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The dawn of Detroit : a chronicle of slavery and freedom in the city of the straits / Tiya Miles.
Van Pelt Library F574.D457 M55 2017
By Request
- Format:
- Book
- Author/Creator:
- Miles, Tiya, 1970- author.
- Language:
- English
- Subjects (All):
- Indians of North America.
- History.
- African Americans.
- Slavery.
- Detroit (Mich.)--History--18th century.
- Detroit (Mich.).
- Detroit (Mich.)--History--19th century.
- Detroit (Mich.)--Race relations.
- Slavery--Michigan.
- African Americans--Michigan--History.
- Indians of North America--Michigan--History.
- Race relations.
- Michigan.
- Michigan--Detroit.
- Genre:
- History.
- Physical Description:
- 336 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm
- Place of Publication:
- New York : The New Press, 2017.
- Summary:
- Most Americans believe that slavery was a creature of the South, and that Northern states and territories provided stops on the Underground Railroad for fugitive slaves on their way to Canada. In this paradigm-shifting book, celebrated historian Tiya Miles reveals that slavery was at the heart of the Midwest's iconic city: Detroit. In this richly researched and eye-opening book, Miles has pieced together the experience of the unfree--both native and African American--in the frontier outpost of Detroit, a place wildly remote yet at the center of national and international conflict. Skillfully assembling fragments of a distant historical record, Miles introduces new historical figures and unearths struggles that remained hidden from view until now. The result is fascinating history, little explored and eloquently told, of the limits of freedom in early America, one that adds new layers of complexity to the story of a place that exerts a strong fascination in the media and among public intellectuals, artists, and activists. A book that opens the door on a completely hidden past, The Dawn of Detroit is a powerful and elegantly written history, one that completely changes our understanding of slavery's American legacy.
- Most Americans believe that slavery was a creature of the South. Miles reveals that slavery was at the heart of the Midwest's iconic city: Detroit. She has pieced together the experience of the unfree-- both native and African American-- in the frontier outpost of Detroit, a place wildly remote yet at the center of national and international conflict, unearthing struggles that remained hidden from view until now. A powerful and elegantly written history that completely changes our understanding of slavery's American legacy.
- Contents:
- Introduction: the coast of the strait
- The straits of slavery (1760-1770)
- The war for liberty (1774-1783)
- The wild northwest (1783-1803)
- The winds of change (1802-1807)
- The rise of the renegades (1807-1815)
- Conclusion: the American city (1817 and beyond)
- Coda: a note on historical conversations and concepts.
- Notes:
- Includes bibliographical references and index.
- Hurston/Wright Legacy Award - Nonfiction, Winner, 2018
- American Book Awards, Winner, 2018
- Other Format:
- Online version: Miles, Tiya, 1970- author. Dawn of Detroit
- ISBN:
- 9781620972311
- 162097231X
- OCLC:
- 974699599
- Publisher Number:
- 40027526125
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