still image Gelatin silver prints 1930-1940. gmgpc [between 1937 and ca. 1938] eng 10143B. Caption: The bell rack. Contraption used by an Alabama slave owner to guard a runaway slave. This rack was originally topped by a bell which rang when the runaway attempted to leave the road and go through foliage or trees. It was attached around the neck as shown in the picture. A belt passed through the loop at the bottom to hold the iron rod firmly fastened to the waist of the wearer. In the accompanying photograph Richbourg Gailliard, assistant to the director of the Federal Museum and also a well-known young Mobile artist, poses to show the use made of the bell rack. Photo by Russell, Mobile. Forms part of: Portraits of African American ex-slaves from the U.S. Works Progress Administration, Federal Writers' Project slave narratives collections. Gailliard, Richbourg. Fugitive slaves--Alabama--Mobile--1840-1870. United States Alabama Mobile. Portraits of African American ex-slaves from the U.S. Works Progress Administration, Federal Writers' Project slave narratives collections http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/ppmsc.01038 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3c25130 No known restrictions on reproduction.