Escape Betwixt Two Suns: A True Tale of the Underground Railroad in Illinois (Shawnee Books) - Softcover

Carol Pirtle

Softcover

ISBN 10: 080932301X ISBN 13: 9780809323012

Publisher: Southern Illinois University Press, 2000

Synopsis

Although the northern Illinois chapters of the story of Susan “Sukey” Richardson’s escape from slavery on the Underground Railroad are documented, the part played by southern Illinois in that historic episode has remained obscure. Carol Pirtle changes that with her investigation into the 1843 suit Andrew Borders lodged against William Hayes, charging his neighbor with helping slaves from the Borders estate escape to Galesburg. In conjunction with her probe into the past, Pirtle also discovered the Hayes correspondence.

           

Pirtle documents Hayes’s involvement in the Illinois Underground Railroad through approximately two hundred letters received by Hayes from the early 1820s until his death in 1849. Many of these letters specifically corroborate his participation in the escape of slaves from the Borders estate. One such letter came from T. A. Jones in 1843: “You Dear Sir are to me an unknown friend, yet I believe you are a friend to the poor down trodden Slave. This is as good an introduction as I want from any man. My brother, our cause is a holy one.” Letters written by Galesburg residents show that several prominent citizens of that community also assisted in the affair, proving that Knox College administrators and trustees were active in the Underground Railroad.

           

Pirtle also includes excerpts from the trial transcript from the 1844 civil case against Hayes, which was tried in Pinckneyville, Illinois. She researched newspaper accounts of the event, most notably those in the Western Citizen and the Sparta Herald. Records of the Covenanter Presbyterian church of which Hayes was a member provide partial explanations of Hayes’s motives.

           

Telling the story of Hayes and his involvement with Susan Richardson and the Underground Railroad, Pirtle provides insight into the work of abolitionists in Illinois. Escape Betwixt Two Suns, in fact, is one of the few books to substantiate the legends of the Underground Railroad. She tells the story of a quiet man who made a difference, of a man deserving the accolades of a hero.

About this title

About the Author

Carol Pirtle is a professional writer. Her books include Shining Momentsand Where Illinois Began: A Pictorial History of Randolph County.

Review

“What is equally arresting about this volume and the sources on which it is based is the description here of activity at both ends of an Underground Railroad transaction: the escape of slaves from their owner, in this case the details of which were not previously known; the response of their owner; litigation initiated by both the owner and by supporters of the fugitives; and in this instance the escapees’ partially successful guarantee of permanent freedom.”―Rodney O. Davis, from the Foreword

Edition details

• Publisher: Southern Illinois University Press
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 080932301X
• ISBN 13: 9780809323012
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 182