Austin Reed (author)

Austin Reed (1827?[1]-?) is the reputed author (as Rob Reed) of The Life and Adventures of a Haunted Convict, reportedly the first prison memoir by an African American.[2] Born in Rochester,[3] New York State, Reed spent time in the New York House of Refuge, a juvenile detention facility, and later served several terms (interrupted by multiple escapes) in the Auburn State Prison. His memoir, written around 1858-59, apparently when he was still incarcerated, has been acquired by the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University and authenticated by the Yale scholar Caleb Smith.

Reed reportedly lived until at least 1895, according to a manuscript letter preserved in New York State records.[4]

References

  1. ↑ "Orbis Holdings Information". Orbexpress.library.yale.edu. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  2. ↑ http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/12/books/prison-memoir-of-a-black-man-in-the-1850s.html
  3. ↑ http://www.betweenthecovers.com/private/Catalogs/BTC_Catalog_145.pdf
  4. ↑ Cummings, Michael (2013-12-12). "YaleNews | First-known prison narrative by an African-American writer discovered at Yale’s Beinecke Library". News.yale.edu. Retrieved 2014-01-12.