PLANTATION LIFE

Plantation life began between the 17th and 18th century in Georgetown, South Carolina, and the area soon grew to be the wealthiest city in the USA, and the second largest rice producer in world history. Mansfield Plantation was at the center of this rice plantation boom.

A typical rice plantation consisted of a main house, along with guest houses, a slave village, and a system of canals and floodgates for irrigation. The rice was picked by slaves, dried, and taken to a winnowing barn, where the grain was separated from the hull.

At one time, Georgetown, S.C. was supplying most of the world with its rice crops. But after the Civil War, plantation's were forced to close and the once booming South Carolina rice industry all but dried up.


Real World Experience! Area students search for clues from the past on their archaeological dig at Mansfield Plantation. READ MORE