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The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White
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The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White Paperback - 2000

by Henry Wiencek

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"The Hairstons" is the extraordinary saga of the largest family in America, the Hairston clan. One family--black and white--has a history that is the story of slavery and its legacy in America. Yet this is not a tale of horror, but rather of love and heroism powerful enough to shake the foundation myth of the Old South. 16-page photo insert.

Reader reviews for The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White

From the publisher

Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award

The Hairstons is the extraordinary story of the largest family in America, the Hairston clan. With several thousand black and white members, the Hairstons share a complex and compelling history: divided in the time of slavery, they have come to embrace their past as one family.

The black family's story is most exceptional. It is the account of the rise of a remarkable people--the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren of slaves--who took their rightful place in mainstream America.

In contrast, it has been the fate of the white family--once one of the wealthiest in America--to endure the decline and fall of the Old South, and to become an apparent metaphor for that demise. But the family's fall from grace is only part of the tale. Beneath the surface lay a hidden history--the history of slavery's curse and how that curse plagued slaveholders for generations.

For the past seven years, journalist Wiencek has listened raptly to the tales of hundreds of Hairston relatives, including the aging scions of both the white and black clans. He has crisscrossed the old plantation country in Virginia, North Carolina, and Mississippi to seek out the descendants of slaves. Visiting family reunions, interviewing family members, and exploring old plantations, Wiencek combs the far-reaching branches of the Hairston family tree to gather anecdotes from members about their ancestors and piece together a family history that involves the experiences of both plantation owners and their slaves. He expertly weaves the Hairstons' stories from all sides of historical events like slave emancipation, Reconstruction, school segregation, and lynching.

Paradoxically, Wiencek demonstrates that these families found that the way to come to terms with the past was to embrace it, and this lyrical work, a parable of redemption, may in the end serve as a vital contribution to our nation's attempt to undo the twisted historical legacy of the past.

First line

The mansion at Cooleemee was a commanding presence.

Details

  • Title The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White
  • Author Henry Wiencek
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition 1st
  • Pages 400
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher St. Martin's Griffin, New York, New York, U.S.A.
  • Publication date 2000-02-19
  • Illustrated Yes
  • Features Bibliography, Illustrated, Index, Maps
  • ISBN 9780312253936 / 0312253931
  • Weight 1.25 lbs (0.57 kg)
  • Dimensions 9.07 x 6.05 x 0.91 in (23.04 x 15.37 x 2.31 cm)
  • Themes
    • Chronological Period: 19th Century
    • Cultural Region: South
    • Ethnic Orientation: African American
    • Topical: Family
  • Category History - U.S.
  • Library of Congress subjects Southern States - Race relations, Slaveholders - Southern States
  • Dewey Decimal Code B

About the author

Henry Wiencek was series editor of the Smithsonian Guide to Historic America, a twelve-volume descriptive guide to the country's historic sites. He is author of Old Houses, with essays on the histories of eighteen American houses and the families who built them, published in association with the National Trust for Historic Preservation; two books on Southern architecture--Mansions of Virginia Gentry and Plantations of the Deep South; and several books for Time-Life. He has contributed articles to American Heritage and Smithsonian Magazine. Born in Boston and educated at Yale, he lives in Virginia with his wife, the writer Donna Lucey, and their son.

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The Hairstons, an American family in Black and White
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The Hairstons, an American family in Black and White

by Wiencek, Henry

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St. Martin's Griffin. 1999. Paperback. Very Good. Trade paperback overstock, light fading, light fading to exterior; very goo d with clean text, tight binding. .
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The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White
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The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White

by Wiencek, Henry

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The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White
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The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White

by Wiencek, Henry

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The Hairstons : An American Family in Black and White

The Hairstons : An American Family in Black and White

by Henry Wiencek

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The Hairstons : An American Family in Black and White

The Hairstons : An American Family in Black and White

by Henry Wiencek

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
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St. Martin's Press, 2000. Paperback. Good. Disclaimer:A copy that has been read, but remains in clean condition. All pages are intact, and the cover is intact. The spine may show signs of wear. Pages can include limited notes and highlighting, and the copy can include previous owner inscriptions. An ex-library book and may have standard library stamps and/or stickers. At ThriftBooks, our motto is: Read More, Spend Less.Dust jacket quality is not guaranteed.
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The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White

The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White

by Wiencek, Henry

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The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White

The Hairstons: An American Family in Black and White

by Wiencek, Henry

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The Hairstons : An American Family in Black and White
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The Hairstons : An American Family in Black and White

by Wiencek, Henry

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The Hairstons : An American Family in Black and White
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The Hairstons : An American Family in Black and White

by Wiencek, Henry

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
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