Nineteenth-century Cincinnati was northern in its geography; southern in its economy and politics; and western in its commercial aspirations. While those identities presented a crossroad of opportunity for native whites and immigrants; African Americans endured economic repression and a denial of civil rights; compounded by extreme and frequent mob violence. No other northern city rivaled Cincinnati's vicious mob spirit. Frontiers of Freedom follows the black community as it moved from alienation and vulnerability in the 1820s toward collective consciousness and; eventually; political self-respect and self-determination. As author Nikki M. Taylor points out; this was a community that at times supported all-black communities; armed self-defense; and separate; but independent; black schools. Black Cincinnati's strategies to gain equality and citizenship were as dynamic as they were effective. When the black community united in armed defense of its homes and property during an 1841 mob attack; it demonstrated that it was no longer willing to be exiled from the city as it had been in 1829. Frontiers of Freedom chronicles alternating moments of triumph and tribulation; of pride and pain; but more than anything; it chronicles the resilience of the black community in a particularly difficult urban context at a defining moment in American history.
#3169938 in Books University of Georgia Press 2012-06-01 2012-06-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.00 x .70 x 6.00l; .65 #File Name: 0820343439208 pages
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A very readable story of a Colonial giant who faced a moral issueBy L. RussellThis is a must read for any serious student of Colonial America. I have read earlier works on James Habersham because I am a descendant of his through his son also named James. This work; however; provided me with a rich historical context in which his interaction with his peers was fully explained and played out. The "names" from history came alive. It gave me an understanding of that era that all other books had failed to convey. Of particular interest was how business was conducted across the Atlantic. Apparently aside from finding honest partners the key was the use of the written documents: those merchants who could be absolutely clear about what their remote partners should do/not do thrived while the rest withered. The book also explained James Habersham's switch on slavery in Georgia. South Carolina had it; but Georgia did not. Habersham analyzed the feeble economy of the Georgia colony and said that it was sick and would die were slavery not introduced. It was and he and his family thrived until the Civil War. History is what it is.
