In 1904, Peter, a former slave who lived near Powhatan, provided a glimpse of Arkansas life near the White River for black and white inhabitants before the Civil War. He noted, “The people here before the war worked a little in the summer and raised a little corn. They were hunters. Coon skins, otter skins, and beaver skins were legal tender. If a man was a hunter, he was all right. A peddling boat came up the Black River to buy our stuff.” This example illustrates that slaves sometimes could sell their skins to earn money. Furthermore, it indicates that African Americans did not have to travel into towns to sell their hides.[1]
[1] Interview with Uncle Peter in Stockard, The History, 48.
Arkansas Wildlife History 