Friday, June 27, 2014

CVHS Program for Sunday, July 20, 2014, at 3 p.m.



CVHS Program to Examine Slavery

          Civil War historian Murphy Wood will present the third part of his series, Slavery in North America:  Origin, Practice, and Production of Cash Crops at the next meeting of the Chattahoochee Valley Historical Society on July 20, 2014. The quarterly meeting will be held at 3:00 pm ET at the Bradshaw Library in Valley, AL.
            The production of cotton in Alabama and Mississippi fed the insatiable demand of a burgeoning international textile industry that forever linked the old South to cotton and slavery. The early social and economic history of Alabama and Mississippi were defined by cotton production and it is important to understand this time period and the global economic forces that swept it forward.  Having traced the origin of slavery and sugar and rice production in earlier lectures, it is hoped participants will have gained a greater understanding of slavery in its many forms and will not want to miss this last installment that focuses on how slavery practiced here in the Chattahoochee Valley.
            A native of northern Chambers County, Wood teaches AP History at his alma mater, Springwood School in Lanett.  Last summer and again this summer he has been chosen to be part of a select review committee, made up of high school history teachers and university professors from across America, to grade the essay portion of the AP History Exam. Before returning to his roots, he lived and worked in Virginia, where he received a Master’s Degree in Early American History from James Madison University.  He has appeared as guest speaker and has presented research papers at numerous Civil War conferences and lecture series in Virginia and Kentucky.  In addition, he has served as tour guide for several Civil War motor coach tours of the Shenandoah Valley and as a private guide for a variety of tour groups.
              The Bradshaw Library is located on Highway 29 in Valley, Alabama, approximately one mile south of I-85 Exit 79.  The public is invited and encouraged to attend.