Wednesday, October 31, 2018

Who Actually Started the Underground Railroad - Book Give Away!



Guest post by Lyn Cote, and she's graciously giving away one of her ebooks!

In the three decades before the Civil War, Ohio simmered and at times boiled as a hotbed of conflict and activism over the issue of abolition. However, usually in Ohio, the turmoil took place behind doors and within secret rooms within walls, only rarely breaking forth into race riots. The Underground Railroad started spontaneously many say with John Rankin, Presbyterian minister, who moved to Ripley, Ohio in 1822. When Harriet Beecher Stowe was asked after the end of the Civil War, “Who abolished slavery?,” she answered, “Reverend John Rankin and his sons did.”


Actually, the Underground Railroad was not any one man or woman’s idea. It was a spontaneous uncoordinated response to the plight of runaway slaves. It began with free blacks in Ohio. There were several black settlements in Ohio, some groups of them were slaves freed and resettled by their former owners. These settlements consciously saw themselves as havens for runaways. John Parker, Henry Bibb, Charles Langston and many more free blacks in Ohio sheltered and then moved escaped slaves toward Canada.

However, because of the Black Laws of Ohio (1807), people of color had no legal status and could not testify in court or vote. White abolitionists came forward to stand up for and assist their black cohorts in these situations and also with funds. Keith Griffler states in his landmark study, Front Line of Freedom: African Americans and the Forging of the Underground Railroad in the Ohio Valley (Ohio River Valley Series): (page 60-61) 



The movement that came to be called the Underground Railroad would never have gotten off the ground without the dedicated group of whites who hailed from the South, providing the African-Americans engaged in the life-and-death struggle with American slavery indispensable allies in their frontline struggle. If the South had bequeathed to Ohio Valley much of this proslavery animus it also ironically supplied it with some of its most ardent and militant anti-slavery white activists willing to risk their reputations, their fortunes, their freedom, and even their lives. It might not be too much to say that the Underground Railroad in the region would’ve taken much longer to initiate without the zeal they brought to the cause they espoused. Their fervor was equal to that with which the love of slavery inspired in leaders of the South. Having witnessed--and learn to hate--slavery at close quarters, they brought not only passion but also the willingness and desire to work closely with the African-American communities whose existence on the northern bank of Ohio defied both Northern and Southern public opinion.

So it appears that it wasn’t just one man and his sons who started the Underground Railroad but a combined effort between white activists and free blacks in Ohio and then in other Midwest states. It’s an interesting side note that Canada did not abolish slavery until the early 1830’s. In the aftermath of the conflict of 1812, Canada welcomed runaway American slaves as a way to cause trouble to the US.An interesting irony.



Lyn Cote is graciously giving away an ebook copy of Meant for Me.

Lyn's latest series, “The Carlyle Women,” features a Maryland family--both branches--the white and the black and the changes in women’s status and civil rights in the 20th century.

Meant for Me, Book One--Chloe Carlyle was raised to be the perfect Southern lady. But when a handsome stranger about to leave for war proposes an elopement, Chloe breaks free. America has just entered WWI. In New York City Chloe is swept up in the heady tides of change. The NAACP moves forward in the midst of race riots, women’s fight to gain the vote is at its peak. Chloe and her maid Minnie become the independent women they never thought possible.
USA Today bestselling author, Lyn Cote has written over 45 books. An award-winning author, Lyn writes contemporary romance, romantic suspense and historical novels. No matter which kind of story, her brand “Strong Women, Brave Stories” comes through. Holding a Masters Degree in American History, she lives in a lakeside cottage the northwoods of Wisconsin with her comfy husband and two maddening cats. Visit her website: www.LynCote.com 

13 comments:

  1. What an interesting article. I love Lyn Coe's books!!! Thanx for the giveaway!!!

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  2. I ha e always been fascinated with stories about the underground railroad. fishingjanATaolDOTcom

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    1. Me too and I had never thought that free blacks played the pivotal role.

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  3. I grew up about 18 miles away from Washington, Kentucky and this is said to be the place that inspired Harriet Beecher Stowe to write Uncle Tom's Cabin. She was visiting relatives in this tiny village near the Ohio River and she witnessed a slave auction and the rest is history! My grandparents lived in the upstairs of an older house there for a short time and there was what appeared to be a holding place in the basement. I have been fascinated with The Underground Railroad all of my life.
    Blessings!
    Connie
    cps1950(at)gmail(dot)com

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    1. Wow, that really would have made an impression!

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  4. Thanks for the post. The book looks very interesting! Thanks for the chance. paulams49ATsbcglobalDOTnet

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  5. Living on the Lake Erie shore, there are many houses with tunnels and hidden rooms I have heard about. Stacypilot at yahoo dot com

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  6. Great information! It's important to know that there were white people committed to the abolition of slavery.

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  7. Yes, Quakers and other Christians risked much to help their brethren enslaved.

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  8. That's really sad that Canada used the American slaves as a way to cause trouble.
    I appreciate the research that you did to write this book. moma3homeschool(AT)gmail(DOT)com

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