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Fugitive Slave in the Gold Rush by James Williams

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Summary

Williams was a fascinating individual who, in this memoir, manages to cram more life into fewer pages than almost anyone, a habit of a travelling life that must have served him well

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Fugitive Slave in the Gold Rush by James Williams

African American records of the Gold Rush are rare, as are underground railroad accounts from those fleeing to freedom; yet here is the account of a self-taught escaped slave and underground railroad worker who also succumbed to the lure of the California Gold Rush. James Williams was all of these things and more, a fascinating individual who in this memoir manages to cram more life into fewer pages than almost anyone has before or since - a habit of traveling light that served him well. We learn about Williams's birth and escape from the South and his travels and exciting experiences on the West Coast in the mid-nineteenth century. We become privy to his views on the many people he met, including Chinese immigrants, and his observations on notable events of his time, such as the Modoc War in California.
"The most remarkable of all Gold Rush chronicles, being the adventures of an escaped slave in the mines of California, and his later experiencesThis is one to get!"—Council Fires: The Publication for Western Americana Enthusiasts
Malcolm J. Rohrbough is a professor of history at the University of Iowa. His books include Days of Gold: The California Gold Rush and The American Nation.
SKU Unavailable
ISBN 13 9780803298125
ISBN 10 0803298129
Title Fugitive Slave in the Gold Rush
Author James Williams
Condition Unavailable
Binding Type Paperback
Publisher University of Nebraska Press
Year published 2001-10-01
Number of pages 120
Cover note Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.