Williams - I Freed Myself : African American Self-emancipation in the Civil War Era

For a century and a half, Abraham Lincolns signing of the Emancipation Proclamation has been the dominant narrative of African American freedom in the Civil War era. However, David Williams suggests that this portrayal marginalizes the role that African American slaves played in freeing themselves. At the Civil Wars outset, Lincoln made clear his intent was to save the Union rather than free slaves despite his personal distaste for slavery, he claimed no authority to interfere with the institution. By the second year of the war, though, when the Union army was in desperate need of black support, former slaves who escaped to Union lines struck a bargain: they would fight for the Union only if they were granted their freedom. Williams importantly demonstrates that freedom was not simply the absence of slavery but rather a dynamic process enacted by self-emancipated African American refugees, which compelled Lincoln to modify his war aims and place black freedom at the center of his wartime policies.

DAVID WILLIAMS is professor of history at Valdosta State University in Georgia, where he specializes in the Civil War era and the antebellum South. He is the author of ten books, including Bitterly Divided: The Souths Inner Civil War and A Peoples History of the Civil War .

No work of scholarship is a singular effort. Never has that been more true than in this case. Those who contributed in some way to my efforts over the years are far too numerous to list and I thank them all, but a few deserve special recognition for their support of this project.

At Cambridge University Press, Deborah Gershenowitz, senior editor, and Dana Bricken, editorial assistant, offered especially helpful advice and encouragement, as did Eric Crahan, former senior editor. Others associated with the Press who contributed mightily to the project include Sumitha Nithyanandan, Kristine Tobin, Annie Woy, and Shari Chappell.

Also much appreciated is the input of scholars and friends, among them Paul D. Escott of Wake Forest University; Lee W. Formwalt, former director of the Organization of American Historians; Victoria E. Bynum, professor emeritus at Texas State University; Mark D. Hersey of Mississippi State University; Jennifer Hildebrand of the State University of New York at Fredonia; David Carlson of Troy State University; Dixie Ray Haggard of Valdosta State University; and Christopher C. Meyers of Valdosta State University.

A good deal of logistical support came at Valdosta State University, especially from Denise Montgomery, Ramona Ice, Meghan Donathan, and David Funk of Interlibrary Loan; Alan Bernstein, university librarian and dean of the Master of Library and Information Science Program; Deborah Davis and Stacey Wright of Archives and Special Collections; and Rex Devane of the Media Center. Further direct support in the way of both time and funding came with help from Paul Riggs, head of the Department of History; Jay Rickman, chair of the departments scheduling committee; Connie Richards, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; Alfred Fuciarelli, former assistant vice president for research and dean of the Graduate School; James LaPlant, assistant vice president for research and dean of the Graduate School; and the VSU Graduate Faculty Scholarship Fund.

A very special thanks goes to Leonard L. Winslow, who graciously provided a photograph of his great-grandfather, Duncan Winslow, along with other information and documents dealing with the familys American journey, as Leonard so aptly put it.

Finally, I would like to extend my most affectionate gratitude to my wife, Teresa Crisp Williams, who read early versions of the manuscript and has been a constant pillar of support throughout.