The Virginia Height Increase: The Effects of Climate, Diet, and Labour on the Health of Enslaved Men in the Cold South, 1815-1835

Abstract

From 1815 to 1835, the height average of enslaved Virginian men increased while the average of European and North American men decreased. This thesis argues that climate should be considered a major influence on the skeletal height of the enslaved. Climate change in the 1810s shortened the crop growing season in Virginia, Maryland, and North Carolina—a region that this thesis calls the cold south. Foods specific to this region, such as milk and oily fish, provided additional calories and dietary vitamin D, supporting the health of Virginian slaves. The shorter growing season lessened labour demands, allowing cold-south slaves to rest longer. This period of rest maximized the nutritional advantage held by children enslaved in the cold south compared to other regions, initiating the temporary increase in adult skeletal height. Achieving this marker of good health reflects more the environment in which a person is enslaved rather than one’s status.