Black Life on the Mississippi: Slaves, Free Blacks, and the Western Steamboat World [Hardcover]

Thomas C. Buchanan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 17, 2004

All along the Mississippi--on country plantation landings, urban levees and quays, and the decks of steamboats--nineteenth-century African Americans worked and fought for their liberty amid the slave trade and the growth of the cotton South. Offering a counternarrative to Twain's well-known tale from the perspective of the pilothouse, Thomas C. Buchanan paints a more complete picture of the Mississippi, documenting the rich variety of experiences among slaves and free blacks who lived and worked on the lower decks and along the river during slavery, through the Civil War, and into emancipation.

Buchanan explores the creative efforts of steamboat workers to link riverside African American communities in the North and South. The networks African Americans created allowed them to keep in touch with family members, help slaves escape, transfer stolen goods, and provide forms of income that were important to the survival of their communities. The author also details the struggles that took place within the steamboat work culture. Although the realities of white supremacy were still potent on the river, Buchanan shows how slaves, free blacks, and postemancipation freedpeople fought for better wages and treatment.

By exploring the complex relationship between slavery and freedom, Buchanan sheds new light on the ways African Americans resisted slavery and developed a vibrant culture and economy up and down America's greatest river.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A valuable contribution to the ever-expanding literature on American slavery and freedom. . . . The book deserves a wide readership."
-- Civil War History

"Makes a welcome and significant contribution to the history of slavery and African Americans with this interesting and well-researched work."
-- Journal of the Early Republic

"A terrific read. . . . This is social and economic history at its best."
-- Journal of American History

"Buchanan's research is impeccable. . . . Unreservedly an important book--vital for students of the Mississippi and relevant far more widely."
-- Journal of American Studies

"A long, sharply focused look at the life of African American river workers both during and after slavery."
-- Missouri Historical Review

"[Buchanan] highlights the paradoxical nature of the Mississippi and the mobility afforded river workers. . . . An important addition the literature on U.S. slavery."
-- Journal of African American Studies

"Draws on a remarkable range of sources."
-- Arkansas Historical Quarterly

"In this thoroughly researched and elegantly written book, Buchanan recreates the lives of the tens of thousands of African-Americans who labored on the Mississippi and its tributaries. . . . Thanks to [his] prodigious investigation and eloquent prose, the real-life Jims who peopled the river banks and towns have at long last had their stories told."
-- American Historical Review

"Offers trenchant insights into the stark conditions of everyday life along the Mississippi."
-- Louisiana History

"A solid work of scholarship. . . . A well-illustrated and attractively produced volume."
-- Western Historical Quarterly

"This is a great read for steamboat buffs no less than students of African American history.
(Joseph P. Reidy, Howard University)"

From the Inside Flap

The untold story of the experiences of slaves and free blacks who lived and worked on and near the Mississippi River during the 19th century, this book sheds new light on the ways African Americans resisted slavery and developed a vibrant culture and economy. The creative efforts of black steamboat workers to link riverside communities in the North and South facilitated family connections, slave escapes, and the transfer of stolen goods.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 264 pages
• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press (November 17, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807829099
• ISBN-13: 978-0807829097
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,566,242 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended!, April 19, 2007

By 

AfroAmericanHeritage (Wisconsin) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Life on the Mississippi: Slaves, Free Blacks, and the Western Steamboat World (Hardcover)

Having grown up back in a day when we were taught Antebellum life was a monolithic experience for African Americans, books like this - opening an entirely new door on that era - always fascinate me even though by now, I know better. For example, who knew that some slaves hired themselves out on steamboats for a few weeks or months with no intention of escaping, but simply as respite from the hardships of plantation life?

The title is obviously a play on Mark Twain's nostalgic memoir. Though Buchanan does find some similarities between Twain's liberating experience of the Great River and the opportunities afforded African Americans by the western rivers - for example, mind broadening mobility, communication networks, accumulation of assets by both slave and free persons through labor or trade, and of course, escape routes for fugitives - he notes the dark side absent from steamboat nostalgia is the fact that the horrible "Second Middle Passage" broke up families and transported thousands of slaves in deplorable conditions into the Deep South.

Whether exploring the lives and culture of steamboat workers, free black travelers, abolitionists or scoundrels, the author draws upon the experiences and observations of many individuals through a variety of primary and secondary sources (including slave narratives and travel accounts) demonstrating how multifarious and uncategorizable the experiences of these men and women were. Even many of the laws and customs attempting to control black movement were circumvented in this fluid economy.

Buchanan's writing is concise, and his narrative flows smoothly. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in maritime history as well as those interested in African American Studies.

5.0 out of 5 stars Important contribution to the study of black antebellum life, April 17, 2005

By 

J. Evans - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Black Life on the Mississippi: Slaves, Free Blacks, and the Western Steamboat World (Hardcover)

Thomas Buchanan follows David Cecelski's study of North Carolina's black maritime sailors with this excellent study of black steamboat workers on the Mississippi. Buchanan describes the culture in which the free black and enslaved steamboat crewmen lived, their importance to the southern antebellum economy, as well as, their impact on the institution of slavery. It is in this area that Buchanan an important contribution to our understanding of African American resistance to slavery.

John Hope Franklin and Loren Schweninger's book on runaway slaves is the most extensive treatments of the subject. Unfortunately, they give short shrift to the importance of the Mississippi River and the steamboat trade as a means of escaping slavery. Buchanan corrects this omission by arguing that African Americans, both free and slave, were a vital part of the steamboat industry's labor force. Runaway slaves from throughout the South often made their escape by blending in with other black steamboat workers and riding steamboats out of slavery. Although aware of the problem, and although numerous measures were enacted to stop it, Southerners were never able to completely stop the flow of slaves escaping by riverboat.

In addition to this book, Buchanan has written two articles on this subject. I recommend all them to anyone interested in the study of African American antebellum life.

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating read, December 11, 2004

By 

L. Hummel - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Black Life on the Mississippi: Slaves, Free Blacks, and the Western Steamboat World (Hardcover)

Buchanan weaves the compelling narratives of slave, free black, and white workers and passengers on Mississippi steamboats with extensive archival information.

He shows how the river network and steamboat work allowed them to craft multiple ways to resist slavery, poor labor conditions, and the separation of families.

This is a history book with broad appeal to non-historians as well.