Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom
“Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom” by William Craft is an illustrated edition published by Cambridge University Press on September 26, 2013. This 122-page work recounts the extraordinary escape from slavery undertaken by William Craft and his wife, Ellen, in the mid-19th century. The narrative details their innovative plan to disguise Ellen as a man while William posed as her slave, allowing them to travel northward to freedom.
Readers will find a personal memoir that explores themes of race, gender, and class in 19th-century America. The book not only chronicles their successful journey to Philadelphia and Boston, where they engaged in abolitionist efforts, but also their eventual relocation to England for greater safety. This account provides insight into the struggles and triumphs faced by the couple, offering a historical perspective on the fight for freedom and the complexities of identity during that era.
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In this short work of 1860, William Craft (c.1825-1900), assisted by his wife Ellen (c.1825-91), recounts the remarkable story of how they escaped from slavery in America. Having married as slaves in Georgia, yet unwilling to raise a family in servitude, the couple came up with a plan to disguise the light-skinned Ellen as a man, with William acting as her slave, and to travel to the north in late 1848. This compelling narrative traces their successful journey to Philadelphia and their subsequent move to Boston, where they became involved in abolitionist activities. Later, the couple sought greater safety in England, where they lived for a number of years and had five children. A success upon its first appearance, the book touches on the themes of race, gender and class in mid-nineteenth-century America, offering modern readers a first-hand account of how barriers to freedom could be overcome.
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