Stono Rebellion (9-12)

The Stono Rebellion Marker, front side

The Stono Rebellion of 1739 was the largest enslaved uprising in colonial America. Led by an African man known as Jemmy (or Cato), a group of enslaved people near the Stono River seized weapons and marched toward Spanish Florida, where freedom had been promised to escapees. Their movement reflected African military traditions, religious ties to Catholicism, and the geopolitical tensions between Britain and Spain.

As the rebels marched, their numbers grew, and they attacked white settlements along the route. A colonial militia confronted them near the Edisto River, resulting in the deaths of dozens of rebels and white colonists. The rebellion deeply frightened South Carolina’s white population and led to the Negro Act of 1740, which imposed strict limits on enslaved people’s movement, education, and autonomy while also regulating the conduct of slaveholders. The uprising had lasting political, economic, and social consequences, reinforcing systems of control that shaped slavery until the Civil War.

New Jersey Student Learning Standards:

• 6.1.12.HistoryUP.3.b
  Examine a variety of sources from multiple perspectives on slavery and evaluate the claims used to justify the arguments.
• 6.1.12.CivicsPI.1.a
  Explain how British North American colonies adopted the British governance structure to fit their ideas of individual rights, economic growth, and participatory government.
• 6.1.12.GeoGI.1.a
  Explain how geographic variations impacted economic development in the New World, and its role in promoting trade with global markets (e.g., climate, soil conditions, other natural resources).
• 6.1.12.EconGE.1.a
  Explain how economic ideas and the practices of mercantilism and capitalism conflicted during this time period.
• 6.1.12.HistoryUP.2.b
  Analyze the impact and contributions of African American leaders and institutions in the development and activities of Black communities in the North and South before and after the Civil War.