Rearing Wolves to Our Own Destruction: Slavery in Richmond Virginia, 1782–1865 (5 page)

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Authors: Midori Takagi

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BOOK: Rearing Wolves to Our Own Destruction: Slavery in Richmond Virginia, 1782–1865
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Page 16
Two
The Road to Industrialization and the Rise of Urban Slavery, 1800-1840
Richmond in the early to mid-nineteenth century began to lose much of its provincialism. The various shops, taverns, and hotels that filled the main thoroughfare greatly popularized the commercial area and drew crowds of residents and visitors alike. The opening of the Bank of Virginia added a sense of financial strength to Richmond, while the Roman-style brick and stucco Capitol (designed by Thomas Jefferson and completed just before the turn of the century) gave the city a certain air of permanence and importance.
1
The quaintness that remained following the Revolutionary War disappeared as the city continued to expand, incorporating areas that once had been countryside. Farmers living on the outskirts of Richmond were now counted and taxed as city dwellers, and their vistas of the river and valleys were interrupted by newly built homes and businesses. In the heart of the city, numbered wardships assumed the more dignified names of Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe. Within each district emerged neighborhoods with colorful names such as Libby Hill, Shed Town, Church Hill, Screamersville, and Butchertown.
An increase in population forced the city to expand. The original square village lots could no longer accommodate the influx of newcomers to the city. Between 1800 and 1840 the number of black and white residents grew 350 percent, from 5,737 to 20,153 (table 1). Although Richmond was no Baltimore or New Orleans (both of which had populations exceeding 102,000 by 1840), its citizenry did surpass those of
 
Page 17
Table 1. Breakdown of Richmond's population, 18001840
Year
Slave
Free black
White
Total
1800
2,293
607
2,837
5,737
1810
3,748
1,180
4,807
9,735
1820
4,387
1,235
6,445
12,067
1830
6,345
1,960
7,755
16,060
1840
7,509
1,926
10,718
20,153
Source:
U.S. Bureau of the Census, Population, 18001840.
other notable cities such as Savannah (11,214) and trailed only slightly behind Louisville (21,210).
2
Creating new roads to, from, and through Richmond topped the city council's list of priorities during these years. To ease travel and to lessen the inconvenience of dust and mud, local officials banned the rolling of tobacco hogsheads through the city. They also were less inclined to create narrow, picturesque streets, opting instead to carve out wide boulevards.
3
Later, to further improve travel conditions, the major thoroughfares were paved with cobblestones and flagstones. But the greatest improvements in travel came with advances in transportation technology. During these years the city became linked with the rest of the country by eight turnpikes, several ferries, a large canal, and by the 1840s, two railroads.
The most significant and conspicuous change to Richmond during these years, however, was the emergence of industry. Between 1800 and 1840 Richmond shifted its focus from commercial to manufacturing activities. Alongside the many shipping and trading houses, new factories began to appear, producing goods for the local market, such as shoes, clothing, saddles, wheels, carts, bricks, nails, and other building supplies. The most lucrative industries, however chewing tobacco and flour supplied markets as far away as Europe and South America. Of these two key products, tobacco proved more important to Richmond and more dependent on slave labor.
Tobacco always had been an integral part of Richmond's economy and in many ways was the very basis for the city's existence. Because of its location near tobacco-producing farmlands, and because of its access to the ocean, Richmond became an important transshipment point for tobacco exportation to Europe, feeding that continent's appetite for the

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