the slave tour

Magnolia Plantation – the Slave Tour 

 

 main drive of old oaks with spanish moss hanging down. 

     One of our tours dealt with the issue of slavery on a plantation. Without getting into a black /white aspect I must remind you that anyone regardless of their race or color who is indentured or accepting lower wages and working conditions could be considered slaves to society, not unlike the Mexicans working here illegally if they could so be defined. And yet we accept it and have only traded one sin for another in those terms. Quite possibly it is their choice to be here and work under those conditions, yet it is our conscience that is the vehicle that allows it to exist. At the time of black slavery a less significant but still ever present form of slavery also existed among Irish and Chinese immigrants who were forced to work off travel and lodging expenses resulting in little or no pay. Our nation is great but we owe a debt of gratitude to these people for making it that way.

 

slave quarters as taken from outside- this would be a duplex, housing up to 20

 

      We were taken to a group of restored two family slave quarters of which a family of 8-10 would occupy one side of the cabin. This could be grandpa, grandma, mom, dad, and other family members who would occupy a 20 x 20 area with a loft and a central fireplace to do winter cooking and heating of their side of cabin with no insulation and just bed covers to keep you warm in a still cold night. In the summer food was cooked outside over open fire pits. All members of the family would work in some form of enslavement to the land owners. One time you would run away, you would be brought back , second time you ran you would be hung. No third time. 

 

typical fireplace central to both sides of cabin 

      Listening to the tour guide portray the owners of the property to which we were viewing, explain how they were taking an abolitionist policy towards slavery weighed little against the fact that they kept their slaves long after the civil war had started, and only when the south was faced with defeat that they refused to accept the same chattels as they once claimed as theirs by contract. A contract by which the slave had no reason to enter into, instead it was done by others on their behalf with no good end to a means, except free labor. Without the free labor I am afraid, Thomas Drayton the wealthy landowner would never have been able to have his precious gardens, even though I am sure it would be a loss to society and the whole area would have been in development now as Charleston urban sprawl is quite evident. But I feel as nice as the gardens are; they are a testimony to free labor as a result of slavery. I doubt if Thomas Drayton lifted too many shovelfuls of dirt in his day.

 

the wysteria was just as beautiful as it looks with some 6 inch vines  

     This wasn’t the only property owned by Thomas Drayton at the time. Another 1500 acre cotton farm was owned by Drayton as well as other holdings of property. Slavery made him rich, and the Carolina golden rice was very much in demand and paid better than cotton, but was labor intensive. 150 slaves were needed at Magnolia alone not counting the 20 house staff. Another 200 was needed on the cotton plantation. To say slavery wasn’t important for keeping costs down would be ludicrous. To be an advocate for abolitionism would just be just like trying to paint a different picture than what actually unfolded. 4 million visitors to the Charleston area allow the South to say just about anything it wants, but all we need to do is open a history book to get the real pic of what went on. I am thankful to be able to see the ideas and concepts of Thomas Drayton , just wish the money that goes to the family still today would see part of its way back to the people who helped make it happen, and not by employing them. That is work they are being paid for.

the plantation perimeter tour.

Our first tour of Magnolia Plantation

       The tours are broke up into four different tours and 3 are taken on trams , whereas the house is a walking tour.  These tours are only available when you buy an all inclusive pass and you must buy early if you plan to take advantage of all the tours. It was suggested to me to be there early and we were directly after they opened at 8:30 am. Lucy and I were still a little tired from not getting to motel late due to being lost. Oh yeah like I am going to get out of a car in South Carolina on a back road and ask directions, remember those people lost the war between the states.  We managed to get back on track, despite the man thing of not stopping and asking for directions,  but it put us into the motel late in evening. Then we were back up at 6:30 am and soon heading out for 45 minute drive to plantation.

 Little ramps are built in the swamp to allow the alligators to come out and sun when the weather is right. normally this is done on dead trees in a normal swamp but this was once a rice field so all the trees have been removed. those are egrets nesting in the tree in the water.

       The first tour dealt with driving around the perimeter of the plantation showing where all the sites were and explaining more about the history of Magnolia Plantation and how it was started as well there was ample talk about the flora and fauna we would experience while at Magnolia. The calls of peacocks pierced the morning air as we set out for our tour. The trams were large but ours was fairly empty and I was thinking, they must expect a crowd as it was a weekday and I wondered if they would be able to fill them up. I would say no problem to that by 11 o clock as the parking lot filled up and began to flow into other areas I wasn’t aware of. The ride was a little rough but covered a wide swath of the 600 acres that was what was left of the original magnolia plantation. A portion was sold off after the civil war until Thomas Drayton happened on tourism as a means to sustain himself and his family. We were taken through cypress swamps and alongside a burial mound of ancient Indians, , then to a cabin still owned by extended members of Thomas Drayton family and is used as a guest house at times. Then we were taken on to the rice paddy dikes and explained to how the rice was taken to market by tidal flows on boats ran by slaves. 

 This is another pic of a reclaimed rice field. the alligators like this as compared to the tidal marsh areas as they are fresh water animals rarely venturing into salt water except to heal themselves. 

       All the while different birds and their nesting habits were pointed out, as the importance of marsh grass and plough mud was explained. Also the salt of the marsh was no good for growing rice and especially the golden rice the Carolina’s were known for at the time and how slaves built and maintained the dikes by hand as well set up the unique gate system that would allow only the fresh water to enter the rice patties during high tide . It appears as though the fresh water is lighter than the salt water and floats on top of the tidal flow , so gates were used and a slave would sit by the gates and taste the water when it started tasting salty they would close the gates and keep the salt water out. That would be a great job for someone as you tasted swamp water infested with untold bacteria. Still the system of levees and gates would allow water into the rice fields and out as necessary for purposes of harvesting or planting of rice. Land was cleared of trees and stumps and made level by slaves. These same fields are now returning to their natural state as time goes on and rice is no longer planted at this location. Limited amounts of Carolina golden rice is available as another grower is still producing the rice but I doubt it is with slave labor and instead modern methods of agriculture and hopefully organic ones at best.

     A view of the most photographed bridge of the south.

         The tours each lasted about 45 minutes and were about an hour apart allowing you time to get to your next tour and grab a seat. Our next tour was the slavery tour and I will go on more about that tomorrow.

magnolia plantation. my little visit down south.

Magnolia Plantation

   

      Recently Lucy and I had the chance to visit Magnolia Plantation just outside of Charleston, South Carolina. We planned an all day visit to the sights at Magnolia including four different tours of the 600 ac. estate. One tour features a trip through the mansion, and a personal history of previous family members who were involved in the estate bringing it forward to present day Magnolia. The second tour was a trip around the outskirts of the plantation including history of slave holdings, and also their importance in respect to the accomplishments of the landowners to develop the beautiful gardens and how tourism is an important part of their existence. The third tour had to deal with the slaves and how they lived and what was expected of them. Also how the families of former slave owners still works and manages the gardens today. The fourth tour was the boat tour and that involved a pontoon boat ride around the plantation on former rice fields  that were worked and planted with slave labor and how since the civil war,have returned to their natural state and support a variety of wildlife.  And along with this is an included Audubon tour that takes you through swampland and lets you see up close more alligators than you care to tangle with in any one given day.

This is the main plantation house at Magnolia, this is the third such house to be built here with the previous 2 being burned . This is built on the side of the original foundation for the other 2. 

     Although not in the order we viewed the various tours , but the house was central to all that went on at Magnolia plantation as it was what housed the Drayton family , descendants of English who migrated here from the Honduras, where they were owners of a sugar cane plantation and initially tried to grow sugar cane with slave labor but found the area too far north and eventually settled into producing Southern Carolina golden rice known as such for its pale yellow color and exceptional cooking qualities. Not much of it is grown today and is a rare find in grocery stores due to its need for its high use of water. All this was grown with slave labor at that time and Magnolia and other Carolina plantations made a fortune managing their slaves and selling their grain to the world through the port at Charleston harbor. This money was used to build a rather large 2 story structure of brick and was quite impressive with its colonial brick work, only to have the first plantation house struck by lightning, and then being replaced by another on the same spot to only be burned by Union troops after the South surrendered. Then the present day house was built and the location for the house was shifted away from the oak lined driveway to its present location directly beside the remnants of the old house.

      Surrounding the house is the gardens Magnolia is known for as a result of Thomas Drayton’s desire to shower his wife with a non-formal romantic garden with meandering paths going from here to there in a large format to points of interest like bridges across lagoons to the riverside with plantings of a variety of different flowering plants designed to provide a year round show of color. What started off as a private garden he would share with other friends and dignitaries as was the custom of the day turned into a public garden after the war when Thomas Drayton was in need of cash and lacking the means to hire labor after losing his slaves and also losing his rice business due to the intense labor it required to plant and harvest was no longer applicable since slave labor was abolished. His rice fields were left to grow wild, and after a failed attempt to strip mine phosphorous for fertilizer left the land in an unusable condition and as blight on the landscape around Magnolia. He sold off some of his other assets like another cotton plantation where slave labor was also used, and determined  to find a way to make a living on Magnolia. At which time from advisement from friends and family opened his plantation to viewing of his gardens by the public. He would meet a literal boat load of patrons at the riverfront and would furnish a dinner and spend the afternoon showing them around his plantation to great success. He took this money and expanded his plantings, as well rebuilt the mansion that was destroyed by union troops , and having found success at tourism continued to expand on that. 

Some of the large oaks lining the driveway up to the main house. tour operators seem to lack skills when to stop trams and allow people off at points of interest like the drive to allow tourists to take pictures. 

    Various family members after that also expanded on the plantation, including adding on to the present day house and increasing the size of the gardens. The house was modest in size once you move beyond the porches , which because of their size lends one to believe their size is what they are because of cooling the air before entering the house as it would be without air conditioning back in the days before electricity. Most plantation houses were only meant to be used in winter, fall, and spring when the air turned cooler, and summers were spent along the ocean in huge mansions designed to catch the ocean breeze. The present day house is offset from the large oak tree lined driveway but still looks over an expansive front lawn. At one time there were over 20 slaves’ quarters and over 150 slaves when rice harvesting was in its heyday. Fifteen slaves were required for house duties, including helping Mr. Drayton plant his gardens. The kitchen was in the basement of the hose and a large rainwater collection system including the placement of a cistern was added to the house making it appear as though there are 3 floors in the house. In reality the third floor only leads to the cistern. The cistern was added when Mrs. Drayton felt that the reason for kidney ailments were due to poor water quality associated with ground water. This helped with the kidney problems in the main house but I noted that the slaves in quarters  who regularly drank the same ground water as the owners did not have a cistern added to their quarters . The guide mentioned slavery and how important they were to the development of Magnolia, and how the family at the time of the civil war could have almost been treated as abolitionists at the time of the civil war. Yet they still owned slaves up to the time they were forced to give them up. Their treatment of those slaves was also in the same order as other slave owners at the time. 

 A view from the expansive porch. they wouldn't allow pictures inside the house. 

      The house tour of the plantation house lent itself to the old days as they were in the time of the civil war, and one could easily imagine plantation life back in those days, as the owners would bark orders and slaves would tirelessly carry out the precise details for fear of retribution in the form of punishment. Eyes never in direct contact with the owners, and instead staring down with a lot of yes sirs, and yes mams, thrown in assuring that every order was clearly understood. The days spent on the porches trying to endure the impossible heat and humidity of the Deep South. Dressed up socialites including an Orson Welles who once visited the Magnolia plantation for a visit with Thomas Drayton’s daughter, strolling up and down the flower lined paths, perhaps sipping a fruity cool mint drink on the expansive porch under the shade of mighty oak trees on either side of the house.  This tour although not the most impressive but when taken with all the tours there, added to the overall experience of magnolia and showed how the owners benefitted from the exploitation of those of who they were in charge of, as was the custom in those days.