Florida Plantation Records from the Papers of George Noble Jones

This re-issue of the classic 1927 documentary edition features a new introduction by John David Smith about its publishing history, its editors, and its scholarly value to southern historiography. Originally published by the Missouri Historical Society, it documents the plantation records of George Noble Jones and his two Florida plantations, El Destino and Chemonie, both located near Tallahassee, Florida. Considered one of the most accurate and comprehensive accounts of plantation management ever published, it remains one of the best primary source documents on plantation overseers and management. Principally covering the middle years of the 19th century,
Florida Plantation Records
provides a rich array of details essential to understanding slavery and plantation life in Florida - from slave names, ages, and work loads, to medical bills and weather reports, to production records, slave family genealogical information, and post-Civil War tenant agreements. In addition to defining the historical value of the primary text, Smith’s introduction evaluates the work of the editors within the context of 1920s editorial practice and historiography. Renowned for his determination and success in locating and preserving plantation manuscripts, Ulrich Bonnell Phillips was among the first historians to base their work on
scientific
methods. His significant publications helped to establish American slavery as a sub-field of southern history.