Topic 2.11: The Stono Rebellion

Facts, Truth, & Perspective on Fort Mose and the Stono Rebellion

LO 2.11.A Explain key effects of the asylum offered by Spanish Florida in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

“Although such narratives (from the Federal Writers Project) must be treated with care as historical sources… a good deal of what George Cato says ⎯ roughly two hundred years after the event ⎯ is corroborated by other sources…George Cato stresses matters in his account that historians have come to see as critical to a full understanding of the revolt: masculinity, drink, religion, military fighting, timing. The document is the only source we have from a nonwhite perspective, and it is worth reading carefully.” - Mark M. Smith, Stono: Documenting and Interpreting a Southern Slave Revolt , 2005

Objectives:

1. Students will evaluate the reliability of two contrasting sources view of the Stono Rebellion

2. Students will be able to describe the impact that the Stono Rebellion had on the 1740 South Carolina Slave Code as well as its enduring impact on Black culture

NOTES

This lesson opens up a powerful discussion about the sources chosen by the College Board to represent significant events in Black history. Each year I’ve taught it, students have argued that the College Board should replace the letter from the South Carolina governor with the Federal Writers’ Project interview from Jemmy/Cato’s great-great-grandson.

In Governor Bull’s letter, Jemmy/Cato is not mentioned by name, though it’s clear that Bull saw him as a threat to society. The WPA source, however, paints a different picture. George Cato describes “Commander Cato” as a brave and resilient hero who was willing to sacrifice his life for the cause of justice.

Students are also interested in the story of Fort Mose (pronounced “Mo-say”) and the concept of a “southbound underground railroad” to Spanish Florida, which opens up another perspective on escape and resistance.

This lesson also connects back to two earlier topics: a lesson on 2.9 about “stepping” and the evolution of Black culture, and the Socratic Seminar in Lessons 2.2-2.4, which includes a longer reading from Toni Morrison. I included a slide in this lesson with a Morrison quote to help us discuss question #2 on the distinction between fact and truth. Do we truly know the last words Jemmy/Commander Cato spoke in September 1739? Can we be sure of the factual evidence from an oral interview completed two hundred years later? The words might not be precise fact, but the message of resistance, defiance, bravery, and courage certainly resonates with the legacy of the Stono Rebellion.

If students were to consider only Governor Bull’s account of the event alongside the restrictive 1740 South Carolina Slave Code, they might conclude that the rebellion was a failure, worsening conditions for survivors. However, the perspectives of George Cato and dance historian Dr. Ofosuwa M. Abiola prompt a deeper and necessary understanding of the enduring power of resistance and cultural legacy.