Slavery in the Upper Mississippi Valley, 1787-1865

by Lehman, Christopher P.

• ISBN13: 9780786458721
• ISBN10: 0786458720
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-02-24
• Publisher: McFarland Publishing

Summary

Although the passage of the Northwest Ordinance in 1787 banned African American slavery in the Upper Mississippi River Valley, making the new territory officially "free," slavery as a practice persisted in the region through the end of the Civil War. Slaves accompanied presidential appointees serving as soldiers or federal officials in the Upper Mississippi, worked in federally supported mines, and openly accompanied southern travelers. Entrepreneurs from the East Coast started pro-slavery riverfront communities in Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota to woo vacationing slaveholders. Meanwhile, Midwestern slaves joined their southern counterparts in suffering family separations, beatings, auctions, and other indignities that accompanied status as chattel. This revealing work explores all facets of the "peculiar institution" in this peculiar location and its impact on the social and political development of the United States.

Author Biography

Christopher P. Lehman is a professor of ethnic studies at St. Cloud State University in St. Cloud, Minnesota, and the author of three books about American popular culture.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. vi
Introduction	p. 1
Slavery in the Northwest Territory	p. 5
The Politics of Indentured Servitude: Slavery in Illinois	p. 27
Miners and Soldiers: Slavery in Wisconsin	p. 59
Migrating Southerners: Slavery in Iowa	p. 85
Hoteliers and Local Slaveholders: Slavery in Minnesota	p. 114
Dred Scott and the Boom in Upper Mississippi Slavery	p. 142
Upper Mississippi Slavery in the Civil War Years	p. 170
Conclusion	p. 195
Chapter Notes	p. 203
Bibliography	p. 209
Index	p. 217
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