Synopses & Reviews
Like cotton, indigo has defied its humble origins. Left alone it might have been a regional plant with minimal reach, a localized way of dyeing textiles, paper, and other goods with a bit of blue. But when blue became the most popular color for the textiles that Britain turned out in large quantities in the eighteenth century, the South Carolina indigo that colored most of this cloth became a major component in transatlantic commodity chains. In
Red, White, and Black Make Blue, Andrea Feeser tells the stories of all the peoples who made indigo a key part of the colonial South Carolina experience as she explores indigoandrsquo;s relationships to land use, slave labor, textile production and use, sartorial expression, and fortune building.
In the eighteenth century, indigo played a central role in the development of South Carolina. The popularity of the color blue among the upper and lower classes ensured a high demand for indigo, and the climate in the region proved sound for its cultivation. Cheap labor by slavesandmdash;both black and Native Americanandmdash;made commoditization of indigo possible. And due to land grabs by colonists from the enslaved or expelled indigenous peoples, the expansion into the backcountry made plenty of land available on which to cultivate the crop. Feeser recounts specific historiesandmdash;uncovered for the first time during her researchandmdash;of how the Native Americans and African slaves made the success of indigo in South Carolina possible. She also emphasizes the material culture around particular objects, including maps, prints, paintings, and clothing. Red, White, and Black Make Blue is a fraught and compelling history of both exploitation and empowerment, revealing the legacy of a modest plant with an outsized impact.
Review
andldquo;Locating indigo production in both a global economy and the history of enslavement in colonial South Carolina, this book gives us the first tangible explanation of why indigo was such an important crop. Feeser explains just what andlsquo;blueandrsquo; meant in the eighteenth-century Atlantic world and does it so well that indigo production makes sense in a way it never has before.andrdquo;andmdash;Mart A. Stewart, author of andldquo;What Nature Suffers to Groeandrdquo;: Life, Labor, and Landscape on the Georgia Coast, 1680andndash;1920
Review
andldquo;The official state color of South Carolina is indigo. Why? Read Dr. Feeserandrsquo;s book. To understand the rich complexities of modern South Carolina, one needs to recognize the multidimensional past illustrated by South Carolinaandrsquo;s indigo culture. The history is there along with the material culture, and entwining connections give life and voice to known and unknown characters within a compelling narrative.andrdquo;andmdash;Randy L. Akers, executive director, The Humanities Council S.C.
Review
andquot;[T]he microhistories presented are compelling and effective in demonstrating that people of all races were transformed by the growing of indigo. Recommended for readers interested in South Carolina history and for specialists in material culture.andquot;andmdash;Nicholas Graham, Library Journal
Review
andldquo;Feeser (Clemson Univ.) has written a slim volume explaining how Native Americans, enslaved Africans, and white planters were all involved in the production of [indigo], which required hard work but reaped huge profits--hence the bookandrsquo;s title, Red, White and Black Make Blue. . . . In little more than 100 pages followed by copious notes, the author has written a fascinating history of a very profitable product that has also developed a strange mystique of its own along the way.andrdquo; andmdash;S. A. Syme, Choice
About the Author
Andrea Feeser is an associate professor of art and architectural history at Clemson University. She is the author of Waikiki: A History of Forgetting and Remembering.