The number of Free Blacks increased to almost 13,000 by 1790 and doubled to
near 25,000 by 1800. Not such an insignificant presence. It was a rural
society--what anthropologists call "face-to-face" societies--people knew
and depended upon each other. The pervasive presence of racial slavery
provided the overarching umbrella of white supremacy. There was little need
for the constant petty distinction of segregation that would later
characterize Virginia society from the 1890s to the 1960s. Even under
segregation there was a lot of friendly interaction of whites and blacks in
rural and small town Virginia. But when segregation and white supremacy
was challenged in the 1950s and '60s the lines hardened (as we saw in
Prince Edward County).

Jim Hershman


On Mon, Dec 16, 2013 at 5:06 PM, Paul Finkelman <[log in to unmask]>wrote:

> although there were VERY VERY few of them.  The estimate of free blacks in
> 1780 is about 2,000
>
>
>
>
> ________________________________
>  From: Paul Heinegg <[log in to unmask]>
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Sent: Monday, December 16, 2013 3:46 PM
> Subject: Re: [VA-HIST] Free Blacks in the Slave State of Virginia
>
>
> It stands to reason that freed slaves would have developed or adopted a
> different culture to live in the free community. And slaves freed under the
> law of 1782 joined a community of African Americans who had been living
> free among whites for generations.
>
> Many of these free families were the descendants of white servant women or
> descendants of families free since the 17th century--before a distinct
> African American slave culture had developed.
> Paul
>
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