In the spring of 1848 seventy-six slaves from the nation's capital hid aboard a schooner called the Pearl in an attempt to sail down the Potomac River and up the Chesapeake Bay to freedom in Pennsylvania. When inclement weather forced them to anchor for the night; the fugitive slaves and the ship's crew were captured and returned to Washington. Many of the slaves were sold to the Lower South; and two men sailing the Pearl were tried and sentenced to prison. Recounting this harrowing tale from the preparations for escape through the participants' trial; Josephine Pacheco provides fresh insight into the lives of enslaved blacks in the District of Columbia; putting a human face on the victims of the interstate slave trade; whose lives have been overshadowed by larger historical events. Pacheco also details the Congressional debates about slavery that resulted from this large-scale escape attempt. She contends that although the incident itself and the trials and Congressional disputes that followed were not directly responsible for bringing an end to the slave trade in the nation's capital; they played a pivotal role in publicizing many of the issues surrounding slavery. Eventually; President Millard Fillmore pardoned the operators of the Pearl.
#1789975 in Books The University of North Carolina Press 1991-09-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 1.20 x 6.45 x 9.55l; 1.43 #File Name: 0807819689310 pages
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. First Battle for a Volunteer ArmyBy Mark LongstrothI bought this book because I did not know much about Belmont; Grant's first action in the Civil War. This book moves in a logical pattern and is easy to follow. There is good development of the major players; both Union and Rebel generals and their backgrounds. There are quite a few maps in the book but they seem to appear several pages after the action is described in the text. There are lots of photos of the principle officers and a few contemporary drawings of the battle. The book answered all the questions I had about Belmont; which is usually described as an attempt by Grant to capture a fort at Belmont across the Mississippi River from the Confederate fortress at Columbus Kentucky. To the author; Belmont was a raid; part of a larger plan to keep Polk; the Confederate commander; off balance. Grant had multiple columns moving across Missouri and Kentucky to confuse the Confederates. This was Grants first offensive action with eager untested volunteer troops coordinated with troop transports and naval gunboats. The Federals easily pushed the rebel troops back to their camp and then out against the riverbank. Flushed with victory the troops celebrated their triumph looting the captured camp in full view of the Confederates across the river. Polk sent reinforcements across the river; which attacked the disorganized Federal troops and chased them back to their transports. Grant took a lot of criticism from his failed attack but gained valuable experience in the capture of Fort Henry and Donelson three months later.I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the Civil War in the West; especially if they are interested in the early action.5 of 5 people found the following review helpful. ClassesBy James W. DurneyArmies have to learn to fight as more than an armed mob. Officers have to learn how to fight their command too. Missing these classes makes all the drill worhless and a defeate possible. US Grant understood this and Belmont is his first training class for himself and his army. This small battle is either overlooked; ignored or used as an example of Grant being beaten on the field. All of those ideas are the wrong approach to understanding this battle. Was it important to the war? Not really. Was it important for giving semi-trained troops a taste of combat and instilling in them the habit of victory? Yesand this was Grant's objective. When he had accomplished his objective; he pulled back. Did everything go well? No; some officers didn't control their men; some men went off on tangents; orders were missed and a series of small problems made for a harder day than planned.All of the above makes for a good story and Nathaniel Hughes Jr. tells it well. After laying a good foundation; he takes us through each phase of the battle telling us what is going well and what isn't. Move and counter move occupy the book as Polk Pillow; move to first stop and then try to destroy the Union invader.A series of good well placed maps allow us to follow the action. A series of illustrations place faces to the names. Coupled with good clear writting make this an enjoyable and informative reading experience. This is a very good book about one of the small battle of the Civil War.10 of 10 people found the following review helpful. Great Account of the BattleBy Stephan BullardThis is an excellent synopsis of the Battle of Belmont. Belmont was a relatively small battle on the Missouri side of the Mississippi River. Though small; Belmont was important; partly because it was the first battle fought by General Grant. The writing style of the book is clear and easy to follow. There are 10 high quality maps; 7 that cover the battle itself. It is easy to correlate the maps and the text to keep track of units and their movements.Hughes writes in an interesting style. Instead of describing the battle from start to finish in a linear fashion; he switches back and forth between the Union and Confederate perspective. That is; he covers one part of the battle from the Federal point of view; then switches to the Confederate point of view and describes the events again. This approach could easily have come across poorly or been confusing. Instead; it leads to a very balanced and in depth account of the battle. I highly recommend this book to Civil War enthusiasts.
