Half of the Black people who came to America in chains arrived in Charleston’s harbor.

They came in groups of several hundred after weeks-long voyages in the bowels of cramped ships.

They disembarked at a slave facility offshore on Sullivan’s Island.

There, they were checked for disease and then transferred to the mainland for auctioning at Charleston’s slave markets.

White Charlestonians sometimes came to watch and enjoy wine and refreshments offered by the auction houses.

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