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"American artist Winslow Homer captured the tensions and ambiguities of Reconstruction's new social order when he depicted an imaginary meeting between a Southern white woman and her former slaves.

Homer, an artist correspondent during the Civil War, placed his subjects on an equal footing yet maintained a space of separation between the races. He exhibited the painting to acclaim at the Paris Universal Exposition in 1878."

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[Share Croppers - a tenant farmer especially in the southern U.S. who is provided with credit for seed, tools, living quarters, and food, who works the land, and who receives an agreed share of the value of the crop minus charges.]

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1. What determined the amount of clothing each slave received? Why?

2. Were slaves during the Civil War allowed to attend church?

3. How were slaves treated on each plantation or farm?

4. Why do think some slaves were treated differently?

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After the Civil War, laws and amendments were set in place, abolishing slavery. Unfortunately, former slaves and even some white people were thrown into debt and poverty by the war. Sharecropping became very common and through sharecropping, tenants were able to rent out a plot of land. With newly appointed rights, many colored families could now exercise more control over who worked and who didn't. Children were sent to school and many women withdrew from the field, much to the disdain of the fields' owners, who complained of a constant "Labor Shortage". Along with their freedom, African-Americans were allowed to vote and hold political offices. Many even found jobs in cities, woman often as house servants, men doing manual work, and children working in textile and tobacco factories. African-American families could rent and buy land, with some difficulty, but the option was finally there.

"In early Reconstruction, many black women, seeking to devote more time to their families, sought to withdraw from field labor, a decision strongly resisted by plantation owners."

http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/exhibits/reconstruction/section3/section3_intro.html

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"In reality, treatment of slaves ranged from mild and paternalistic to cruel and sadistic." -

http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/civil-war-overview/slavery.html?referrer=https://www.google.com/

"Recalled a former enslaved man: "The peas, the beans, the turnips, the potatoes, all seasoned up with meats and sometimes a ham bone, was cooked in a big iron kettle and when meal time come they all gathered around the pot for a-plenty of helpings!".

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/slavery/experience/living/history2.html

"In early Reconstruction, many black women, seeking to devote more time to their families, sought to withdraw from field labor, a decision strongly resisted by plantation owners".

"Children, whose labor had been dictated by the owner under slavery, now attended school."

http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/exhibits/reconstruction/section3/section3_intro.html

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Slaves were given weekly food rations each Saturday which usually consisted of corn meal, lard, some meat, molasses, peas, greens, and flour. Fresh vegetables could be added from garden patches the slaves grew themselves. Usually, an older member of the household would cook. "Recalled a former enslaved man: "The peas, the beans, the turnips, the potatoes, all seasoned up with meats and sometimes a ham bone, was cooked in a big iron kettle and when meal time come they all gathered around the pot for a-plenty of helpings!". Slave diets were very high in fat and they didn't have a lot of nutrients which caused sickness and death from scurvy, rickets or other illnesses. Many slaves did not have enough to eat and if desperate enough, they would steal from their masters to get more food. Their clothing was passed out once a year and the amount of clothing received was based on the type of labor done. Many of the older slaves did not receive many layers of clothes because they did not do much work. The slave owners didn't value the older slaves because how little labor they were physically able to do therefore causing many of the older slaves to die. Younger, stronger slaves were provided more clothing to survive and continue their work.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/slavery/experience/living/history2.html

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The act of slavery did not stop once the civil war began, and continued until after the war concluded. Living conditions did not change, though many slaves escaped from their Southern masters, running to the relative safety of the North. Slaves that remained in the South often lived in houses or huts that they built themselves in a corner of the plantation granted to them by their white masters. These hand built homes were generally cramped and had little in the way of furniture. Clothing was distributed annually, usually around Christmas time and the quality of the clothing depended on the work load and quality of work. Men and woman working in the fields received better protection from the elements than children too young to work and elderly people too old for strenuous chores. Food was delivered weekly for each slave household,usually consisting of cornbread, some meats, and vegetables. If permitted by their masters, many slaves had gardens from which they grew their own greens. Most slaves worked from sunrise to sunset, everyday, however some were permitted Sunday as a rest day or were even allowed to attend church. Many "rest" days were spent mending their homes and what items they had. Treatment of slaves depended on their master, "In reality, treatment of slaves ranged from mild and paternalistic to cruel and sadistic." -
http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/civil-war-overview/slavery.html?referrer=https://www.google.com/
http://www.historyonthenet.com/slave_trade/how_slaves_lived.htm