Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2023-01-15 17:21:43
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Ilyon Woo
- ISBN：1501191055
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
The remarkable true story of Ellen and William Craft， who escaped slavery through daring， determination， and disguise， with Ellen passing as a wealthy， disabled White man and William posing as “his” slave。
In 1848， a year of international democratic revolt， a young， enslaved couple， Ellen and William Craft， achieved one of the boldest feats of self-emancipation in American history。 Posing as master and slave， while sustained by their love as husband and wife， they made their escape together across more than 1，000 miles， riding out in the open on steamboats， carriages， and trains that took them from bondage in Georgia to the free states of the North。
Along the way， they dodged slave traders， military officers， and even friends of their enslavers， who might have revealed their true identities。 The tale of their adventure soon made them celebrities， and generated headlines around the country。 Americans could not get enough of this charismatic young couple， who traveled another 1，000 miles criss-crossing New England， drawing thunderous applause as they spoke alongside some of the greatest abolitionist luminaries of the day—among them Frederick Douglass and William Wells Brown。
But even then， they were not out of danger。 With the passage of an infamous new Fugitive Slave Act in 1850， all Americans became accountable for returning refugees like the Crafts to slavery。 Then yet another adventure began， as slave hunters came up from Georgia， forcing the Crafts to flee once again—this time from the United States， their lives and thousands more on the line and the stakes never higher。
With three epic journeys compressed into one monumental bid for freedom， Master Slave Husband Wife is an American love story—one that would challenge the nation’s core precepts of life， liberty， and justice for all—one that challenges us even now。
In 1848， a year of international democratic revolt， a young， enslaved couple， Ellen and William Craft， achieved one of the boldest feats of self-emancipation in American history。 Posing as master and slave， while sustained by their love as husband and wife， they made their escape together across more than 1，000 miles， riding out in the open on steamboats， carriages， and trains that took them from bondage in Georgia to the free states of the North。
Along the way， they dodged slave traders， military officers， and even friends of their enslavers， who might have revealed their true identities。 The tale of their adventure soon made them celebrities， and generated headlines around the country。 Americans could not get enough of this charismatic young couple， who traveled another 1，000 miles criss-crossing New England， drawing thunderous applause as they spoke alongside some of the greatest abolitionist luminaries of the day—among them Frederick Douglass and William Wells Brown。
But even then， they were not out of danger。 With the passage of an infamous new Fugitive Slave Act in 1850， all Americans became accountable for returning refugees like the Crafts to slavery。 Then yet another adventure began， as slave hunters came up from Georgia， forcing the Crafts to flee once again—this time from the United States， their lives and thousands more on the line and the stakes never higher。
With three epic journeys compressed into one monumental bid for freedom， Master Slave Husband Wife is an American love story—one that would challenge the nation’s core precepts of life， liberty， and justice for all—one that challenges us even now。
Reviews
Patty Hagar
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3。5 star。 Historically fascinating and culturally important。 I’d never heard of the Crafts and am so happy to become acquainted with their story。 Interestingly woven people and occurrences that are familiar with the Craft’s journey that I didn’t know about。 Well done but a bit dry and detail heavy for a full 4 star for me。
Karen Bullock
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An perilous journey that would speak to thousands of slaves worldwide as a husband and wife take the most daring chance ever to free themselves， under the disguise of master and slave。Adventures across a brewing soon to be war torn country， starting in Georgia and hopefully/successfully trekking all the way up to Canada， a country that boasted anti-slavery。The sheer bravado of William and Ellen Craft is astounding， knowing that they could have been captured at any time。 Capture with horrible con An perilous journey that would speak to thousands of slaves worldwide as a husband and wife take the most daring chance ever to free themselves， under the disguise of master and slave。Adventures across a brewing soon to be war torn country， starting in Georgia and hopefully/successfully trekking all the way up to Canada， a country that boasted anti-slavery。The sheer bravado of William and Ellen Craft is astounding， knowing that they could have been captured at any time。 Capture with horrible consequences， even punishable by death， did not stop their urgency for a chance at a better life， at freedom and to not be owned by anyone。Amazed that this story was never mentioned in any previously written history book as it surely would have made a huge difference and quite the impression。Thank you to the publishers for this arc and the chance to look back in history， and stand in awe。 。。。more
Scott Pearson
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I first heard the Crafts’ story as a student in American History class in a South Carolina high school。 My teacher shared how the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 was first tested with a couple in Boston who recently escaped slavery。 Mass protests made a mockery of the enslavers’ efforts， the Crafts eluded capture by escaping， and the slave-catchers returned to Georgia empty-handed。 I remember that the story seemed more complicated than that， but even then， I did not pick up the nuances。 Twenty-five y I first heard the Crafts’ story as a student in American History class in a South Carolina high school。 My teacher shared how the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 was first tested with a couple in Boston who recently escaped slavery。 Mass protests made a mockery of the enslavers’ efforts， the Crafts eluded capture by escaping， and the slave-catchers returned to Georgia empty-handed。 I remember that the story seemed more complicated than that， but even then， I did not pick up the nuances。 Twenty-five years later， I reencountered the Crafts in Woo’s biography， and I learned their full story。 Boy， I am grateful that I did so because it enlightened， entertained， and inspired me in many ways。William and Ellen Craft were born as enslaved people in early nineteenth-century Georgia。 They met in Macon as adults。 Ellen is nearly white in complexion， but by the “one-drop rule，” having one black parent made her black。 By Georgia law， she was “owned” by her father。 Both William and Ellen became skilled artisans， but earned money only for their “masters。” After falling in love， they plotted their escape。 Ellen， a skilled seamstress， would dress as a privileged white man and leave Macon on a train， with William in tow appearing as her slave。They went from Macon， to Savannah， Charleston， Baltimore， and eventually Philadelphia， with many humorous yet frightening experiences along the way。 They eventually ended up on the lecture circuit across New England in the late 1840s before settling in Boston。 In the US Congress， the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was formulated as a compromise between North and South。 By federal law， Northern states would now have to allow slave-catchers freedom to re-enslave their “property。” The Crafts would be the first test case of Northern will。In Boston， a mob of free blacks， many with arms and sworn to fight to the death， encountered these Southern slave-catchers。 After several days of getting the run-around， the hunters returned to Georgia unsuccessfully while the Crafts fled to Canada en route to Liverpool， England。 They toured England on the lecture circuit， were formally educated how to read and write， and started a family。 They continued to speak out against slavery and celebrated its ending in America in the 1860s。Kudos to Woo for revamping this story for the reading public！ Anyone sympathetic to the human plight for freedom will find themselves in this book， especially students of history。 Those engaged in professions of history， especially on the Eastern seaboard， will benefit from understanding how the culture of the original 13 colonies formed itself in America’s early years。 We’ve been recently reminded that American history isn’t as far past as we might like to think， and this book can teach us how human ignorance and national politics can imprison us all。 Thus， this book can help convey a sense of social justice in our present and future。 Ellen and William Craft form noble – but sometimes tragic – heroes with creative， unique， entertaining stories。 Their stories need to be known more widely， and Woo is a more-than-suitable translator for us today。 。。。more
Cathy Doyle
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The story of Ellen and Willam Craft， who escaped from slavery with Ellen dressed as a white man。 A well documented story of an interesting couple。
Jeffrey
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I really enjoyed the historical aspect of this book。 Having the author going more in-depth then just the Crafts gave me a much better understanding of this time period。
Carol McCarthy
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This book tells the story of Ellen and William Craft。 It also does a good job of explaining a wider context around them。
Audrey
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A riveting read about a formerly enslaved couple who have almost disappeared from history。 Despite knowing the ending， be prepared to feel the tension and suspense on how Ellen and William Craft， escaped from the south to freedom in the North。 But what's even more interesting， is what happened next as the two entered the lecture circuit， with well known abolitionists to advocate for ending slavery and the constant fear of being captured and forced down south again。 I received an arc from the pub A riveting read about a formerly enslaved couple who have almost disappeared from history。 Despite knowing the ending， be prepared to feel the tension and suspense on how Ellen and William Craft， escaped from the south to freedom in the North。 But what's even more interesting， is what happened next as the two entered the lecture circuit， with well known abolitionists to advocate for ending slavery and the constant fear of being captured and forced down south again。 I received an arc from the publisher but all opinions are my own。 。。。more
Concinnous
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