Georgia Historical Society

Hopeton, Model Plantation of the Antebellum South Author(s): James M. Clifton Reviewed work(s): Source: The Georgia Historical Quarterly, Vol. 66, No. 4 (Winter, 1982), pp. 429-449 Published by: Georgia Historical Society Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40580967 . Accessed: 12/12/2012 13:10 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

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ModelPlantation ofthe Hopeton, Antebellum South By JamesM. Clifton 1833,J. D. Legare, renownededitor of the SouthernAgriculturist,wrote in his journal followinga visit to Hopeton Plantationon the AltamahaRiver in GlynnCounty,Georgia: We hesitatenotto sayHopetonis decidedlythebestplantationwe haveevervisited,and we doubtwhether it can be equalled in the SouthernStates;and whenwe considertheextentof thecrops,the of thesame,and thenumberof operatives who have to be variety directedand managed,it willnotbe presumptive to saythatit may withanyestablishment of the United fairlychallengecomparison of thewhole,theregularity States,forthesystematic arrangement and precision withwhicheachand all of theoperations are carried out,and theperfectand dailyaccountability establishedin every department.1 Too, Hopeton is probablythe finestexample among antebellum southernplantationsof crop diversification, with three major sea island cotton,sugar,and rice being producedsimulstaples taneouslyand some yearshavingapproximatelythe same acreage devoted to each. Finally, the survivingHopeton records are amazinglycompleteforvirtuallythe entireantebellumera, thus providingforan in-depthanalysisof crop production,operational procedures,slave managementpractices,and the plantation's profitability. Hopeton was establishedin 1805 by JohnCouper and James Hamilton,who had come to Savannah togetherfromScotlandin the fall of 1755 as teenageboysand subsequentlyremainedclose in both personal and business ties. The original two thousand acres were soon expanded to forty-five hundred.The 637 slaves, ij. D. Legare, "Account of an Agricultural Excursion Made into the South of Georgia in the Winter of 1832; by the Editor," Southern Agriculturistand Register of Rural Affairs6 (June-August1833), 359. Mr. Clifton is professorof historyat SoutheasternCommunityCollege, Whiteville, North Carolina. The Georgia Historical Quarterly Vol. LXVI, No. 4, Winter 1982

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GeorgiaHistorical Quarterly

to preparethe werepurchased manyofdirectAfricanextraction, and first sea then riceas the for island fields, cotton, sugar, finally RecordsforHopetonare very principalcropsof theplantation.2 until Hamilton when 1818, Couper,JohnCouper's scanty James becamemantwenty-three yearold sonand Hamilton'snamesake, thereare his graduationfromYale; henceforth, ager following 1841 financial to and records to the 1850s.3 complete cropreports The partnership ofJohnCouperand JamesHamiltonended in 1826.OvertheyearsCouperfellvictimto suchvicissitudes as theburdenofheavyborrowing and sustainthe (bothto establish at 8 percentcompoundinterest, lossesof profits from plantation) theEmbargoand Non-Intercourse ActsbeforetheWar of 1812, andthelossofsixtyprimeslavesvaluedat fifteen thousand dollars at thehandsoftheBritishduringthewar,replacedonlythrough moreborrowed capital.Finally,theloss of twocompletecotton first in to a hurricane and thenin 1825tocaterpillars, 1824 crops, in conjunction withdecliningpricesof cotton,slaves,and land, himto sell his portionof theplantation convinced and slavesto Hamilton.Hamilton,in turn,sold one-half in Hopeton interest with 381 slaves to along JamesHamiltonCouperfor$137,000 to be paid overa periodof fifteen yearsat 6 percentinterest. was to half receive and two the of theplantation Couper profits thousand dollarsperannumas manager.4 diedin Hamilton James 1829,butCoupercontinuedto manageon thesamebasisforthe Hamiltonestateuntil1841,when,to freehimself fromdebt,he turnedbackhisinterest in theplantation to theestate.From1841 to 1850,Couper,no longerentitledto halfof Hopeton'sprofits, 2John Couper Papers, Georgia Historical Society, Savannah, Georgia; List of Slaves Belonging to James Hamilton and John Couper, January, 1806, Francis Porteus Corbin Papers, Duke University, Durham, N.C.; Memories of Charles Spalding Wylly, Mackay-Stiles Papers, Southern Historical Collection, University of North Carolina Library, Chapel Hill, N.C.; James C. Bonner, The Georgia Story (Oklahoma City, 1961) , 164-69; George M. White, Historical Collections of Georgia (New York, 1855) , 469. 3The James Hamilton Couper Plantation Records (1818-1854) in the Southern Historical Collection consist of four volumes. The firsttwo volumes are detailed plantation accounts; volume three gives a complete summary of the crops at Hopeton from 1818 to 1841; and volume four, entitled "Agricultural Notes," is a compilation of the observationsof Couper as to the production and processing of the various crops. 4John Couper to James Couper, 24 May 1828, John Couper Papers, Southern Historical Collection; List of Slaves Belonging to James Hamilton Couper, 1826, Corbin Papers; Couper Plantation Records.

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and for1851 dollarsas manager, a salaryoffivethousand received recordscease),six thousand and 1852 (atwhichtimethefinancial dollars.6FrancisPorteusCorbin,who had marriedHamilton's onlychild and heiressof the plantation, joined Couper as coin 1856.FromthenuntiltheCivilWar oftheplantation manager with partnership Couperco-managed Hopetonon a half-interest in 1818, Corbin.6 WhenJamesHamiltonCouperbecamemanager Hopeton'splantedacreagewas544acres;by1841,957acres;andby 1857,1,025acres.7The originalslavepopulationof 637 in 1806 had decreasedby themid-1840sto about500 whereit remained fortherestoftheantebellum period.8 A quicksurveyof Hopeton'scroprecordsfrom1818to 1841 (see Figures1 and 2) indicatesthatHopetonwas initiallya sea

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