Representation of Slavery - Essay Example

Report on Representation of Slavery Introduction We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal... that they are endowed bytheir Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. The visit was to Baltimore's Fort McHenry and to Hampton. These two places have been a witness to the wars that ran through the history of United States. They have also been witness to a number of civil issues that rocked the country. The visit started with Hampton which is closer to Baltimore and after an extended stay and discussion with the people there, Fort McHenry was also studied and a number of interesting points were noted. While the Hampton is a representative place of life during the eighteenth and nineteenth century in Maryland, Fort McHenry was a representation of the heroic fight for the civil and political challenges. Fort McHenry represented the place that battled the British and gave to the country the stars and stripes anthem. Baltimore was not a major fighting point during the civil war but played a strategic role because of its position. All troops and movement of men and material need to flow through Maryland to reach the war fronts of the south. Fort McHenry was the prison for the supporters of the secession during this period. However, Fort McHenry played a significant role during the fight with the British in 1812. There is also evidence of Afro-American descendants fighting for America. Fort McHenry and Hampton are about 10 miles from one another. The visit to Hampton which is off the north bound Dulaney Valley Road and into the Hampton lane for about a mile down, is interest kindling and relates the social history and life of the people during that period. Whereas, Fort McHenry relates us to the times of war and power play that makes to the history books. While one is a symbol of life, the other is a symbol of victory over aggression and the victory of equality of human beings. Fort McHenry and Hampton Private William Williams was the first black to get into the exclusive only white US Army in 1812. Fort McHenry represents the day of equality for the first time in the history of US. A run-away slave, was made a private and was paid the regular private bounty of $50 along with private wages of $8 per month. The equality that this action represents in the history of America actually marks the beginning of America, less than fifty years of declared independence of America. Subjugation of weaker men in earlier world was common. Slaves are found all over the world from Africa to America; from the east to the west. This action is one of the earliest major steps taken towards equality of man kind in line. Fort McHenry represents this in their short movie and also later in the picture galleries when art and written information about William Williams is presented for posterity. While this was the case with Fort McHenry, Hampton on the other hand represents the other side of slavery. Human beings were literally put in ghettos which were called living quarters. And men had little or no liberty except to work for their masters under their supervision. The committed working of the African slaves in Hampton was reflected in the well being of their master. "The General's lands are very well cultivatedhis cattle, sheep, horses, etc., of a superior sort, and in much finer condition than many I saw in America. He is very famous for race horses and usually keeps three or four such horses in training, and what enables him to do this is that he owns very extensive iron works, or otherwise he could not." - English Visitor Richard Parkinson, 1805 A display in Hampton read the above message. Now this implied that the workers and slaves in Hampton slogged it out very well and were impressive craftsmen. There were men and women who could make sure that their lands turned fertile and they were also good enough to work on the iron works and turn out the best equipments for the General. While checking with the curator, she also concurred that the implication was that the slaves in the house did their work well. At the same time, while the slaves continued to remain as slaves and were also treated so in the earlier days of seventeenth century. But the change in the perception of the people could be seen in some of the photos displayed in the gallery. For instance, one of the photographs shows a line of men holding horses and posing for the photograph. All men and the lone women in it were well dressed for the occasion. And one of the men in it was a black. It could be seen that the treatment meted out to the slaves was becoming better and better and the stories of Uncle Tom's Cabin had had its effect on the conscience of people. However, Hampton represents the lives of hundreds of men, slaves and indentured servants who lived under one roof working in the iron works, making cannons and arms for the revolutionary army as well as barrels of grains were loaded by these people on to the merchant ships that came to the Baltimore port at Chesapeake Shore. While the earlier days represented the dominion of white men over the blacks and having them slog through their life. Hampton represents the later part of the history of slavery as well in America. Here, there are certain rights that are given to the slaves as in the case of the photograph with the well dressed black man. A slave is a slave however well he is dressed. This was the period when slaves were slowly becoming friends though they never shared a dinner table with the whites. It represented a period when 'the kids made a long list of Christmas presents for the slaves'. It also symbolises the pompousness of the rich. It also represented the exhaustive work done by the slaves and the indentured servants. It also represented the era when escaping of the slaves and hunting for these also was a part of the federal service provided by the government. Slavery and Maryland Hampton represents many facets of three centuries of America. While the Georgian mansion represents the rising America and the features of the building was architected to match the Castle Howard in Yorkshire, England. This was most often called the Palace in the Wilderness. Generations of Ridgelys added furniture to the palace that would later become a representation of slavery and the wealth accumulated through slavery. There were over 300 slaves in Hampton which makes it the largest collection of slave labour during that period in Maryland. Ridgelys were well known and of course, the Charles Ridgely was known more as the builder of the family business and the large estate that he accumulated was fully used by his successor who later became the governor of Maryland. But Hampton is not about the Ridgelys alone. It also represents the large number of people who worked behind the scene. The large iron ore mines that Ridgelys was a major export from America. America was the largest iron ore producing country in the world during this period. America also migrated from cultivating tobacco to cultivation of other cash crops which were also largely exported to European and UK markets. These were making America richer and for a new nation there was a need for people who would work themselves out. Hampton represented both the indentured workers who were mostly people from England. They stayed there until they paid back the cost of their journey from England to America and then went on their ways. They enjoyed larger liberty when compared to the slaves who were Afro-Americans or Africans themselves. The life was miserable for them. Slaves of course, were in Maryland from the very beginning of its formation. They worked in all capacities, skilled or unskilled, as farm hands, cobblers and as iron millers, blacksmiths and even as jockeys. Slaves also performed household chores. All this they were willing to perform for their ration of food, shelter and sometimes, income but not always. Hampton represents the slaveries vagrancies and the issues that were part of every day life for the slaves. While Charles Ridgely released most of his 300 slaves when he died, slavery in Maryland continued well into the nineteenth century until it was repealed in Maryland right in the middle of the civil war. Hampton does not represent fight for rights from the slaves. It represents subjugation and a dedicated working for the rising of a new nation. Every nation requires committed workers to take it forward. Every nation gets them at one point of time or the other. But invariably, these people who slog it out in the fields or in the furnaces are not the ones who would enjoy the fruits of their hard labour. In most of the cases, they live and die poor men and hard workers that they are. This is reflected in the vast expanse of Hampton and its pristine beauty that still lingers in its halls and gardens. Conclusion The large expanse of land in Hampton that was maintained, cultivated, mined and worked upon by the slaves has translated the wilderness of Maryland and Baltimore into fertile and large exporting land that would make the country richer. Even during the war with Britain Maryland did not export only for a period of ten years after which it resumed exports. Whether it is the large scale iron exports or the agricultural exports that started soon after the war with Britain, the work of the slaves is reflected in it. Slavery and the nature of life that people led in Hampton is a clear representation of the nature of slavery that was in the place. The discussion with people who visited Hampton, showed that most of them were more or less awed by the splendour of the place. Only a few would stand and spend a thought on the apartheid that was raging on the shores of Baltimore. References 1. National Historic Site, website at: http://www.nps.gov and their pamphlets. Read More