Slides 16, 17
Hunting, farming and market gardening were basic to the survival of most Black Pioneers.
Slide 16
The forests had many moose, deer, beaver and bear, porcupine and rabbit. Hunting was a main source of food until gardens could be planted and farm animals purchased. The animals of the forest provided fresh meat when the barrels of salted pork the settlers had brought with them from the United States were consumed. The settlers reused their barrels to preserve wild meats from the forest, birds and fowl.
Slide 17
Subsistence farming, share cropping and indentured farm work were the three ways in which Black Pioneers participated in farming. They grew beans, turnips, peas, carrots, parsnips, onions, cabbage, potatoes and grains. They gathered wild vegetables from the forests and cooked them over an outdoor fire in a large stew kettle. As farms were established, farmers from the Preston area brought farm products to the Halifax Green and other markets to sell.
Students will:
When the Black Pioneers, both Black Loyalists and the Black Pioneers of 1812, first settled in Nova Scotia and before gardens could be planted, hunting animals for food was a main source of nourishment for survival in the Nova Scotia wilderness. The forest was full of wildlife - moose, deer, beaver, and bear. Many Black Loyalists who came to Nova Scotia as slaves or servants were sent to hunt for food by the head of the household. Black Loyalists were skilled in snaring small animals such as rabbits and porcupine.
Black Pioneers brought barrels of salted pork with them to Nova Scotia. The barrels were reused to preserve the moose, bear and other animals they hunted. Fresh meat spoiled easily during the summer without refrigeration. Fresh meat was often packed in layers of salt to dry. Meat was often sliced thinly and hung in tree branches to dry in the sun and air. This prevented the meat from spoiling and preserved it for use during the winter.
Moose and bear were plentiful. The tongue and muffle of the moose were delicacies. The meat of young bears was eaten fresh, or salted or dried for later use. Bear fat was melted down and used as oil for lanterns. The skin of the bear was often traded to purchase supplies or as warm bedding for the winter.
In the late Fall, fresh meats were often placed in barrels of heavily salted water. The salted water drew out the blood and preserved the meat. This was called "corning" the meat. Corned meats were often hung over a smoky fire or in a smoke house to dry and cure. The meat was then wrapped in cloth and hung in a cool place such as a root cellar or attic until needed in the winter when hunting through heavy snows was difficult.
Geese and ducks were plentiful. The Black Loyalists and Black Pioneers of 1812 domesticated the wild fowl and had a supply of eggs and meat as they started their farms. Birch partridge were tender, delicious and easily hunted. The spruce partridge was not hunted because the black laurel berries it ate were poisonous to people.
Farming
Farming -- Black Loyalists 1783-1792
During the Black Loyalist years, Black Pioneers were involved in farming in several ways -- as slaves or indentured servants working on farms they did not own, as share croppers, and as subsistence farmers and market gardeners.
They had been promised land in exchange for their loyalty to Britain against the American Colonials during the War of Independence. The promise of land was usually broken. Some therefore had to rely upon government assistance and church groups to survive. Some lived in poor or alms houses as no other housing was available. Bread and molasses was often the only affordable meal. Those who did not receive the promised land became indentured servants, hiring out their skills and services to survive. Those who came to Nova Scotia enslaved or indentured worked the farms of other land owners but did not receive a paid wage. They had little opportunity to earn money to buy freedom or land.
Other Black Loyalist Pioneers, who did not receive the promised free land from the British, lived on lands owned by other farmers. By supplying most of the labour for such a farm, they received a share of the crop. As share crop farmers, they did most of the heavy, physical labour which made the farms they did not own, successful. The landowner supplied the seed, land and farm tools. Because the Black Loyalist share croppers did not earn much money from their smaller share in the profits of the farm, they were unable to buy the necessary supplies and land needed to be independent farmers. They were, in effect, tied to the land of a landowner. Much of the land that was share cropped was not very fertile.
Those who did receive the land promised to them, generally received smaller lots with less fertile soil and fewer provisions, tools and seeds than white Loyalists. An exception was Stephen Blucke who received 200 acres of land in Birchtown.
Many share crop farmers, indentured servants and slaves worked large Annapolis Valley farms and orchards on the rich farmlands dyked years earlier by French Acadians who had been expelled from Nova Scotia in 1755.
Farming -- Black Pioneers of 1812
The second group of Black Pioneers to come to Nova Scotia began to arrive in 1813 as a result of the War of 1812. Those who settled in Halifax County had small farms of less than 10 acres or share cropped when they did not receive the promised land grants which would have made it possible for them to be independent farmers. A few did receive land with fertile soil.
Famine struck in 1814. The Black Pioneers in the Halifax County area were unable to raise enough food for their own existence or to participate in the market garden. Government assistance and charity groups provided some relief to the new settlers. In the Halifax County area, many of the Black Pioneers of 1812 were settled on land which the Black Loyalists who left for Sierra Leone had struggled without success to make productive. The soil was thin and poor. However, with time, the Black Pioneers established small, successful farms.
Pioneer farms raised chickens for eggs which were exchanged in the market for sugar, flour, tea and molasses. Farmers prepared setting boxes for the egg laying hens and gathered eggs twice each day. Some hens went into nearby pastures or woods to make their own nests. When their eggs hatched, the hens came out of the woods followed by the chicks. Farmers exchanged eggs and hens with one another to build up their flocks. In the summer, the hens were fed cracked corn and bread scraps. Old broken dishes were crushed on an anvil and fed to the chickens. It was believed that the china made the eggshells hard. In the winter, the chickens were fed cornmeal and hayseed mixed with hot water.
Black Pioneer women worked very hard for the success of their families and the farm. The women sewed clothing for the family from material purchased at the market. Clothing was washed by hand in wooden tubs. A washboard and home made soap were used. The wet clothes were spread on the grass to dry during the summer, and hung near the fire in the winter. The sun helped to bleach the clothing.
Pioneer farmers were careful to use all their resources to best advantage. Worn out clothing, and blankets were cut into strips and braided to create floor rugs. Braided rugs were prized possessions. They told the story of the family and the growth of its children in a cloth "story".
Wood, burned to heat the homes of the Pioneers, produced ashes. Wood ashes containing potash were boiled to dissolve the potash in the water. The potash water was then used as a floor washing soap. Floors were scrubbed by the women with a brush.
Farming -- Black Loyalists and Black Pioneers of 1812
After the back breaking work of clearing the land, the Black Loyalists, and later, the Black Pioneers of 1812, cultivated small plots of vegetables. Turnips, carrots, parsnips, onions, cabbage, beets, radish, peas, beans, potatoes, pumpkin, squash, grains, asparagus, cucumber, lettuce, and salad greens were grown for the home and for sale in local markets. Grains were ground into flour and meal. A hop vine grew against most pioneer homes.
Most Black Pioneer farms had a small family home, a barn, pig pen, hen house, and storage sheds. The barn housed a horse, an ox, a cow and barnyard animals such as sheep.
Most farmers of African descent had been unable to bring pigs, cows, chickens and oxen with them to Nova Scotia. Most hunted game for meat. When it could be afforded, farm animals were purchased. Oxen made the work of clearing the land, building homes, and participating in marketing the products of the farm more possible. As they could be afforded, the Black Loyalists added pigs and sheep to their farms.
While their homes were being built, the Black Pioneers cooked their food out of doors in large iron kettles suspended over open fires. Most of the meals were in the form of a stew. Fresh meat and vegetables were added to the pot each day. Wild edible vegetables such as dandelion leaves, sour dock, sheep sorrel, lamb's quarters; and wild herbs and roots were added to the flavourful stew. Wild berries and apples were picked and preserved. Fruits such as apples and pears were pared, quartered, strung and hung to dry in the Fall for use during the winter.
During the late Fall when the weather was much cooler, they began to salt, corn, and smoke meats for the winter. Deer, moose and other wild animals were successfully hunted and butchered out of doors. Farm raised animals such as pigs were also butchered in the late Fall. Women did much of the preserving.
Pigs were the most common animal to be found on Pioneer farms. When butchered, the women would make use of all parts of the animal. The fat was cut away from the meat, heated and used for lard. The dark meat of the pig was made into sausages; the head was made into head cheese or potted head. The blood was used in a nutritious pudding. The hams, shoulders and bacon were placed in a barrel of brine to be corned before smoking. On holiday occasions, pork was the preferred festive food.
Very little food was wasted or thrown away on the Pioneer farm. To make potted head, inedible parts of the pig's head were removed. The remainder was cleaned and washed and placed in a kettle of water to cook until tender. Sometimes a bit of beef was added to the pot. When tender, the meat was separated from the bones and the cooking water saved. The meat was then ground through a meat grinder. The ground meat was returned to the kettle and onions and spices were added. The mixture simmered for two hours and was then poured into bowls to cool and jell. Potted head was very nutritious and sold well at the Halifax Market.
Beans were a staple food of the Black Pioneers. Dried beans were cooked in water in an iron kettle with a tight fitting lid. The water was then drained from the cooked beans. A piece of salt pork, molasses and maple syrup were then added. The kettle was then buried in a shallow pit in the ground, surrounded by hot rocks. It was left for several hours to cook. When ready, the kettle was unearthed and a delicious meal of baked beans was enjoyed.
The Black Pioneers were very resourceful. They used many materials from the natural environment to make their homes comfortable. They made pillows from feathers plucked from the chickens they raised for food. The feathers were washed and then placed in a large pan in the oven to be sterilized. Germs, which might make people sick, were carried on the feathers The heat of the oven killed the germs. The feathers were then put in strong cloth cases which were sown to make pillows.
Mattresses were made of the same strong ticking cloth as pillows. Large ticking cases were filled with straw or even hay. The mattress ticks were placed on wooden bed slats. In homes without wooden beds, the mattress ticks were placed on the floor. Many mattresses were made from recycled flour bags that had been bleached by the sun to remove any ink labelling. Animal furs were used in the winter as bed coverings. The furs were very warm on cold winter nights. The Pioneers were excellent recyclers. People used and reused all of their possessions until they were of no further use. Flour sack cloth was also recycled by the Black Pioneers to make dishcloths and sheets.
Once the Pioneer home was completed, cooking moved indoors to an open stone hearth. The kettle of stew or beans was hung from a metal crane which could be swung close to the fire to heat the stew or to bake the beans.
Most pioneer homes had a vine of hops growing in a protected spot against the home. The hops were picked and dried and were used to make yeast for bread making. Dried hops were mixed with potato, flour, sugar and water and kept in a warm spot in the house. Yeast from a previous batch was added to the mixture and grew, using the nutrients in the hop mixture to make more yeast. The yeast was then used to make bread. Some of the yeast would be saved each time to act as a starter for the next batch. The bread was baked in a movable bake oven which was set in front of the hearth fire, or in a brick or stone oven built into the side of the hearth. Grain grew well in the Annapolis Valley. Corn meal, hoe cakes and ash cakes were a staple food in the Valley.
Apple cider was a popular drink among Pioneers. Many farms used a cider press to squeeze the juice from wind fall apples. The juice fermented and an alcoholic beverage called "hard cider" was available. Herbal teas were made from the bark of hemlock and box berry, and from Labrador leaves. The young bark and leaves was steeped in hot water. The tea was sweetened with maple sugar.
Haying was done in the late summer each year. Farms at this time did not have large machines to cut the grasses of the fields. A scythe was used to cut the grasses by hand. The farmer sharpened the blade of the scythe on a wet stone. He worked the scythe through the tall grass in a steady rhythm. Children raked the cut grasses in rows to dry in the summer sun. The dry hay was piled onto a large cart or carried by hand to the barn when dry. Hay was the main food of farm animals during the winter.
The Black Pioneers raised a few sheep. They spun the fleece from their sheep into wool. They grew and processed flax which they wove to make linen. From these materials they made clothing, quilted blankets and braided rugs for the family and home.
The lives of the family and farm animals depended on a clean, plentiful supply of water. Gardens could not always rely on the rain. Clean water meant the family farm could survive. Most farms had a well. The well was dug using a pick and shovel near a natural water spring. The sides of the well were usually lined with rock, piled into a circular stone wall inside the edge of the well. This lining kept soil from falling into the well.
Each year the well had to be cleaned. The farmer used a ladder to climb into the well. The water was bailed from the well and any bits of leaves, twigs or algae were removed. Often the farmer kept a trout in the well. The trout ate any bugs which tried to live in the well. The trout could only live in clean water. If the trout died, the farmer knew something might be wrong with the water and he would immediately clean the well.
Marketing Farm Products and Handcrafted Materials
Many of the Black Loyalists possessed marketing skills and were able to grow food and make goods which they sold in markets or peddled door to door to earn money for needed supplies. In the first years of settlement, most Loyalists obtained their vegetables from a public garden. By working together, the farmers were able to clear enough land and tend crops efficiently while continuing to clear their own land to farm. As farms became more established, the need for the public garden lessened. Farmers began to sell the products of their individual farms to residents of larger communities. They established markets where the urban people bought the food they needed.
The Halifax Market was started a few years after the founding of Halifax. By the time the Black Loyalists came to Nova Scotia, most city dwellers relied heavily on the Market. Black Loyalists from New York and other northern Colonies were skilled marketers. With a growing population, Halifax needed more market sellers. With little other industry and little capital in the Preston area, many of the Black Loyalists quickly established themselves in the Market, selling poultry, fish, eggs, brooms, baskets and other crafts and farm products.
Upper Hammonds Plains was called African Section #37 when it was founded in 1825. The community was a major producer of hay. Bales of hay were sold at the Halifax Market as feed for horses and cattle.
Black Loyalists came to the market by oxen and wagon, or by foot. They travelled down Old Ferry Road in Dartmouth to the harbour front. A ferry crossed the harbour, loaded with goods for the market. This tradition of coming to the Market was adopted by the Black Pioneers of 1812 as well. For many in the Preston area, the market was the only source of income. Market days were therefore very important and exciting for the Black Pioneer family.
All family members participated in the success of Market Day. The night before Market Day, families loaded their wagons with products for the Market. The next day, at 2 am, they began the long walk into Dartmouth. It was important to arrive early at the loading stations on Portland Street, Privee Water, and Ochterloney Street. Early arrival meant the family had time to park and unload the wagon, lodge the horse or oxen, and catch the first ferry to Halifax. An early arrival at the market meant a choice of market space to meet the buyers. Communities in the Preston area worked very hard to prepare for Market Day. Success at the market ensured the economic survival of the family.
The Halifax Market was alive with the sights and scents of bustling activity! Europeans, Mi' Kmaq and people of African descent all congregated at the market, selling and buying fresh foods, baskets made of red maple, braided and hooked rugs made of wool dyed using the bright natural colours of onion skins and hemlock. Bundles of kindling sold for $.05 while bundles of 100 pieces of firewood sold for $1.00. Bean poles, tub chairs, flower boxes made of freshly milled spruce; shingles, axe and hoe handles, and fresh flowers could be found in abundance. Preston area and Hammond's Plains barrels came to the market in a train of wagons. Birch brooms, cheese, head cheese, corned beef and pork, salt cod fish and eggs delighted the eyes and taste buds.
Peas sold for $.25 a pound. Trout, gaspereau, eel and perch; porcupine, rabbits, geese, ducks, partridge and venison were choice products sought by the city dwellers. Strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, currants and rhubarb were sold fresh, or as preserves -- jams and relishes.
At the end of Market Day any remaining foods and crafts were sold door to door in Halifax and Dartmouth. In the late Fall, fragrant wagon loads of Christmas wreaths made from spruce and hemlock and decorated with holly berries were sold at the market and door to door.
As Halifax grew, the poor soil in the Preston area was unable to meet the growing demand for food. Farms failed as the poor soil was depleted. Farms in the Annapolis Valley began to supply most of the food to the city residents.
Many growing businesses in Halifax and its surrounding areas, and unions would not hire Black workers. Government assistance was necessary for some; other Black Pioneers returned to subsistence farming, raising most of the food they needed.
Basket making remains an important part of the life of Black communities in the Preston areas today and the Black heritage of Nova Scotia. Baskets are still sold at the weekly Halifax Market.
Focussing Actitivies
1. Brainstorm the types of wild animals and plants which live in Nova Scotia which the Black Pioneers would have hunted or gathered for food. How important would hunting and gathering food have been to the Black Pioneers' survival?
2. A gun and shot were expensive. How might you hunt for food without a gun? What materials would you need to hunt without a gun and shot? What animals might you be able to hunt without a gun?
3. If you were setting up a pioneer farm in a wild forest, how might you protect your farm crops from the animals of the forest which would be attracted to the "free" food?
4. What kinds of crops would you plant, knowing that the foods would have to be able to last throughout the winter without spoiling?
5. How might you preserve meat and vegetables without a refrigerator so that you would have nutritious, unspoiled food all winter?
Follow Up Activities
View the slides and read the Background: Hunting, Farming and Market Gardening.
1. Most Black Pioneers had very little money with which to purchase seed for crops. How might they have ensured a good supply of seed each year?
2.Create a series of illustrations showing how various foods were preserved for winter use?
3. How did Black Pioneers prevent food from spoiling during the summer months?
4. Does your community have access to a market garden? From what sources do people in your community obtain food besides a grocery store?
Extension Activities
1. Create a mural or series of illustrations describing a family's preparation for and the day at the Market.
2. Plan and plant an herb garden in the classroom. Herbs generally prefer lots of sunshine. Document in graph form the growth on your garden.
3. Create illustrations of the various herbs grown during the time of the Black Pioneers.
4. Research and prepare an authentic Pioneer food or meal. (See Reproducible Activity Sheet, Making Butter.)
5. Invite a community member to the classroom to teach students how to hook or braid a rug. Students may wish to create a rug or wall hanging which includes their history as members of the class. (See Reproducible Activity Sheet, Braiding a Rug or Picture Frame, for sample braiding instructions.)
6. Supply students with file cards and ask them to list items which often appear on family shopping lists today. (One item per card.) Have the students sort the items to show which items would have been available during pioneer days and which would not have been available (or were yet to be invented). Did pioneers "need" the yet to be invented items? What alternatives to the items in your deck might the pioneers have used?
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