Slave Badge Magnet Set of 3

The 18th- and 19th-century slave-hire system of Charleston, South Carolina produced distinctive tags, known as slave tax badges. Each badge was marked with the year, place, issue number, and the type of work permitted. The law stipulated that tags were to be worn by slaves when their owners allowed them to be hired out or self-employed. These badges served as annual licenses that owners would pay up to seven dollars for depending on the occupation. Because slave wages were less than those paid for white labor, these licenses also served as a quota system to protect white jobs, limiting the number of badges to be issued for tradesmen and skilled labor. The majority of tags surviving today are for "servant[s]", followed in number by those for "porter[s]". Savannah, New Orleans, Mobile, and Norfolk all had slave badge laws, but Charleston is the only city for which badges are known to survive. In recent years slave badges have become popular collectibles - so much so that forgeries are now quite common.