On View
Slavery and Freedom Gallery
Exhibition
Slavery and Freedom
Written by
Stowe, Harriet Beecher, American, 1811 - 1896
Published by
John P. Jewett & Company, American, 1846 - 1860
Date
1852
Medium
ink on paper
Dimensions
H x W x D (Closed): 9 5/16 × 6 5/16 × 7/8 in. (23.7 × 16 × 2.2 cm)
H x W x D (Open): 9 5/16 × 12 1/2 × 7/8 in. (23.7 × 31.8 × 2.2 cm)
Caption
Uncle Tom's Cabin, 1852
An international bestseller, Harriet Beecher Stowe’s sentimental novel brought widespread attention to the issue of slavery. Cleverly adapting consumer culture to their cause, Stowe and other antislavery advocates spread the abolitionist message on inexpensive items. At school, children might encounter an antislavery primer beginning, "A is for Abolitionist—A man who wants to free the wretched slave." On her dressing table, a woman might apply makeup from small box declaring, "Am I not a man and a brother?" In many homes, Americans read the bestseller Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe.
Source: Nancy Bercaw, Curator, Slavery and Freedom
Description
This book is a first edition of the anti-slavery novel Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly, by Harriet Beecher Stowe. It has paper covers and is printed in black-and-white throughout, with the text of the novel printed in two columns on each page. Adhesive residue on the left side of the front and back covers indicates a lost binding cover. The back cover features a list of other items available from the publisher, John P. Jewett & Company.
Place printed
Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States, North and Central America
Classification
Slavery and Freedom Objects
Books and Published Materials
Movement
Abolitionist movement
Type
books
Topic
Antislavery
Domestic slave trade
Fugitive enslaved
Literature
Race relations
Self-liberation
Slavery
Stereotypes
U.S. History, 1815-1861
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2011.26.6
Restrictions & Rights
Public domain
Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd50fa60862-6d1d-41fc-aea1-b204753ada70

Cataloging is an ongoing process and we may update this record as we conduct additional research and review. If you have more information about this object, please contact us at NMAAHCDigiTeam@si.edu

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