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FUG108858965 |
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Books & Manuscripts |
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Americana |
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USA |
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June 8, 1835 |
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$2,500.00 |
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Good |
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Oblong 4to. |
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Lion Heart Autographs |
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470 Park Avenue South, Penthouse |
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New York, NY 10016 |
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USA |
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A Negro Man named Robert
FUGITIVE SLAVE BROADSIDE. 1p. Oblong 4to. Charlestown, June 8, 1835. A poster seeking the return of a 29-year-old slave named Robert to Isaac N. Carter (1806-1882) owner of the Carter Hotel in Charlestown, [West] Virginia, near Harper’s Ferry.
150 Dollars Reward. Ran away from the subscriber, living near Harpers-Ferry, Jefferson County, Virginia, on Friday night the 5th inst., a Negro Man named Robert, who is 29 years old, not very black, is about five feet ten inches high, has a large mouth; and may well be known, on examination, by a large scar on his neck, caused by the cut of a knife. He had on, when he absconded, a seal skin cap, linen pantaloons, and a white linen roundabout; but doubtless will change his clothing. The above reward will be paid if taken in the State of Pennsylvania; $100 if taken in Maryland; and $50 if taken in Virginia. The same reward will be given, provided Robert is secured in any jail, so that I get him again, as if brought home. Letters containing intelligence of the abovementioned Runaway, may be directed to the care of Mr. Isaac N. Carter, Charlestown, Jefferson co. Va. Jonathan Kearsley
Prior to the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act in 1850, which stated that escaped slaves must be returned to their masters, American slaves would often flee to northern states where slavery had been abolished. Some slaves were assisted in their escape attempts by abolitionists, most famously those who operated the “Underground Railroad,” a coordinated effort to guide slaves to freedom, active from 1816 and 1860.
Slaves were not only considered their owners’ personal property, but were a valuable asset on which the Southern economy depended. As such, a master would do whatever necessary to obtain the return of an escaped slave, including publishing notices in newspapers, putting up flyers such as ours and hiring bounty hunters.
The Robert of our poster escaped from Charlestown, West Virginia, located very near to Harper’s Ferry, site of John Brown’s 1859 raid, through which he hoped to mount a slave rebellion. Carter was the proprietor of a hotel which catered to tourists going to nearby Shannondale Springs, whose waters were promoted as therapeutic.
The broadside suffers some paper loss, touching two words of the text. Mounted to a stiff board. Archivally matted and framed. Uncommon and desirable.
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