The Land Was Ours

How Black Beaches Became White Wealth in the Coastal South

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Cultural Studies, African-American Studies, History, Americas, United States
Cover of the book The Land Was Ours by Andrew W. Kahrl, The University of North Carolina Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Andrew W. Kahrl ISBN: 9781469628738
Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press Publication: June 27, 2016
Imprint: The University of North Carolina Press Language: English
Author: Andrew W. Kahrl
ISBN: 9781469628738
Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press
Publication: June 27, 2016
Imprint: The University of North Carolina Press
Language: English

The coasts of today's American South feature luxury condominiums, resorts, and gated communities, yet just a century ago, a surprising amount of beachfront property in the Chesapeake, along the Carolina shores, and around the Gulf of Mexico was owned and populated by African Americans. Blending social and environmental history, Andrew W. Kahrl tells the story of African American–owned beaches in the twentieth century. By reconstructing African American life along the coast, Kahrl demonstrates just how important these properties were for African American communities and leisure, as well as for economic empowerment, especially during the era of the Jim Crow South. However, in the wake of the civil rights movement and amid the growing prosperity of the Sunbelt, many African Americans fell victim to effective campaigns to dispossess black landowners of their properties and beaches.

Kahrl makes a signal contribution to our understanding of African American landowners and real-estate developers, as well as the development of coastal capitalism along the southern seaboard, tying the creation of overdeveloped, unsustainable coastlines to the unmaking of black communities and cultures along the shore. The result is a skillful appraisal of the ambiguous legacy of racial progress in the Sunbelt.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The coasts of today's American South feature luxury condominiums, resorts, and gated communities, yet just a century ago, a surprising amount of beachfront property in the Chesapeake, along the Carolina shores, and around the Gulf of Mexico was owned and populated by African Americans. Blending social and environmental history, Andrew W. Kahrl tells the story of African American–owned beaches in the twentieth century. By reconstructing African American life along the coast, Kahrl demonstrates just how important these properties were for African American communities and leisure, as well as for economic empowerment, especially during the era of the Jim Crow South. However, in the wake of the civil rights movement and amid the growing prosperity of the Sunbelt, many African Americans fell victim to effective campaigns to dispossess black landowners of their properties and beaches.

Kahrl makes a signal contribution to our understanding of African American landowners and real-estate developers, as well as the development of coastal capitalism along the southern seaboard, tying the creation of overdeveloped, unsustainable coastlines to the unmaking of black communities and cultures along the shore. The result is a skillful appraisal of the ambiguous legacy of racial progress in the Sunbelt.

More books from The University of North Carolina Press

Cover of the book Holy Smoke by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book Gumbo by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book Winning the Third World by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book Heroism and the Black Intellectual by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book Beyond Blackface by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book The Mormon Question by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book The Sixties by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book Sustaining the Cherokee Family by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book The Gulf Stream by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book Ludwig Erhard by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book The Double by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book The Green and the Gray by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book Creating a Confederate Kentucky by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book Decolonizing Feminisms by Andrew W. Kahrl
Cover of the book From Brown to Meredith by Andrew W. Kahrl
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy