"Planation Games"

There were several games that African-American children of the plantation played in the midst of oppression.The children had to play with things found in nature or in the slave quarters rather than expensive dolls or board games.They played games like hide the switch.A child would hide a branch and the first child that found it would would smack the others with it and hide it for the next child.Another game was Bob a needle.Children would sit in a circle and pass a needle case behind their back while singing.Whoever held the needle by the end of the song was "it."Other plantation games were Haley Over or Anti-Over,a game in which children divided into two groups and stood on each side of a building.It was,in a way,like volleyball,with the building serving as a net.One child tossed a ball over the building and the children in the other group tried to catch it.Whoever caught it ran around to the other side and threw it to try to hit one of the kids from the first group with the ball,like the present day Dodge Ball.If you got hit with the ball,you were "out."African-American children in the fields also played clapping games like Miss Mary Mack,which lasted through generations of children on the playground.Children also engaged in role-play games where they would re-enact scenes from a funeral,slave auctions,family gatherings and baptisms.Some of these games would involve the children of the slave owners.Other games included Ole Molly Bright in which children would make stories up about the moon.Children would engage in ball games like Shinny,Rolly Hole,which later evolved in the game of hockey.Kids,especially girls,played non-competitive games like jump rope.It was important that slaves work together and not build competition among them,perhaps to not appear to be stronger than the other in case of sale or barter with other plantations.Children of all sizes kept busy with both good and bad means of entertainment.Older kids might sneak away and gamble by playing craps or perhaps smut.Smut was similar to a card game with the exception that various grains of corn with the marks were used to distinguish the suits and numbers.Some of the items children would amuse themselves with were stick horses,moon winders,tops and drums.While the kids were given small tasks to complete,which gave them time for creative games,they were subjected to unfair games games with the white children of the big house.Perhaps they were "locked in jail"or provoked to play games that required more skill than they were allowed as slaves.