African-American Nashville an Intro

Like much of our history we talk about the general aspects of history, but never the details. African-American history is no different. So many things are overlooked or not talked about enough that we miss parts that make up the complete story of a quilt that makes us who we are. Humans are products of their past that makes up their present and no one is an exception to that. That is why I’m going to do a series of posts on Black history in Nashville. Most of this is coming from a book I’ve been reading The African-American History of Nashville by Bobby Lovett a historian that was a professor at Tennessee State University.

This book has made me realize that the typical narrative of antebellum Black life is much more multifaceted than we believe. African-Americans in the early days of Nashville typically fell into one of these three categories: Free, quasi-independent enslavement, and typical enslavement. Now, what do these terms mean you might ask?

Free: This of course means that someone of African descent or multiracial heritage had their freedom papers and was able to maneuver freely. However, this did not mean they experienced freedom the same way their white counterparts would have experienced. Typically those who were free aligned themselves with the white elites of Nashville in some shape or form. That also does not indicate they were in support of the racial caste that had developed in America. It was a survival mechanism for these individuals and they still faced hardships. Interestingly enough roughly 60% of the free population was of multi or biracial heritage. This could have been because they were the descendants of enslavers who decided to give their children freedom.

Quasi-independent enslavement: This was quite common in Nashville. These individuals operated freely of their own will so much so that people thought they were free and could not tell the difference. So much so that some quasi-independent enslaved individuals owned businesses such as a man by the name of Black Bob who owned a tavern in the public square and was frequently visited by Andrew Jackson or Sally Thomas a biracial woman who ran a laundry service and boardinghouse in downtown Nashville. Most quasi-independent enslaved came from smaller house holds and typically also were of biracial heritage as well.

Typical Enslavement: This is what we typically hear about these days. This was where enslavers were typically strict with those they enslaved and would lease out their services to other whites to earn extra money such as John Overton who owned one of the three biggest plantations in Nashville. This was one of the many ways he made his money.

I start out with these terms before speaking about anything else in history because it will give shape to all the other topics I post later on.