Chapter VIII: Conclusions

The periods in the development of slavery in Tennessee are rather well defined. The institution made no remarkable progress before 1790. Its growth was slow and gradual. There were no special forces contributing to its development. Only the mountainous part of the state was being settled, and the cotton industry had not developed. The pioneers were not in thought or manner of living favorable to slavery. They either did their work single-handed, or combined with their neighbors in the performance of the heavier phases of it. Slavery was not a controlling factor, in a pioneer life characterized largely by hunting, fishing, trading, and small farming. It was more or less a useless luxury, which only the more fortunately situated could afford. Whatever progress slavery made during this period was due to purely natural forces and conditions. There were only 3,417 slaves in the state in 1790, and their value was less than $100 each.

From 1790 to 1835, slavery expanded very rapidly. In the first decade of this period, the slave population increased 297.54 per cent; in the second, 227.84 per cent; in the third, 79.87 per cent; and in the fourth, 76.76 per cent. There were 183,059 slaves in the state in 1840. Frontier conditions were largely supplanted by a more prosperous society. Cotton became the chief agricultural product of the state. West Tennessee, the part of the state especially adapted to the production of cotton, was settled during this period. Tobacco was profitably grown in Middle Tennessee, with the aid of slave labor. The river valleys of East Tennessee became cotton producing areas. Slavery in this period proved to be a profitable labor system in by far the larger portion of the state. This period is especially characterized by the growing economic importance of slavery and the weakening of the abolition sentiment. The slave was worth about $550 in 1835. The state reversed its policy toward the free negro in 1831, disfranchised him in 1834, and refused in the convention of 1834 even to consider abolition.

From 1835 to 1855, there was practically one opinion in the state on the slavery question. There was a dissenting minority, but it was so inconsiderable as to be almost negligible. The prevailing opinion was that abolition was impracticable. The slaves were not regarded as being able to sustain themselves. They were not prepared for the duties of citizenship. The state was not financially able to purchase them and colonize them. It was held that any policy the state might adopt would in its execution require the coöperation of the other slaveholding states. The more seriously the problem was attacked, the larger the proportions which it assumed. Slavery appeared from every angle to be a permanent institution. This conclusion led to a policy of safeguarding its interests, and improving the condition of the slaves. Legislation restricting emancipation, preventing influx of free negroes, and establishing voluntary enslavement was enacted. The change in the attitude of the churches during this period enabled them to have more influence over the slaveholders and to establish closer relations with the slaves. The churches constantly insisted upon a humane treatment of the slaves.

There are several outstanding features of Tennessee slavery that deserve special emphasis. The state, until the early thirties, may be ranked along with Ohio and New England as an abolition center. Tennessee had more abolition societies in 1825 than any other state in the Union except North Carolina. In 1840, there were 5,524 free negroes in the state. Maryville College, at Maryville, Tennessee, was a center of abolition propaganda. Union University, at Murfreesboro, Tennessee, numbered active abolitionists in its faculty. The state was the birth-place of the first out-right abolition paper published in the United States, and it became the connecting-link between Lundy and Garrison. The state sent a number of anti-slavery leaders into Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. The Tennessee churches were uniformly anti-slavery until they saw they were losing their membership and were being ostracized from the proper contact with the slaves. As long as slavery existed in the state, manumission continued, despite legal restriction, as an expression of an active anti-slavery sentiment.

The slave’s legal status in Tennessee was exceptionably favorable. The law guaranteed to him shelter, food, clothing, and medical attention. It protected him against the violence of his master and of society. It prevented avaricious masters from emancipating him when he ceased to be productive and gave him the right to institute suit for his freedom. It permitted him to contract for his freedom against administrators of estates who were seeking to hold him in slavery. It furnished free counsel for his defense when his interests were in jeopardy. It also gave him trial by the same jury that the white man had.

The patrol system was an elaborate system of government for a non-citizen class. It was, however, a government of law. Its administrative agents included searchers, patrols, magistrates, sheriffs, constables, masters and mistresses. Every citizen was subject to patrol duty. These agents enforced a code that reduced almost every activity and relation of the slave to a basis of law. The patrol system was characterized by a careful consideration of the slave’s weaknesses and, with its patriarchal supervision, gave him a respect for authority that partially prepared him to be a citizen in a government of law. It is singularly true that Tennessee negroes today enjoy a greater participation in politics than any other Southern negroes. The background for this status and friendly attitude is to be found in the ante-bellum politics of the state.

The finest expression of Tennessee’s attitude toward the negro slave is found in the genuinely humane treatment accorded him. He was well fed, clothed, and housed. The evils of the absentee landlord system with its overseer and slave-driver were never prevalent. The small farmer was considerate of his welfare. The churches constantly sought to improve his condition. They reached him indirectly through their services. Their influence manifested itself in charity, in marriage ceremonies, at the sick-bed, in manumission societies, in the halls of legislation, and in the benevolent philosophy of the Christian judge. Efforts at harsh legislation were either defeated at the time or modified later by more considered enactments. It has been abundantly shown, however, that it was the courts of Tennessee that constituted the bulwark of protection for the slave. They dealt with him not as a chattel but as a man. The slave code became in their hands an opportunity and a means to humanize the institution. They could not annul the law of slavery, but they did largely abolish it in fact by their interpretation of it.

The condition of the free negro was never promising. He was largely always subject to certain legal restrictions. The system of registration adopted in 1806, the exclusion act of 1831, and his disfranchisement in 1834 were expressions of an increasing hostility toward him. He was always a possible avenue through which the abolitionists might reach the slave. This made him a menace to society. His association, therefore, with slaves was forbidden by law. He was practically a social outcast. The slaves regarded him as worthless. Finally, provision was made for his re-enslavement.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

A. Sources.

I. Records.

1. Colonial Papers 1661.

2. Colonial Entry Book No. 73.

3. Colonial Records of North Carolina, I-X (1662-1776).

4. State Records of North Carolina, XI-XXVI (1776-1790).

5. Journal of the Legislative Council of the Southwest
Territory (1794-1796).

6. Journal of the House of Representatives of the Southwest
Territory (1794-1795).

7. Annals of Congress, 17th Congress, 1st Session.

8. Annals of Tennessee, Ramsey, J. G. M., Philadelphia, 1860.

9. Whig Almanac for the years 1836, 1844, and 1848.

10. American Anti-slavery Almanac for 1836.

11. Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 33rd Congress; and 2nd
Session, 38th Congress.

II. Documents.

1. The Constitution of North Carolina, 1776.

2. The Constitution of Franklin, 1785.

3. The Constitution of the United States, 1787.

4. The Constitution of Kentucky, 1799.

5. The Constitution of Tennessee, 1796.

6. The Constitution of Tennessee, 1834.

7. The Constitution of Tennessee, 1870.

8. Thorpe, Francis Newton, Federal and State Constitutions, 7
vols., Washington, 1909.

9. MacDonald, William, Select Charters Illustrative of American
History, New York, 1904.

10. United States Census of 1850, I, Population.

11. Statistical Abstract of United States, 1906.

12. United States Statutes at Large, I.

13. United States Census of 1870, I, Population.

14. Colonial and State Statutes of North Carolina, Colonial
Records, Vols. XXIII-XXV (1715-1790).

15. Statutes of the Southwest Territory, 1790-1795.

16. Acts of Tennessee.

a. Public Acts.

1st Sess. (1799), 1st Sess. (1801), 1st Sess. (1803), 1st Sess.
(1806), 1st Sess. (1807), 1st Sess. (1813), 1st Sess. (1815),
1st Sess. (1817), 1st Sess. (1819), 1st Sess. (1821), 1st Sess.
(1823), 1st Sess. (1825), Extra Sess. (1826), 1st Sess. (1827),
1st Sess. (1829), 1st Sess. (1831), 1st Sess. (1832), 1st Sess.
(1833), 1st Sess. (1835-6), 1st Sess. (1837-8), 1st Sess.
(1839), 1st Sess. (1839), 1st Sess. (1842), 1st Sess. (1843-4),
1st Sess. (1846), 1st Sess. (1847-8), 1st Sess. (1849-50), 1st
Sess. (1851-2), 1st Sess. (1853-4), 1st Sess. (1855-6), 1st
Sess. (1857-8), 1st Sess. (1861), 1st Sess. (1865).

b. Private Acts.

Called Sess. (1824), 1st Sess. (1833).

III. General Slave Treatises.

1. Dobb, T. R. R., Inquiry into the Law of Negro Slavery in the
United States, Philadelphia, 1858.

2. Goodell, William, The American Slave Code in Theory and
Practice, New York, 1853.

3. Hurd, John Codman, Laws of Freedom and Bondage, 2 Vols.,
Boston, 1858-1862.

4. Straud, George M., Sketch of the Laws Relating to Slavery,
Philadelphia, 1856.

5. Wheeler, Jacob D., A Practical Treatise on the Law of
Slavery, New York, 1837.

IV. North Carolina Codes.

1. Davis, James, Laws of North Carolina (this is really an
edition of Swann’s Laws), New Berne, 1752.

2. Iredell, James, Laws of North Carolina, Edenton, 1791.

3. Swann, Samuel, Laws of North Carolina, New Berne, 1752.

V. Codes of Tennessee.

1. Caruthers, R. L., Laws of Tennessee, Nashville, 1810.

2. Caruthers, R. L., and Nicholson, A. O. P., Statutes of
Tennessee (1786-1836).

3. Haywood, John, Laws of Tennessee, Nashville, 1810.

4. Haywood, John, and Cobb, Robt. L., Laws of Tennessee,
Nashville, 1831.

5. Meigs, Return J., and Cooper, William F., Code of Tennessee,
Nashville, 1858.

6. Nicholson, A. O. P., Laws of Tennessee, Nashville, 1846.

7. Scott, Edward, Laws of Tennessee (1715-1820).

VI. Court Reports of North Carolina and Tennessee.

1. Caldwell, Thomas H., 7 Vols. (1860-1870), Columbia, Mo.,
1906.

2. Hawks, Francis L., 3 Vols. (1821-1825), Winston, N. C., 1897.

3. Head, John W., 3 Vols. (1858-1859), Columbia, Mo., 1906.

4. Heiskell, Joseph B., 12 Vols. (1870-1874), Louisville, Ky.,
1903.

5. Humphrey, West H., 11 Vols. (1839-1851), Louisville, Ky.,
1903.

6. Lea, Benjamin J., 16 Vols. (1878-1886), Louisville, Ky.,
1902.

7. Martin, John H., and Yerger, George S., 1 Vol. (1827-1828),
Louisville, Ky., 1903.

8. Meigs, Return J., 1 Vol. (1838-1839), Louisville, Ky., 1903.

9. Sneed, John L. T., 5 Vols. (1853-1858), Columbia, Mo., 1906.

10. Yerger, George S., 10 Vols. (1818-1837), Columbia, Mo.,
1912.

VII. Reports of the Comptroller to the General Assembly for the years 1850, 1855-6, 1856, 1857-8, and 1859-60.

VIII. Reports, Proceedings, and Minutes.

1. Minutes of the American Convention for the years 1822, 1823,
1825, 1827, 1829, 1830, 1848, 1852, 1860, and 1867 (1818-1867).

2. Minutes of the General Methodist Conferences, 1773-1844.

3. Minutes of the General Conferences of the Methodist Church
South, 1845-1865.

4. Minutes of the Annual Conferences of the Methodists in
Tennessee, 1813-1865 (Quoted in McFerrin, History of Methodism
in Tennessee).

5. Proceedings of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1845-1865.

6. Minutes of the Cumberland Presbyterian Assembly, 1811-1865.

7. Minutes of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church,
1795-1865.

8. The Fifth and Twenty-seventh Annual Reports of the American
Anti-slavery Society.

9. The Ninth and Thirteenth Annual Reports of the American and
Foreign Anti-slavery Society for the years 1849 ad 1853.

IX. Periodicals.

The Genius of Universal Emancipation, Vols. I, II, IV, V, VI,
VII, VIII.

American Historical Magazine, II, IX, XXI.

Publications of Vanderbilt Southern Historical Society, No. 2.

Indiana Historical Society Publications, Vol. 2.

The Tennessee History Magazine, Vols. 1, 2, and 4.

Quarterly Anti-Slavery Magazine, Vols. 1, 2, and 4.

Niles Register, Vols. 1-75 (1811-1849), Washington, Baltimore,
and Philadelphia.

De Bow, J. D. B., Commercial Review of the South and West, 39
Vols. (1846-1870), New Orleans.

African Repository, Vols. V, VI, VII, IX, XXII, XXIII. XXIV,
XXV.

American Historical Review, Vols. III, V.

Publications of North Carolina Historical Commission, I.

Political Science Quarterly, Vols. IX, XX.

Southern History Association Publications, II.

Quarterly Review of the M. E. Church, South, April, 1892.

Methodist Quarterly Review, Vols. LVII and LXIII.

The Liberator, July 25, 1835.

The Emancipator (New York), March 8 and 16, 1838.

X. Newspapers.

The Aurora and General Advertiser, Memphis, September 3, 1802.

Nashville Banner, Nashville, October 15 and November 16, 1833.

The Knoxville Gazette, Knoxville, January 23, 1797.

Christian Advocate and Journal, Bolivar, 1831.

Tennessee Gazette and Mero District, Nashville, November 22,
1805.

The Practical Farmer and Mechanic, Somerville, 1857.

Nashville Republican and State Gazette, Nashville, July 1, 5,
10, 15, 28, 1834.

The Western Freeman, Shelbyville, September 6, 1831.

The Charleston Mercury, Charleston, S. C., April 30, 1861.

Memphis Avalanche and Memphis Appeal, Memphis, May 9, 10, and
11, 1861.

Randolph Recorder, Vol. I, Covington, 1834.

Memphis Enquirer, Vols. I and II, Memphis, 1836-1837.

The Weekly American Eagle, Vols. II-V, Memphis, 1843-1847.

The Memphis Daily Eagle, Vols. III-VII, 1846-1850. Memphis.

The Tri-Weekly Memphis Enquirer, IV, 1846, Memphis.

Memphis Daily Appeal, V, 1855, Memphis.

XI. Petitions in the State Archives at Nashville in Manuscript covering period 1809-1834.

XII. Personal Writings and Reminiscences.

1. Cartwright, Peter, Autobiography, Edited by W. P.
Strickland, New York, 1892-1897.

2. Jefferson, Thomas, Writings, Edited by P. L. Ford, 10 Vols.,
New York, 1892-1897.

3. Johnson, Rev. John and His House, Recollections, An
Autobiography, Edited by Mrs. Susannah Johnson, Nashville, 1869.

4. Otey, Rt. Rev. James H., Memoirs, Edited by W. M. Green, New
York, 1885.

5. Pendleton, James Madison. Reminiscences of a Long Life,
Louisville, 1891.

6. Sumner, Charles, Works, 15 Vols., Boston. 1874-1883.

7. Stirling, James, Letters from the Slave States, London, 1857.

8. Thomas, Thomas Ebenezer, Correspondence Mainly Relative
to the Anti-slavery Conflict in Ohio, especially in the
Presbyterian Church, Dayton, 1909.

B. Secondary Works.

I. State Histories.

1. Caldwell, Joshua W., Constitutional History of Tennessee,
Cincinnati, 1895.

2. Caldwell, Joshua W., The Bench and Bar of Tennessee,
Knoxville, 1898.

3. Garret, W. R., and Goodpasture, A. V., History of Tennessee,
Nashville, 1900.

4. Goodspeed, History of Tennessee, Nashville, 1886.

5. Hale, William T., and Merrit, Dixon L., History of
Tennessee, Vol. 2, Chicago and New York, 1913.

6. Phelan, James, History of Tennessee, Boston, 1888.

7. Putnam, A. W., History of Middle Tennessee, Nashville, 1859.

8. Temple, Oliver P., East Tennessee and the Civil War,
Cincinnati, 1899.

II. General Histories.

1. Adams, Alice D., Neglected Period of Anti-slavery in
America, 1808-1831, Boston, 1908.

2. Brickell, John, Natural History of North Carolina, Dublin,
1911.

3. Doyle, J. A., The English Colonies in America, 5 Vols., New
York, 1888.

4. Hammond, M. B., The Cotton Industry, New York, 1897.

5. Ingraham, J. H., The Sunny South, Philadelphia, 1860.

6. Lecky, W. E. H., History of England in the Eighteenth
Century, 8 Vols., London, 1878-1890.

7. May, Sir Thomas Erskine, Constitutional History of England,
3 Vols., New York, 1910.

8. Phillips, Ulrich Bonnel, American Negro Slavery, New York,
1918.

9. Poole, William Frederick, Anti-slavery Opinions before 1800,
Cincinnati, 1873.

10. Rhodes, James Ford, History of the United States, 8 Vols.,
New York, 1900-1919.

11. Roosevelt, Theodore, The Winning of the West, 4 Vols.
(Statesman Edition), New York, 1904.

III. Biography.

1. Cartwright, Peter, Fifty Years a Presiding Elder,
Cincinnati, 1871.

2. Cossit, Franceway Ranna, The Life and Times of Rev. Finis
Ewing, Louisville, 1853.

3. Du Bose, Horace M., Life of Francis Asbury, Nashville, 1909.

4. Earl, Thomas, Life of Benjamin Lundy, Philadelphia, 1847.

5. Garrison, Wendell Phillips and J. F., The Life of William
Loyd Garrison, New York, 1885.

6. Green, Wm., Life and Letters of Rev. A. L. P. Green,
Nashville, 1877.

7. Milburn, W. H., Ten Years of a Preacher’s Life, Nashville,
1859.

8. Paine, Robert, Life and Times of William McKendree,
Nashville, 1869.

9. Parton, James, Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin, 2 Vols.,
Boston, 1867.

10. Smith, G. G., The Life and Letters of James Osgood Andrew,
Nashville, 1883.

11. Swift, Lindsay, Life of Garrison, Philadelphia, 1911.

12. Tyerman, L., Life of Whitefield, New York, 1873.

13. Wightman, W. M., Life of William Capers, Nashville, 1859.

IV. Church History.

1. American Church History Series, XI, XII, New York, 1894.

2. Bedford, A. H., History of the Organization of the Methodist
Episcopal Church, South, Nashville, 1871.

3. Briggs, Charles A., American Presbyterianism, New York, 1885.

4. Buckley, James M., History of Methodism, 2 Vols., New York
and London, 1898.

5. Curtis, George L., Manual of Methodist Episcopal Church
History, New York, 1840.

6. Emory, John, History of the Discipline of the Methodist
Episcopal Church, New York, 1840.

7. Finley, J. B., Sketch of Western Methodism, Cincinnati, 1854.

8. Gillet, E. H., History of Presbyterian Church in the United
States of America, Philadelphia, I and II, no date.

9. Harrison, W. P., The Gospel among the Slaves, Nashville,
1893.

10. Matlock, L. C, The Anti-slavery Struggle and Triumph in the
Methodist Episcopal Church, New York, 1881.

11. Matlock, L. C., The History of American Slavery and
Methodism, 1780-1849, New York, 1849.

12. McConnell, S. D., History of American Episcopal Church, New
York, 1897.

13. McDonald, B. W., History of Cumberland Presbyterian Church,
Nashville, 1888.

14. McFerrin, J. B., History of Methodism in Tennessee, 3
Vols., Nashville, 1869.

15. McNeilly, James H., Religion and Slavery, Nashville, 1911.

16. McTyeire, H. N., History of Methodism, Nashville, 1904.

17. Newman, A. H., History of Baptist Churches in the United
States, New York, 1894.

18. Patton, Jacob Harris, Popular History of the Presbyterian
Church, New York, 1900.

19. Pius, N. H., An Outline of Baptist History, Nashville, 1911.

20. Price, R. N., Holston Methodism, 5 Vols., Nashville, 1912.

21. Riley, B. F., History of the Baptists in Southern States
East of the Mississippi, Philadelphia, 1898.

22. Thompson, Robert Ellis, History of Presbyterian Churches in
the United States, New York, 1895.

23. Weeks, S. B., Southern Quakers and Slavery, Baltimore, 1896.

APPENDICES

A. ANTI-SLAVERY SOCIETIES OF TENNESSEE.

I. Tennessee Manumission Society 1815.

County Branches: Blount, Greene, Washington, Jefferson, Knox.

Local Branches: Bethesda, Beaver Creek, Carter’s Station,
Chestooy, Dumplin Creek, French Broad, Hickory Creek, Holston,
Knoxville, Little River, Maryville, Middle Creek, Mount Gilead,
Nolachucky, Powell’s Valley, Stock Creek. Turkey Creek, and
Rock Creek.

II. Humane Protection Society of Tennessee, 1821.

III. Moral, Religious Manumission Society of Tennessee, 1821.

IV. Emancipating Labor Society, 1826.

B. TENNESSEE COLONIZATION SOCIETY, 1829.

Branches: Bolivar, Somerville, Memphis, Covington, Jackson,
Paris, Clarksville, Columbia, Shelbyville, Winchester,
Murfreesboro, Gallatin, Knoxville, Marysville, New Market,
Jonesboro, Kingsport, Rutherford, Franklin.

C. ANTI-SLAVERY LEADERS IN TENNESSEE

Anderson, Robert
Brazelton, Santy
Boyd, James
Brooks, Stephen
Buckhart, George
Caldwell, James
Cain, Joseph
Callen, Archibald
Campbell, Alexander
Canaday, John
Cartwright, Peter
Coppock, Aaron
Coulson, John
Cowan, Andrew
Criswell, Andrew
Cummings, James
Daily, Hiram
Dalzel, David
Earnest, Lawrence
Earnest, Wesley
Embree, Elihu
Embree, Elijah
Frazier, Abner
Galbraith, James
Garrett, William
Gray, Asa
Hackney, Aaron
Hammer, Aaron
Hammer, Isaac
Hammer, Elisha
Harrison, Isaiah
Harris, John
Hodge, Thomas
Hooks, John
Houston, James
Huffaker, Justice
Kerr, John
Kendall, T. S.
Kennedy, James
Lee, William
Lee, Ephriam
Leeper, Allen
Lindsey, Philip
Lockhart, Jesse
Logan, Alexander
Lundy, Benjamin
Malcum, William
Mainess, Samuel
Marshall, John
Maulsby, David
McCampbell, James
McClellan, James
McCarkle, Francis
McKeen, Thomas H.
Deadrick, David
Doak, Samuel
Dean, Thomas
Eggleston, Elijah
Newman, Joseph
Osborn, Charles
Osborn. J.
Pardae, John
Pickering, Ellis
Pickering, Enos
Rankin, John
Rencan, Thomas
Roberts, William
Roy, Rev. John
Jones, James
Jones, Isaac
Jones, Isaiah
Jones, Thomas
Johnson, Josiah
Smith, Isaac
Snoddy, William
Stanfield, David
Swain, Elihu
Swain, John
Swan, John
Tuckers, Joseph
Underhill, Richard
Underhill, Jesse
McNees, Samuel
Milliken, William
Moore, John
Morgan, John
Wilkins, J. H.
Williams, John
Williams, Richard
Willis, Jesse
Wills, George
Wilson, P. N.
Woods, W. W.
Yerkley, Henry

D. LIST OF EMIGRANTS TO LIBERIA FROM TENNESSEE, 1820-1866.

Ship Date No. of Emigrants

Ship Harriet January, 1829 2
Brig Liberia December, 1823 13
Ship Roanoke December, 1832 1
Brig Ajax May, 1833 5
Schooner Oriental May, 1837 34
Brig Rudolph Gronning February, 1841 10
Barque Union May, 1841 10
Ship Mariposa June, 1842 84
Barque Rothschild January, 1846 25
Schooner D. C. Foster March, 1850 35
Liberia Packet December, 1850 15
Brig Alida February, 1851 18
Liberia Packet December, 1851 25
Brig Julia Ford January, 1852 13
Brig Zebra December, 1852 28
Bark Adeline June, 1853 96
Brig General Pierce December, 1853 85
Ship Sophia Walker May, 1854 28
Brig Harp June, 1854 21
Brig General Pierce December, 1854 17
Bark Cora. May, 1855 13
Bark Cora November, 1855 31
Ship Elvira Owen May, 1856 42
Ship M. C. Stephens December, 1856 13
Ship M. C. Stephens May, 1857 23
Ship M. C. Stephens November, 1859 21
Ship M. C. Stephens May, 1860 8
Golconda November, 1866 144

E. VICE-PRESIDENTS OF AMERICAN COLONIZATION SOCIETY FROM TENNESSEE.

Andrew Jackson. 1819-1822
Rt. Rev. Bishop Otey. 1840-1863
Rev. Dr. Edgar. 1845-1861
Rev. P. Lindsley, D.D. 1845-1854
Bishop Soule, D.D. 1848-1867
Hon. Frederick P. Stanton. 1851-1858
Hon. John Bell. 1861-1868

F. COMPARATIVE LIST OF MANUMISSION SOCIETIES AND MEMBERS IN UNITED STATES.

Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New York 4 300
Pennsylvania (East) 4 400
Pennsylvania (West) 12 500
Delaware 2 100
Maryland 11 500
District of Columbia 2 100
Virginia 8 250
Ohio 4 300
Kentucky 8 200
Tennessee 25 1,000
North Carolina 50 3,000
--- -----
130 6,625

Exclusive of ten or twelve societies in Illinois. Observe that 106 of these societies were in slaveholding states.

G. SLAVE AND FREE NEGRO POPULATION IN TENNESSEE FROM 1790-1860.

1790. 3,417 361
1800. 13,584 309
1810. 44,734 1,318
1820. 80,105 2,739
1830. 141,647 4,511
1840. 183,059 5,524
1850. 239,439 6,442
1860. 275,719 7,300

H. COMPARATIVE VALUE OF LAND AND SLAVES IN THE THREE DIVISIONS OF TENNESSEE, 1859.

Land Town Lots Slaves

East Tennessee $ 46,127,012 $ 3,044,802 $ 10,470,926
Mid. Tennessee 114,053,549 5,832,718 55,850,579
West Tennessee 52,640,432 20,893,338 44,638,752
----------- ---------- ----------
212,820,993 29,770,858 110,960,257

Other
Property Aggregate

East Tennessee $ 4,333,845 $ 64,186,514
Mid. Tennessee 13,229,968 188,867,004
West Tennessee 5,030,225 124,155,123
---------- -----------
22,594,038 377,208,641

I. APPROXIMATE VALUE OF PROPERTY, SLAVES, LAND, AND COTTON IN TENNESSEE.

Year Property Slaves Per Acre Per Lb.
Land Cotton

1836. $117,845,136 $584.00 $4.00 $.17½
1838. 125,013,756 540.00 3.82 .13½
1840. 122,957,624 543.00 3.84 .09
1842. 118,847,672 509.00 3.56 .08
1844. 109,178,121 420.00 3.35 .07½
1846. 113,176,959 413.72 3.03 .05½
1848. 129,510,043 467.44 3.06 .09½
1850. 159,558,183 506.93 3.25 .12
1852. 186,621,119 547.26 3.84 .11
1854. 219,011,047 605.52 4.60 .12
1856. 260,319,611 689.00 5.49 .12½
1858. 320,398,012 792.23 7.04 .14
1859. 377,208,641 854.65 8.19 .15

J. CLASSIFICATION OF SLAVE HOLDERS IN TENNESSEE AND THE UNITED STATES, 1860.

Holders of Tennessee United States
1 7,820 76,670
2 4,738 45,934
3 3,609 34,747
4 3,012 28,907
5 2,536 24,225
6 2,066 20,600
7 1,783 17,235
8 1,565 14,852
9 1,260 12,511
10 to 15 3,779 40,367
15 to 20 1,744 21,315
20 to 30 1,623 20,789
30 to 40 643 9,648
40 to 50 284 5,179
50 to 70 219 5,217
70 to 100 116 3,149
100 to 200 40 1,980
200 to 300 6 224
300 to 500 1 74
500 to 1000 0 13
1000 and over 0 1

These figures are for the United States, exclusive of territories and District of Columbia.