Quarters for Field Slaves

Overhead picture of the slave quarter excavations showing conjectural location of the quarters and yard. Insert shows an example of a freedman's cabin from the 1880s.
[Click picture for larger image.]

In 2003 the Montpelier Archaeology Department located a quarter for enslaved field hands between the Montpelier mansion and the Mount Pleasant site. One of the most amazing aspects of this site is that it turned out to have never been plowed since abandonment in the 1840s. What this meant for the archaeology is that all of the surface features such as paths, work areas, footings for structures, and shallow exterior hearths are intact. Such preservation is rare at these sites that were often returned to fields after abandonment.

This quarter for the field slaves was likely built of log, with clay floors, chimneys built of stick and mud, and simple wooden shutters. Archaeological evidence suggests that aside from nails and door hardware, the Madisons provided little resources for slaves to build these simple structures. The homes of the field slaves stand in marked contrast to the enslaved domestics' homes directly in sight of the Montpelier mansion.

Similar to house slaves, field slaves obtained most of their household items from local markets and exchange. Based on household items recovered from archaeological excavations, field slaves had much less in the way of ceramics, tablewares, and clothing items than house slaves. This difference suggests that field slaves had much less purchasing power perhaps due to less time for producing and selling marketable items.

Architectural items recovered at the site, thought to be the decayed remains of the quarters. Notice the key at the top of the photograph.	Artifacts recovered from the trash deposit, including buttons, a buckle, ceramic sherds from plates and bowls, glass tumble fragment, wine bottle, and a padlock.