Amos Fortune, Free Man
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LC Class | E185.97.F73 Y3 1989 |
Amos Fortune, Free Man is a
At-mun-shi, a young prince of a tribe in southern Africa, was born free in 1710. He lives a peaceful life until a raid on their village by slavers kills his father, the chief. At-mun is kidnapped, transported to America via the White Falcon (a slave ship), and sold in New England. Now called 'Amos', he is sold to a man named Caleb Copeland, and though the Copeland family do not treat him badly he rejects his slave status and determines to earn his freedom. He comes to an arrangement with Copeland, but when Caleb dies in debt the arrangement is disregarded, and so Amos Fortune is sold again to a man named Ichabod Richardson. Richardson teaches Amos about tanning, and he becomes a skilled worker. He is now about thirty. Amos works for Richardson for four years, then buys his freedom. He marries a woman named Lily, whose freedom he also buys; but she dies a year later. Amos is sad that she died, yet happy she died a free woman. Later he marries another African woman named Lydia, and it takes three more years to save up her freedom price. Lydia dies a year later. Again, Amos is sad she died but happy that she died free. He marries a younger woman named Violet, and he buys freedom for her daughter too. Amos moves to Jaffrey, New Hampshire to start his own tanning business there, and does so despite opposition. Eventually Amos saves up enough money that he buys his own land and he builds a house and a barn.
At one point Amos becomes very angry with his wife, who has taken money from him. He climbs
The real Amos Fortune
Amos Fortune (c. 1710–1801) was born in Africa, sold into slavery and eventually freed at the age of 60. Fortune worked hard to develop his tannery in the town of Jaffrey, New Hampshire, and became a valued member of the community there.[2][3] Peter Lambert's booklet Amos Fortune: The Man and His Legacy distinguishes the known historical facts from the dramatic events of the novel.[4]
References
- ^ American Library Association
- ^ "Amos Fortune Grave Site". townofjaffrey.com. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
- ISBN 9781625856371. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
- ^ Lambert, Peter (2000). Amos Fortune, The Man and His Legacy. Jaffrey, NH: Amos Fortune Forum.