Tobacco Auction
Tobacco and textiles. Those were the two economic engines behind Danville for well over a century. Nearly every child in the region can remember picking tobacco as a child to help out with the family income. And once that tobacco was picked, it had to be cured and then sold to tobacco companies. That’s where the tobacco auctioneer entered the picture. From one tobacco warehouse to the next, the sound of the auctioneer’s chant rang out. In fact, it was considered such an art that contests were held to crown the best chanter. Host Page Roberts is one such past champion, and, in this piece, he provides an intriguing overview of this lost art, and he also shares a few of his chanting styles with us.
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