Slaves quarried and hand-chiseled this two-ton stone trough. Cool water preserved perishable foods, such as butter, cream and milk, in clay pots on the shelves of this 19th century refrigerator. Slave labor contributed to the settlement of this area in many ways. They cleared the land, mined for gold, worked in mills, and were assigned all manner of menial chores, labor-intensive and dangerous jobs. Bricks used in the construction of the White County Courthouse in Cleveland, Georgia were handmade with local clay by black people who were enslaved by the contractor. In 1859, the county courthouse was completed with slave labor. During this time in history, enslaved African Americans were considered property and referred to as human chattel.
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