When four young men; slaves on Edward Gorsuch's Maryland farm; escaped to rural Pennsylvania in 1849; the owner swore he'd bring them back. Two years later; Gorsuch lay dead outside the farmhouse in Christiana where he'd tracked them down; as his federal posse retreated pell-mell before the armed might of local blacks--and the impact of the most notorious act of resistance against the federal Fugitive Slave Law was about to be felt across a divided nation.Bloody Dawn vividly tells this dramatic story of escape; manhunt; riot; and the ensuing trial; detailing its importance in heightening the tensions that led to the Civil War. Thomas Slaughter's engaging narrative captures the full complexity of events and personalities: The four men fled after they were detected stealing grain for resale off the farm; Gorsuch; far from a brutal taskmaster; had pledged to release all his slaves when they reached the age of twenty-eight; but he relentlessly pursued the escapees out of a sense of wounded honor; and the African-American community in Lancaster County; Pennsylvania that provided them refuge was already effectively organized for self-defense by a commanding former slave named William Parker. Slaughter paints a rich portrait of the ongoing struggles between local blacks and white kidnapping gangs; the climactic riot as neighbors responded to trumpet calls from the besieged runaway slaves; the escape to Canada of the central figures (aided by Frederick Douglass); and the government's urgent response (including the largest mass indictment for treason in our history)--leading to the trial for his life of a local white bystander accused of leading the rioting blacks. Slaughter not only draws out the great importance given to the riot in both the North and the South; but he uses legal records reaching back over half a century to uncover the thoughts of average people on race; slavery; and violence. The Whiskey Rebellion; Slaughter's previous work of history; received widespread acclaim as "a vivid account" (The New York Times) and "an unusual combination of meticulous scholarship and engaging narrative" (The Philadelphia Inquirer). It was a selection of the History Book Club; and won both the National Historical Society Book Prize and the American Revolution Round Table Award. In Bloody Dawn; he once again weaves together the incisive insights of a professional historian with a gripping account of a dramatic moment in American history.
#1687413 in Books Leslie Howard Owens 1977-09-22Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.00 x .61 x 5.31l; .89 #File Name: 0195022459304 pagesThis Species of Property Slave Life and Culture in the Old South
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Oliver J DilworthVery informative!6 of 8 people found the following review helpful. THIS IS CERTAINLY ONE YOU WILL WANT TO ADD TO YOUR COLLECTIONBy D. BlankenshipThe author's subtitle of this book is " Slave Life and Culture in the Old South" probably does not fully bring the full impact of this particular institution; i.e. slavery; fully to the readers mind. It is difficult; for me anyway; to stay clinical and detached from this subject. This work has been meticulously researched and; despite the fact that it is a scholarly study of a facet of this countries history; the author has been able to bring; in hard hitting prose; the horror of this institution. I fully realize and accept the fact that all people; for the most part; are products of their times. We; at present; are a product of ours. Despite this; I still have a strong intellectual struggle accepting the fact that a rather large section of our population either accepted or condoned this practice. As a student of the Civil War and those times; I find it difficult to accept the fact that any understanding of the war; of that era; can be complete without a solid understand of just what slavery was; what it did to the individual and what it did to an entire society; i.e. the South. Beyond a doubt we are till reaping the crop which was planted in the early years of our country and since we have to live with the consequences it behooves each and every one of us to gain as much understanding as possible. This work; among others; sheds some light on the situation. This was beyond a doubt one of the darkest aspects of our history as a people and the author nails the essence of this perfectly.The author has used a very readable style which is quite easy to follow. The book is well organized.This book if full of tidbits and facts of which I was unaware; and very few pages were turned without new knowledge gained. The reader can be assured they will gain some insight; some understanding of the situation as it was; without feeling any obligation whatsoever to accept the situation. Recommend you read this one as a great start of the subject of slavery and recommend you add it to your collection as it makes a great reference work.Don BlankenshipThe Ozarks
