Heroic Abolitionist Intervention, the Oberlin-Wellington Rescue (1859), stormed the hotel where the slave was being held and helped his escape via the underground railroad

Shipherd, Jacob R. History of the Oberlin-Wellington Rescue. Introduction by Prof. Henry E. Peck, and Hon. Ralph Plumb. Boston: John P. Jewett and Company, 1859. First edition. Original paper wrappers. 9.25" x 5.75" inches. Modern paper ex libris pasted down to interior of wrapper. The Oberlin-Wellington Rescue was a principal event in the history of abolitionism an dleading up to the Civil War. On September 13, 1858, federal authorities in Oberlin, Ohio appreheended the escaped slave John Price. Under the Fugitive Slave Act of 1859, any slaves found in a free state must be retunred to their owners. Oberlin was a hotbed of anti-slavery activism, so the marshals took Price to nearby Wellington to avoid abolitionists. Upon hearing of Price's capture, residents rushed to Wellington and demanded that Price be freed. The deputies refused. Rescuers responded by storming the hotel where Price was being held and freed him. Via the underground railroad, Price made his way to Canada. Thirty-seven of the rescuers were indicted by a federal judge, but only two were convicted. The Rescue and the trials were a cause celebre in a deeply divided nation. The Oberlin-Wellington Rescue embodied tensions simmering before the outbreak of the Civil War: between state and federal authority, and between anti-slavery and pro-slavery standpoints. The history presented in this volume provides key information, such as the people involved and the sequence of events. The introduction entreats readers to "inquire, in the light of what is here presented , whether the Fugitive Slave Act can exist, and... our whole country will not soon... be embraced in the arms of a gigantic tyranny which shall know no law but its own despotic will." Missing last leaf, cover browned, and edges are slightly chipped but overall in Good condition.