UNIVERSITY of CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO the Penitentiary at Richmond
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UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO The Penitentiary at Richmond: Slavery, State Building, and Labor in the South’s First State Prison A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in History by Hilary Louise Coulson Committee in charge: Professor Rebecca Jo Plant, Chair Professor Stephen D. Cox Professor Mark Hanna Professor Mark Hendrickson Professor Rachel Klein 2016 Copyright Hilary Louise Coulson, 2016 All Rights Reserved The Dissertation of Hilary Louise Coulson is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication on microfilm and electronically: _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ Chair University of California, San Diego 2016 iii DEDICATION For my parents, Richard and Laura Coulson who always believed I could, and for my husband, Frank Fernandez, who helped me prove it. iv EPIGRAPH “You know we don’t have our prisons like yours of the North, like grand palaces with flower-yards.” –Keeper of the Virginia Penitentiary, c. 1866 v TABLE OF CONTENTS Signature Page ............................................................................................... iii Dedication ....................................................................................................... iv Epigraph .......................................................................................................... v Table of Contents ........................................................................................... vi Acknowledgments ...................................................................................... viii Vita ................................................................................................................. xiii Abstract ......................................................................................................... xiv Introduction ..................................................................................................... 1 Methodology ...................................................................................... 10 Structure .............................................................................................. 13 Historiography .................................................................................... 18 Chapter I: The Wasp Nest: Benjamin Henry Latrobe and the Construction of the Virginia Penitentiary, 1797-1800 ..................... 32 Society in Virginia .................................................................... 38 Latrobe’s Background ............................................................ 43 Old Dominion Reform ............................................................. 52 The Impact of Reform Sentiment .......................................... 56 Building the Virginia Penitentiary ........................................... 60 Chapter II: Another Spoke in the Wheel of Slavery: The Penitentiary as a Means of Control for Slaves and Protection for White Virginians, 1800-1820 ........................................................ 69 A Shifting Purpose ................................................................... 74 Operations, 1800-1815 ............................................................ 85 Maintaining Order ................................................................... 90 Conclusion ............................................................................... 96 Chapter III: “Killing by Inches:” Solitary, Re-Enslavement, and Rebellion, 1820-1832 ........................................................................................ 101 The Fire .................................................................................... 103 Committee to Inspect the Penitentiary .............................. 108 vi “Killing by Inches:” Solitary Confinement Laws .................. 110 Superintendent Reports ........................................................ 115 Drastic Measures ................................................................... 124 “A Punishment of the Highest Order” ................................ 128 Conclusion ............................................................................. 140 Chapter IV: Northern vs. Southern Labor and Religious Reform Ideologies ........................................................................................ 144 The Pennsylvania System ...................................................... 154 The Auburn System ................................................................ 160 Visitors to the Penitentiary and Their Observations ........... 165 Northern Reform Organizations Visit Virginia ..................... 176 Conclusion ............................................................................. 184 Chapter V: From Plantation to Penitentiary: Slave Labor Moves to Prison Labor, 1852-1866 ....................................... 186 Convict Leasing ..................................................................... 196 The End of the War ................................................................ 214 Conclusion ................................................................................................... 218 Bibliography ................................................................................................. 225 vii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I want to first thank my adviser, Rebecca Plant, who gave me a chance. Through every twist and turn of my time as a graduate student, Rebecca has been there and been helpful to me, even if she felt unsure about my path. I also want to thank Stephen Cox, who is, undoubtedly, my biggest fan. Stephen has been the best mentor, confidante, and advocate during my time at UC San Diego and I couldn’t have done this without his encouragement. I’m also grateful for the members on my committee who watched me learn and grow as a student for the past 5 years. Rachel Klein kindly listened and offered advice, Mark Hanna enthusiastically discussed my research on many occasions, and Mark Hendrickson graciously offered me his time and guidance whenever I asked. The mentorship I received from several faculty and staff members at the university sustained me. I feel lucky to have known Maureen McCormack before she moved to another position at the university. Maureen helped me navigate my first year of grad school, and now I’m lucky to have the help of Amber Rieder who has accommodated me as I worked from a distance. I owe a very special thanks to Sarah Beauchemin in the Revelle Humanities Department whose friendship and encouragement helped me during my most stressful times. viii I appreciate all of the faculty and staff in the history department at UC San Diego who kept me employed for my first year of graduate school and who funded several of my research trips and conference presentations, with a special thanks to Luis Alvarez and Pamela Radcliff who approved funding for my research. I’m also appreciative of the faculty and staff in Revelle College who provided me with gainful employment in the writing program for 2 years, where I felt most at home. Thank you to John Lee and Michael Caldwell who were excellent bosses and mentors during my time as a teaching assistant. I’m especially grateful to Stanley Chodorow who provided unwavering encouragement, compassion, and wisdom as I trained under him to be a teacher. It was an honor to work for each of these mentors, but again the greatest gift was learning from Stephen Cox. Not only was Stephen a mentor in my research, but he also taught me how to be a good instructor, how to pick my battles, and when to shut my mouth. I appreciate all of his patience and guidance over the years. I also want to thank the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia who funded me as a Library Fellow for the summer of 2015. It was in their library that this dissertation really started to take shape and I will always be grateful for their hospitality. I also want to thank the ix librarians and archivists at the Library of Virginia who spent a good deal of their time eagerly discussing the penitentiary with me. I’m forever indebted to the staff at the Eastern State Penitentiary archive, particularly Annie Anderson, Sean Kelley, and Erica Harman who happily spoke with me about the project and gave me access to their materials. I owe much gratitude to the Pennsylvania State University and the faculty there. When I moved to Pennsylvania in 2014, I was welcomed into the history department and community in Happy Valley with open arms. The university employed me as a lecturer and research associate with the Civil War Era Center and I learned a great deal under the supervision and tutelage of Bill Blair. I felt comfortable and supported as I completed my dissertation and can’t thank them enough. Very special thanks to Eric Charles Novotny who works in library acquisitions. Eric spent several hours with me discussing my project and generously purchased any microfilm I requested for my use in the library. The support I received from the Penn State library system was indispensible. In addition to the history department and library, the education department at Penn State also offered me a second home. I especially want to thank Roger Geiger in the higher education department for his willingness to lend an ear and bestow