The Captives of Abb's Valley: First edition, 1854

The Captives Of Abb's Valley: A Legend Of Frontier Life, James Moore Brown, Presbyterian Board of Publications and Sabbath-School Work: Philadelphia, 1854. 6 x 4, 168pp, blind-stamped cloth, gilt title and decoration on spine, illustrated.

Based on first-hand narrative accounts, James Moore Brown tells the extraordinary story of his mother' s family, who were attacked and enslaved by the Shawnee tribe in 1786. The Moore family were early settlers from Ireland, who eventually made their home in Virginia. A branch of the family discovered Abb's Valley; a remote settlement, isolated but idyllic, and which had once belonged to Cherokee and Shawnee natives. After many years of happiness, forming a successful and religiously-devoted community, the Moore family was brutally attacked. The Shawnees ruthlessly killed the majority of the family, taking the survivors prisoner, inn spinecluding Mary Moore, James Moore Brown's mother. Mary found herself sold into slavery, and thus began a long and arduous journey to gain back her freedom and return to the home of youth. With unwavering faith in God and a belief that following His path would set her free, Mary was eventually rescued.

This remarkable book, long suppressed because of the politically incorrect facts it contains about early frontier life and the interactions between white settlers and Indians, provides a dramatic insight into the sufferings of the early European pioneers in America.

Indians regularly captured whites for use as slaves — although those were the lucky ones. The less fortunate were tortured and killed, often for sport. Written with a strong focus on Presbyterianism, the book's value lies in its dispassionate detailing of the everyday life and dangers for families on the frontier.