
Night Riders in Black Folk History
Gladys-Marie Fry(Author)
The University of North Carolina Press
Published on 31. March 2001
Book
Paperback/Softback
272 pages
978-0-8078-4963-7 (ISBN)
Description
How myths and lore reflect a time of terror During and after the days of slavery in the United States, one way in which slaveowners, overseers, and other whites sought to control the black population was to encourage and exploit a fear of the supernatural. By planting rumors of evil spirits, haunted places, body-snatchers, and ""night doctors"" - even by masquerading as ghosts themselves - they discouraged the unauthorized movement of blacks, particularly at night, by making them afraid of meeting otherworldly beings. Blacks out after dark also risked encounters with ""patterollers"" (mounted surveillance patrols) or, following the Civil War, the Ku Klux Klan. Whatever their guise, all of these ""night riders"" had one purpose: to manipulate blacks through terror and intimidation. First published in 1975, this book explores the gruesome figure of the night rider in black folk history. Gladys-Marie Fry skillfully draws on oral history sources to show that, quite apart from its veracity, such lore became an important facet of the lived experience of blacks in America. This classic work continues to be a rich source for students and teachers of folklore, African American history, and slavery and postemancipation studies.
More details
Edition
New edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Chapel Hill
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Edition type
New edition
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Unsewn / adhesive bound
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 153 mm
Thickness: 16 mm
Weight
372 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-8078-4963-7 (9780807849637)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Gladys-Marie Fry is Professor Emerita of Folklore and English at the University of Maryland at College Park. She has also curated more than a dozen exhibitions at institutions such as the American Folk Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery, Anacostia Museum, Smithsonian Institution. Her books and exhibition catalogs include Night Riders in Black Folk History, Man Made: African American Men and Quilting Traditions, and Black Folk Art in Cleveland.