Runaway and Freed Missouri Slaves and Those Who Helped Them, 1763-1865 (Hardcover: 214 pages)

Based largely on old newspapers, prison records, pardon papers, and other archival materials, this book is an account of the legal and physical obstacles that slaves faced in their quest for freedom and of the consequences suffered by persons who tried to help them. It looks at the widely held belief in slave states that African Americans thoroughly enjoyed being owned and that they only left their owners because they were enticed by abolitionists. It is an overview of attitudes toward slavery in early American abolitionist writings and the institutions protection in both the Articles of Confederation and the U.S. Constitution. It discusses the experiences of particular individuals such as Elizabeth Keckley, a former slave and seamstress who became Mary Todd Lincolns best friend after President Lincolns assassination. It also examines the Underground Railroad on Missouris borders. Four appendices provide details from two Spanish colonial census reports, a list of abolitionist prison inmates with details about their time served, and the percentages of African Americans still in bondage in 16 jurisdictions from 1820 to 1860.