The emancipation of slaves and the Rost colony
The emancipation of slaves and the Rost colony
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After years of controversy, it was with the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 that he and his Republican party decided to emancipate all slaves in the United States.
Seven slave states opposed this decision from the start and seceded, leaving the Union and creating a new confederation of states headed by Jefferson Davis.
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The Civil War began on April 12, 1861 and ended on May 26, 1865. On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation for approximately four million slaves.
On April 15, 1862, Northern Union troops and navy captured the city and port of New Orleans. Shortly thereafter, the Supreme Commander of the occupying troops wrote that he had to feed nearly 10,000 freed slaves who were hungry, sick and homeless. In order to remedy this humanitarian crisis, it was decided to employ these people in the numerous plantations confiscated from the planters.
Pierre Adolphe Rost and his wife are the owners of the Plantation. As sympathizers of the Southern cause and as exileAs sympathizers of the Southern cause and exiles in France, the estate was confiscated in 1863 and an emancipation camp was established by the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen and abandonned lands. Four camps (or colonies) will be established in Louisiana. The one at Destrehan Plantation will be known as the Rost Colony and will eventually house 2,000 former slaves who will live and work on the estate.
Almost two thirds of the former slaves were old or sick and despite the presence of a military doctor on site, many died of malaria, cholera or yellow fever. Those who are able to work will be employed on nearby farms and will receive wages, food, clothing and lodging.
After the assassination of President Lincoln on April 15, 1865, his successor Andrew Johnson allowed people like Pierre Adolphe Rost to return to their homes and properties. An agreement was reached between the ureau of Refugees, Freedmen and abandonned lands and P.A. Rost, which allowed the colony to continue its operations and share the benefits of sugarcane cultivation with its owners.
The Rost Colony ceased operations in 1867 and its residents were transferred to New Orleans. The Rost family will continue to operate the sugar cane and sugar mill, employing and housing their former slaves.
After a fire ravaged the sugar factory in 1910, Emile, the son of Pierre Adolphe Rost, and the last owner of the Plantation, sold the estate, which was eventually purchased by the AMOCO refinery. In 1972, AMOCO donated part of the estate to the River Road Historical Society, which transformed the plantation into a Living History Museum.