Broomstick Wedding, Virginia (?), 1840s
Caption, The Broomstick Wedding. Livermore writes that the bride and groom wore cast-off clothing once belonging to their master and mistress. The preacher was Uncle Aaron, one of the best servants. The bride and groom stood in the center of the room, holding hands. Two other slaves held the broom below the couple's knees. The couple jumped into the married state (Livermore, p. 256). In her preface, Livermore indicates she had lived in Virginia for 3 years, 55 years ago. In her autobiography (Memories of Childhood's Slavery Days; Boston, 1909), the former plantation slave Annie L. Burton recalled that in her childhood during the Civil War, if an enslaved man and woman wished to marry, a party would be arranged some Saturday night among the slaves. The marriage ceremony consisted of the pair jumping over a stick
Image Title
Broomstick Wedding, Virginia (?), 1840s
RegID
SI-OB-122
Date
1840-1850
Title
Broomstick Wedding, Virginia (?), 1840s
Source
Mary Ashton Rice Livermore, The Story of My Life (Hartford, 1897), p. 257
Language
English
Item sets
Family Life, Child Care, Schools
Spatial Coverage
North America--Virginia
Reproduced In
Mary Ashton Rice Livermore, The Story of My Life (Hartford, 1897), p. 257
Researchers
Handler, Jerome; Tuite, Michael; Randall Ericson; Henry B. Lovejoy Graduate Research Assistants: Tiffany Beebe; Travis May
Last Updated
17-Mar-16
Identifier
Livermore257