In the shadow of freedom : the politics of slavery in the national capital / edited by Paul Finkelman and Donald R. Kennon.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Finkelman, Paul, 1949-

Kennon, Donald R., 1948-

United States Capitol Historical Society.

Series:

Perspectives on the history of Congress, 1801-1877.

Perspectives on the history of Congress, 1801-1877

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Antislavery movements--Washington (D.C.)--History--19th century--Congresses.

Antislavery movements.

Slavery--Law and legislation--United States--History--19th century--Congresses.

Slavery.

Slavery--Political aspects--Washington (D.C.)--History--19th century--Congresses.

Slavery--Washington (D.C.)--History--19th century--Congresses.

Washington (D.C.)--Politics and government--To 1878--Congresses.

Washington (D.C.).

Washington (D.C.)--Race relations--History--19th century--Congresses.

United States. Congress--History--19th century--Congresses.

United States.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (257 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Athens : Published for the United States Capitol Historical Society by Ohio University Press, c2010.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Few images of early America were more striking, and jarring, than that of slaves in the capital city of the world's most important free republic. Black slaves served and sustained the legislators, bureaucrats, jurists, cabinet officials, military leaders, and even the presidents who lived and worked there. While slaves quietly kept the nation's capital running smoothly, lawmakers debated the place of slavery in the nation, the status of slavery in the territories newly acquired from Mexico, and even the legality of the slave trade in itself. This volume, with essays by some of the

Contents:

Slavery in the shadow of liberty : the problem of slavery in Congress and the nation's capital / Paul Finkelman

pt. 1. Congress and slavery in context

The impact of British abolitionism on American sectionalism / David Brion Davis

Christian statesmanship, codes of honor, and congressional violence : the antislavery travails and triumphs of Joshua Giddings / James B. Stewart

Gamaliel Bailey, antislavery journalist and lobbyist / Stanley Harrold

Saturday nights at the Baileys' : building an antislavery movement in Congress, 1838/1854 / Jonathan Earle

"A nest of rattlesnakes let loose among them" : congressional debates over women's antislavery petitions, 1835/1845 / Susan Zaeske

Debating slavery by proxy : the Texas annexation controversy / David Zarefsky

pt. 2. The politics of slavery in the District of Columbia

The 1846 retrocession of Alexandria : protecting slavery and the slave trade in the District of Columbia / A. Glenn Crothers

"Whether they be ours or no, they may be heirs of the kingdom" : the pursuit of family ties among enslaved people in the District of Columbia / Mary Beth Corrigan

The 1848 Pearl escape from Washington, D.C. : a convergence of opportunity, motivation, and political action in the nation's capital / Mary K. Ricks

Celebrating emancipation and contesting freedom in Washington, D.C. / Mitch Kachun.

Notes:

Papers from the U.S. Capitol Historical Society meeting held in 2006.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780821443491

0821443496

OCLC:

715301069