Plantation Slavery

Artist's conception of enslaved labor in the garden at Belle Grove Plantation

NPS Artwork by Keith Rocco

In the Shenandoah Valley, small family farms were the norm but plantations did exist, including Belle Grove. Major Isaac Hite, Jr. and his family recorded 276 enslaved people that they owned between 1783 and 1851. Some worked raising crops of wheat, corn, flax, and other grains or tended livestock. Others worked in Hite’s industries, of which there were a blacksmith shop, saw mill, grist mill, and distillery. Enslaved workers were involved in every household task or income-producing venture and their labor was critical to the plantation’s success.