Slavery and freedom in Delaware, 1639-1865

By (author) William H. Williams

Publication date:

01 June 1996

Length of book:

270 pages

Publisher

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

ISBN-13: 9780842025942

William H. Williams fills a gap in the literature on slavery in America. This book is the first comprehensive analysis of the 'peculiar institution' in the First State. An excellent text for courses in colonial and antebellum history, Slavery and Freedom in Delaware provides valuable insight into this unfortunate, unforgettable period in the nation's history.

Chapter 1 The Dutch Legacy and Its Aftermath
Chapter 2 The Land and Labor
Chapter 3 Images, Perceptions, and the Exercise of Control
Chapter 4 Making a Life Despite Slavery
Chapter 5 The Long Road to Freedom
Chapter 6 "A Mongrel Libery, A Mere Mock Freedom"
Chapter 7 A More Independent People

Williams has relied on his thorough familiarity with manuscript resources in Delaware to provide readers with a developmental narrative of how slavery and freedom evolved in Delaware, and how the evolution of both affected blacks, whites, and their relationship with one another. Throughout, his authorial voice is moderate, his analysis is anchored in evidence, and his engagement in historiographical controversy is selective but nevertheless interesting and well considered.