The Underground Railroad (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. Fugitive Slave Narratives, Abolitionist Testimonies, and the Struggle for Freedom in Nineteenth-Century AmericaBy William Still
Length43h 49m
About this audiobook
William Still's The Underground Railroad (1872) is a landmark documentary history of the clandestine network that aided enslaved people seeking freedom in the antebellum United States. Combining narrative biography, autobiographical testimony, correspondence, organizational records, and abolitionist commentary, Still reconstructs the journeys of fugitives and the assistance offered by Black and white agents. Its episodic structure and vivid personal accounts give the work both archival authority and the dramatic force of life writing, while its moral clarity places it within nineteenth-century abolitionist literature and the emerging tradition of African American historiography. The book is not merely an account of escape; it is a sustained record of courage, strategy, community, and resistance to slavery's legal and social order. Still, a free-born Black Philadelphian, abolitionist, businessman, and secretary of the Philadelphia Vigilance Committee, occupied a uniquely informed position. He interviewed freedom seekers, preserved their narratives, coordinated assistance, and maintained crucial records at considerable personal risk. His work arose from a conviction that Black agency and Black testimony had to be documented against the distortions of proslavery politics and the silences of conventional history. The volume therefore reflects both direct experience and a deliberate effort to preserve collective memory. This book is essential for readers interested in slavery, abolitionism, African American history, and documentary literature. Scholars will value its evidentiary richness, while general readers will find its testimonies immediate and compelling. Still's volume remains indispensable for understanding freedom-making as an organized, interracial, and profoundly human struggle.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.
- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.
- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.
- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.
- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 4.3 (2.6K)
Includes Goodreads, Amazon, LibraryThing, StoryGraph
GenreHistory
Length43 hrs 49 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 13, 2022
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1The Underground Railroad (Annotated)
2Introduction
3Historical Context
4Synopsis (Selection)
5PREFACE TO REVISED EDITION
Show all chaptersShow less
6SETH CONCKLIN
7EXTRACT OF A LETTER FROM REV. N.R. JOHNSTON
8LETTERS FROM LEVI COFFIN
9McKIERNON'S LETTER
10WM. STILL'S ANSWER
11THE SEPARATION
12UNDERGROUND RAIL ROAD LETTERS
13LETTER FROM THOMAS GARRETT (U.G.R.R. DEPOT)
14LETTER FROM MISS G.A. LEWIS (U.G.R.R. DEPOT)
15LETTER FROM E.L. STEVENS, ESQ
16LETTER FROM S.H. GAY, ESQ., EX-EDITOR OF THE ANTI-SLAVERY STANDARD AND NEW YORK TRIBUNE
17LETTER FROM JOHN H. HILL, A FUGITIVE, APPEALING IN BEHALF OF A POOR SLAVE IN PETERSBURG, VA
18LETTER FROM J. BIGELOW, ESQ
19LETTER FROM HAM & EGGS, SLAVE (U.G.R.R. AG'T)
20LETTER FROM REV H. WILSON (U.G.R.R. AG'T)
21LETTER FROM SHERIDAN FORD, IN DISTRESS
22LETTER FROM E.F. PENNYPACKER (U.G.R.R. DEPOT)
23LETTER FROM JOS. C. BUSTILL (U.G.R.R. DEPOT)
24LETTER FROM A SLAVE SECRETED IN RICHMOND
25LETTER FROM G.S. NELSON (U.G.R.R. DEPOT)
26LETTER FROM JOHN THOMPSON
27LETTER FROM "WM. PENN" (OF THE BAR)
28LETTER FROM MISS THEODOCIA GILBERT
29WILLIAM PEEL, ALIAS WILLIAM BOX PEEL JONES ARRIVED PER ERRICSON LINE OF STEAMERS, WRAPPED IN STRAW AND BOXED UP, APRIL, 1859
30DEATH OF ROMULUS HALL — NEW NAME GEORGE WEEMS
31JAMES MERCER, WM. H. GILLIAM, AND JOHN CLAYTON STOWED AWAY IN A HOT BERTH
32LETTER FROM MRS. L.E. WHITE
33LETTER FROM WILLIAM HENRY GILLIAM
34JAMES MERCER'S LETTER
35JOHN H. HILL'S LETTER
36CLARISSA DAVIS ARRIVED DRESSED IN MALE ATTIRE
37ANTHONY BLOW, ALIAS HENRY LEVISON SECRETED TEN MONTHS BEFORE STARTING — EIGHT DAYS STOWED AWAY ON A STEAMER BOUND FOR PHILADELPHIA
38PERRY JOHNSON, OF ELKTON, MARYLAND EYE KNOCKED OUT, ETC
39ISAAC FORMAN, WILLIAM DAVIS, AND WILLIS REDICK HEARTS FULL OF JOY FOR FREEDOM — VERY ANXIOUS FOR WIVES IN SLAVERY
40EXTRACT OF LETTER FROM ISAAC FORMAN
41WILLIS REDICK
42WILLIAM DAVIS
43JOSEPH HENRY CAMP THE AUCTION BLOCK IS DEFEATED AND A SLAVE TRADER LOSES FOURTEEN HUNDRED DOLLARS
44SHERIDAN FORD SECRETED IN THE WOODS — ESCAPES IN A STEAMER
45JOSEPH KNEELAND, ALIAS JOSEPH HULSON
46EX-PRESIDENT TYLER'S HOUSEHOLD LOSES AN ARISTOCRATIC "ARTICLE"
47EDWARD MORGAN, HENRY JOHNSON, JAMES AND STEPHEN BUTLER
48HENRY PREDO BROKE JAIL, JUMPED OUT OF THE WINDOW AND MADE HIS ESCAPE
49DANIEL HUGHES
50THOMAS ELLIOTT
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