Black Slaveowners: Free Black Slave Masters in South Carolina, 1790-1860

by Larry Koger

Were black masters different from white? An analysis of all aspects and particularly of the commercialism of black slaveowning debunks the myth that black slaveholding was a benevolent institution based on kinship, and explains the transition of black masters from slavery to paid labor.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Race

312 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 30, 1985

Reviews

[Lynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our history books were completely devoid of this accounting of the American slave trade, so many will find this book an eye-opener. It is well researched and thoroughly interesting to read.

[Rosa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I came across Black Slaveowners: Free Black Slave Masters in South Carolina, 1790-1860 by Larry Koger after seeing it on a friend’s social media page. The title alone was enough to stop me in my tracks. As a Black woman, I’ve spent a lifetime learning about our history, but this was a chapter I knew little about. The brief review I read called it a “very good historically poignant book,” and I can tell you, that’s an understatement. This book is a difficult, necessary, and deeply unsettling read that has left an indelible mark on my understanding of our past.

Reading this book felt like peeling back a layer of history that has been deliberately kept from us. It’s one thing to know that slavery was a brutal system. It’s another to confront the reality that some of our own people were not only caught in its web but also participated in it as owners. The initial review I read mentioned the heart-wrenching decisions families had to make, and Koger’s research brings this to life in painful detail. I found myself holding my breath as I read about free Blacks who worked for years to purchase their own children, spouses, and other relatives, not to exploit them, but to save them from the auction block. The constant fear of having a loved one sold away, and the desperate measures taken to prevent it, is a testament to the enduring strength of the Black family, even in the face of unimaginable cruelty.

But the book doesn’t stop there. It forces us to confront a more complicated and uncomfortable truth: not all Black slaveowners were benevolent. The original review I saw touched on this, and Koger’s work delves deep into the economic motivations that drove some free Blacks to participate in the for-profit slave trade. This is the part of the book that I suspect will be most challenging for many readers. It’s a history that is not often taught, and for good reason. It complicates the narrative of a monolithic Black experience of oppression. Koger’s research, drawing from census data, wills, and other historical records, shows that for some free Blacks, particularly those in urban areas like Charleston, owning slaves was a path to economic prosperity and social status. This is a bitter pill to swallow, and it raises so many questions about survival, complicity, and the corrupting influence of a system built on human bondage.

What I found most valuable about this book is the way it paints a more complete and nuanced picture of the antebellum South. It’s not just a story of Black and white, but a complex social hierarchy with free Blacks, enslaved Blacks, and a “brown elite” of mixed-race individuals who often held a privileged status. The book explores the tensions and divisions within the Black community itself, something that is often overlooked in mainstream historical accounts. The Denmark Vesey conspiracy, for example, is presented not just as a failed slave revolt, but as a moment that exposed the deep-seated class and color divisions within Charleston’s Black population.

This book is not an easy read, emotionally or intellectually. It’s dense with historical data and analysis, and at times, the academic tone can be dry. But the stories it tells are so powerful and important that it’s worth the effort. It challenges us to move beyond simplistic narratives and to grapple with the full, messy, and often contradictory reality of our history. It’s a book that will make you uncomfortable, but it will also expand your understanding of the enduring legacy of slavery and the complex ways in which it has shaped our community.

I wholeheartedly agree with the original review I read: this book is a must-read for anyone who is interested in the entire picture of slavery. It’s a vital piece of scholarship that fills a significant gap in our understanding of American history. It’s a book that will stay with you long after you’ve turned the final page, and it will force you to ask difficult questions about our past, our present, and the future we are still fighting to create.

[Regina Lindsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

It would not surprise me if this book/topic was considered controversial. Therefore, let me preface my review with a few comments.

I originally became interested in this topic during college, where as a history major one of my professors discussed the existence of free black slave owners in our area. Since I was pursuing a degree in history, I obviously had an interest in history and was really taken back because I had never heard of this topic and could not fathom how it could be true. I did some independent research and discovered that there was documentation of its existence in southeast Texas. I always intended to more reading on the subject but didn't. Then, I read The Known World by Edward P Jones and my interest was piqued again. By this time I was on Shelfari and this made it easier to search out some non-fiction work on the topic.

According to Koger's work there were more than 10,000 slaves owned by free blacks in Louisian, Maryland, South Carolina, and Virginia. In this work Koger examines and documents the existence of free black (usually mulattos) who owned slaves in South Carolina during the 1800's and lays out the motivations for doing so. Often free blacks would purchase family members in order to grant manumission. However, when South Carolina passed a law that both houses had to approve an application for manumission (which was seldom done) family members would remain "slaves" but with a reunited family. However, this was not the only setting under which black slaveowners occured. There were cases where the purchase of slaves was done for the same "economic" reason that whites purchased slaves. I stated earlier that I couldn't fathom how this could occur. My thinking was, "how could black knowing the cruely that existed under this system participate in this sort of oppression." Koger argues that many of the free black slaveowner had never been a victim of the slave system as descendants of those who had gained their independence or they were slaves in the urban areas where the majority of slaves were household slaves rather than field slaves who, according to Koger, received the most severe treatment.

I gave this a three because the book is well documented (probably too much for many) and addresses some of the questions I have. However, you REALLY have to be a history person to get through this book as it is very dry, awash with statistic and documentation, and Koger is QUITE redundant. Koger meticulously cross-references census data with the local tax roles in an attempt (probably) to fend off any criticism that the case is overstated. While there are personal stories included, even they read like what I envision a medical case history reading.

[Heather Wertz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a part of history we need to talk more about. We always see movies showing only slavery as the white beating black slaves yet we don't show anything about the successful free black slave owner or the free black slave owner with white slaves. And in today's events even trying to talk about a white slave people argue and say they are indentured servants not slaves, which is wrong. I don't want to only see black/Africans as victims. I want to see them as successful free and working alongside the other Americans during this time in history. I want their voices heard as well and their stories told.

[Irma Suggs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative for family historian and genealogist. A great book to have.

[Leon Atterberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good book about a very controversial topic…”Black slave owners”.

It’s a very clear complex topic about an emotional issue.

I encourage folks to read this book and think about the issues.

[Bookewyfe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book focuses on the little known fact that slavery was not just used by white people, nor was it confined to the South. The reasons varied from attempts to keep families together, to purchasing the ‘freedom’ of their loved ones for them, to capital. Various laws were passed in SC from 1800-1859 that made emancipation very hard, and for many, impossible.

This is an old text that I would like to see updated with new information. An important read. It is obvious on every page how white supremacy and proximity to it benefits and harms all at once, persons Black, Brown, Passing, and White.

Link for a list of SC Slave Codes (laws), some of which are mentioned in this book: https://www.scencyclopedia.org/sce/en...

[Bennett_jhon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hello,

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[Dave Wright · Rating 3 out of 5]

You might be interested, especially if you thought all slave owners in the South were white. A bit of a tough read.

[Kim Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading

[Scotty · Rating 4 out of 5]

the most niche book I have ever read. it's good to know that some Black people are based 😎🫣😩👑

[Jonathan]

None

[Karen]

* Understanding Oppression: African American Rights (Then and Now)

[Fredric L.Vaccarella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Boring