In My Father's House Are Many Mansions: Family and Community in Edgefield, South Carolina (Fred W. Morrison Series in Southern Studies)
In his ``total history'' approach Burton examines the development of a large ru ral community from the late antebellum period to the late 19th century. Home to great Southern families, Edgefield was also a community of yeomen farm ers, free blacks, slaves and freedmen, and town residents. By examining ev ery household in the area over time, Burton discovers that wealth, more than race or class, shaped family struc ture for black and white alike. The ma triarchal black family, Burton shows, was not a product of slavery or emanci pation; it appeared in postbellum towns where only black women could find work. This conclusion challenges many recent interpretations about the black family in freedom. This intensive study invites similar explorations of other communities. Essential for Southern history and major university collec tions. Randall M. Miller, History Dept., St. Joseph's Univ., PhiladelphiaCopyright 1985 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.