The Legacy of African American Farmers | Trail of History

Explore the role and legacy of African Americans in agriculture. Learn how sharecropping worked, and meet a Vietnam Veteran living his retirement dream by farming in Cabarrus County. Then meet first generation farmers and the founders of Deep Roots CPS Farm in northwest Charlotte. Finally discover the world of Black Cowboys and meet the organizers of the Black Cowboy Festival in South Carolina. The Legacy of African American Farmers, only on Trail of History.
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While WTVI PBS Charlotte does not and cannot review every submission and is not responsible for the content of your comments, WTVI PBS Charlotte reserves the right to delete, remove, move, or edit comments that it, in its sole discretion, deems abusive, defamatory, obscene, or otherwise illegal or unacceptable for any reason.
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00:00 Introduction
01:25 The Cathcart farm
02:46 The origins of sharecropping
07:56 From Telecommunications to Farming
13:06 Deep Roots Farm
20:21 The tale of the Black Cowboys
23:51 Greenfield Farms

[@georleansanders9067]

I am a Native Mississippian and have a small farm. I would love to help these beautiful people farm.

[@daviddickey4331]

This is something that i remember while i would run around and play as my great, great Aunt and uncle were share croppers and my father hung tobacco on the land that were living on. I had to pick up tobacco leaves of the ground and off the floor in the barns as they hung tobacco in the barns. I just turned 58 and this bought back memories for me as a young boy around the age of 4 years old.

[@octaviahicks-braye9859]

This a great story. The younger generation has learned to sell everything. They have not been properly educated on slavery. Land equals power. During slavery you could not own, land, housing, businesses or be educated. The abolitionist snd Christian’s started free black towns and some exist today from Maryland to Mississippi. Others are being preserved. The Quakers, remanent o f other Christians, Union soldiers and a remnant from England, Scotland, and Germany assisted in building blacks towns from Maryland to Mississippi.and helping them secure land. Good to see good things are still going on in the midst.

[@onediaspora]

Outstanding piece, should be required viewing in schools...and yes, Wali Cathcart is my dad :-).

[@user-yi1hy7qp1y]

I agree and I am going to show this to my middle school environmental science class. I think they will find this worthwhile.

[@xtrextrex]

Hope you all are still keeping the land in your family. ✊🏾

[@onediaspora]

We are keeping our few acres...:-)@@xtrextrex

@@onediasporahi! This is random but my name is Kaí, not sure if you know but I thought it wouldn’t hurt to ask! I for a long time now have long admired those who live off the land, I grew up in the Chicagoland area and did not grow up that way but have longed to honor our ancestors and God in that way the older I’ve gotten and the more I’ve learned about what it’d mean to be a land owner and be self sufficient and pass that down to my own family. I said all this to say, do you know if there’s any land of your family’s or of other families that you know that has no one to look after it? Ik your grandfather mentioned that in the video and it also breaks my heart that so many of us young black people don’t see the value in land and tending to it, and I think it’s hurting us. That’s where we came from. It’s also where so many of us have lost our chance to wealth as this video has explained. I hope you see this! I’d understand if this would be something that you and your family wouldn’t want to share. But if there is a need to find people to tend to the land and if you all care to give it someone who will care for it, especially so it doesn’t land in the hands of people who don’t care, I’d love to know more about what that would look like and for you guys to get to know me and my husband as well. Thanks so much for reading this and hope to get a response! :)🙏🏽

[@onediaspora]

@ Thanks for reaching out...and he's my dad :-). As of now, our family takes care of our small piece of land, but thanks for reaching out. But you and your husband to journey south and look at various areas ... you might be able to get some land of your own in any number of states.

[@joywright7091]

Thank you for sharing 😊

[@tommymack6286]

That was a Great show of real history

[@cedricclark1461]

This is so Great Deep Roots is my family btw👊✊

[@darlenesutton7248]

Thank you Beverly for sharing you have a beautiful legacy.

[@kevinpoole4323]

A Great Cowboy Story Beautiful You Have the Vision.

[@kevinpoole4323]

Thank You Mr &Mrs Myers. Well Done.

[@prettyprincess8187]

I love this and the message. It's time for us to return to the land.

[@venetiakelley]

Definitely

[@kevinpoole4323]

Nice Family

[@kevinpoole4323]

Right On Wisdom

[@cherokeejames963]

Awesome

[@kevinpoole4323]

Keep it Going

[@kevinpoole4323]

The Honorable Cecil Brewington Thank You.

[@xtrextrex]

speechless

[@kevinpoole4323]

Mr Brewington Mr Cathcart.

[@venetiakelley]

Why do you all have dreadlocks? and, what do they mean?