Beyond the statistical analysis of the happenings of late 18th and 19th century America, some of the personal written accounts (primary sources) really got to me unlike any other page of factual data. Some of the accounts show the apathy that many of the documenters had at the time towards slavery, and others show their concern towards a system that was unrightfully normalized. I’ve marked several quotes in my book.
Category: prep note Page 14 of 24
I was struck by the horrible conditions that were casually created for enslaved people to live in, especially Lumpkin’s Jail (the infamous “Devil’s Half Acre”). I can’t imagine going a day without a shower (sometimes two, depending) and a change of clothes, but enslaved “runaways” were left in such horrid conditions for such a long period of time – and that’s not even mentioning the food and water (in both cases, the lack thereof). How did these people ever survive? And for that matter, how did their tormentors ever justify their actions? Was it systematic and unfeeling? Probably, to some extent. Was it malicious? I don’t see how it couldn’t be, just a little bit. I will never understand how a human could treat another human like that and still believe they were in the right, nor do I ever want to. I’m getting tired of writing about atrocities – although those aren’t quite the right words. Maybe, rather, it takes its toll. But that’s why it’s so important, right? If I say, Oh, I’m getting tired of it, then maybe I’m contributing to the problem Campbell was talking about, where so much of the history surrounding slavery and atrocities has been forgotten or swept under the rug. If bringing that stuff out from under the rug means getting dust in our noses and eyes and sneezing for days, we can’t let that stop us. It’s too important. As the saying goes, there’s no growth in your comfort zone, and no comfort in your growth zone. So let’s grow, people! And if we’re uncomfortable along the way, good. I know for me, personally, as a relatively sheltered middle-class white girl, I could stand to be uncomfortable a little more often.
Chapters 4-6 were very interesting and informative. I previously learned about the Tobacco boom in Virginia in my history classes. Although I knew a little about the tobacco economy and how the slave trade was impacted, I didn’t realize that Richmond was a major hub for it. I was surprised when I learned there was a movement to help freed people return to Africa to Liberia. I was never taught about that, and I had no idea that many died on the voyages. When reading about the religious justification for slavery, I could not help but think about how backward and wrong that was. When I read about the slave revolts I was disgusted to read that a man was skinned like an animal. This stuck out to me because it further showed how black Americans were truly treated like animals. Reading about Devil’s Half Acre and the slave trade in Richmond taught me a lot about how deeply the roots of slavery affected Richmond and how they still linger today. I was not surprised to learn that this long history of slavery was not taught or well-known until the 90s. Overall, I found myself shocked and disgusted when reading about the treatment of Africans and African Americans in Richmond. Unsurprisingly, I was not shocked to read about the laws surrounding slavery and the treatment of anyone who wasn’t a “great man”
A great historian is supposed to be objective and not include personal elements in their writing. That is why a lot of people argue that Herodotus should not be considered the first historian. However to what extent can a person produce any type of written work without including personal elements? In fact, even the act of being able to “write about history” and be considered a historian comes from a place of privilege and therefore contains personal characteristics. This idea can also be applied to Richmond’s Unhealed History. Before starting to read the book, I read about the author’s background and not surprisingly he is a white, heterosexual, Christian, American man. Up to an extent that information stayed with me and changed the way I received knowledge while reading the book taking into account that the book could be written basically from an oppressor’s point of view. However, as I started reading I was leading more and more close to the conclusion that personal characteristics do not entirely define a person’s intention and their ability to separate themselves from the truth. By that I mean, that the author until chapter 6 is doing a great job of rediscovering the history of Richmond, using multiple trust-worth resources, and offering insightful perspectives that sometimes are intervented with facts by themselves and sometimes I do not entirely align with some of the way his thoughts are expressed, but overall I can say with confidence that he is using narrative in an effective way to communicate historical knowledge and share his interpretation separately. The combination of micro-elements like the 03use of the third person, the inclusion of different trustable resources, diagrams, figures, charts, direct and indirect quotations, the separation of comments, and the rest of the text, all contribute to the creation of a macro-narration that I consider successful of generating and communicating historical knowledge.
As I was reading about slavery in Virginia and Richmond itself, I was horrified at how inhumane slaveowners were towards these human beings. They had no qualms about separating African families, or denying them an education, or allowing them to have some chance at freedom. What I noticed was that even poor white people in bond servitude were allowed a shot at freedom, but this was mostly not offered to enslaved Africans. I knew how atrocious slavery was from my previous education, but reading some firsthand accounts really sealed the deal on how much I did not know. The story about Anthony Burns and his incarceration in Lumpkin’s Slave Jail was absolutely sickening, even more so because of the nature of this primary source. One thing I did find interesting was that some Black people were allowed to join certain churches, although many of them had to be supervised by white leaders. I also never realized how much work was going on behind the scenes in the anti-slavery movement. I didn’t know that some anti-slavery newspapers were published, at least not the ones that I hadn’t already learned about.
I found chapters 4-6 to be very informative on Richmond’s history in regards to the Slave Trade and segregation in the United States. In past history classes, I have learned about how Richmond and New Orleans were the two biggest players in the slave trade, but the details and excerpts from this book have opened up a whole new side of information for me. I thought it was important that Campbell used so many primary sources of differing opinions in these chapters, especially about slavery. As we discussed in class, it’s hard to relate to information when it gets told to you from someone else’s perspective. However, I thought reading the stories from people who experienced the slave trade, especially Dickens, made it feel so much more real. I also liked the detail and infographics used throughout the novel because I was able to grasp the ideas that Campbell brought up in a different light, specifically the chart on page 102 in chapter 6.
A repeating question I had throughout these chapters was how people were so unaware of what was happening in their city, state, and their country overall. Even twenty years ago citizens of Richmond were just beginning to acknowledge their history and the role they played in the evolution of slavery in the United States. I think Campbell did a good job touching upon important historical facts while simultaneously including information relevant to real people’s stories. Reading first-hand how people dealt with this history, the sacrifices they made, and the pain they endured, made me realize even more how important it is for outsiders to understand and learn this history, even if we were not a part of it.
I found this week’s reading, chapters 4-6, to be really interesting, mostly because of the narrative structure Campbell employs throughout these chapters. Campbell made use of many primary sources in the first few chapters of the book, but in these chapters he doubles down on the emphasis of primary sources, particularly stories told by people in and around Richmond. Full pages in these chapters are taken up by first-hand accounts by figures such as Fredrick Douglass, Eyre Crowe, Anthony Burns, and Charles Dickens. This structural choice seems to indicate that Campbell feels that the information he is trying to impart on his readers is most impactful when coming from the people who experienced it first hand, an opinion I agree with. The stories and observations displayed in these chapters are truly impactful because they depart from mere summary of historical events, and instead present the readers with the real, gritty details surrounding the horrors of slavery in Richmond.
Another detail that Campbell mentioned that I thought was really surprising was the fact that so much of Richmond’s history was unknown until recently. The fact that the domestic slave trade played such a big part in the city’s economy, yet was almost completely concealed from the public was shocking to me. It reminded me of what Ana had brought up in class on Thursday (9/28), when she spoke about how information regarding the mistreatment of Native Americans had been blocked by her high school. I think that it’s essential to confront our history as a nation, the horrific parts especially, in order to rectify the wrongs of the past and grow as individuals and as a collective, and the fact that parts of America are trying there best to prevent such self-reflection is both disappointing and frightening.
The real history behind the founding of Richmond (and of America) can be described as a collection of facts and dates. Some of the bigger ideas and motives that I picked up on in the first two chapters of The Unhealed History of Richmond were the following: firstly, settlers were often also referred to as ‘invaders’ and that both the native Americans and Europeans felt that they were being intruded upon, and secondly, the dynamic between these two parties was the driving force that decided whether or not a colony survived or if a native tribe was displaced from their homeland, and lastly, the endeavor to colonize Newfoundland was no easy feat, and didn’t come without Europe’s fair share of bloodshed and starvation.
The natives’ perspectives were also brought up constantly in the first two chapters. It was mentioned that the English never considered the natives worthy of respect and were almost always exploited for food and shelter. The English justified this by writing, in personal accounts, that their ways were ‘backwards’ or they were ‘children of the devil’. Obviously, this perspective is twisted and outdated but it is valuable to even bring up the viewpoint of the colonizers (or invaders) to give us an idea of what both sides were experiencing.
The Richmond’s Unhealed History reveals the harsh realities of European occupation and rule in Virginia. Unlike other historical accounts, this book offers a unique perspective by presenting the story through the lens of the English government’s motivations and religious beliefs, providing readers with a comprehensive understanding of the historical processes involved.
The British government viewed colonization as a solution to England’s high unemployment rates, using it as a means to stabilize society and consolidate the monarchy’s rule. They believed that colonization would significantly contribute to the spread of the Christian faith, illustrating the profound influence of religion on the expansion of European powers in the Americas.
One striking aspect of the book is its portrayal of the unjust treatment of Native Americans. It emphasizes that “their rights to complete sovereignty, as independent nations, were necessarily diminished, and their power to dispose of the soil at their own will, to whomever they pleased, was denied by the original fundamental principle.” These words poignantly convey the deprivation of Native American rights and the immense suffering they endured during this period.
The Richmond’s Unhealed History offers a compelling narrative that uncovers the motivations and consequences of European colonization. By exploring the English government’s perspective and the religious influences at play, readers gain a more holistic view of the historical processes involved. Furthermore, the book’s depiction of unjust laws vividly illustrates the hardships faced by Native Americans during this tumultuous era in history. It serves as an important reminder of the complexities and injustices of European colonization in Virginia, shedding light on an unhealed history that continues to shape the region’s present and future.
The colonization of Virginia has a much darker past than I would have imagined. In this book specifically, the violence between Natives and the English was strongly emphasized. What shocked me most was how the hatred between differences of one another brought about disunity, murder, and trauma to the people who lived in Virginia. It makes you consider how different events would have panned out if settlers and natives were able to coexist peacefully or even unite as one. The most intense scene that displayed hatred and tension between both parties was when the Natives scalped hundreds of English settlers. People weren’t just dying in war by gunshots, but instead the most grueling ways possible, being decapitated, hanged, or tortured. Something else I thought was interesting were the laws of Henrico. The fact that settlers went against each other and such strict laws were enforced on settlers is hard to wrap my mind around. Not only were settlers treating Natives poorly but they were also enforcing cruel punishment to each other.