In 1860, when four million African Americans were enslaved, a quarter-million others, including William Ellison, were "free people of color." But Ellison was remarkable. Born a slave, his experience spans the history of the South from George Washington and Thomas Jefferson to Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis. In a day when most Americans, black and white, worked the soil, barely scraping together a living, Ellison was a cotton-gin maker-a master craftsman. When nearly all free blacks were destitute, Ellison was wealthy and well-established. He owned a large plantation and more slaves than all but the richest white planters.
While Ellison was exceptional in many respects, the story of his life sheds light on the collective experience of African Americans in the antebellum South to whom he remained bound by race. His family history emphasizes the fine line separating freedom from slavery.
- ISBN10 0393303144
- ISBN13 9780393303148
- Publish Date 1 April 1986
- Publish Status Active
- Out of Print 7 May 2016
- Publish Country US
- Imprint WW Norton & Co
- Format Paperback
- Pages 440
- Language English
- URL http://wiley.com/remtitle.cgi?isbn=9780393303148