In Franklin and Augusta men who listed their occupation as a laborer or day laborer often did not own any property or wealth at all. In Franklin these workers were more likely to have accumulated at least some property.

The average age of Augusta's farm laborers was 34, while Franklin's was 24. For both day laborers and laborers it was the reverse--Franklin's was 35 and Augusta's younger (29 and 27 respectively). On average Franklin and Augusta laborers of all kinds held similar real and personal wealth, but on average a higher proportion of Franklin's male laborers held real and personal estate than their Augusta counterparts. For example, 6 percent of Augusta's day laborers and laborers held real estate of any worth, while 20 to 24 percent of Franklin's held at least some real estate wealth. The pattern was similar for personal property holdings. In Franklin 60 to 65 percent of day laborers and laborers held at least some personal property, while in Augusta between 38 and 44 percent owned personal property.

Laborers in Augusta and Franklin, 1860 (table)

Related Historiography

Robert William Fogel, Without Consent or Contract: The Rise and Fall of American Slavery (New York: W. W. Norton, 1989).

Edward Pessen, "How Different from Each Other Were the Antebellum North and South," American Historical Review 85 (1980): 1119-1149.