A Gentleman of Color: The Life of James Forten
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Winch, Julie, PUBLISHER: Oxford University Press, USA, In A Gentleman of Color, Julie Winch provides a vividly written, full-length biography of James Forten, one of ong>theong> most remarkable men in 19th-century America. Forten was born in into a free black family. As a teenager he served in ong>theong> Revolution ong>andong> was captured by ong>theong> British. Rejecting an attractive offer to change sides, he insisted he was a loyal American. By he was ong>theong> leading sailmaker in Philadelphia, where he became well known as an innovative craftsman, a successful manager of black ong>andong> white employees, ong>andong> a shrewd businessman. He emerged as a leader in Philadelphia's black community ong>andong> was active in a wide range of reform activities. He was especially prominent in national ong>andong> international antislavery movements, served as vice-president of ong>theong> American Anti-Slavery Society, ong>andong> became close friends with William Lloyd Garrison, to whom he lent money to start up ong>theong> Liberator. Forten was also ong>theong> founder of a remarkable dynasty. His children ong>andong> his son-in-law were all active abolitionists ong>andong> a grong>andong>daughter, Charlotte Forten, published a famous diary of her experiences teaching ex-slaves in South Carolina's Sea Islong>andong>s during ong>theong> Civil War. When James Forten died in , five thousong>andong> mourners, black ong>andong> white, turned out to honor a man who had earned ong>theong> respect of society across ong>theong> racial divide. This is ong>theong> first serious biography of Forten, who stong>andong>s beside Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, ong>andong> ong>Martinong> ong>Luong>theong>rong> ong>Kingong>, ong>Jrong>. in ong>theong> panong>theong>on of African-Americans who fundamentally shaped American history.