The Kidnapped and the Ransomed; The narrative of Peter and Vina Still after forty years of slavery, with an introductory essay on Jews in the antislavery movement by Maxwell Whiteman

Whiteman, Maxwell, and Pickard, Kate E. R.

Published by The Jewish Publication Society of America, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1970

About this Item

Format is approximately 5.25 inches by 7.5 inches. [6], 409, [9] pages. Illustrations. Includes an introduction by Maxwell Whitman on Jews in the antislavery movement, as well as Notes and Sources, and a Facsimile Edition of The Kidnapped and the Ransomed. Paperclip mark to fep through title page. DJ taped to boards, has price blacked out and has some wear, tears, soiling and chips. The Kidnapped and the Ransomed was originally authored by Peter Still, "Vina" Still and Mrs. Kate E. R. Pickard. It included an Introduction by Rev. Samuel J. May and an Appendix by William H. Furness. It was published in Syracuse by William T. Hamilton in 1856. Whiteman (1914-1995) was an archivist and historian of ethnic and minority history in Philadelphia, whose papers are housed in the Special Collections of Temple University. This book is one of the classic documents of the slavery period in American history. Published in 1856, it is the personal recollection of Peter Still, who was kidnapped in early childhood from the doorstep of his home in New Jersey. He was a slave for more than forty years in Kentucky and Alabama, and was finally liberated through the generosity of a Jew. Once free, he toured the country for almost four years to raise the sum of $5,000 demanded by the owner of his wife and children. The money was finally collected, and Peter Still was able to purchase his family. One year later, he published the Kidnapped and the Ransomed. With a new introduction by Maxwell Whiteman, the book is now republished precisely as it appeared in its original 1856 edition. Originally published in 1856, The Kidnapped and the Ransomed is the personal recollection of Peter Still, a black slave. He was stolen as a child from his home in New Jersey, yoked to servitude for more than forty years in Kentucky and Alabama, and finally freed with the help of a pair of Jewish brothers. It is the only nineteenth-century slave narrative to show the participation of the Jews in the antislavery movement before the Civil War. The reader follows Still through a succession of brutal masters, a clandestine courtship, marriage involving separation, births and deaths, the formation of a daring plan for freedom, and harrowing action. No stage drama could be as wrenching as this true rendering of a slave's experience in America. Kate E. R. Pickard was in contact with Still while she taught at the Female Seminary in Tuscumbia, Alabama. Maxwell Whiteman was the archival and historical consultant for the Union League of Philadelphia and coauthor, with Edwin Wolf II, of The History of the Jews of Philadelphia from Colonial Times to the Age of Jackson. The original introduction by Rev. Samuel J. May, an abolitionist, has been retained. First edition this and includes a Facsimile Edition of an earlier work.

Seller Inventory # 81885

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Kidnapped and the Ransomed; The narrative of Peter and Vina Still after forty years of slavery, with an introductory essay on Jews in the antislavery movement by Maxwell Whiteman
• Publisher: The Jewish Publication Society of America, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Publication Date: 1970
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Fair
• Seller catalogs:
  • Slavery
  • Jews