Virginia’s Eastern Shore

There were many social ingredients that were necessary for free black people to maintain the status on Virginia’s Eastern shore.   The first social ingredient was the possession land.  Free black people owned small farms.  Owning property would allow free blacks to build relationships and enter alliances with wealthy plantation owners.  The second social ingredient was knowledge of law and the courts.  It was nearly required of a person living in colonial Virginia to know how to sue another land owner.  During the mid to late 1600s black people and white people were viewed equally in the eyes of the law.

The first change the Virginian Society made was the inability of free blacks to acquire land.  In the 17th century a person’s identity was in the amount of land and property they owned. The second change was the arrival of Slaves directly from Africa.  In the early 1600s the black people  in Virginia had had previous experience with English traditions and culture.  They learned this from their time living Islands such as Barbados with the influence being primarily English.  The black people from Africa had no experience with the English culture.  In many white people looked at them very differently.  Free black people only had enough money to buy small farms so the white Rich plantation owners could produce the Tobacco at much cheaper costs, thus driving the free blacks out of business.  As more free blacks fell into poverty they were forced to resort to stealing, thus creating prejudice towards the free blacks.  Also, many free blacks were involved in Bacons rebellion which painted them in an even worse light.  Ultimately in 1699, the law removed all free blacks from Virginia’s Eastern shore.