emancipation

Looks at the events that led to President Abraham Lincoln's writing the Emancipation Proclamation that ended slavery.

Examines the ideas in the Emancipation Proclamation focusing on Lincoln's real intentions in the document as he faced a plot from Congress, and a growing crisis over the war at the White House.

Profiles Robert Carter III, a Virginian who wrote the Deed of Gift and set free nearly 500 slaves in a single act of liberation prior to the Emancipation Proclamation. Carter built a church for blacks and whites and offered protection of and privileges for slaves that created conflict with neighbors, friends, family, and government officials. Examines why and how Carter succeeded in his action and why he is rarely mentioned in historical accounts of American slavery.

Describes the anti-slavery movement in the United States from 1830 to 1865. Examines how the Underground Railroad was used to help slaves escape to the North and how the issue of slavery led to the Civil War. Discusses the roles of movement leaders such as Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, John Brown, and Harriet Beecher Stowe.

Describes the twists and turns in an actual New Orleans court case of 1843 where the identity of Sally Miller, is questioned and has everything to do with her status as a slave.

A biography of Abraham Lincoln, covering the 1863, when Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, and the Civil War continued.

Draws on a wide range of documents to offer a new interpretation of the Emancipation and Reconstruction years and the lasting impact they had on the nation's history.