Nacis 2009 - Slave Transactions In Rio De Janeiro Circa 1869

The Slave Market in Rio de Janeiro circa1869

Zephyr Frank, Whitney Berry, Erik Steiner

Spatial History Lab Bill Lane Center for the American West Stanford University http://spatialhistory.stanford.edu [email protected]

Terrain of History Project ƒ

Create a detailed reconstruction of urban spaces in 19th century Rio de Janeiro

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Explore and analyze social histories within the reconstructed cityscape

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Develop dynamic visualizations that will inform historical analysis as well as illustrate key findings

Slave Market Timeline C. 1550 Portuguese begin to trade in African slaves 1761 Portugal abolishes slavery, but continues in colonies 1831 Atlantic Slave Trade banned in Brazil 1850 Foreign Slave Trade suppressed in Brazil 1871 Sons of slaves were freed 1888 Slavery abolished in Brazil

What are the spatial dynamics of the slave market? How do they contribute to our understanding of the human (slave) experience?

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How far did slaves move?

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What role did gender play in these transactions?

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How drastic was the change in neighborhood, from a slave’s origin to her destination?

What did we learn? • Spatial dynamics are present in Rio’s slave market • They can provide insight into the slave experience • Visualization allows for spatio-temporal dynamics • Value of design in bringing scholars together

Acknowledgements Zephyr Frank Professor of History Associate Director, Spatial History Lab

Erik Steiner Lab Director, Spatial History Lab

Hannah Gilula Post‐Graduate RA, Sociology

Peter Shannon Undergraduate RA, Music

Ryan Delaney Post‐Baccalaureate RA, History

David Sabeti Undergraduate RA, Computer Science

Eleanor Wilking Post‐Baccalaureate RA, Economics (Harvard College)

Richard White Professor of History Director, Spatial History Lab

Kathy Harris Lab Manager, Spatial History Lab

Lucas Manfield Undergraduate RA, Symbolic Systems

Toral Patel Post‐Baccalaureate RA, Geography (Middlebury College)

Chester Harvey Undergraduate RA, Geography  (Middlebury College)

Cecult Research Group UNICAMP, Sao Paolo

…and all the others over the past 8 years!