograph shows three Black cotton pickers in typical outfits of their profession, with breathable white cotton shirts, loose slacks, and wide brimmed hats to keep the hot sun off their skin. Two of the men's faces are silhouetted by shadows as the man in the center is seen smiling at another worker as he empties a large wire basket of freshly picked cotton. A real photo post card shows a Black man in a wooden wagon pulled by livestock, with some sort of goods in the wagon. The largest photo shows a worn out worker napping in a hammock over a field with his sun hat covering the side of his face. Four upper class white people are shown standing on the field in the distance. A woman holds an umbrella to keep the hot sun off her face. These photographs display the raw realism behind the lives of African American plantation workers entrapped in systematic oppression with many freed men having no capital or other skill sets post abolition. Some minor edge wear and minimal creasing. Overall good condition. This photographic set is a realistic record of the nature of Black life in the post Antebellum south.

Item #21024

Price: $550.00