creeper71
Silver Member
Found this short article on hertiage auctions... I learned a few things I didn't know about them.. I am putting this ontoday's finds cause I don't know where to post this... Hopefully Jeff or another mod can put in the right forum... (thank you to who ever moves it)
The Slave Hire Badges of Charleston, South Carolina
By Michael Riley
Slavery is one of the darkest realities of America's past; a subject not often comfortably or openly discussed; a subject many would like to forever blot from our collective memory. Present-day American mores and sensibilities make the thought of one human being owning another one a disgusting and unimaginable practice. The historical reality is that slavery was an accepted practice in various parts of this country for many years, especially in the South. In Charleston, South Carolina, slavery had been a way of life from its founding by English colonists in 1670 until a certain February day in 1865, the day that victorious Union soldiers entered, occupied, and emancipated the city, bringing freedom to a people who hadn't known it for nearly two hundred years.
The slavery system flourished in most southern cities during the nineteenth century but, in general, less than one-third of southern white families owned slaves. Many of the others would hire slave labor on an "as-needed" basis from nearby slaveholders. This custom could prove very profitable for the master, especially if his slaves had special skills that were in demand. Various cities had laws on the books regulating this practice but Charleston, through which more slaves were imported than any other city, has the distinction of being the only city with a slave hire system accompanied by the issuance of what are often called "slave tags." Many people mistakenly picture slaves having to wear tags like dogs. In truth, that's not exactly what they really are.
Charleston had a system whereby a slaveholder could pay a license fee, good for one year at a time, on a sliding scale based on the slave's primary occupation. In return, he would receive a copper tag or badge for each slave registered containing four pieces of information: the city (Charleston), a serial number, the date (year), and an occupation. The master was then allowed to hire that slave out to private individuals, businesses, or even the municipal government with the proviso that the slave would wear the badge at all times when on one of these hire-out jobs and that the slave could only perform the function he was licensed to perform. Who benefited from this? The city made thousands of dollars a year in badge fees; the slaveholders made extra money for hiring out slaves that they had no work for at the time; the slaves themselves were often allowed to keep part of their outside wages and, as a bonus, they were given a certain amount of freedom in exchange for their skills.
What were the occupations that are found on these badges? "Servant" is the most common with maybe 60% of the surviving badges bearing that designation. The next most common is "Porter" at roughly 20% of the extant examples. These were considered unskilled or semi-skilled trades and the licensing fees were much lower than the rest. The most "common" of the skilled occupations is "Mechanic" which accounts for only 10% of known badges. The rarest, by far, are "Fisher" (or "Fisherman"), "Fruiterer", and "Carpenter." Others are thought to have been issued but no confirmed examples survive.
John Bennett, the legendary Charleston author and folklorist, wrote an article in 1903 about these badges. As was his practice, he interviewed the locals to get their firsthand views. It's interesting to read how one elderly slave answered the question of "Were they badges of shame?" She answered (in the Gullah dialect), "Shame fo' wear badge? No, ain't shame fo' mek money- ain't shame fo' wuk- why dey bin shame fo' wear badge fo'?" Another longtime resident, a white man, spoke of the badge hire system, "...industrious ones did like it, as they brought only a stipulated amount to their owners and could make much more for themselves. Bricklayers, carpenters, blacksmiths, mechanics, in short, were constantly hired out-[only] a few private families having work to employ them all the time. Persons going away for a length of time would sometimes hire out their house servants. I knew well in the old-time, one [slave who] was a tailor, who made in two months thirty dollars for himself over and above his wage, while the other, a bricklayer, made twenty-five dollars for himself in the course of the winter.... [T]he men were always proud of their badges as they attested that the wearers were trusted."
Slave-related memorabilia is a large and popular area of collecting interest. It is interesting to note that these badges are really the only collectible items that can absolutely be determined to have been owned and/or worn by a slave. We can also know the year it was used and the occupation of the slave wearing it. As in many popular collectibles categories, fake and phony slave badges abound on the Internet. There are a few guidelines to remember when considering a purchase of one of these:
First and most importantly, if it's not from Charleston or Charleston Neck (a suburb that issued their own badges for two years- 1849 & 1850), IT'S NOT REAL- no tag from any other city has been confirmed to be authentic.
All badges that are completely engraved or incuse (no raised letters) are fakes.
If it's made of lead or tin, it's not genuine- all genuine badges are made of copper.
Authentic badges are all dated between 1800 and 1865 (inclusive).
The logical thing to do is to buy only from a company you can trust. Heritage Auctions is offering thirteen of these Charleston slave hire badges in our May Political Americana Auction. As always, you can be sure that these are 100% genuine and are accurately photographed and described. Considering that there are only just a few hundred of these known to exist (many of which are in museums), this is a fine offering that includes several very rare examples with two of the seldom-seen "Fisher" occupations, one from the first year of issue! The live auction takes place May 22nd so get your bids in now.
Back to Top
The Slave Hire Badges of Charleston, South Carolina
By Michael Riley
Slavery is one of the darkest realities of America's past; a subject not often comfortably or openly discussed; a subject many would like to forever blot from our collective memory. Present-day American mores and sensibilities make the thought of one human being owning another one a disgusting and unimaginable practice. The historical reality is that slavery was an accepted practice in various parts of this country for many years, especially in the South. In Charleston, South Carolina, slavery had been a way of life from its founding by English colonists in 1670 until a certain February day in 1865, the day that victorious Union soldiers entered, occupied, and emancipated the city, bringing freedom to a people who hadn't known it for nearly two hundred years.
The slavery system flourished in most southern cities during the nineteenth century but, in general, less than one-third of southern white families owned slaves. Many of the others would hire slave labor on an "as-needed" basis from nearby slaveholders. This custom could prove very profitable for the master, especially if his slaves had special skills that were in demand. Various cities had laws on the books regulating this practice but Charleston, through which more slaves were imported than any other city, has the distinction of being the only city with a slave hire system accompanied by the issuance of what are often called "slave tags." Many people mistakenly picture slaves having to wear tags like dogs. In truth, that's not exactly what they really are.
Charleston had a system whereby a slaveholder could pay a license fee, good for one year at a time, on a sliding scale based on the slave's primary occupation. In return, he would receive a copper tag or badge for each slave registered containing four pieces of information: the city (Charleston), a serial number, the date (year), and an occupation. The master was then allowed to hire that slave out to private individuals, businesses, or even the municipal government with the proviso that the slave would wear the badge at all times when on one of these hire-out jobs and that the slave could only perform the function he was licensed to perform. Who benefited from this? The city made thousands of dollars a year in badge fees; the slaveholders made extra money for hiring out slaves that they had no work for at the time; the slaves themselves were often allowed to keep part of their outside wages and, as a bonus, they were given a certain amount of freedom in exchange for their skills.
What were the occupations that are found on these badges? "Servant" is the most common with maybe 60% of the surviving badges bearing that designation. The next most common is "Porter" at roughly 20% of the extant examples. These were considered unskilled or semi-skilled trades and the licensing fees were much lower than the rest. The most "common" of the skilled occupations is "Mechanic" which accounts for only 10% of known badges. The rarest, by far, are "Fisher" (or "Fisherman"), "Fruiterer", and "Carpenter." Others are thought to have been issued but no confirmed examples survive.
John Bennett, the legendary Charleston author and folklorist, wrote an article in 1903 about these badges. As was his practice, he interviewed the locals to get their firsthand views. It's interesting to read how one elderly slave answered the question of "Were they badges of shame?" She answered (in the Gullah dialect), "Shame fo' wear badge? No, ain't shame fo' mek money- ain't shame fo' wuk- why dey bin shame fo' wear badge fo'?" Another longtime resident, a white man, spoke of the badge hire system, "...industrious ones did like it, as they brought only a stipulated amount to their owners and could make much more for themselves. Bricklayers, carpenters, blacksmiths, mechanics, in short, were constantly hired out-[only] a few private families having work to employ them all the time. Persons going away for a length of time would sometimes hire out their house servants. I knew well in the old-time, one [slave who] was a tailor, who made in two months thirty dollars for himself over and above his wage, while the other, a bricklayer, made twenty-five dollars for himself in the course of the winter.... [T]he men were always proud of their badges as they attested that the wearers were trusted."
Slave-related memorabilia is a large and popular area of collecting interest. It is interesting to note that these badges are really the only collectible items that can absolutely be determined to have been owned and/or worn by a slave. We can also know the year it was used and the occupation of the slave wearing it. As in many popular collectibles categories, fake and phony slave badges abound on the Internet. There are a few guidelines to remember when considering a purchase of one of these:
First and most importantly, if it's not from Charleston or Charleston Neck (a suburb that issued their own badges for two years- 1849 & 1850), IT'S NOT REAL- no tag from any other city has been confirmed to be authentic.
All badges that are completely engraved or incuse (no raised letters) are fakes.
If it's made of lead or tin, it's not genuine- all genuine badges are made of copper.
Authentic badges are all dated between 1800 and 1865 (inclusive).
The logical thing to do is to buy only from a company you can trust. Heritage Auctions is offering thirteen of these Charleston slave hire badges in our May Political Americana Auction. As always, you can be sure that these are 100% genuine and are accurately photographed and described. Considering that there are only just a few hundred of these known to exist (many of which are in museums), this is a fine offering that includes several very rare examples with two of the seldom-seen "Fisher" occupations, one from the first year of issue! The live auction takes place May 22nd so get your bids in now.
Back to Top
