Root and Branch : African Americans in New York and East Jersey, 1613-1863 - Hardcover

Hodges, Graham Russell

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0807824925 ISBN 13: 9780807824924

Publisher: Univ of North Carolina Pr, 1999

Synopsis

In this remarkable book, Graham Hodges presents a comprehensive history of African Americans in New York City and its rural environs from the arrival of the first African--a sailor marooned on Manhattan Island in 1613--to the bloody Draft Riots of 1863. Throughout, he explores the intertwined themes of freedom and servitude, city and countryside, and work, religion, and resistance that shaped black life in the region through two and a half centuries.

Hodges chronicles the lives of the first free black settlers in the Dutch-ruled city, the gradual slide into enslavement after the British takeover, the fierce era of slavery, and the painfully slow process of emancipation. He pays particular attention to the black religious experience in all its complexity and to the vibrant slave culture that was shaped on the streets and in the taverns. Together, Hodges shows, these two potent forces helped fuel the long and arduous pilgrimage to liberty.

About this title

From the Back Cover

A comprehensive history of African Americans in New York City and East Jersey from 1613-1863. The author pays particular attention to the black religious experience and to the vibrant slave culture shaped on the streets and shows that both fueled the long pilgrimage to freedom.

Edition details

• Publisher: Univ of North Carolina Pr
• Publication date: 1999
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0807824925
• ISBN 13: 9780807824924
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 413