Historical Photograph: 15th Amendment, or The Darkey's Millennium: 40 Acres of Land and a Mule

Forty Acres and a Mule

Historical Photograph: 15th Amendment, or The Darkey's Millennium: 40 Acres of Land and a Mule

c. 1850-1930

Historical Photograph

The New York Public Library features a historical photo that shows two African American men in front of the Putnam House in Palatka, Florida, one of whom is seated on a mule pulling a cart. The photo is titled, "15th Amendment, or the Darkey's Millennium: 40 Acres of Land and a Mule," and dated between 1850 and 1930, although it was most likely taken soon after the conclusion of the Civil War. The title is in reference to the phrase,"Forty Acres and a Mule," which was part of Union General William Tecumseh Sherman’s Special Field Order No. 15 that was issued on January 16, 1865, to allot land and leftover Army mules to formerly enslaved African American families. 

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The New York Public Library

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