advance monetary claims, etc., etc., ad nauseam, to unravel, page by page, whatever crude,often non-binding, paperwork was needed for one human being to “own” other human beings.Year after year, Larry diligently and unselfishly worked to meticulously research and organizea complete manuscript detailing authoritative facts about the slave-master owners. Andwherever he went throughout the Southern states to obtain his data, he was applauded. Tobring home and dissect folders of copied documents was beyond commendable, if such acommon, collective, proper, abstract noun ever existed. A whole lot of historians, including allthe good, empathetic American people, thank him to this day for his intense resolution tocontinue gathering and interpreting over the years for what lays before us today. It is unlikelythere will be another Larry Koger who will tread in his footsteps for centuries to come.After the Civil War, free black masters no longer exploitered the labor of slaves, Larry pointsout. “Because of the war, the black slaveowners were required to free their slaves. If theywanted to use the services of workers, they had to make the transition from slaves toemployees. Slow and difficult for the rural masters, it marked the death of the plantationsystem. The war and emancipation of the slaves caused the collapse of the black slave owningclass of rice planters as well as the large cotton planters”. Note: Appendices A, B, and C, and thefinal 37 pages of priceless endnotes for all the 10 chapters, will inundate your thinking withtreasures by the tons of information on slaves and slave ownership. Read for yourself how thesuperb historian-author Larry Koger is a ton of treasure onto himself for us non-racist Civil War
buffs.
