CHAPTER 1
Early Life
The lake was the former riverbed of the mighty Mississippi River. It was formed when the River changed courses thousands of years ago. Nine miles long and a mile wide, its only connection to the river now was a narrow chute about 200 yards long. Standing like sentinels all around the lake were large cypress trees. Most of the taller ones had their tops destroyed by lightning. The Spanish moss growing from their limbs gave the trees an eerie appearance in the bright moonlight. The only sounds breaking the silence was the croaking of the bullfrogs and the occasional bellowing of a bull alligator resting between the huge cypress knees.
In the hot, sultry Delta night, a lone man sat on his horse gazing out on this majestic sight. To his knowledge, he was one of the first white men to set eyes on the beautiful lake that the Choctaw Indians had described to him several weeks earlier at their village located on several mounds.
Buchanan Inman was a young man of twenty-six years of age. Of medium height, he was heavily muscled yet had a slim appearance. The hot Mississippi sun had turned his natural dark complexion to a deep bronze and had caused his hair to become even lighter than its natural blond hue. Blue piercing eyes gazed out from under his hat. In South Carolina, his self-assured demeanor, handsome features and social position had made him one of the most sought after marriage prospects material. The young belles that traveled in his social circles considered him a prime candidate for a husband. They were thrilled if they could get his name on their dance cards when attending the many balls that were given to entertain the young people in the privileged world where they grew up.
Now, viewing the beauty of the lake that the Indians simply called Yazoo, he reflected on the events that had brought him to this place: THE IMAGE OF A BLACK SLAVE TIED TO THE STAKE AND BEING WHIPPED WAS STILL VIVID IN HIS MIND. HE STILL COULD HEAR HIS GROANS!
Buchanan, or Buck, as he was called, was born in 1832 on a large sprawling plantation that was located near Inman, South Carolina. This village was named after his paternal grandfather. The Inmans were some of the first settlers to lay claim to this rich soil that produced bountiful cotton every year. Buck's father, John, had inherited the place and had added many acres. By the time Buck was born, the plantation comprised some 8,000 acres.
Buck's mother, the former Georgia Susanna Peacock, was wealthy in her own right. She had married John at the age of eighteen. Georgia was a lady that was remembered as the most beautiful girl in the area while growing up. When one looked at her, one could see where Buck had inherited his good looks. Still slim, she had the same blond hair as Buck and the same piercing eyes. The only contrast in their coloring was that her skin was more of an olive complexion. Her aristocratic carriage and pride of family could be traced back to her early ancestors. Most Southern aristocrats could recite their family linage for generations. Georgia was no exception, since she was extremely proud of her forebears. Georgia, or Mistress as she was called, was a direct descendant of the Peacocks of Jamestown. Her ancestors had slowly migrated inland to the area around Inman, South Carolina. She was a stickler for maintaining the customs and way of living that had been passed on to her from her parents. The house and grounds had to be immaculate. Every meal was a seated affair with the slaves dressed in black trousers, white shirts, and white gloves. Meals were served on fine china and beverages in the crystal glasses—all of which she had inherited from her parents and grandparents. The silverware was an inheritance from Big John's side of the family.
She was always fully dressed with her hair and makeup done to perfection. Her clothes, many of which were ordered from France, were of the latest style. She, as many Southern women, was proficient at the piano. These ladies were taught music and were expected to perform at any social occasion. The Mistress was extremely proud of her race, her place, and her grace. She had become a Christian as a teen-ager and regularly attended the Episcopal Church. Strangely, she saw no conflict between being one of the largest slaveholders in South Carolina and her commitment to Christ. In fact, she had insisted that a balcony be built in the local church so that the slaves could worship with the whites. The slaves just could not sit with their owners.
John Inman, on the other hand, made no pretense of following Christ. Oh, he regularly attended church with his wife and children, but when he left the church on Sunday, he left behind any thought of religion or Christianity. He was too self-sufficient to need the guidance of Christ in his daily life. In fact, he did not feel that he needed anyone or anything. As master of one of the largest plantations in the state and owner of 450 slaves, he was as self-sufficient as one could get. He stood six foot and weighted about 260 pounds. He had black hair and hazel eyes. He was broad-shouldered with the dark complexion for which all Inmans were known. He was quite a man!
The Inman place was the typical plantation of that era. The only thing that set it apart was its vastness. The main house, or the "Big House" as the slaves called it, had the customary Greek revival columns found on many plantations in the South. It had four large columns on the front, and four on each side, for a total of twelve. U-shaped porches wrapped the house upstairs and down. These ran the width of the back and were used as sleeping porches when the weather was extremely hot. Semi-attached to the structure was the kitchen where the meals were prepared by the plantation cooks.
A massive structure, it had eight bedrooms, two drawing rooms or parlors, entry hall, dining room, smoking room and a library. The library was Big John's pride. He boasted that he had the largest collection of books west of Charleston. He allowed no one to use the library without his express permission. Family portraits and tapestries decorated the walls of the mansion. Fine oriental rugs covered the floors.
With sixteen foot ceilings downstairs and twelve foot ceilings upstairs and a massive staircase rising between, the Inman Mansion represented all of the wealth and power of the family.
In the rear of the house was located the dairy room, smokehouse, blacksmith shop, barns and well as all the other structures needed for the operation of such a large plantation. Down a shady road to the rear of these structures were the slave quarters. They lined either side of this dirt road for approximately a mile. The houses in the quarters were of two types. One was a simple one room cabin with a large fireplace used for warmth and cooking. These cabins were home to families that were crowded together under one roof. Although not legally recognized by the state, many of the male and females heading up these families considered themselves married. They had performed the marriage ceremony called "jumping the broom". This union was recognized by the slaves and also by the Master.
The other type structures were buildings sixty feet long and twelve feet wide. This space was divided into five rooms. A long porch ran across both the front and back of these buildings. In these structures lived the unmarried slaves. Four or five single men shared a room. The single women also shared rooms. With about 450 slaves on the premises, the slave quarters had the feeling of a small village. The only other abodes for slaves on the place were the cabins reserved for the house slaves. The preferential treatment of this class of slaves allowed them to have cabins with two rooms.
Over to the side of the barn, stood a four room cottage that housed the overseer and his family. The overseer was charged with keeping the slaves under control and seeing that the orders of the master were carried out.
Another one room building on the plantation was the schoolhouse. Here, not only were the family children educated, but also the children from surrounding plantations. The teacher, usually a man, was an educated professional. This teacher was employed by Big John and given the respect that his position warranted. He was allowed to live and eat in the Big House just as though he were family. This educational system was an alternative to sending the children away to boarding school. There were no schools for slaves on the place, for as Big John always said, "You don't have to know how to read and write to chop and pick cotton!"
During this period, there were two types of slave holders. One type was the slave holder that owned just a few slaves-sometimes, just one. These owners had small farms or lived in town. It was not unusual for these owners to work side by side with their slaves. Quite often a relationship developed between them more like family or hired help instead of slave/master.
On the large plantations like Inman, these personal relationships did not develop often due to the large number of slaves in comparison to the number of whites on the place. These large plantations were an economic system where 10% of the Planters owned 90% of the slaves. In fact, most of the whites had no slaves at all. With land selling for $25.00 an acre or less, and the cost of slaves averaging $1000.00 each, the average white man could not afford to join the elite group of slave holders.
There were several categories of slaves on the plantations. The largest group was the field hands. They were responsible for the production of the crops and raising the livestock. Their schedule varied according to the seasons. They had to work long hard hours during the planting and harvesting season. They broke the ground, planted, weeded and harvested the crops. During this season, they worked from dawn to sun down, six days a week. Their only respite was Sunday and the days when it rained. Sunday was a free day to be spent resting, cooking, mending, washing cloths and socializing. Another class of slaves were the specialty slaves. In the social order they were a class above the field hands. These slaves provided the labor that kept the plantation running smoothly. This class was made up of carpenters, hostlers, yardmen, milkers, etc ... Their daily jobs were not easy, but they were much preferred to the long hours in the fields.
The most sought after position by the slaves was being a house slave. These individuals provided the care that made the lives of the residents comparable to some of the royalty of Europe. There were cooks, maids, butlers, nursery workers, carriage drivers and even someone to keep wood in the fireplaces during the coldest of nights. Most of the whites had their own personal slave that was given to them at birth. The fact that the white child and slave grew up and played together made for a strange relationship. FRIENDS, BUT STILL A POSSESSION.
Another thing that was puzzling to an outsider was the relationship between the owners and the slaves. They didn't understand that most of the house slaves had been owned all of their lives by their masters, their masters' parents and sometimes their masters' grandparents. In some cases there were three or four generations of whites and three or four generations of slaves living and dying together on the plantation. By being confined daily to the big house, these slaves became attached to the whites and the whites to them. FRIENDS, BUT STILL A POSSESSION. Many a nursemaid felt comfortable scolding a young master even after he became grown. Because of their relationship, he would accept a chastisement from her, whereas if a field hand had said anything comparable, his anger would have been kindled and the slave punished for getting out of their place. So it went on for generations. The nurses' child would become the personal slave of the master's child and then the offspring of companion slave would become part of the Big House's staff. FRIENDS, BUT STILL A POSSESSION.
So it was with Big Man. He was the personal slave of Buchanan Inman. He had been given this name not because he was large, which he was, but because at an early age he had exhibited an unusual maturity for his age. The slaves would say, "Look at him, he acts like a big man!" So, he became Big Man Inman, taking on the last name of his owners as was customary. As an adult he lived up to his name. He was 6'6 and 280 pounds of muscle. He had a reddish color to his skin that set him apart from the other slaves. However, this was not unusual. The landowners did not make any preference as to where their slaves originated. They could have been from Africa, South America, the Caribbean, or from Native Americans. They didn't care. They just wanted them to be able to work. It was rumored that Big Man had the blood of a Tunica Indian chief running thru his veins. It was said that this chief had been captured by a Cherokee raiding party in Mississippi and brought back to Virginia to be sold into slavery. Big Man had been selected by the master to be Buck's personal slave. He was given to Buck on Buck's first birthday. Big Man was four.
Big Man was chosen for this position due mainly to the fact that Man's mother, Birdie was the cook for the Inman clan. A heavy set woman with a sunny disposition, she ruled the kitchen as if it were her domain. It was! She was in control and her assistants had better not forget it. She was renowned for her cooking. Everything was fattening. Her theory was "if it ain't fattening, it ain't no good". For breakfast, she prepared ham, bacon, eggs, biscuits and white milk gravy. Also available would be homemade jelly, molasses and local honey. The meal was complete when washed down with milk from the dairy or scalding boiled coffee.
As soon as the table was cleared and the dishes washed, Birdie and her assistants would start the dinner meal. On the plantation, one had breakfast, dinner and supper.
The family's favorite noon meal was fried chicken, green beans cooked with a slice of pork meat, mashed potatoes with gravy, fried okra, sweet corn, turnip greens and corn bread. The greens had to be covered in hot pepper sauce. Also served would be fresh tomatoes and cucumbers. The preferred beverage was Southern sweet tea. The tea was not mildly sweet, but really sweet! The secret to getting this taste was adding the sugar to the brewed tea while hot and then diluting with water. The favorite desserts were banana pudding and buttermilk pie. Birdie was also an expert at making pecan pies.
As could be expected, no family could be expected to eat all of this at one sitting. The leftovers were set aside to be eaten at supper. One of the perks in working at the Big House was the privilege of getting to share in these sumptuous meals. The other slaves, although fed substantially, were allowed to cook the poorer cuts of meat such as pig's feet, hog heads made into souse, back bones and other less desirable cuts. In season, they were allowed fresh vegetables. Another staple at the slaves' meals was hoe bread. This was cornbread placed on a flattened field hoe and then cooked on an open fire. Although their fare was not as choice as slaveholders, it was enough to allow them to work their long hours. Some owners took pride in how they fed and treated their slaves. Others treated their slaves well because of the investment that they represented. Just as malnourished mules could not be expected to work; neither could malnourished slaves. It was the overseers' responsibility to see that the slaves were kept in good condition so that they could perform the back breaking work that was required of them. TAKEN CARE OF, BUT STILL A POSSESSION.
Buck Inman grew up in this idyllic environment. His early days were filled mostly with playing with Big Man. They had the full run of the Big House, the out buildings and the grounds. They grew up wrestling and playing. They loved to sneak into the kitchen for left-over cake or pie when they thought Birdie wasn't watching. What they didn't realize was that Birdie saw them and was thrilled to see them as they sneaked in. "You boys better git out of hea before I takes a broom to you!" she would yell. They would scurry to the door to escape her mock wrath.
