The Landscape of Slavery

Courtesy of Thomas P. Martin, March 4, 2011

1. The Landscape of Slavery Marker

Inscription.
September 1861. Half the slaves of the South live, labor, and die on small farms like this, worked by fewer than 20 slaves. Slaves build barns, fix houses, clear fields, work gardens, fed animals, weave cloth, and sweat out the toughest domestic chores.

Slaves harvest tobacco, the farm's cash crop. The money from tobacco buys fabric from mills, tools from factories, and small luxuries like sugar and tea. And the money buys more slaves.

Labor is short. The owner died this summer, and two of his sons have signed on as Confederate soldiers. Hopeful that Union victory means freedom, slaves pass on news of the war by word of-mouth on the “grapevine telegraph.”

Erected by National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Agriculture • Communications • War, US Civil. A significant historical month for this entry is September 1861.

Location. This marker has been replaced by another marker nearby. It was located near 37° 7.163′ N, 79° 43.895′ W. Marker was near Hardy, Virginia, in Franklin County. It could be reached from Booker

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T. Washington Highway (Virginia Route 122), on the right when traveling east. Marker is at Booker T. Washington National Monument visitor center, on the rear deck. Touch for map. Marker was at or near this postal address: 12130 Booker T Washington Highway, Hardy VA 24101, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker was in Southern Virginia.

It was also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it was in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it found itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this location: Plantation Trail (here, next to this marker); "On behalf of the United States" (here, next to this marker); Booker T. Washington National Monument (a few steps from this marker); Slavery in the Tobacco Kingdom (within shouting distance of this marker); Booker T. Washington's Birthplace

Courtesy of Thomas P. Martin, March 4, 2011

2. The Landscape of Slavery Marker

(within shouting distance of this marker); The Day of Freedom (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Animals for Food and Farm Work (about 500 feet away); Booker's Lifelong Love of Animals (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Hardy.

Other markers no longer nearby. Slavery on the Plantation (was here, next to this marker but has been replaced with another marker now near it); How Tobacco Farms Used Slavery (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been replaced with another marker now near it); Freed Here, At Last (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been replaced with another marker now near it).

Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. New Marker At This Location titled "Slavery on the Plantation".

Credits. This page was last revised on April 27, 2026. It was originally submitted on May 8, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 295 times since then and 19 times this year. Last updated on November 5, 2022. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 8, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.