Knoxville depended more on enslaved people than history suggests | Know Your Knox
Though Knoxville has often been described as a more racially tolerant Southern city, its history of depending on the labor of enslaved people is deeply intertwined in the fabric of Tennessee's third-largest city and has often been neglected.
Knoxville's reputation compared to other parts of the state and South is built on several factors: its location in East Tennessee, which had fewer large plantations and an economy less reliant on the exploitation of enslaved people's labor than Middle and West Tennessee and other Southern states.
This created a more diverse population and a less rigid racial hierarchy, according to William Isom, director of Black in Appalachia.
Additionally, Knoxville's history includes instances of interracial cooperation and activism. During the Civil Rights Movement, Knoxville was relatively progressive, with peaceful desegregation of lunch counters and public facilities occurring earlier than in many other Southern cities.
But just what was the reality of slavery in Knoxville, and how much did slavery contribute to the local economy prior to emancipation in the state? Some of Knoxville's history of tolerance is based on myth, according to historians with expertise in the region.
Enslaved population in Knox County
When Territorial Governor William Blount ordered a census in 1791, it counted 163 enslaved Black people out of a total population of 3,619 in Knoxville.
“As Knoxville grew and traded with other cities, it not only received shipments of food and other goods, it received more enslaved people as well,” local historian Robert Booker wrote in his book "Two Hundred Years of Black Culture in Knoxville, Tennessee 1791-1991."
In Knoxville, the number of people exploited by slavery was never vast in raw numbers, but the significance of the contributions of enslaved people became apparent when viewed as a percentage of the city's population.
By 1850, a third of the population in the region was enslaved, playing a crucial role in Knoxville’s economic and social fabric.
The exploitation of enslaved people's labor was foundational to Knoxville's growth, with the arrival of the railroad in the 1850s ushering in a new era of commercial expansion, largely reliant on the forced labor of enslaved people for stability and prosperity.
In 1850, Knoxville counted roughly 1,500 enslaved individuals out of a total population of around 4,500. By 1860, the enslaved population had grown to approximately 2,000 out of a total population of 8,000.
“When you add the population of free blacks to the 1850 figures, you have 41% of the Knoxville population being free Blacks or enslaved. That says so much,” said Lisa Oakley, vice president and curator of education at the East Tennessee Historical Society.
The 1850 Federal Census for Knox County counted:
16,385 white people
229 free Black people, or 2% of the county population
2,193 enslaved people, or 14% of the county population
Knoxville population numbers in 1850 show some interesting percentages:
1,478 white people, with 9% of the county's white population in the city.
136 free Black people, making up 10% of the city population and 60% of the county's free Black population.
462 enslaved people, or 31% of the city population and 21% of the county's enslaved population.
The 1860 Census for Knox County listed:
20,020 white people
423 free Black people, or 3% of the county population
2,370 enslaved people, or 12% of the county population
How was slavery different in Knoxville?
Slavery did, in fact, play out a little differently in Knoxville, Isom said, but the notion that slavery was not big business in Knoxville is not only a stretch but a myth.
“I don’t think Knoxville is any different than the rest of the South when it comes to the contributions of enslaved people. It was certainly big business and foundational to the city’s economy,” Isom said. "It's firmly a fundamental Southern city and I think all the things that occurred in other Southern cities occurred in Knoxville, so we are not unique.”
Though there were no vast cotton fields in Knoxville and no industry that called for the forced labor of enslaved people, their contributions were significant.
Most enslaved people in Knoxville were forced to do housework and to tend the livestock of enslavers. After slavery was abolished, former enslaved people and freedmen alike were able to incorporate into society, becoming teachers, preachers, lawyers and successful businessmen.
Comparisons to Nashville are stark
The experience of enslaved people in Knoxville differed from that of Nashville, Oakley said, reflecting unique regional and economic factors.
Knoxville, in East Tennessee, had a smaller enslaved population than Nashville, situated in Middle Tennessee. This contrast was partly due to the differing agricultural landscapes: East Tennessee had fewer large-scale plantations reliant on enslaved labor, whereas Middle Tennessee's economy was more agrarian and dependent on the exploitation of enslaved people's labor.
In contrast, Knoxville's economy was more diversified, with a mix of industries such as manufacturing, trade and services, leading to a less concentrated reliance on enslaved labor. Additionally, Nashville's position as the state capital and a major hub for commerce and transportation further entrenched slavery in its social and economic makeup.
After Reconstruction, Black residents remained pivotal in Knoxville
In the post-Reconstruction era, life for Black people in Knoxville was marked by both progress and persistent challenges.
Black Americans gained some civil rights and political representation during Reconstruction, but those gains were eroded by the rise of Jim Crow laws and racial segregation.
Black Knoxvillians faced widespread discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations, limiting their economic opportunities and social mobility. Segregated schools meant that Black children received an inferior education compared to their white counterparts, further perpetuating racial inequality.
Despite these challenges, Black Knoxvillians built a vibrant community that had its own businesses, churches and social organizations.
The Black business district along Vine Street flourished, becoming a hub of economic activity and cultural life. Black churches played a central role in the community, providing not just spiritual guidance but also serving as centers for social and political organizing.
Despite the oppressive racial climate, Black Knoxvillians continued to assert their rights and dignity, laying the groundwork for the Civil Rights Movement that would follow in the 20th century.
Dr. William Hardy, assistant professor of history and Lincoln Scholar in the history department at Lincoln Memorial University, said that freed people supported a fractured Republican Party, providing 40,000 critical votes across the state. Despite not winning seats in proportion to their support, their political engagement and drive for increased rights unsettled whites who feared a disruption of the established racial hierarchy.
"They were active statewide in 'colored conventions' that met at the county level in counties with the largest urban areas such as in Knoxville, before heading off to Nashville for the statewide Republican Convention.," Hardy said.
"They carved out a place for themselves economically as Black businesses surged in cities. A leading newspaper in Maryville, the Maryville Republican, was owned and edited by William B. Scott Sr. There is still much work to be done to highlight these stories."
Know Your Knox answers your burning questions about life in Knoxville. Want your question answered? Email [email protected].
Angela Dennis is the Knox News race, justice and equity reporter. Email [email protected]. X formerly called Twitter @AngeladWrites. Instagram @angeladenniswrites. Facebook at Angela Dennis Journalist.
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Knoxville depended more on enslaved people than history suggests
