One of the most amazing characters in American history was John Fairfield; a member of the Underground Railroad who helped slaves to freedom before the Civil War. His exploits are mentioned by notables such as Harriet Tubman; Frederick Douglass; and Levi Coffin (the “President†of the Underground Railroad). All greatly admired him but were shocked by his tactics. Fairfield was the only high-profile abolitionist to charge people for his work. Some assert Fairfield exploited the slaves because he charged relatives in Canada to get their family members to safety; but he used the fees to help concoct elaborate ruses that he used to steal the slaves and help them to freedom. One time he led nineteen slaves to freedom by pretending to be an undertaker taking the body of a slave across the Ohio River to a slave cemetery on the other side. He had one slave (in an open coffin) pretend to be the deceased―and the other eighteen marched in a funeral procession right through the middle of town in plain sight. The townspeople stepped aside; out of respect for the “deceased;†and watched him take all of them across the river to their freedom! Another time he pretended to be a poultry dealer; gaining the respect of all in a town; and then stole their slaves. Still another time he passed himself off as a businessman who needed to build boats to take salt to the South for a very profitable venture. He got many of the leading citizens of that town to invest in his project; and when the boats were finished; he chose a moonless night to get all the slaves to the boats―and had them row to freedom.Fairfield was seen by some as a scoundrel; a con-man; and a criminal. Others saw him as a very religious man who believed with all his heart that the evils of slavery needed to be wiped out―and he was willing to go to extremes to help with that cause. Fairfield wasn’t as violent as; say; John Brown; but he still got the job done.
#5583652 in Books 2009-11-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.90 x 1.00 x 6.00l; 1.30 #File Name: 1557289174400 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Noteworthy Personal AccountBy William BozicThe title of the book is extremely accurate. The author Albert Marshall was a private in the 33rd. Illinois Volunteer Infantry; a regiment composed largely of college students; as evidenced by the extremely well written; detailed journal. This book is full of anecdotes and human interest stories so it's a joy for the reader who is not looking for grand strategy; causes of the war; or statistics.The 33rd Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment served in Missouri; the Vicksburg Campaign; the Teche Campaign (Louisiana) and along the Texas Gulf of Mexico. Albert Marshall chose not to reenlist at the end of his regiment's three-year term of service; so he was temporarily transferred to the 99th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment until he could be returned due to the expiration of his term of service. Those who reenlisted in the 33rd Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment received cash bounties and a furlough back home to Illinois via New York City by boat; Since this is a journal of Marshall's service the narrative follows him rather than the history of his regiment.The editor Robert G Schultz has done an outstanding job of placing in context the people; places; and events mentioned in the journal so the reader is able to understand the references; and is provided with footnotes and an extensive bibliography. There are four appendices at the end of the book in which the author has included information on the normal picket; a photo of a Union soldier's letter from the Trans-Mississippi Department; a section on the 33rd in print; and discussion of the problems with cotton. As previously mentioned; there are notes; bibliography and index.
