I. South Carolina's African American Heritage | History of SC Slide Collection

Photo: Courtesy of the Aiken County Historical Museum.

Head-toting of Bundles | South Carolina's African American Heritage

Episode 1

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Grades: 4 8

"Head-toting" of bundles is a distinctly African method of transporting bulky materials, whether it be firewood for the home, cotton from the fields, or produce carried to market. Courtesy of the...

African American Laborers Cultivating with Hoes | South Carolina's African American Heritage

Episode 2

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Grades: 5

A 1930 photograph of a group of African American laborers cultivating with hoes. Hoe culture was the predominant method of working the soil in traditional African agricultural societies, and the hoe...

Man Playing the Fiddle | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 3

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Grades: 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

An unknown man, Charleston County, playing the fiddle, around 1900. By rights this photograph should be of a banjo, whose origins are indisputably African. As early as the late 17th century, records...

Gospel Choir Performs At The 38th Conference Of The NAACP | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 4

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Grades: 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

The music slaves brought with them from Africa came from a variety of different cultures, and it is impossible in the caption for a single image to recount the history of the blending of those...

Grave Located Outside of Florence | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 5

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West African religious traditions varied widely, ranging from Islam, to various tribal faiths, to some Christianity. The different tribal faiths had a number of common patterns. These included a...

Grave of an African American Near St. Andrews in Richland County | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 6

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This grave of an African American is near St. Andrews in Richland County. The African custom of decorating a grave with items that their former owner might need in the spirit world was widespread in...

Basket Teacher at Penn School with Class | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 7

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Grades: 8

The first basket teacher at the Penn School worked to revive and perpetuate the African basket making skills among the children of the Sea Islands. The baskets made had a wide range of utilitarian...

Group of Penn School Baskets | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 8

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Grades: 4 8

A group of Penn School baskets, illustrating their many forms, as well as the beauty that made them an important craft that Sea Island residents could sell as the tourist industry began to expand in...

Modern Basket Maker, Jannie Cohen | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 9

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A modern basket maker, Jannie Cohen, demonstrates her mastery of this ancient African skill. Courtesy of the South Carolina State Museum.

Pot with Distinct African Form | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 10

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Grades: 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

A remarkable African slave craftsman in the Edgefield area, known only as "Dave," produced this pot, whose design is distinctly African in form. Courtesy of the South Carolina State Museum.

Uncle Sam Polite | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 11

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Grades: 8

The crafts that Africans brought with them in their heads and hands to the new world were crafts that were important to carrying out everyday life--whether it be making baskets and pots, or keeping...

Painting of Lowcountry Group of Singers | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 12

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Grades: 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Alfred Hutty painting of a Lowcountry group of singers. These men and women are quite likely the musicians for a "shout" ceremony, for they are singing and clapping their hands rhythmically. The...

Window on the House of Eugenia Deas | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 13

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Grades: 4 8

One of the beliefs that Sea Island African Americans have adapted to South Carolina living is that connection of certain colors to protecting individuals against the hard feelings of the spirit world...

Granny Midwives in Penn School | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 14

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Grades: 4 8

African herbal medicine traditions remained an important part of health care practices in the slave communities. Even after the war, when the Freedman's Bureau and northern educators tried to teach...

Critter Barn | History Of SC Slide Collection

Episode 15

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The Works Progress Administration photographer who recorded this structure in the 1930s called it a "Critter Barn." Its design and execution clearly mark the African building influence upon it, even a...

Plantation "Streets" Of The "Negro Quarters" | History Of South Carolina Slide Collection

Episode 16

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Grades: 4 8

During slavery, although plantation owners attempted to control the lives and activities of their slave labor, a vital community based on African traditions of family and kin networks aided African...