African

Migration to Colonial America [Abridged]

African Migration to Colonial America [Abridged]

By Ira Berlin

ThisessaywasoriginallypublishedasAfricanImmigrationtoColonialAmerica.

ThisessayisprovidedcourtesyoftheGilderLehrmanInstituteofAmericanHistory.
IthasbeenabridgedbyReadWorks.

AfricanAmericanlifeintheUnitedStateshasbeenframedbymigrations,forcedandfree.
[WhilemultiplemassivemovementshaveshapedandreshapedAfricanAmericanlife,nonewas
moreimportantthanthefirst,thesocalledMiddlePassagefromAfricatoAmerica.This]forced
migrationfromAfricathetransatlanticslavetradecarriedblackpeopletotheAmericas.

[]

MorethananyothersinglemigrationtheMiddlePassagehascometoepitomizethe
experienceofpeopleofAfricandescentthroughouttheAtlanticworld.Thenightmarishweeks
andsometimesmonthslockedintheholdsofstinkingslaveshipsspeaktothetraumaticloss
offreedom,thedegradationofenslavement,andthelongyearsofbondagethatfollowed.But
theMiddlePassagealsorepresentsthewilltosurvive,thedeterminationofblackpeoplenot
tobedehumanizedbydehumanizingcircumstances,andtheconfidencethatfreedomwould
eventuallybetheirsandthattheywouldtaketheirrightfulplaceasapeopleamongpeoples.

Thetransatlanticslavetradehaditsbeginninginthemiddleofthefifteenthcenturywhen
PortugueseshipssaileddowntheWestAfricancoast.Theintentionwastotradeforgoldand
spices,butthevoyagersfoundanotherevenmorevaluablecommodityhumanbeings.Over
time,thetradeinmenandwomensupplantedothercommerce,andtheslavesdestination
changedfromEuropetotheAmericas,whereplantationsgrowingcommoditiesforthe
internationalmarketinitiatedthemassivetransferofAfricanpeoples.Inall,someelevento
twelvemillionAfricanswereforciblycarriedtotheAmericas.Ofthose,roughlyonehalfmillion
(orabout4.5percent)weretakentomainlandNorthAmericaorwhatbecametheUnitedStates.

ThefirstblackmenandwomenarrivedinmainlandNorthAmericainthesixteenthcentury,
oftenaccompanyingEuropeanexplorers.Forthenextcenturyorso,theycontinuedtotrickle
ontothecontinentinsmallnumbers,oftennotfromAfricaitselfbutfromEurope,theAntilles,
orotherpartsoftheAtlanticlittoral.DubbedAtlanticCreolesbecauseoftheirconnection
withtheoceanthatlinkedAfrica,Europe,andtheAmericas,manyofthesefirstarrivalsspoke
thelanguageoftheirenslaversandwerefamiliarwiththevariousreligions,commercial
conventions,andsystemsofjurisprudenceoftheAtlantic.Enteringfrontiersocietiesinwhich
 African Migration to Colonial America [Abridged]

Europeansalsoworkedinsomeformofboundlabor(indenturedservitudebeingthemost
prominent),blackmenandwomenemployedtheirknowledgeoftheAtlanticworldto
integratethemselvesintotheEuropeansettlements.Muchlikeothersettlers,freeandunfree,
theyjoinedchurches,participatedinexchangeeconomies,andformedfamilies.

WiththeadventoftheplantationinmainlandNorthAmerica,thenatureofslaveryandthenthe
slavetradechanged.ThebeginningsofplantationproductiontobaccointheChesapeakeinthe
lateseventeenthcenturyandriceintheLowcountryintheearlyeighteenthcenturyincreased
thelevelofviolence,exploitation,andbrutalityintheseregions.Slavesworkedharder,propelling
theirownerstonew,previouslyunimaginedheightsofwealthandpower.Astheydid,slave
ownersexpandedtheirplantationsanddemandedmoreandmoreslaves,asslavesprovedtobe
anextraordinarilyvaluableformoflabor.Notonlyweretheyworkers,buttheyreproduced
themselves,addingtotheownerswealth.RatherthanarrivinginonesandtwosfromtheAtlantic
littoral,boatloadsofcaptivesgenerallydrawnfromtheAfricaninteriorcrossedtheocean.
AlthoughslaversdepositedtheirhumancargoesinportsfromProvidencetoNewOrleans,the
vastmajorityofslaveswhodisembarkedinmainlandNorthAmericadidsointheChesapeake
(largelyVirginiaandMaryland)andtheLowcountry(largelySouthCarolina,andGeorgia).

SlavesimporteddirectlyfromAfricadistinguishedfromAtlanticCreolesfirstlandedinthe
Chesapeakeinlargenumbersduringthelastdecadesoftheseventeenthcentury.Following
thelegalizationofchattelbondageinthe1660s,theyslowlyreplacedEuropeanandAfrican
indenturedservantsasthemainsourceofplantationlabor.Althoughblackpeoplenever
challengedwhitenumericaldominanceintheregion,theyachievedmajoritiesinafew
localities.FormanyEuropeansettlers,itseemedasiftheChesapeakewouldsometimeor
otherbeconfirmedbythenameofNewGuinea.

JustastheChesapeakewasabouttobecomeanextensionofWestAfrica,thedynamicsof
blacklifechangeddramatically.SlavesintheChesapeake,inthewordsofoneEuropean
observer,provedveryprolifickamongthemselves.Bythe1730s,birthstoslavewomen
outnumberedimports,andtheblackpopulationwasincreasingnaturally.Although
transatlanticslaverscontinuedtodelivertheircargoestothegreatestuary,theproportionof
AfricansdeclinedastheindigenousAfricanAmericanpopulationincreased.Bymidcentury,
themajorityofenslavedmenandwomenintheChesapeakehadneverseenAfrica.Atthe
startoftheAmericanRevolution,thefirstGreatMigrationwasoverintheChesapeake.A
nativepeoplebegantosinkdeeprootsinsoilsofmainlandNorthAmerica.

Theslavetradecontinued,however,intheLowcountryofSouthCarolinaandGeorgia.There
theforcedmigrationfromAfricafollowedatrajectorysimilartothatoftheChesapeake,butit
startedlaterandcontinuedlonger.Asaresult,thenumberofAfricanswhoenteredthe
 African Migration to Colonial America [Abridged]

Lowcountryalmost400,000wasmorethandoublethenumberofAfricanswhocameto
theChesapeake.SullivansIsland,atinyquarantinestationinCharlestonharbor,becamethe
EllisIslandofblackAmerica.

[]

Formuchofeighteenthcentury,blackpeopleinSouthCarolinaandGeorgiaunlikethosein
MarylandandVirginiaresidedinanimmigrantsociety,moreanextensionofAfricathanof
Europe.Withtheslavetradeopenandtheinfluxofsaltwaterslavesnearlycontinuous,
lowlandslaveshadgreatdifficultyformingfamiliesandreproducingthemselves.Thegender
ratioamongthenewlyarrivingsaltwaterslaveswasusuallydramaticallyskewed,and
acculturatedslavessometimeswerereluctanttocreatefamilieswiththenewarrivals.Butby
themiddleoftheeighteenthcentury,theblackpopulationoftheLowcountrybeganto
reproduceitselfandthenumberofAfricanAmericansgrew,althoughitdidsointandemwith
newlyarrivedAfricans.IfatmidcenturyslavesintheChesapeakehadfewopportunitiesto
conversewithAfricans,AfricansandAfricanAmericansintheLowcountrykneweachotherwell.

[]

Thecaptivesnationalitywasnot[chosenrandomly].Europeansslaversdevelopedspecialties,in
somemeasuretomeetthedemandsoftheircustomersonbothsidesoftheAtlantic,whose
preferencesandneedsgrewincreasinglywelldefinedovertime.Preferencesonbothsidesof
theAtlanticdetermined,toaconsiderabledegree,whichenslavedAfricanswentwhereand
when,populatingthemainlandwithuniquecombinationsofAfricanpeoplesandcreating
distinctiveregionalvariationsintheAmericas.IgbopeoplesconstitutedthemajorityofAfrican
slavesinVirginiaandMaryland,somuchsothatsomehistorianshavedenominatedcolonial
VirginiaasIgboland.AdifferentpatternemergedinLowcountrySouthCarolinaandGeorgia,
whereslavesfromcentralAfricapredominatedfromthebeginningoflargescaleimportation,
sothatifVirginiawasIgboland,theLowcountrymightbelikenedtoanewAngola.

ButifpatternsofAfricansettlementcanbediscerned,theynevercreatedregionalhomogeneity.
Thegeneralthrustoftheslavetradewastowardheterogeneity,throwingdifferentpeople
togetherinwaysthatunderminedthetransferofanysingleculture.MainlandNorthAmerica
becameajumbleofAfricannationalities.Theirinteractionnottheirhomogeneitycreatednew
AfricanAmericancultures.

[]

 African Migration to Colonial America [Abridged]

Nomattertheirnationality,AfricansshippedtotheNewWorldenduredthetraumaof
enslavement.CaptureddeepintheAfricaninterior,Africansfacedalong,deadlymarchtothe
coast.Travelingsometimesformonths,theywerepassedfromgrouptogroup,asmany
differentAfricannationsparticipatedintheslavetrade.[]Thecircumstancesoftheirtravel
wereextraordinarilytaxing.Insomeplaces,somefortypercentoftheslavesdiedbetween
theirinitialcaptureintheinteriorandtheirarrivalonthecoast.

Thecaptivesthenfacedthenightmarishtransatlanticcrossing.Thedepthsofhumanmisery
andtheastoundingdeathtollofmenandwomenpackedinthestinkinghullsstillremains
difficulttofathom.Strippednakedandbereftoftheireverybelonging,theyboardedtheship
andencounteredoftenforthefirsttimewhitemen.Brandishinghotironstomarktheir
captivesinthemostpersonalway,thesewhitemenwithhorriblelooks,redfaces,andlong
hairleftmorethanaphysicalscar.ManyenslavedAfricansconcludedthatthewhitemen
wereinleaguewiththedevil,ifnotthemselvesdevils.ForotherAfricans,thetraumaofhaving
theirskinsearedconfirmedthattheywereboundfortheslaughterhousetobeeatenbythe
cannibals,whohadstampedtheminmuchthewayanimalsweremarked.

SurvivingtheMiddlePassagewasbutthefirstofthemanytestsfacedbytheforcedimmigrants.
OnceAfricanpeoplesdisembarked,newanxietiescompensatedforwhateverrelieftheygained
fromtheendoftheshipboardjourney.Indeedtheshockofarrivalonlyrepeatedthetraumaof
Africanenslavement.Staggeringtotheirfeet,bodiesstillbentfromtheirweeksbelowdeck,
shakingwithapprehension,thecaptiveswerefittedwithanewsetofshacklesapainful
welcometotheirnewhomeland.Thecaptivesagainconfrontedtheauctionblockandthe
prospectofbeingpokedandproddedbystrangewhitemenspeakingstrangelanguages,intent
ondemonstratingtheirmastery.Marchedinchainstosomeisolated,backwoodsplantation,
forcedtolaborlonghoursatunfamiliartasks,enslavedblackmenandwomenbegantheirlives
inmainlandNorthAmerica.Itwasagrimexistence,astheirdebilitatingworkregime,drafty
dormitories,andblandrationsinvitedanearlydeath.Withinmonthsofarrival,manyofthenew
immigrantsridiculedas"outlandish"bytheirownersweredead.

Butslowly,inexorably,thesurvivorsmadethenewlandtheirown.TransplantedAfricans
begantomasterthelanguagesofNorthAmerica,learnedtotraversethecountryside,formed
friendships,piecedtogethernewlineagesfromrealandfictivekin,andcreatedanewsacred
world.Theirchildren,whoknewnootherland,tookrootinAmericansoilandmadetheland
thathadbeenforcedontheirparentstheirown.LikemostotherAmericans,theytoowerethe
childrenofimmigrantsbutimmigrantsofaverydifferentkind.

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