African American Slave Medicine: Herbal and non-Herbal Treatments

African American Slave Medicine offers a critical examination of how African American slaves' medical needs were addressed during the years before and surrounding the Civil War. Drawing upon exslave interviews conducted during the 1930s and 1940s by the Works Project Administration, Dr. Herbert C. Covey inventories many of the herbal, plant, and nonplant remedies used by African American folk practitioners during slavery. Covey places great emphasis on the participation of slaves as health practitioners, the importance of faith in the practice, and the modern scientific evidence behind each plant's significance in health recovery. Through his study, Dr. Covey unravels many of the complex social relationships found between the African American slaves, Whites, folk practitioners, and patients, giving readers a groundbreaking look into an otherwise unknown moment in history. African American Slave Medicine is a compelling and captivating read that will appeal to scholars of African American history and those interested in folk medicine.