Paterson Joseph describes how his research into Black British history led him to write his first play, Sancho: An Act of Remembrance. In this one-man show, Paterson Joseph inhabits the life of Ignatius Sancho, the 18th-century composer,...

Transcripts of hundreds of oral histories and slave narratives from 1936-1938 collected during the Federal Writers' Project.

MAAP lessons, developed at Teachers College, Columbia University, help teachers at all levels engage in content through stories about building community, resisting slavery, and contributing to New York City's development. Lessons are...

Complete text of the thirteenth amendment of the United States Constitution.

Slaves and the Courts, 1740-1860 contains just over a hundred pamphlets and books (published between 1772 and 1889) concerning the difficult and troubling experiences of African and African-American slaves in the American colonies and...

The question of the expansion of slavery into the territories of the United States was an old question that was addressed again in the Missouri Compromise of 1820. Read about the Tallmadge Amendment and the opinions supporting and...

Students will study a letter from Annie Davis, a woman who was enslaved in Maryland and wrote a letter to President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War to find out if 'we are free.' The students will decide if she received her freedom...

Detailed account of the life of fugitive slave Margaret Garner who mudered her child rather than see it returned to slavery. Her story is the basis for the 1987 novel, Beloved, by Toni Morrison.

The abolition movement sought to end the practice of slavery in the United States.

As with most other debates leading up to the Civil War, the debate about states' rights in reference to nullifying federal laws, ostensibly about tariffs, was really about the future of slavery in the South. Read about the issues of...

During the first half of the nineteenth century, demand for cotton led to the expansion of plantation slavery. By 1850, enslaved people were growing cotton from South Carolina to Texas.

[Free Registration/Login Required] This nonfiction passage gives information about how some states are apologizing for their roles in slavery during the past. Reading comprehension questions are provided as supplements to the passage..

The South relied on slavery heavily for economic prosperity and used wealth as a way to justify enslavement practices.

From the mid 18th century, Africans and people of African descent - many of them former slaves - began to write down their stories. This article describes these writings and assesses their role in the abolition of slavery.

[Free Registration/Login Required] An article that discusses the 13-15th amendments and their impact on social history.

A close up picture providing an example of what a slave chain looks like. Click on Teacher's Guide for teacher resources.

Here is a brief article from PBS on the life and accomplishments of abolitionist Harriet Tubman, who risked her life on several occasions to ensure the freedom of others. Links to a teacher's guide and primary sources are provided.

During the nineteenth century, enslaved African Americans worked on large plantations in the US South under brutal conditions.

A brief paragraph about James Armistead's espionage for the Continental Army at Yorktown. More important are the pictures of Marquis de Layayette and Armistead and the testimonial given by Lafayette to obtain Armistead's freedom.

This website explains why Virginia needed laborers, why it led to the use of African labor and how it was justified by Christians. Hyperlinks to related topics on the site.

This biography describes the life of Bass Reeves, who fled slavery and became a United States marshall.

An article by noted historian, Kinley Brauer, discusses the role of foreign policy for both the North and the South in the Civil War. An interesting, and often forgotten, aspect of the war.

This wonderful unit from Annenberg Media examines Reconstruction through three themes: reintegrating the former Confederate states in to the Union; the freedom of blacks and what that entailed socially and economically; and the economic...

This collection of historical primary documents tells the story of the trials, cases, and correspondence of slaves and the courts of the United States and Great Britain.