This groundbreaking Civil War history illuminates the unique development of antislavery sentiment in the border region of south central Pennsylvania. During the antebellum decades every single fugitive slave escaping by land east of the Appalachian Mountains had to pass through south central Pennsylvania, where they faced both significant opportunities and substantial risks. While the hundreds of fugitives traveling through Adams, Franklin, and Cumberland counties were aided by an effective Underground Railroad, they also faced slave catchers and informers. In On the Edge of Freedom, historian David G. Smith traces the victories of antislavery activists in south central Pennsylvania, including the achievement of a strong personal liberty law and the aggressive prosecution of kidnappers who seized African Americans as fugitives. He also documents how their success provoked Southern retaliation and the passage of a strengthened Fugitive Slave Law in 1850. Smith explores the fugitive slave issue through fifty years of sectional conflict, war, and reconstruction in south central Pennsylvania and provocatively questions what was gained by emphasizing fugitive protection over immediate abolition and full equality. Smith argues that after the war, social and demographic changes in southern Pennsylvania worked against African Americans’ achieving equal opportunity. Although local literature portrayed this area as a vanguard of the Underground Railroad, African Americans still lived “on the edge of freedom.” Winner of the Hortense Simmons Prize
In this work, Smith illuminates the unique development of antislavery sentiment in south central Pennsylvania a border region of a border state with a complicated history of slavery antislavery activism, and unequal freedom.
The Thrill of Romantic Suspense Meets the Romance of 1800s America Lured by a handful of scribbled words across a faded letter, Cara Hamilton sets off from 1896 Ireland on a quest to find the brother she'd thought dead.
Along with the familiar stories of Jim Bowie, David Crockett, and William B. Travis-the heroes of the Alamo-it is time, in the 175th anniversary year of the Revolution, to understand the more complex stories of James W. Fannin and his ...
"[This book is] an ... examination of how we can respond to suffering, live our fullest lives, and remain open to the full spectrum of our human experience"--Amazon.com.
Book 2 Continuing Saga of Freedom Calling Series. The escape of two slaves and their journey to freedom and a new life in New Bedford. Set in the US Civil War era.
The Edge of Freedom
My only other option was to change it, completely. Falling Into Freedom is the story of the crazy adventures that began after I stepped back from the cliff and set out in search of the wisdom that would set me free.
This is one of the many fascinating links between racial politics and international affairs explored in Window on Freedom.
Eoghan must choose which road to follow--bitterness or forgiveness--and where to finally place his trust. "Ludwig's research on Ireland and New York, along with research on immigrants, shows in this exciting story." --RT Book Reviews
Examines the life of a former slave who became a radical abolitionist and Union spy, recruiting black soldiers for the North, fighting racism within the Union Army and much more.