"Inventory and Appraisement of the Estate of Mr. Chisholm...," circa 1850

The wealth and power of Southern plantation owners depended upon a large labor force of enslaved people -- especially when cotton became "king" in the Deep South during the 1800s. They justified their actions by considering enslaved people to be mere pieces of property. This estate inventory lists the monetary value of household goods and slaves owned by a Mr. Chisholm.