In 1775, Thomas Jeremiah was one of fewer than five hundred "Free Negros" in South Carolina and, with an estimated worth of £1,000 (about $200,000 in today's dollars), possibly the richest person of African descent in British North America. A slaveowner himself, Jeremiah was falsely accused by whites--who resented his success as a Charleston harbor pilot--of sowing insurrection among slaves at the behest of the British. Though a free man, Jeremiah...

This book seeks to recover the lives and words of former slaves in detail by mining the case files of the U.S. Pension Bureau. These files contain first-hand perspective of slavery, emancipation, black military service, and freedom. It also explores the words of former slaves topically from recollections of slavery to life after emancipation.

The birth of a nation: Nat Turner is a literate American slave and preacher. His financially strained owner accepts an offer to use Nat's preaching to subdue unruly slaves. But as Nat witnesses countless atrocities, he orchestrates an uprising in the hopes of leading his people to freedom. 12 years a slave: The harrowing account of a black man, born free in New York State, who was drugged, kidnapped, and sold into slavery in 1841. Having no way to...

"Two half sisters, Effia and Esi, unknown to each other, are born into two different tribal villages in 18th century Ghana. Effia will be married off to an English colonial, and will live in comfort in the sprawling, palatial rooms of Cape Coast Castle, raising half-caste children who will be sent abroad to be educated in England before returning to the Gold Coast to serve as administrators of the Empire. Her sister, Esi, will be imprisoned beneath...