The Stono Rebellion took place in South Carolina on September 9, 1739. The rebellion was named after the Stono River, where the revolt occurred. This rebellion was led by African American slaves who wanted to rebel against their owners. The revolt was planned a day before it actually happened by the slaves. Due to the fact that they couldn't afford weapons, they killed the owner of a gun shop in order to supply themselves with weapons. The leader of the rebellion is still unclear; however, his name could have been either Cato or Jemmy.
The group of slaves were heading toward south for Florida; they had signs that read "liberty" as they were marching toward their destination. As they were heading to Florida, other slaves started to join the group of slaves that had been marching for a while. However, some slaves were forced to join the rebellion. They also killed the masters, along with their families. The African Americans made an exception for one slave owner because he treated his slaves better than the others. A military force found the rebels and captured them; however, some were able to escape. The captured slaves were killed in order to teach a lesson to the South Carolinians.
The Negro Act was passed in 1740, due to the Stono Rebellion. The Negro Act didn't allow for people to take or import slaves directly from Africa. The African American population was greatly increasing; therefore, the whites were outnumbered. South Carolinians felt insecure so they stopped getting slaves from Africa. In addition, the Negro Act enforced the military force to be aware of their surroundings in order to prevent another rebellion like the Stono. If the salves were treated harshly, the slave owner would get fined for mistreating the slave.
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