Ellen Kraft, a Fugitive Slave, 1851
The article accompanying this illustration describes how Ellen and William Craft were reared in Georgia, living near one another but with different owners. William is a black man, but his wife Ellen is nearly white. They were married and in 1848 they escaped with Ellen having cut off her hair and wearing green spectacles disguised herself as a young man, and her husband as her servant. They traveled to Savannah, then took a boat to Charleston (South Carolina) and from there went to Boston where William worked as a cabinet maker and Ellen as a seamstress. They supported themselves and learned how to read and write, but when the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 came into operation they were hunted. They managed to escape on a ship to New York, and from there took passage on a British ship which arrived in Liverpool about four months before this article was written (p. 316).
Image Title
Ellen Kraft, a Fugitive Slave, 1851
RegID
SI-OB-1115
Date
1851
Title
Ellen Kraft, a Fugitive Slave, 1851
Source
The Illustrated London News (1851), vol. 18, p. 315.
Language
English
Item sets
Portraits & Illustrations of Individuals
Spatial Coverage
North America--Georgia
Reproduced In
The Illustrated London News (1851), vol. 18, p. 315.
Researchers
Handler, Jerome; Tuite, Michael; Randall Ericson; Henry B. Lovejoy Graduate Research Assistants: Tiffany Beebe; Travis May
Last Updated
17-Mar-16
Identifier
ILN315