Jane Johnson (slave)

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Jane Johnson (c. 1814-1827 – August 2, 1872) was an American-born slave whose escape to freedom was the focus of acrimonious and precedent-setting legal cases in 19th century Pennsylvania.

Little is known of her early life, but she is believed to have been born into slavery under the name Jane Williams in or near Washington, D.C.

In 1855, Johnson and her sons Daniel and Isaiah (one 5 or 6, the other 11 or 12), were traveling with their master, John Hill Wheeler (1806-1882) on a trip from Washington, D.C. to Nicaragua, where he had been appointed as a U.S. ambassador. On July 18, 1855, Johnson passed word to a black porter in Wheeler's Philadelphia hotel that she would like to escape her master's custody. Shortly after, abolitionist Passmore Williamson and a group of freemen escorted them to a safe location. This act became one of the first challenges to the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850. Williamson was arrested and, when he refused to divulge Johnson's whereabouts, was convicted of contempt of court by Pennsylvania District Court judge John K. Kane. Kane rejected an affidavit from Jane Johnson affirming that there had been no abduction as immaterial. Williamson was held in jail between July 27 and November 3, 1855.

Johnson, carefully safeguarded by northern abolitionists including Lucretia Mott, was able to testify at the trial of Passmore Williamson. She continued to live as a free woman, ultimately settling in Boston, Massachusetts. Johnson married Lawrence Woodford shortly after her arrival, but was widowed in 1861. She was remarried to William Harris in 1864. Johnson sheltered fugitives slaves in Boston on at least two occasions. Her son Isaiah served in the American Civil War with the 55th Massachusetts Regiment, U.S. Colored Troops. Johnson died in 1872 and was buried in Everett, MA - north of Boston.

Fictionalized account

Henry Louis Gates, Jr. of Harvard University recovered a historic manuscript entitled The Bondwoman's Narrative, a novel written by a former slave written by a woman using the name Hannah Crafts. In 2002, as editor, Gates published the work with research dealing with historic accuracy, setting and characters. While the format and some descriptions may be derived from material published during the period, he asserts that the novel is an authentic look at the circumstances of chattel slavery from a slave's perspective. Later, Genealogist Katherine Flynn located Jane Johnson in the 1860 census and found that Johnson is listed as literate. Given the similarities between Johnson's life story and the location and surnames used in the book, Flynn presents Johnson as a possible candidate for the author of this book.

Musicalized account

Jane Johnson is also the main character in the musical, Stand by the River, which tells the story of her escape in Philadelphia and subsequent appearance at the Williamson trial.

See also

References

  • Gates, Henry Louis, editor, Hannah Crafts, author. The Bondwoman's Narrative, a novel written by a former slave. Thomson Gale, Publisher, 2002. ISBN 0-7862-4471-2.
  • Gates, Henry Louis, Editor, and Hollis Robbins, Editor. In Search of Hannah Crafts: Critical Essays on the Bondwoman's Narrative. Basic Books, 2003. ISBN 0-641-66047-2.
  • Keene, Ann T. "Johnson, Jane"; American National Biography Online, Feb. 2000. Accessed October, 2006 (subscription required).

External links

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