Petersburg, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Corling's Corner
Photographed By Bernard Fisher, March 29, 2009
1. Corling's Corner Marker
Inscription.
Corling's Corner. . By the 1820s, Petersburg was developing into a major industrial city. The backbone of the city's workforce was enslaved labor. At this highly visible downtown intersection known as Corling's Corner, local manufacturers, railroad companies, building contractors, and private individuals inspected and rented enslaved people to work for one-year terms in their businesses and homes. Petersburg's tobacco factories were probably the largest users of rented labor. At the end of every year, enslaved men and women were hired under a legal contract that set forth the renter's obligations to the owner. The rental of bondspeople was quite common in the South before the Civil War.
By the 1820s, Petersburg was developing into a major industrial city. The backbone of the city's workforce was enslaved labor. At this highly visible downtown intersection known as Corling's Corner, local manufacturers, railroad companies, building contractors, and private individuals inspected and rented enslaved people to work for one-year terms in their businesses and homes. Petersburg's tobacco factories were probably the largest users of rented labor. At the end of every year, enslaved men and women were hired under a legal contract that set forth the renter's obligations to the owner. The rental of bondspeople was quite common in the South before the Civil War.
Erected 2005 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number QA-26.)
Location. 37° 13.907′ N, 77° 24.287′ W. Marker is in Petersburg, Virginia. Marker is at the intersection of North Sycamore Street and West Bank Street, on the right when traveling
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south on North Sycamore Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Petersburg VA 23803, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 2, 2023. It was originally submitted on April 4, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,455 times since then and 55 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3. submitted on April 4, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.