“Peter” Showing Whipping Scars
4/2/1863
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This 1863 photograph of “Peter,” a formerly enslaved man, displaying scars from his overseer’s whippings, was widely reproduced as evidence of slavery’s cruelty. The image was sometimes paired with a photo or drawing of “Peter” after his enlistment in the U.S. Army. “Peter” was sometimes identified as “Gordon.”
The original caption reads: Overseer Artayou Carrier whipped me. I was two months in bed sore from the whipping. My master come after I was whipped; he discharged the overseer. The very words of poor Peter, taken as he sat for his picture. Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
This primary source comes from the Records of the War Department General and Special Staffs.
National Archives Identifier:
533232Full Citation: Photograph 165-JT-230; Overseer Artayou Carrier whipped me. I was two months in bed sore from the whipping.; 4/2/1863; Photographic Prints in John Taylor Album*, ca. 1861 - ca. 1865; Records of the War Department General and Special Staffs, Record Group 165; National Archives at College Park, College Park, MD. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/peter, April 18, 2024]