Sharecropping was a system of labor widespread in the southern United States after the Civil War. Under this system, landowners provided land and supplies to poor farmers, who worked the land and gave the landowner a share of the crop in return.
Operation:
- Large landowners divided their lands into smaller tracts and rented them out to formerly enslaved African American farmers.
- Sharecroppers typically received half of the crop they produced, with the other half going to the landowner.
- Sharecroppers often had to provide their own tools and animals.
- They also paid rent for their housing, which was usually located on the landowner's property.
- They were often provided loans by the landowner or merchant to purchase supplies, which further bound them to the plantation.
Sharecropping operated on a credit system. At the beginning of each farming year, the landowner provided credit or an advanced to the sharecropper for such things as seeds, tools, fertilizer and a portion of food in exchange for a lien on the crop. These loans kept sharecroppers in debt and dependent on the landowner.
Sharecropping was used to bypass laws meant to protect former enslaved people. Despite the Thirteenth Amendment, it gave landowners significant control over the lives and labor of sharecroppers.