Different Classes of People

1. Different Classes of People Standard 3-4.1

2. After the Revolution… • After the Revolutionary War, many social classes began to appear. • These classes were: • Elite • Middle Class • Lower Class • Independent farmers • Freed African Americans • Enslaved African Americans

3. Elite Class • These were the wealthy, or upper class • These were planters that lived on plantations. • Majority lived in the low country, but some lived in the Midlands and the up country as well. • The children were educated by private tutors or sent to other countries for education. • Because of their wealth, they had great influence over politics in SC. • They made laws that protected their own interests, like slavery.

6. Middle Class • Tradesmen, merchants, shopkeepers, physicians, and attorneys. • Most likely to live in cities and towns. • May have owned a few slaves to do household chores. • Their children were taught to read and write and might pursue a trade like their father’s. • Political influence – usually only influential around their neighborhoods.

8. Lower Class • Unskilled and uneducated people. • Did not own land. • Job prospects were limited. • Did hire slaves if they could. • They often squatted on a piece of land and engaged in subsistence farming. • Children were uneducated – there was no public school at this time. • Little to no social or political influence

9. Independent farmers • Lived on small farms usually without slaves. • Some may have owned slaves, but they worked along side them. • Whole family helped tend the farm. • Children might be educated at home. • As independent farmers sold more of their cash crops, they began to buy more slaves to help and therefore became a bigger political influence. • Some even became members of the elite.

11. Freed African Americans • Most lived in Charleston. • They were skilled craftsmen such as tailors, carpenters, or shoemakers. • Freed men living outside of Charleston were usually small farmers. • Some of them owned slaves. • They would work to earn money to buy the freedom of their loved ones. • Some children of freed African Americans were taught to read at home, but there was no school for them.

12. Continued… • They had no political influence. • They had to carry their freedom papers with them wherever they went. • They had to pay a special tax. • They were often afraid of being returned to slavery.

14. Enslaved African Americans • Unpaid labor force. • Bought and sold to plantation owners and small farmers. • Some families were split when sold. • Considered the property of their white masters. • They were punished if they ran away and were caught. • Lived in one-room slave cabins that were dirty. • Worked from sun-up to sun-down. • Were given few clothes and little food by their masters. • Was illegal for slaves and their children to be able to read and write. • They had no political influence.