Table of Contents Chapter One On the Auction Block 5 Chapter Two The Start of Slavery 13 Chapter Three A Changing Nation 19 Chapter Four Life under the Lash 27 Chapter Five The Final Days 35 Biographies 42 Timeline 44 Glossary 46 Websites 47 Reference Map 47 Index 48
Chapter One On the Auction Block Visitors from across the South swarmed to Savannah Georgia in early March 1859 Hundreds of guests booked rooms at local hotels Then they headed to a racecourse outside the city The event that drew such huge crowds was an auction 436 slaves were being sold The auction began on March 3 Buyers inspected the slaves the same way they might check a horse The buyers pried open the slaves mouths to check their teeth pinched their muscles and made them walk around Auctioneers only cared about making as much money as possible Sometimes they sold husbands wives and their children together However there were no promises that this would happen Often families were ripped apart How did the enslaved men and women feel How did they react to being inspected by strangers They had to Slaves were treated as property and sold at auctions ﱚ5ﱚ
