Two Stationmasters on the Underground Railroad: A Tale of Black and White

Posted by on Nov 25, 2013 in | Comments Off on Two Stationmasters on the Underground Railroad: A Tale of Black and White As clerk of the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society’s General Vigilance Committee, William Still (1821-1902) had grown accustomed to surprises. Not only did the young, free black abolitionist coordinate the Eastern Line of the Underground Railroad by finding shelter and escape routes to the North for fugitive slaves, but also he recorded their heart wrenching stories of inhumane treatment...
read more

All’s Fair: Philadelphia and the Civil War Sanitary Fair

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on All’s Fair: Philadelphia and the Civil War Sanitary Fair
read more

Civil War Muster Rolls

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on Civil War Muster Rolls The son of wealthy Philadelphia sailmaker and noted abolitionist James Forten (1766–1842), Robert Bridges Forten was born in Philadelphia on May 12, 1813, and followed in his father’s footsteps as a successful businessman and distinguished antislavery activist. Although he was more than fifty years old and in London when he learned the Union Army was enlisting African Americans in dedicated...
read more

Cremation’s Fiery Beginnings

Posted by on Nov 20, 2013 in | Comments Off on Cremation’s Fiery Beginnings Franz Lee Rickaby (1889–1925), a bone-thin man of thirty-five, was a much-loved professor of English and drama at Pomona College in Claremont, California, when he died of rheumatic fever. An adventurous wanderer, he left a respected historical legacy with folklorists when Harvard University posthumously published his collection of songs of the Midwest lumberjack, Ballads and Songs of the...
read more