Ethan J. Kytle and Blain Roberts
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780813042374
- eISBN:
- 9780813043494
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Florida
- DOI:
- 10.5744/florida/9780813042374.003.0007
- Subject:
- History, Cultural History
Ethan J. Kytle and Blain Roberts explore what they call the “highly bifurcated” tourism they found in Charleston, South Carolina, heralded as “America’s Most Historic City.” As Kytle and Roberts ...
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Ethan J. Kytle and Blain Roberts explore what they call the “highly bifurcated” tourism they found in Charleston, South Carolina, heralded as “America’s Most Historic City.” As Kytle and Roberts argue, the historical narratives offered by the city’s tour guides often diverge over the issue of race and slavery. This means that the same tourist sites within Charleston are interpreted by white tour guides as places of Old South romance and chivalry, while black tour guides tell of the heartbreak of slavery at those same sites. These divergent narratives of the city’s past complicate the tourist experience in Charleston as well as its urban identity.Less
Ethan J. Kytle and Blain Roberts explore what they call the “highly bifurcated” tourism they found in Charleston, South Carolina, heralded as “America’s Most Historic City.” As Kytle and Roberts argue, the historical narratives offered by the city’s tour guides often diverge over the issue of race and slavery. This means that the same tourist sites within Charleston are interpreted by white tour guides as places of Old South romance and chivalry, while black tour guides tell of the heartbreak of slavery at those same sites. These divergent narratives of the city’s past complicate the tourist experience in Charleston as well as its urban identity.
John F. Kvach
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780813144207
- eISBN:
- 9780813144481
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813144207.003.0002
- Subject:
- History, American History: 19th Century
This chapter examines how economic, political, and social changes in early nineteenth-century Charleston, South Carolina, influenced De Bow’s life. Born at a time when financial panic, sectional ...
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This chapter examines how economic, political, and social changes in early nineteenth-century Charleston, South Carolina, influenced De Bow’s life. Born at a time when financial panic, sectional crisis, and potential slave revolts altered the mood and outlook of Charleston, De Bow accepted opportunities as they came, failed at many of them, and eventually settled on writing as his best chance of escaping his difficult childhood. As a young adult he emerged from Charleston with a sharp intellect, an articulate tongue, and a talented pen. His emergence as a local thinker and writer caught the attention of some of the city’s most prominent businessmen, who asked him to represent Charleston at an upcoming commercial convention in Memphis, Tennessee. It would be during this trip, while sitting with John C. Calhoun, that De Bow decided to leave Charleston for New Orleans and start a monthly journal dedicated to southern economic development.Less
This chapter examines how economic, political, and social changes in early nineteenth-century Charleston, South Carolina, influenced De Bow’s life. Born at a time when financial panic, sectional crisis, and potential slave revolts altered the mood and outlook of Charleston, De Bow accepted opportunities as they came, failed at many of them, and eventually settled on writing as his best chance of escaping his difficult childhood. As a young adult he emerged from Charleston with a sharp intellect, an articulate tongue, and a talented pen. His emergence as a local thinker and writer caught the attention of some of the city’s most prominent businessmen, who asked him to represent Charleston at an upcoming commercial convention in Memphis, Tennessee. It would be during this trip, while sitting with John C. Calhoun, that De Bow decided to leave Charleston for New Orleans and start a monthly journal dedicated to southern economic development.
Jeff Strickland
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780813060798
- eISBN:
- 9780813050867
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Florida
- DOI:
- 10.5744/florida/9780813060798.003.0001
- Subject:
- History, American History: 19th Century
The interaction of German and Irish immigrants, enslaved and free African Americans, and white Southerners defined the social, economic and political developments in Civil War–era Charleston. Slavery ...
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The interaction of German and Irish immigrants, enslaved and free African Americans, and white Southerners defined the social, economic and political developments in Civil War–era Charleston. Slavery and emancipation profoundly influenced relations between European immigrants and black and white Southerners. Immigrant artisans and entrepreneurs occupied a middle tier on a racial and ethnic hierarchy, often acting as a buffer between white Southerners and African Americans and alleviating tensions between the castes. The introduction discusses sources, historiography, and details the contents of each chapter.Less
The interaction of German and Irish immigrants, enslaved and free African Americans, and white Southerners defined the social, economic and political developments in Civil War–era Charleston. Slavery and emancipation profoundly influenced relations between European immigrants and black and white Southerners. Immigrant artisans and entrepreneurs occupied a middle tier on a racial and ethnic hierarchy, often acting as a buffer between white Southerners and African Americans and alleviating tensions between the castes. The introduction discusses sources, historiography, and details the contents of each chapter.
Jeff Strickland
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780813060798
- eISBN:
- 9780813050867
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University Press of Florida
- DOI:
- 10.5744/florida/9780813060798.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, American History: 19th Century
Charleston, South Carolina, was a cosmopolitan city during the mid-to-late nineteenth century. Germans, Irish, and a host of European and Latin American immigrants shared the same workplaces, ...
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Charleston, South Carolina, was a cosmopolitan city during the mid-to-late nineteenth century. Germans, Irish, and a host of European and Latin American immigrants shared the same workplaces, neighborhoods, streets, residences, and even households. Charleston was a slave society, and its economy relied on the forced labor of thousands of slaves. Immigrants also worked as entrepreneurs, skilled artisans, and laborers. Immigrants and African Americans interacted on a daily basis, and their relations were often positive. White southerners found those positive relations threatening, and nativist sentiments prevailed during the 1850s. Slaveholding meant economic and political power, and although some immigrants owned slaves many found it objectionable. The Civil War presented slaveholding immigrants, and those that aspired to it, the opportunity to side with the Confederacy. While many German and Irish immigrants enlisted in the fight to preserve slavery, others avoided the conflict. Following the Civil War, German immigrants that had continued to operate their businesses during the war led efforts to rebuild the city. Reconstruction afforded German and Irish immigrants and African Americans political opportunities previously limited or denied. The majority of European immigrants supported the Democratic Party, the party of white supremacy, and African Americans chose the Republican Party.Less
Charleston, South Carolina, was a cosmopolitan city during the mid-to-late nineteenth century. Germans, Irish, and a host of European and Latin American immigrants shared the same workplaces, neighborhoods, streets, residences, and even households. Charleston was a slave society, and its economy relied on the forced labor of thousands of slaves. Immigrants also worked as entrepreneurs, skilled artisans, and laborers. Immigrants and African Americans interacted on a daily basis, and their relations were often positive. White southerners found those positive relations threatening, and nativist sentiments prevailed during the 1850s. Slaveholding meant economic and political power, and although some immigrants owned slaves many found it objectionable. The Civil War presented slaveholding immigrants, and those that aspired to it, the opportunity to side with the Confederacy. While many German and Irish immigrants enlisted in the fight to preserve slavery, others avoided the conflict. Following the Civil War, German immigrants that had continued to operate their businesses during the war led efforts to rebuild the city. Reconstruction afforded German and Irish immigrants and African Americans political opportunities previously limited or denied. The majority of European immigrants supported the Democratic Party, the party of white supremacy, and African Americans chose the Republican Party.
