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Beyond Racism and Poverty
The Truck System on Louisiana Plantations and Dutch Peateries, 1865-1920
Series: - Studies in Global Slavery, Volume: 3
Author:
The truck system was a global phenomenon in the period 1865-1920, where workers were paid through the company store. In Beyond Racism and Poverty Karin Lurvink looks at how this system functioned on plantations in Louisiana in comparison with peateries in the Netherlands. In the United States, the system is often viewed as a 'second slavery' and strongly associated with racism. In the Netherlands, however, not racism but poverty has been seen as the main reason for its continued existence.
By using a variety of historical sources and by analyzing the perspectives of both employers and workers, Lurvink provides new insights into how the truck system worked and can be explained. She reveals how the system was not only coercive but had advantages for the workers as well, which should not be overlooked.
By using a variety of historical sources and by analyzing the perspectives of both employers and workers, Lurvink provides new insights into how the truck system worked and can be explained. She reveals how the system was not only coercive but had advantages for the workers as well, which should not be overlooked.
Dr. Karin Lurvink (1987), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, obtained her Ph.D. in 2016 and is currently a Postdoctoral Researcher. She works on the project âSlaves, Commodities, and Logisticsâ, which is looking at the impact of slavery on the Dutch economy.
Preface
Acknowledgements
List of Illustrations
Abbreviations and Conventions
Glossary
Introduction
âThe Truck SystemâA Nineteenth-Century Global Phenomenon
âAmerican Historians Discussing the Truck SystemâRacism
âDutch Historians Discussing the Truck SystemâPoverty
âSelecting the Research Cases
âRational Choice-Approach
âVoice from the Past: Source Material
âOutline
1 Bayous and BogsâThe Geography of Isolation
âThe Louisiana Countryside
âLouisiana Rivers, Creeks, Lakes, and Bayous
âRailroadsâAn Improved Connection to the Outside World
âDutch Roads and Highways of Water
2 Truck Payments
âFields of Cotton and Sugarcane
âPermanent and Seasonal Peat Lands
âTruck Payments
ââDirect Non-CashâSomething to Eat and a Few Rags to Wear?
ââIndirect Non-CashâThe Company Store
ââColorful Tokens and Handwritten Store Notes
ââLiving off Future Income
âPiles of Greenbacks, Dollars, and Guilders
âConclusions
3 Abuse? The Effects of the Truck System
âWhiskey, Jenever, and Alcoholics
âHigh Price, Low Quality
âUsurious Interest Rates
âDebt Peonage
âConclusions
4 Costs and BenefitsâThe Employerâs Perspective
âCostsâThe Opposite of the Truck System
âEconomic Forces and Financial Difficulties
ââStrapped for Cash
ââMiserable Years and Declining Profits
âââThe Queerest Looking CreaturesââLabor Supply and Productivity
ââThe Misery of this Timeâ and Truck Payment Methods
âConclusions
5 Carrots, Cake, and CandyâThe Store as a Positive Incentive
âPresents âJoyfully Acceptedâ
âFacilitating Commerce
ââSelf-sufficient Little Worlds of Their Own?
ââThe Alternative Marketplace ââA Welcome Sight to the Rural Residentâ
ââCredit Scarcity
âConsumerism and the Physical Artifacts of Modern Life
âââFrom Something to Eat, to Something to Work, to Something to Wearâ
ââShopping in the Peat Employerâs StoreââThe More We Take, the More We Haveâ
ââAccess to Desires
âConclusions
6 Sticks and StrikesâThe Store as a Negative Incentive
âDebating and Denouncing the Truck System
ââNo Way to Check the Honesty of the Recordsâ
âLack of Freedom
âRacist Truck System?
âConclusions
7 The Power of Racism and Class
âIncreasing Terror
âDeclining Resistance
âRacism and the Truck System
âNo Truck, No Job
âLowest Class of Society
âConclusions
Conclusion
âMain Conclusions
âRacism and Poverty
âBeyond Louisiana and the Netherlands: Suggestions for Future Research
Appendices
âAppendix 1. Louisiana Database and Method of Analysis
ââCreating the Database
ââMethod of Analysis
âAppendix 2. Dutch Database and Method of Analysis
âAppendix 3. Harry Baptiste and Samuel TaylorâOral History Interview 2011
âAppendix 4. Isolation and Infrastructure
Sources
âUnpublished Sources
ââPeateries
ââPlantation Administrations
âPhotographs
âTokens
âInterviews
âPrinted Sources
âNewspapers
âDutch Newspapers
âUniversiteitsbibliotheek Vrije Universiteit
âGovernment Documents
âDutch Government Documents
âSecond Chamber Reports
âFirst Chamber Reports
âMaps
âMiscellaneous
âPublished sources
âPrice Data
âTravel Accounts
âMiscellaneous
Bibliography
âLiterature
âUnpublished Studies
Index
Acknowledgements
List of Illustrations
Abbreviations and Conventions
Glossary
Introduction
âThe Truck SystemâA Nineteenth-Century Global Phenomenon
âAmerican Historians Discussing the Truck SystemâRacism
âDutch Historians Discussing the Truck SystemâPoverty
âSelecting the Research Cases
âRational Choice-Approach
âVoice from the Past: Source Material
âOutline
1 Bayous and BogsâThe Geography of Isolation
âThe Louisiana Countryside
âLouisiana Rivers, Creeks, Lakes, and Bayous
âRailroadsâAn Improved Connection to the Outside World
âDutch Roads and Highways of Water
2 Truck Payments
âFields of Cotton and Sugarcane
âPermanent and Seasonal Peat Lands
âTruck Payments
ââDirect Non-CashâSomething to Eat and a Few Rags to Wear?
ââIndirect Non-CashâThe Company Store
ââColorful Tokens and Handwritten Store Notes
ââLiving off Future Income
âPiles of Greenbacks, Dollars, and Guilders
âConclusions
3 Abuse? The Effects of the Truck System
âWhiskey, Jenever, and Alcoholics
âHigh Price, Low Quality
âUsurious Interest Rates
âDebt Peonage
âConclusions
4 Costs and BenefitsâThe Employerâs Perspective
âCostsâThe Opposite of the Truck System
âEconomic Forces and Financial Difficulties
ââStrapped for Cash
ââMiserable Years and Declining Profits
âââThe Queerest Looking CreaturesââLabor Supply and Productivity
ââThe Misery of this Timeâ and Truck Payment Methods
âConclusions
5 Carrots, Cake, and CandyâThe Store as a Positive Incentive
âPresents âJoyfully Acceptedâ
âFacilitating Commerce
ââSelf-sufficient Little Worlds of Their Own?
ââThe Alternative Marketplace ââA Welcome Sight to the Rural Residentâ
ââCredit Scarcity
âConsumerism and the Physical Artifacts of Modern Life
âââFrom Something to Eat, to Something to Work, to Something to Wearâ
ââShopping in the Peat Employerâs StoreââThe More We Take, the More We Haveâ
ââAccess to Desires
âConclusions
6 Sticks and StrikesâThe Store as a Negative Incentive
âDebating and Denouncing the Truck System
ââNo Way to Check the Honesty of the Recordsâ
âLack of Freedom
âRacist Truck System?
âConclusions
7 The Power of Racism and Class
âIncreasing Terror
âDeclining Resistance
âRacism and the Truck System
âNo Truck, No Job
âLowest Class of Society
âConclusions
Conclusion
âMain Conclusions
âRacism and Poverty
âBeyond Louisiana and the Netherlands: Suggestions for Future Research
Appendices
âAppendix 1. Louisiana Database and Method of Analysis
ââCreating the Database
ââMethod of Analysis
âAppendix 2. Dutch Database and Method of Analysis
âAppendix 3. Harry Baptiste and Samuel TaylorâOral History Interview 2011
âAppendix 4. Isolation and Infrastructure
Sources
âUnpublished Sources
ââPeateries
ââPlantation Administrations
âPhotographs
âTokens
âInterviews
âPrinted Sources
âNewspapers
âDutch Newspapers
âUniversiteitsbibliotheek Vrije Universiteit
âGovernment Documents
âDutch Government Documents
âSecond Chamber Reports
âFirst Chamber Reports
âMaps
âMiscellaneous
âPublished sources
âPrice Data
âTravel Accounts
âMiscellaneous
Bibliography
âLiterature
âUnpublished Studies
Index
All interested in the history of the truck system, post-bellum Louisiana, and Dutch peateries.