1 min
Listening Station 3: Slave Quarters Telfair Museums Owens-Thomas House & Slave Quarters Audio Tour
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- History
The majority of the enslaved people who worked on this property lived in this building. Most of the enslaved people here were female, and many were children or teenagers, but it is not clear what relationships they had, if any. The Owenses may have pulled enslaved laborers from an agricultural labor setting because of their skills or lack of usefulness in the fields. Instead, these individuals worked in domestic labor duties like cooking, cleaning, washing laundry, caring for horses and livestock, driving carriages, and raising children. Life for enslaved people in urban settings had some key differences from enslaved people’s experiences on rural sites. While they might receive better food, clothing, and shelter here, they also were kept under close watch by their enslavers, white neighbors, constables, and others. Enslaved people at urban locations were more likely to be separated from relatives and friends who lived at rural sites. Their proximity to their enslavers also made them more susceptible to violence and sexual assault.
You can view the second floor of the slave quarters via the staircase. Please proceed up the stairs one person at a time.
Architectural evidence suggests that wood partitions divided each floor in this building into two small rooms and a large room near the fireplace. Originally, stairs on the left side of the fireplace led to the second floor, with a small landing and hallway to reach the other rooms. It is not apparent if these divisions were for privacy and sleeping, or for other purposes. Some individuals, like the nursemaid and cook, probably slept closer to their workspaces in the main house. The beds on view here are examples of sleeping arrangements that former enslaved individuals described to interviewers during Works Progress Administration fieldwork in the 1930s.
Once you have finished here, you will find the next listening station in the garden. Please be mindful of other visitors as you descend the stairs and exit this building.
The majority of the enslaved people who worked on this property lived in this building. Most of the enslaved people here were female, and many were children or teenagers, but it is not clear what relationships they had, if any. The Owenses may have pulled enslaved laborers from an agricultural labor setting because of their skills or lack of usefulness in the fields. Instead, these individuals worked in domestic labor duties like cooking, cleaning, washing laundry, caring for horses and livestock, driving carriages, and raising children. Life for enslaved people in urban settings had some key differences from enslaved people’s experiences on rural sites. While they might receive better food, clothing, and shelter here, they also were kept under close watch by their enslavers, white neighbors, constables, and others. Enslaved people at urban locations were more likely to be separated from relatives and friends who lived at rural sites. Their proximity to their enslavers also made them more susceptible to violence and sexual assault.
You can view the second floor of the slave quarters via the staircase. Please proceed up the stairs one person at a time.
Architectural evidence suggests that wood partitions divided each floor in this building into two small rooms and a large room near the fireplace. Originally, stairs on the left side of the fireplace led to the second floor, with a small landing and hallway to reach the other rooms. It is not apparent if these divisions were for privacy and sleeping, or for other purposes. Some individuals, like the nursemaid and cook, probably slept closer to their workspaces in the main house. The beds on view here are examples of sleeping arrangements that former enslaved individuals described to interviewers during Works Progress Administration fieldwork in the 1930s.
Once you have finished here, you will find the next listening station in the garden. Please be mindful of other visitors as you descend the stairs and exit this building.
1 min