Barber of Natchez (Wherein a Slave Is Freed and Rises to a Very High Standing;)

Davis, Edwin Adams; Hogan, William Ransom

ISBN 10: 0807102121 / ISBN 13: 9780807102121

Published by Louisiana State University Press, 1973

About this Item

278 pages including index. Name in red ink top of half title page. Name tag top of half title page. There are no other marks or writinig in the book. Light creases bottom corner front cover. No reading creases on the spine. Spine is tight and there are no loose pages. Cover colors are bright. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

Seller Inventory # 008651

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Barber of Natchez (Wherein a Slave Is Freed and Rises to a Very High Standing;)
• Publisher: Louisiana State University Press
• Publication Date: 1973
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0807102121
• ISBN 13: 9780807102121
• Binding: Soft Cover
• Condition: Very Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket

About this title

Synopsis

In The Barber of Natchez, Edwin Adams Davis and William Ransom Hogan tell the remarkable story of William Johnson, a slave who rose to freedom, business success, and high community standing in the heart of the South―all before 1850. Emancipated as a young boy in 1820, Johnson became a barber’s apprentice and later opened several profitable barber shops of his own. As his wealth grew, he expanded into real estate and acquired large tracts of nearby farm and timber land. The authors explore in detail Johnson’s family, work, and social life, including his friendships with people of both races. They also examine his wanton murder and the resulting trial of the man accused of shooting him. More than the story of one individual, the narrative also offers compelling insight into the southern code of honor, the apprentice system, and the ownership of slaves by free blacks. Based on Johnson’s two-thousand-page diary, letters, and business records, this extraordinary biography reveals the complicated life of a freedman in Mississippi and a new perspective on antebellum Natchez.

About the Author

Edwin Adams Davis was the head of the Louisiana State University Department of Archives. He graduated from Kansas State Teachers College and received his advanced degrees at the State University of Iowa and LSU.

William Ransom Hogan was head of the Department of Archives at LSU and also served as chairman of the history department at Tulane University. He is the author of The Texas Republic: A Social and Economic History.