The article gives an overview of 3 freedom suits that reached the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. An archivist colleague of mine just dug up the appeals papers for Frank's 1824 suit out of Pittsburgh, revealing that it was brought by the boy's stepfather. …
RP @coryjamesyoung.bsky.social: I contributed this article to a special issue of the Journal of the Early Republic on "Free State" slavery. It previews one of my book's principle interventions: the concept of hereditary term slavery during the age of gr…
RP @coryjamesyoung.bsky.social: I contributed this article to a special issue of the Journal of the Early Republic on "Free State" slavery. It previews one of my book's principle interventions: the concept of hereditary term slavery during the age of gr…
Here's a companion piece I wrote explicating the archive undergirding my research. It centers a remarkable woman, Priscilla, and her ill-fated effort to manifest a fairer world for her daughter. Most enslaved people never had their day in court, but th…