Old Plantation Days Being Recollections of Southern Life Before the Civil War

by Nancy Bostick De Saussure

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

Genres: History, Civil War, Nonfiction, Biography, Ebooks, Autobiography, American Civil War

94 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 1, 2008

Reviews

[Deborah Markus · Rating 1 out of 5]

My Dear Granddaughter,

You're old enough to know the TRUTH about what it was like to live on a plantation, as opposed to all this Yankee nonsense you may have heard. It may be 1909, but that doesn't mean I've forgotten how awesome it was fifty years ago and more, back when people understood that those lazy blacks were just not going to do a lick of work unless you made them. And how else could you make someone work unless you owned them? It's just a duh!

Anyway. Once upon a time, life was awesome. We had parties all the time, and even on ordinary days, everything was wonderful and the food was fantastic. Our darkies loved us and we were totes nice to them, no matter what that stupid Frederick Douglass may have written about his life. He just doesn't understand the special bond Southerners had with their slaves. I mean, yeah, okay, he was a slave – but he didn't own any slaves, did he? So he totally doesn't get what it was really like.

Plus we gave our slaves all the sweet potatoes we thought they wanted, so he and those other former slaves can just stop whining about how awful their lives were. I mean, have they seen what it's like in Africa? Nothing but war and fighting and horribleness! That's what blacks are like when they don't have Southerners around to civilize them! It's science! And geography! And all kinds of other educational branches!

Anyway. Life was great for everybody. Then, all of a sudden, for TOTALLY NO REASON, those Yankees decided they hated us and started being really really mean.

Here's how bad the war was for my family: we didn't have any coffee. Or tea. Seriously! Those damned Yankees were HORRIBLE to us! They even stole my best friend's piano! I was able to save my harp, so things weren't as bad as they could have been, but still.

The Yankees did a lot of looting during that war, and does anybody care? No! They just keep jabbering on about slavery and civil rights and things! And I'm all, "Hello! I did mention my best friend's piano, right?" Priorities, people!

Anyway. Things have changed, my darling granddaughter, but never forget the good old days! I sure haven't!

[Justin Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an enlightening discovery for somebody like myself, who has no personal connection to the U.S. Civil War. The South weren't all bad guys. The North weren't all good guys. The slaves weren't all Uncle Tom's Cabin.

[Sarah Price · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good and honest

Clearly written from first-hand experience. Explored both sides of the political situation. Gave a detailed description of the culture at the time. A knowledgeable read.

[Nikki Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting from an anthropological standpoint. Definitely interesting to see how a southern woman of means on a plantation thought of her southern life and those around her; shying away entirely of any bad happenings or the horrors of slavery. She seemed to see just the romantic view of the south pre-reconstruction and anything after the south lost in the civil war is viewed as utter destruction by the Yankees to a blissful way of life that everyone had (which they obviously they did not). She lived and held beliefs of a Disney version of the old south.

[Andrew Scholes · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting account

It was interesting. I learned some intriguing facts from the first account of the person who lives through the war. Most all biographies and histories are read. America have to do with war. I learned how to study history and how to read in third grade. I used to read 25,000 pages a year and hope to get back to that now after having read 3000 a year just magazines The World and Everything In It and PTI, three years. My multiple sclerosis has really ramped up.

[Goth Gone Grey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting snapshot of a time and belief system

...And by interesting I don't necessarily mean right. An example:

"In spite of many misrepresentations by those who can never comprehend the tender attachment existing in those days between master and slave, I want you to have a clear idea of it, and I want you to know that the Southerner understood, and understands to this day, the negro's character better than the Northerner, and is in the main kinder to, and more forbearing with him. There were countless incidents during the war of love and loyalty shown by the negroes to their former owners, which you will read of in the many stories written now by those who know the truth."

I have not done much research from this time period, but I doubt the above is the most common memory of how things operated in the South before slavery was abolished. The narrator paints a story of slaves being eager to help their masters, even following them into battle to ensure safety. (After, please note, they were instructed to do so).

Discounting one person's account seems harsh, but the other world described within is so different from modern retelling of that time period. Perhaps I've focused too much on the Northern version?

However, the writing is interesting, the prose heartfelt in the form of a sometimes desperate to explain letter. From the historical level alone it's a fascinating read. Other reviewers noted many errors, I did not see those.

[Douglas Boren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice little book that is really more of a very long letter written by a grandmother to her granddaughter. The unique thing is, the grandmother lived before, during and after Lincoln's War. Written in 1909, this is not "revisionist" history. Mrs. De Saussure shares her recollections of what the antebellum South was truly like. Refreshingly honest and different from the over hyped fiction of Hollywood, and the rampant lies of formal education, she paints a picture of love between the whites and the blacks, the genteel nature of society, that we could learn from, and exposes some of the horror perpetrated on both whites and blacks by the so called liberators of the invading Northern Armies.

If you want to know what the South was like, don't watch a movie, or a TV show. They haven't a clue. Don't ask anyone in the so called news media, for their agenda prevents honesty. Instead, read from the pen of a person who was actually there, witnessing everything first hand, without prejudice, malice, or hypocrisy. This is a gem of a read, treasured by Southerners, and highly suggested for anyone who wants to know the real truth.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Old Plantation Days: Being Recollections of Southern Life Before the Civil War by NB DE Saussure is an interesting book. It is told in first person and gives the history of the family and what happened to it during the Civil War and after.

It gives the duties of the mistress of the plantation as well as the master. This particular book dwells on the relationship between the slaves and the master's family. They depended on each other and took are of each other. On this plantation, the slaves were treated well. It talks of what happened when the North came and When Sherman came on his march to the sea.

It is an interesting view of the war and both before and after the war.

[Nicholas Maulucci · Rating 3 out of 5]

enjoyed this book. while the writing style is a little old-fashioned, the stories are classic. this book was from a journal of some sort and contained the charm of the south before the war up until and through to the other side of the civil war (what an oxymoron - civil war). the book also showed the almost forgotten admiration and love many slaves had for their owners and vice versa. I wish the book has gone deeper, but it left me more curious about the civil war and society during that time period.

[Shannon Pritchard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brings history to life

As an historian, I have sought to keep my reading to personal narratives, written during or shortly after the War Between the States. I have done so in order to keep the information pure, to avoid the inevitable biases and ignorance found in modern histories.

This book was written long after the War, but because it was written by a grandmother to her grand child, it is an open and honest portrayal of life in the South before, during and after the War. Also the writer has a gift for painting scenes in text.

[Linda Greenwood · Rating 1 out of 5]

Shockingly informative

Not much to say about this book other than it paints a portrait of slavery comprised primarily of loving relationships between most owners and slaves. The idea that slaves were human beings owned by persons no matter how benign is repugnant. Interesting but morally difficult to read

[Miles Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Literary excellence, factual fluidity

Well this memoir is well known for its literary quality it paints a rather hagiographic and romanticized picture of antebellum southern life. As a literary memoir though it is extraordinarily well written and maintains a well-deserved place as a famous southern primary source.

[J.M. Stock · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting perspective, see things through the eyes of a white plantation mistress. Yet, the story was disjointed and confusing, often launching into unrelated stories. I stopped reading about half way through.

[Ray Regini · Rating 5 out of 5]

The suffering of the south.

I shall hang the confederate flag with pride. People of the south are being cheated out of their history to be politically correct. This book and other's like it tells the story as it was.

[Royce Ratterman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for personal research - found this book's contents helpful and inspiring.
A good book for the researcher and enthusiast.
- found this book's contents helpful and inspiring - number rating relates to the book's contribution to my needs.

[Santino Maulucci · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is apparently a collection of letters . I read a different book about the south before this one and was shocked by the difference of viewpoints between each book. I liked it, however.

[patricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

N.B> DeSaussune is a recolection of pre Civil War South in Old Plantation Days. It is from the viewpoint of the daughter of the plantation owner.

[Jennifer Barnette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Truly interesting and worth the read.

[Amy Griffith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good non-fiction book about the Civil War era. Provides details about how the war affected people in the south. Very interesting read.

[shirley early · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slavery

This was a good written book. Very sad,but truthful +sick how anyone can do to another human being.and live with themselves.

[Paul McClelland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book

Easy to understand. Good writer. I like her style. She gives a different view of the South. What else can I say?

[Susan Molloy · Rating 5 out of 5]

✔️Published in 1909.

🖊 My review: This is a well-written memoir written by Nancy Wallace Bostick De Saussure (1837-1915) in the form of a letter to her granddaughter, Dorothy De Saussure Schenck Scarborough (1896-1972). This is one of those works that happily led me down various research paths that revealed a wealth of information. However, I will keep this review for the book.

De Saussure clearly lays out the purpose of writing this:

My Dear Granddaughter Dorothy: Grandmother is growing to be an old lady, and as you are still too young to remember all she has told you of her own and your mother's people, she is going to write down her recollections that you may thus gain a true knowledge of the old plantation days, now forever gone, from one whose life was spent amid those scenes. The South as I knew it has disappeared; the New South has risen from its ashes, filled with the energetic spirit of a new age. You can only know the New South, but there is a generation, now passing away, which holds in loving memory the South as it used to be.

This is an important book, one that should be taken seriously, for it lends an invitation into the lives of the people of the Old South. De Saussure further states that “[t]he spirit of those early days is what I chiefly desire to leave with you; the bare facts are history."

De Saussure begins by stating that “My father and mother inherited most of their negroes, and there was an attachment existing between master and mistress and their slaves which one who had never borne such a relation could never understand.”

Here, we have a peek into how the workers cared for their children:

The house servants had their own kitchen and cook. The negro children were under the care of a woman in a building apart, in fact, it was like a modern day nursery, where the working mothers could leave their children in safety. The older children about the place helped in the care of the little ones. Mothers with babies were only required to do light work, such as raking leaves, spinning, or sewing, that they might be ready and in condition to nurse their babies.

De Saussure shares her experience with the first shots of the war:

When your mother (the daughter of the author, Nancy Bostick De Saussure Schenck, 1861-96) was five weeks old we took her to Charleston to show her to your grandfather's parents—an important visit, as she was the first grand-baby in the family and they were eager to see her. It was an all-day journey with a drive of twenty miles to the railway. We reached Charleston about eight o'clock in the evening. My father-in-law met us, and after a warm greeting to the little stranger and ourselves, said, "You are just in time to see the fight at Fort Sumter, for it begins to-night." I was terrified and begged to be taken home, but there was no train until morning and, therefore, we had to remain. That night I was too frightened to sleep. Toward morning, about four o'clock, the first gun was fired, and it seemed to me as if it were in my room.

Times were hard for everyone during and after the American Civil War. In this passage, De Saussure tells that

At one time I remember seeing two thousand yards of cloth ready to make up into clothes. Fifteen years after the war, on my visit South, I saw the negro women still wearing some of the dresses which were woven at that time. The cloth went by the name of "homespun." I am giving you a rather minute account, because I want you, my darling, to gain as intimate a knowledge as possible of that life which has forever passed away.

Yet, this is not a book about slavery, nor servitude; it is a look into the everyday lives of Southerners as experienced by De Saussure. In the following passage, albeit lengthy, she describes exhibited compassion:

During my father's early married life preparations were made to build a church in the neighborhood, (Robertville, SC) called after the family. A contractor was engaged from the North to build the church. He brought workmen with him, and among them was a carpenter belonging to a better class of Irish than was usually found in such a trade. He brought his wife and three children with him, and during the summer contracted a violent fever. Father always thought it his duty to visit all the sick in the neighborhood; therefore, he saw him frequently, caring for his needs. When the poor man found that he could not live, he asked my father to provide for his wife and children, which my father consented to do. He kept his promise, and after the husband's death, took the three little ones home with their mother, and made them comfortable in one of the many outbuildings always found on a Southern plantation. In a few weeks the mother gave birth to a little girl and died, leaving the four little orphans in my father's care. Father wished to adopt them all, but my mother, with her usual good judgment, said she was willing to have the care of them, but would not consent to adopting them, as she did not think it well to have children of another nationality brought up as our sisters and brothers. Eventually three of these little people were adopted by those who had no children, and one remained with us. This little girl, Margian Kane, was sent to school, but when old enough to go into higher studies refused further schooling, to learn the art of housekeeping from my mother. She died only two years ago, living to be eighty-four years old. Our family took care of her until her death.

In the above passage, the compassion is striking and touching. While the reader of today might find some of the phrases odd here and throughout the book (e.g. "better class of Irish") they just show that people back then are the same as people today. We all have our colloquialisms, our slang, our prejudices, our own views of life. I find that remarkable and thought-provoking.

When the war ended, the returning and rebuilding had to really been difficult for everyone:

As one after another of the family came back to us, worn out and dispirited, our thoughts turned to the dear old home on the Savannah River, and we longed to go back. Before yielding to our desires, it was considered wise for the men of the family to go first and investigate. They found only ashes and ruin everywhere in our neighborhood, and father's place, except a few negro cabins, was burned to the ground. There were thirty buildings destroyed. The steam mill, blacksmith's shop, carpenter's shop, barns, and house—nothing was left standing except chimney and brick walls to mark the place of our once prosperous, happy home. There was but one fence paling to indicate the site of our little village. The church, too, was burned . . .

At the end of this book, there is an addendum, also in the form of a letter, dated January 8, 1906 addressed to “My Dear Aunt Nannie” from A. McIver Bostick, Beaufort, South Carolina attorney. (Note: This letter by Mr. Bostick is also printed in Our Family Circle by Annie Elizabeth Miller of Macon, Georgia ©1931 with corrections, additions, and deletions by Rev. Dr. Robert E.H. Peeples, ©1975.) (Note: A. McIver Bostick (1863-1907) is buried in Bostic Cemetery, Garnett, South Carolina.)

On an interesting note, De Saussure states that she “devoted much of my time to music, especially to the harp which was my favorite instrument.” One of her sisters, Agnes, played the piano. The piano was stolen by Federal soldiers and shipped up North. Although some Southerners recovered their stolen possessions, Agnes May Bostick Colcock never had her piano recovered. (Agnes was married to Confederate Colonel Charles J. Colcock who served at The Battle of Honey Hill, November 1864).

Note: There is more information on the Black Swamp Bosticks in The Last Foray: The South Carolina Planters of 1860 by Chalmers Gaston Davidson. On page 179 it is written that Benjamin Robert Bostick of "Ingleside," Black Swamp Plantation, was born October 11, 1791 in South Carolina; married June 18, 1815 to Mary Eliza Robert (1798-1817) and secondly married March 19, 1819 to Jane Asenath Maner (1801-87). Benjamin R. Bostick died October 25, 1866. He was educated at the College of South Carolina (he left ca. 1809-10) and was a deacon in the Baptist Church. He was also a trustee of the Black Swamp Academy and owned 370 slaves.

Note: Nancy Wallace Bostick De Saussure moved North after the war and worked at Vassar College.

🔥 Dénouement: It seemed to end on a note that I interpret as sad, yet nostalgic and hopeful, too; it is more of a feeling than tangible for me.
🖋 The writing style: Intelligent and detailed.
💫 What I like best: This book piqued my curiosity about Black Swamp Plantation, The Pinelands, and the family tree – what a fun ride down the rabbit hole!
📌 Would I read this again? Yes.
🤔 My rating 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
🟣 Media form: Kindle version.
🏮 Media form: Kindle Unlimited version.
🟢 Media form: Project Gutenberg .
🔵 Media form: Internet Archive .
💿 Media format: Digital edition at Documenting the American South (DocSouth). Documenting the American South (DocSouth), is a digital publishing initiative that provides Internet access to texts, images, and audio related to Southern history, literature, and culture. The University Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is the sponsor.
🔲 Excerpts of interest to me :

🔸 After attending the sick, mother's next duty was to give out the daily provisions. She made a pretty picture in her quaint gown carrying a basket of keys on her arm.

🔸 Officers as well as soldiers had gone into houses and taken all food that could be found and burned it in the yards of the various houses; leaving the women and children to starve. My beautiful harp, which after cutting the strings, I had sent to Cheraw for safety in care of Mr. De Saussure, had narrowly escaped being taken by some officers. They asked to have the box opened for them, but Mr. De Saussure told them the harp was out of order . . .

It was very rough traveling; the roads were destroyed, and trees had been cut down blocking the way. We finally reached the only house left standing near our former home, at eleven o'clock at night, after ten days of travel. This house was far off from all plantations, situated in a pine forest. It was used by our family for a summer retreat. It had large airy rooms; one measuring twenty-five feet, and one fifty feet.

🔸 One day my dear old friend Mr. Saunders was announced. The last time we met, I was fifteen and he forty-five years old. This latter meeting took place twenty-five years later. It was a sad meeting for both of us. He had lost most of his property, and was comparatively poor. He took me in his arms and said; "My child, if I were able to take care of you and your daughter you would not be here one minute, for I would take you home with me and take care of you ...

🔸Poor grandpa would sit all day with bowed head and say over and over, "My poor daughters. My poor daughters.

💿 Media format: Digital edition at Documenting the American South (DocSouth). Documenting the American South (DocSouth), is a digital publishing initiative that provides Internet access to texts, images, and audio related to Southern history, literature, and culture. The University Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is the sponsor.
🟢 Media form: Project Gutenberg .
🟣 Media form: Kindle version.

[Melody Woods · Rating 3 out of 5]

According to the author, the Old South was Shangri La for blacks where they were loved and pampered by whites who gave them jobs, clothing, food, childcare, and housing. Many of her stories left me thinking, “Sure it was just that way. Now let’s hear your slaves’ side of the story.” Her book does provide insight of a slave owner justifying the ownership of other human beings. I was surprised that much of her book focuses specifically on black people since she was writing to her granddaughter and could have chosen instead to write about so many other parts of her Antebellum life, her family, her education, and her experience as a woman.

[Renee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Refreshing and pleasantly insightful first-hand account

The contents within contradicted many of the stories that portray white Southerners as cruel, heartless, slave owners. Many would benefit from reading this book as it would shock them to know that the rhetoric they have been taught has been false all along. Excellent read!

[Neera Kapahi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book written in the form of a letter is an interesting read. Nancy B.de Saussure’s father was a wealthy plantation owner in South Carolina. As slave owners, she paints a rosy picture about their family’s relationship with the slaves.

The book also writes about the Civil war and its devastating consequences even though the title suggests otherwise!

[Rachel Harper · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was OK. Not great. This reads more like one of those books where the heroine is modestly perfect, but I do realize this is a memoir from a very elderly lady and she wouldn't want to dwell on the negatives.

[Chris L King · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another time brought to life

Very interesting account of someone who lives in the antebellum times and gives a frank view of things from her opinion. Soon books like this will be banned as offensive so read it now.

[Wanda Lincoln · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was as I expected: tribute to Southern life before Civil War. I question the assumption that most "negros" were treated respectfully by their "masters" and their families.

[Liana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Obscene.

[Eric Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very nice collection of bygone times.