1. Rise of the Country Blues By: Chasedy Jones

2. Map On my Mississippi Map, I am traveling from the Mississippi River, to Arkansas, then to Louisiana, then the Gulf of Mexico, to Alabama and lastly to Tennessee.

3. Historical Statement One of the economic conditions confronting the southern African-Americans in the early twentieth century was sharecropping. Sharecropping was described as, how under the system, the sharecropper rented a part of the land and paid for it with a percentage of the crop, which was usually about thirty-fifty percent. Sharecroppers would then usually get tools, animals, fertilizer, seeds and food from the landlords store and would have to pay him back at an incredibly high interest rate. However, the owners of the sharecroppers usually kept track of the calculations and the sharecropper’s would rarely see a profit. Another economic condition confronting the southern African-Americans was how they were locked into poverty. The blacks had outnumbered the whites, however, the sharecropping system that replaced slavery helped ensure that they remained poor and virtually locked out of any opportunity for landownership, or basic human rights. This system grew from the struggle between planters and ex slaves on how to organize production. The planters wanted gang labor, like they had used under slavery, to work on the fields; freed people wanted to own and work their own land. The racial attitudes in the South reflected to violence and threats that were also included in this. This was known as the KKK. Another tragic moment in the early twentieth century for the African-Americans was the most devastating flood that had happened, which was the Mississippi River Flood of 1927. This flood resulted in many deaths and it submerged over 23,000 square miles of land. Bessie Smith’s mother and father died in this horrible flood. Bessie was a blues singer and sang in traveling shows for over twenty years before recording her first record in 1923. One of the records that Bessie recorded was called the “Homeless Blues”, in this song, Bessie is describing how her mother and father had drown in the Mississippi flood. These are a couple of the economic conditions that had confronted the southern African-Americans in the early twentieth century.

4. Visual of Country Blues #1 In this picture it is representing cotton sharecroppers in Greene County, Georgia, 1937. Cotton sharecroppers was a system of agriculture in the South, in the period of reconstruction after the Civil War. Cotton Sharecroppers would get tools, animals, fertilizer, seeds and food from the landlord’s store, and would have to pay him back at an incredibly high interest rate. The significance of this photo is to show how the cotton sharecroppers was a system of agriculture in the South.

5. Visual of Country Blues #2 In this picture it is showing the refugees from the Mississippi Flood, in 1927. The Mississippi Flood in 1927, was one of the worst floods in the United States. It was also one of the biggest natural disasters to ever occur. More than 23,000 square miles was submerged that day. The significance of this photo is to show how the refugees from the Mississippi flood represented one of the worst floods in the United States.

6. Visual of Country Blues #3 In this picture it is representing a young boy, about the age of thirteen, who was sharecropping. He was in Americus, Georgia, in 1927. When Sharecropping a planter/landlord allows the tenant to use land as an exchange for the share of a crop, which encouraged the tenants to produce as much as they could. The significance of this photo is to show that at this young of an age sharecropping happened.

7. Homeless Blues Lyrics ★ “Ma and Pa got drownded, Mississippi you the blame, Mississippi River, I can’t stand to hear your name” ★ This song is titled “Homeless Blues” written by, Bessie Smith. ★ In these lyrics that Bessie wrote, she is portraying the floods of the Mississippi River, and how the flood had been the death of her parents. The setting of this song was in the Mississippi, Delta and the mood was sad, upsetting and depressed.

8. Mississippi Bo Weevil Blues Lyrics ➔ “Sees a little Bo Weevil keeps movin’ in the air, Lordie. You can plant your cotton and you won’t get a half bale, Lordie.” ➔ This song is titled “Mississippi Bo Weevil Blues” written by, Charley Patton. ➔ In these lyrics that Charley wrote, he is portraying the idea of Sharecropping. ◆ Sharecropping was commonly known as renting a part of the land and it was paid for with a percentage of the crop. *The setting of this song was in Hillhouse, Mississippi and the mood was happy.

9. Cotton Lyrics ❖ “I get straightened up in the field - Hey! Stoop down Lightnin’, go ahead on boy and get your sack full.” ❖ This song is titled, “Cotton” written by, Lightnin’ Hopkins. ❖ In these lyrics that Lightnin’ wrote, he is portraying the idea of sharecropping. ➢ As mentioned in the other slides, sharecropping was commonly known as renting a part of the land and was paid for with the percentage of a crop. ■Sharecropping was harsh though, that is since owners kept track of the calculations and sharecroppers would rarely see a profit. ●The setting of this song was also in Hillhouse, Mississippi and the mood was smooth and depressed.