The distinctions Professor Finkleman makes between the terms farmer and 
planter may be a useful terminology for contemporary historians when they 
write about the Antebellum South, but the distinctions are not based on 
historical usage and should not be used to draw hidden meanings from the 
terms as they were used a hundred fifty years ago. Usage was simply not 
consistent during the Antebellum era. A quick look at the compendium of the 
1860 census illustrates these inconsistencies:

The 1860 compendium reports occupations by state. A few examples: AR = 
48,475 farmers / 438 planters; KY = 110,937 farmers / 7 planters; NC = 
85,198 farmers / 121 planters; SC = 35,137 farmers / 2,521 planters; VA = 
108,958 farmers / 80 planters.

The compendium also reports the number of slave-holders who held 20 or more 
enslaved persons: AR about 500; KY about 1,250; NC about 3,400; SC about 
4,700; VA about 5,500.

In these five cases, the terms farmer and planter clearly do not correlate 
well to the numbers of slaves held, nor do they correlate to what we know 
about the types of crops being grown and the self-sufficiency of the 
agricultural units in these four states.

Peter Lysy
Archivist
University of Notre Dame

------------------------------

Date:    Wed, 1 Jul 2009 08:56:04 -0700
From:    Paul Finkelman <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Plantations and Farms -- the difference

Two main differences.=A0=20

Farmers raised diverse crops for themselves and the market.=A0 A small farm=
er in Va. might grow corn, wheat, some small animals, and maybe hay or toba=
cco for the market.=A0 A planter might be less diversified, and would speci=
alize in market crops (cotton, tobacco, sugar, rice).=A0 Many plantations b=
ought most of their food from other sources because it was more profitable =
to devote all their land and labor to cash crops.=A0 Ohio exported signific=
ant amounts of pork, for example, to the South.

Planters in the antebellum South had significant numbers of slaves (at leas=
t 20 is the usually number).=A0 Many farmers had no slaves or only a few.=
=20

----
=0APaul Finkelman
=0APresident William McKinley Distinguished Professor of Law
=0AAlbany Law School
=0A80 New Scotland Avenue
=0AAlbany, NY  12208
=0A
=0A518-445-3386 (p)
=0A518-445-3363 (f)
=0A
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Peter J. Lysy
Senior Archivist and Records Center Manager

Archives of the University of Notre Dame
607 Hesburgh Library
Notre Dame, IN 46556

voice: 574-631-4030
    fax: 574-631-7980
e-mail: [log in to unmask]

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