Podcast appearances and mentions of anna lisa cox

Barbara Norman, a blueberry farmer from Covert, Michigan, speaks with oral historian Anna-Lisa Cox about growing up on her family's farm as part a larger Occupational Folklife Project documenting “Multigenerational African-Descended Farmers of the Midwest.”

Barbara Norman, a blueberry farmer from Covert, Michigan, speaks with oral historian Anna-Lisa Cox about growing up on her family's farm as part a larger Occupational Folklife Project documenting “Multigenerational African-Descended Farmers of the Midwest.”

We'll explore the history of black farming, the connection to land and water, and thoughts on the future of black environmentalism. Speakers include: Dr. Kevin McGruder, Associate Professor of History at Antioch College Mr. Tim Lewis, Founding Partner & Outreach Director at Rid-All Green Partnership in Cleveland, Ohio Website: http://www.greennghetto.org/ Moderator: Crystal M.C. Davis, Vice President of Policy and Strategic Engagement Resource: The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America's Forgotten Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality - https://bookshop.org/books/the-bone-and-sinew-of-the-land-america-s-forgotten-black-pioneers-and-the-struggle-for-equality/9781610398107 (The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America's Forgotten Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality a book by Anna-Lisa Cox (bookshop.org))

The western is back, and Netflix is riding high on its version The Harder They Fall. Join Dr. Carol François and her niece, Kourtney Square as they reprise their ride into the West sharing how Black/African Americans contributed to the country's westward expansion. You'll hear about Bass Reeves, who makes an appearance in the film, as well as exploits of pioneers and settlers you've probably never heard of before. Citations “Lawman legend Bass Reeves: the invincible man-hunter,” https://www.historynet.com/lawman-legend-bass-reeves-invincible-man-hunter.htm The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America's Forgotten Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality, by Anna-Lisa Cox. The Black West: A Documentary and Pictorial History of the African American Role in the Westward Expansion of the United States, by William Loren Katz. “The life and times of deputy U.S. marshall Bass Reeves,” https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/33537/life-and-times-deputy-us-marshal-bass-reeves#:~:text=Over%20his%2032%2Dyear%20career,and%20was%20never%20shot%20himself. “Was the real Lone Ranger a black man?,” https://www.history.com/news/bass-reeves-real-lone-ranger-a-black-man --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/carol-francois/support

Join Dr. Carol François and her niece, Kourtney Square as they ride into the West and share how Black/African Americans contributed to the country's westward expansion. You'll hear about Bass Reeves, perhaps the real Lone Ranger, and exploits of pioneers and settlers you've never heard of before. Want more---take our course Systemic Racism: See it, Say it, Confront it at www.whyaretheysoangry.com and find us anywhere at https://linktr.ee/WATSA Citations “Lawman legend Bass Reeves: the invincible man-hunter,” https://www.historynet.com/lawman-legend-bass-reeves-invincible-man-hunter.htm The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America's Forgotten Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality, by Anna-Lisa Cox. The Black West: A Documentary and Pictorial History of the African American Role in the Westward Expansion of the United States, by William Loren Katz. “The life and times of deputy U.S. marshall Bass Reeves,” https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/33537/life-and-times-deputy-us-marshal-bass-reeves#:~:text=Over%20his%2032%2Dyear%20career,and%20was%20never%20shot%20himself. “Was the real Lone Ranger a black man?,” https://www.history.com/news/bass-reeves-real-lone-ranger-a-black-man --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/carol-francois/support

Long before the Civil War and the Underground Railroad, “free people of color” were instrumental in settling the Northwest Territory as Americans pushed West after the Revolutionary War. Dr. Anna-Lisa Cox, an award-winning historian on the history of racism and race relations in 19th Century America, has discovered hundreds of Black families who came West, owned land, and were instrumental in taming the frontier. “When Detroit was still a Fort, African American pioneers were succeeding and rising on the nation’s earliest frontier,” says Cox. “Their story is one buried by violence and denial but a story of success on a level never thought possible.” Their story, unfortunately, is one of backlash by many white settlers who, for example, taxed Black property owners for schools that African Americans were prohibited from attending among other discriminatory and prejudicial acts. Cox tells the story of these black pioneers in her book, “The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America’s Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality.” Cox is a non-resident Fellow at Harvard University’s Hutchins Center for African and African American Research. Recently, she also was a Research Associate at the new Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Most recently she was one of the keynote speakers at the Settling Ohio: First Nations and Beyond Conference at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio.

In this episode Matt Crawford speaks to author Anna Lisa Cox about her book The Bone and Sinew of the Land the amazing lost story of America's black pioneers and the struggle for equality. Anna Lisa Cox documents the first great migration of free black pioneers who settled the Northwest Territory before the Civil War. These black pioneers were free, wealthy land owners who had the right to vote and even elected the first black man to political office. A heartbreaking story of freedom won and slowly stolen back this is a book that needs to be read and a story that needs to be shared.

In this episode, Neil, Natalia, and Niki discuss a proposed “sex strike,” historian David McCullough’s new book, and the life and legacy of Doris Day. Support Past Present on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pastpresentpodcast Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show:  Actor and activist Alyssa Milano this week suggested that women withhold sex from men until women achieve “bodily autonomy.” Natalia referred to Christian writer Laura Turner’s tweets about the role of paternalistic religion in shaping an anti-abortion worldview. Historian David McCullough has written a new bestselling book that has historians frustrated for its dated views about westward expansion. Natalia recommended Rebecca Onion’s review of The Pioneers at Slate, while Niki highlighted the shortcomings of another at NPR. Natalia suggested @ProfWehrman’s tweets contextualizing McCullough’s work, and Niki recommended an alternative text, Anna-Lisa Cox’s The Bone and Sinew of the Land. Film star and songstress Doris Day has died. Natalia referred to Anthony Lane’s reflections on her legacy at the New Yorker and to the series on “Dead Blondes” by the Hollywood podcast You Must Remember This.    In our regular closing feature, What’s Making History: Natalia shared Lyz Lenz’ Columbia Journalism Review article, “The Heavy Crown of Gretchen Carlson.” Neil discussed the death of iconic architect I.M. Pei. Niki reflected on the influence of “Grumpy Cat” on meme culture in the wake of the cat’s recent death.

What defines a US citizen? Remarkably, no official definition existed until 1868 -- some 80 years after the ratification of the Constitution. That's the year the 14th Amendment was ratified. Its opening line reads, "All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the States wherein they reside." The origins of this form of citizenship, known as "birthright citizenship," are in large measure due to the efforts of free African Americans who, in the decades before the Civil War, developed and promoted a claim on US citizenship based on the fact that they had been born on US soil. To learn more about this fascinating backstory to birthright citizenship, I speak with historian Martha S. Jones, author of, Birthright Citizens: A History of Race and Rights in Antebellum America. In the course of our conversation, Martha S. Jones explains:  Why the city of Baltimore, with its large free black population, location at the nexus of North and South, and connection to the Atlantic world as a seaport, made it an ideal focus for her study.  How free African Americans in the antebellum era forged a notion of birthright citizenship, in part by asserting their rights in local courts and, in effect, "performing citizenship."   How African American newspaper editors and pamphleteers developed and spread arguments in favor of birthright citizenship.  How efforts by white Americans to force free blacks to resettle in Africa inspired the latter to assert a right to stay based on their birth in the US.  How Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Roger B. Taney's experience living in Baltimore shaped his understanding of race and citizenship, leading to his infamous majority opinion in the 1857 Dred Scott case.  And how this backstory to the concept of birthright citizenship provides important insights that are relevant to contemporary debates over birthright citizenship.  Recommended reading:  Martha S. Jones, Birthright Citizens: A History of Race and Rights in Antebellum America (Cambridge University Press, 2017)  David Blight, Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom  Anna-Lisa Cox, The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America's Forgotten Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality Kellie Carter Jackson, Force and Freedom: Black Abolitionists and the Politics of Violence Gerard N. Magliocca, American Founding Son: John Bingham and the Invention of the Fourteenth Amendment Manisha Sinha, The Slave's Cause: A History of Abolition Shirley J. Yee, Black Women Abolitionists: Study In Activism, 1828-1860 More info about Martha S. Jones - website   Follow In The Past Lane on Twitter  @InThePastLane Instagram  @InThePastLane Facebook: InThePastLanePodcast YouTube: InThePastLane     Music for This Episode Jay Graham, ITPL Intro (JayGMusic.com) Kevin McCleod, “Impact Moderato” (Free Music Archive) Andy Cohen, “Trophy Endorphins” (Free Music Archive) Hyson, "Signals" (Free Music Archive) Jon Luc Hefferman, “Winter Trek” (Free Music Archive) The Bell, “I Am History” (Free Music Archive) Production Credits Executive Producer: Lulu Spencer Technical Advisors: Holly Hunt and Jesse Anderson Podcasting Consultant: Dave Jackson of the School of Podcasting Podcast Editing: Wildstyle Media Photographer: John Buckingham Graphic Designer: Maggie Cellucci Website by: ERI Design Legal services: Tippecanoe and Tyler Too Social Media management: The Pony Express Risk Assessment: Little Big Horn Associates Growth strategies: 54 40 or Fight © In The Past Lane, 2019 Recommended History Podcasts Ben Franklin’s World with Liz Covart @LizCovart The Age of Jackson Podcast @AgeofJacksonPod Backstory podcast – the history behind today’s headlines @BackstoryRadio Past Present podcast with Nicole Hemmer, Neil J. Young, and Natalia Petrzela @PastPresentPod 99 Percent Invisible with Roman Mars @99piorg Slow Burn podcast about Watergate with @leoncrawl The Memory Palace – with Nate DiMeo, story teller extraordinaire @thememorypalace The Conspirators – creepy true crime stories from the American past @Conspiratorcast The History Chicks podcast @Thehistorychix My History Can Beat Up Your Politics @myhist Professor Buzzkill podcast – Prof B takes on myths about the past @buzzkillprof Footnoting History podcast @HistoryFootnote The History Author Show podcast @HistoryDean More Perfect podcast - the history of key US Supreme Court cases @Radiolab Revisionist History with Malcolm Gladwell @Gladwell Radio Diaries with Joe Richman @RadioDiaries DIG history podcast @dig_history The Story Behind – the hidden histories of everyday things @StoryBehindPod Studio 360 with Kurt Andersen – specifically its American Icons series @Studio360show Uncivil podcast – fascinating takes on the legacy of the Civil War in contemporary US @uncivilshow Stuff You Missed in History Class @MissedinHistory The Whiskey Rebellion – two historians discuss topics from today’s news @WhiskeyRebelPod American History Tellers ‏@ahtellers The Way of Improvement Leads Home with historian John Fea @JohnFea1 The Bowery Boys podcast – all things NYC history @BoweryBoys Ridiculous History @RidiculousHSW The Rogue Historian podcast with historian @MKeithHarris The Road To Now podcast @Road_To_Now Retropod with @mikerosenwald    

This week at In The Past Lane, the American History podcast, we learn about the long political struggle before the Civil War to rid the US of slavery. I speak with historian Graham Peck, author of Making an Antislavery Nation: Lincoln, Douglas, and the Battle over Freedom. It’s a fascinating conversation about how during the 70 years between the ratification of the Constitution and the Civil War, opponents of slavery gradually pushed the US to become an antislavery nation. But as Peck makes clear, this was no easy task, as proponents of slavery demanded its protection and pushed for its expansion. In the course of our discussion, Graham Peck discusses:   How political struggles between antislavery and proslavery settlers in Illinois in the 1820s presaged the national debates over slavery in the 1840s and 1850s. How and why antislavery leaders were content to leave slavery alone where it existed, but were adamantly opposed to allowing its extension into the American west. Why the controversy generated by the Kansas-Nebraska Act proved to be a key tipping point in the mobilization and unification of political antislavery into what became the Republican Party. How Abraham Lincoln emerged at this time as a leading advocate of what Peck calls an “antislavery nationalism” that argued that the US had been founded upon the principles of universal freedom with an eye toward to eventual eradication of slavery. And that this position was actually conservative, and that it was proslavery activists who wanted to expand slavery who were the radicals who threatened the nation’s wellbeing. Recommended reading:  Graham Peck, Making an Antislavery Nation: Lincoln, Douglas, and the Battle over Freedom (Univ. Illinois Press, 2017) Anna-Lisa Cox, The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America's Forgotten Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality Andrew Delbanco, The War Before the War: Fugitive Slaves and the Struggle for America's Soul from the Revolution to the Civil War Eric Foner, Free Soil, Free Labor, Free Men: The Ideology of the Republican Party before the Civil War Manisha Sinha, The Slave's Cause: A History of Abolition  More info about Graham Peck - website  Follow In The Past Lane on Twitter  @InThePastLane Instagram  @InThePastLane Facebook: InThePastLanePodcast YouTube: InThePastLane   Music for This Episode Jay Graham, ITPL Intro (JayGMusic.com) Kevin McCleod, “Impact Moderato” (Free Music Archive) Andy Cohen, “Trophy Endorphins” (Free Music Archive) Borrtex, Perceptions Jon Luc Hefferman, “Winter Trek” (Free Music Archive) The Bell, “I Am History” (Free Music Archive) Production Credits  Executive Producer: Lulu Spencer Technical Advisors: Holly Hunt and Jesse Anderson Podcasting Consultant: Dave Jackson of the School of Podcasting Podcast Editing: Wildstyle Media Photographer: John Buckingham Graphic Designer: Maggie Cellucci Website by: ERI Design Legal services: Tippecanoe and Tyler Too Social Media management: The Pony Express Risk Assessment: Little Big Horn Associates Growth strategies: 54 40 or Fight © In The Past Lane, 2019 Recommended History Podcasts Ben Franklin’s World with Liz Covart @LizCovart The Age of Jackson Podcast @AgeofJacksonPod Backstory podcast – the history behind today’s headlines @BackstoryRadio Past Present podcast with Nicole Hemmer, Neil J. Young, and Natalia Petrzela @PastPresentPod 99 Percent Invisible with Roman Mars @99piorg Slow Burn podcast about Watergate with @leoncrawl The Memory Palace – with Nate DiMeo, story teller extraordinaire @thememorypalace The Conspirators – creepy true crime stories from the American past @Conspiratorcast The History Chicks podcast @Thehistorychix My History Can Beat Up Your Politics @myhist Professor Buzzkill podcast – Prof B takes on myths about the past @buzzkillprof Footnoting History podcast @HistoryFootnote The History Author Show podcast @HistoryDean More Perfect podcast - the history of key US Supreme Court cases @Radiolab Revisionist History with Malcolm Gladwell @Gladwell Radio Diaries with Joe Richman @RadioDiaries DIG history podcast @dig_history The Story Behind – the hidden histories of everyday things @StoryBehindPod Studio 360 with Kurt Andersen – specifically its American Icons series @Studio360show Uncivil podcast – fascinating takes on the legacy of the Civil War in contemporary US @uncivilshow Stuff You Missed in History Class @MissedinHistory The Whiskey Rebellion – two historians discuss topics from today’s news @WhiskeyRebelPod American History Tellers ‏@ahtellers The Way of Improvement Leads Home with historian John Fea @JohnFea1 The Bowery Boys podcast – all things NYC history @BoweryBoys Ridiculous History @RidiculousHSW The Rogue Historian podcast with historian @MKeithHarris The Road To Now podcast @Road_To_Now Retropod with @mikerosenwald

This week at In The Past Lane, the American History podcast, we take a close look at a long forgotten chapter in US history – the story of tens of thousands of African Americans who, in the 70 years before the Civil War and the end of slavery, settled on what was then the western frontier and today we know as the Midwest. They established successful farms and created thriving communities of black families. But intensifying racism in these antebellum years meant that these African Americans also faced efforts by white Americans in states like Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois to deprive them of their citizenship, land, and opportunities to get ahead. To dig into this story, I speak with historian Anna-Lisa Cox. She’s the author of a new book, The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America’s Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality. In the course of our conversation, Anna-Lisa Cox explains: How the Northwest Territory -- what is now much of the Midwest – was established by Congress in 1787 and constituted the largest territory established in the New World that prohibited slavery. How thousands of free African Americans migrated to this territory to establish farms and small businesses. And how many of them thrived and became prosperous – and a few quite rich. How many enslaved African Americans worked extra hours for wages to gradually buy their freedom and the freedom of loved ones.  How these migrants initially enjoyed full rights of citizenship, including voting rights and freedom from racist laws limiting their civil rights. How over time, however, as larger numbers of white settlers arrived and states like Ohio and Indiana were established, they succeeded in passing racist laws that prevented black migration or made it financially very difficult. How white violence, as exemplified by the so-called Cincinnati Race War of 1829, challenged African American freedom and their right to economic opportunity. And how in the early 20th century, long-established communities of black farmers began to disappear due to economic hardship and the rise of organizations like the Ku Klux Klan.  Recommended reading:  Anna-Lisa Cox, The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America’s Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality (Public Affairs, 2018).  More info about Anna-Lisa Cox - website Follow In The Past Lane on Twitter  @InThePastLane Instagram  @InThePastLane Facebook: InThePastLanePodcast YouTube: InThePastLane   Related ITPL podcast episodes: 068 featuring my conversation with Ed Ayers about his book, The Thin Light of Freedom: The Civil War and Emancipation in the Heart of America 074 where I speak with Linda Gordon about the rebirth of the Ku Klux Klan in the early 20th century. 077 where I speak with Patricia Limerick about the New Western History Music for This Episode Jay Graham, ITPL Intro (JayGMusic.com) Kevin McCleod, “Impact Moderato” (Free Music Archive) Andy Cohen, “Trophy Endorphins” (Free Music Archive) Andy Cohen, “Bathed in Finest Dust” (Free Music Archive) Jon Luc Hefferman, “Winter Trek” (Free Music Archive) The Bell, “I Am History” (Free Music Archive) Production Credits Executive Producer: Lulu Spencer Technical Advisors: Holly Hunt and Jesse Anderson Podcasting Consultant: Dave Jackson of the School of Podcasting Podcast Editing: Wildstyle Media Photographer: John Buckingham Graphic Designer: Maggie Cellucci Website by: ERI Design Legal services: Tippecanoe and Tyler Too Social Media management: The Pony Express Risk Assessment: Little Big Horn Associates Growth strategies: 54 40 or Fight © In The Past Lane, 2018 Recommended History Podcasts Ben Franklin’s World with Liz Covart @LizCovart The Age of Jackson Podcast @AgeofJacksonPod Backstory podcast – the history behind today’s headlines @BackstoryRadio Past Present podcast with Nicole Hemmer, Neil J. Young, and Natalia Petrzela @PastPresentPod 99 Percent Invisible with Roman Mars @99piorg Slow Burn podcast about Watergate with @leoncrawl The Memory Palace – with Nate DiMeo, story teller extraordinaire @thememorypalace The Conspirators – creepy true crime stories from the American past @Conspiratorcast The History Chicks podcast @Thehistorychix My History Can Beat Up Your Politics @myhist Professor Buzzkill podcast – Prof B takes on myths about the past @buzzkillprof Footnoting History podcast @HistoryFootnote The History Author Show podcast @HistoryDean More Perfect podcast - the history of key US Supreme Court cases @Radiolab Revisionist History with Malcolm Gladwell @Gladwell Radio Diaries with Joe Richman @RadioDiaries DIG history podcast @dig_history The Story Behind – the hidden histories of everyday things @StoryBehindPod Studio 360 with Kurt Andersen – specifically its American Icons series @Studio360show Uncivil podcast – fascinating takes on the legacy of the Civil War in contemporary US @uncivilshow Stuff You Missed in History Class @MissedinHistory The Whiskey Rebellion – two historians discuss topics from today’s news @WhiskeyRebelPod American History Tellers ‏@ahtellers The Way of Improvement Leads Home with historian John Fea @JohnFea1 The Bowery Boys podcast – all things NYC history @BoweryBoys Ridiculous History @RidiculousHSW The Rogue Historian podcast with historian @MKeithHarris The Road To Now podcast @Road_To_Now Retropod with @mikerosenwald

Most people’s image of the American frontier does not conjure anything relating to people of African descent. But, as  Anna-Lisa Cox’s points out in her new book The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America’s Forgotten Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality (PublicAffairs, 2018), it should. Dr. Cox uncovers not only the presence of black life in the Northwest Territory states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin, but also the communities and institutions they built as they strived for equality in a constantly shifting governmental terrain. Their pursuit of freedom coincided with the Abolitionist and Colored Conventions movements that voiced the aspirations of blacks. Dr. Cox weaves an intricate story of black freedom and the triumphs and pitfalls African Americans faced prior to the Civil War. Adam McNeil is a PhD student in History, African American Public Humanities Initiative and Colored Conventions Project Fellow at the University of Delaware. He can be reached on Twitter @CulturedModesty. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most people’s image of the American frontier does not conjure anything relating to people of African descent. But, as  Anna-Lisa Cox’s points out in her new book The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America’s Forgotten Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality (PublicAffairs, 2018), it should. Dr. Cox uncovers not only the presence of black life in the Northwest Territory states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin, but also the communities and institutions they built as they strived for equality in a constantly shifting governmental terrain. Their pursuit of freedom coincided with the Abolitionist and Colored Conventions movements that voiced the aspirations of blacks. Dr. Cox weaves an intricate story of black freedom and the triumphs and pitfalls African Americans faced prior to the Civil War. Adam McNeil is a PhD student in History, African American Public Humanities Initiative and Colored Conventions Project Fellow at the University of Delaware. He can be reached on Twitter @CulturedModesty. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most people’s image of the American frontier does not conjure anything relating to people of African descent. But, as  Anna-Lisa Cox’s points out in her new book The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America’s Forgotten Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality (PublicAffairs, 2018), it should. Dr. Cox uncovers not only the presence of black life in the Northwest Territory states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin, but also the communities and institutions they built as they strived for equality in a constantly shifting governmental terrain. Their pursuit of freedom coincided with the Abolitionist and Colored Conventions movements that voiced the aspirations of blacks. Dr. Cox weaves an intricate story of black freedom and the triumphs and pitfalls African Americans faced prior to the Civil War. Adam McNeil is a PhD student in History, African American Public Humanities Initiative and Colored Conventions Project Fellow at the University of Delaware. He can be reached on Twitter @CulturedModesty. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most people's image of the American frontier does not conjure anything relating to people of African descent. But, as  Anna-Lisa Cox's points out in her new book The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America's Forgotten Black Pioneers and the Struggle for Equality (PublicAffairs, 2018), it should. Dr. Cox uncovers not only the presence of black life in the Northwest Territory states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin, but also the communities and institutions they built as they strived for equality in a constantly shifting governmental terrain. Their pursuit of freedom coincided with the Abolitionist and Colored Conventions movements that voiced the aspirations of blacks. Dr. Cox weaves an intricate story of black freedom and the triumphs and pitfalls African Americans faced prior to the Civil War. Adam McNeil is a PhD student in History, African American Public Humanities Initiative and Colored Conventions Project Fellow at the University of Delaware. He can be reached on Twitter @CulturedModesty. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/african-american-studies

On today's episode of the History Fangirl Podcast, we discuss an aspect of history that, I don't mind saying, was a total blind spot for me. I was so honored to talk with Anna-Lisa Cox, an adjunct member of the History Department and fellow at Harvard University's Hutchins Center for African and African American Research. She's also the author of the new book, The Bone and the Sinew of the Land, about the free African-American pioneers who helped settle American frontier. It's a fascinating discussion about how the settlements were formed, the challenges faced by the families there, and why this almost became a part of American history lost to our country's past. The Lost History of Black Pioneers When Anna-Lisa went out for her first book tour, she began to hear stories from people about their family heritage, and she discovered that she'd stumbled upon what was really the first Great Migration in American history. In the late 18th century, tens of thousands of free African-Americans headed to the Northwest Territory (what is now known as the Midwest). But why was this vital piece of American history lost? As Anna-Lisa tells me, it had a “triple-hit” against it: It took place in the Northwest Territory, which was not as well-documented as the early settlements. It concerned African-Americans, who history books have long given short shrift to, and they were rural communities as well. So the odds were stacked against these communities being remembered, but luckily Anna-Lisa has in her new book. The families on the frontier Anna-Lisa's research turned up more than 300 African-American farming settlements throughout the Midwest by 1850. These were communities of free African-Americans, typically made up of multiple families. I asked her to tell me some of her favorite stories, and she told me of Charles and Keziah Grier, who were brought into what eventually became Indiana, essentially enslaved. Their story is incredible: Being freed in Indiana but having nothing to their names. But Charles was a skilled farmer, and while he was freed in 1813, by 1815 he was able to buy his first 40 acres of frontier land. Keziah's story is just as inspiring, but you'll have to listen to the episode (or buy the book) to experience it. The purest pioneers What's so fascinating about this part of America's history is that these settlements were populated by what Anna-Lisa calls the “purest pioneers,” meaning that they were not just moving for economic advancement, they were moving for ideological reasons. They were activists essentially, and they were looking to create a part of the country that lived up to the American ideals that all men are created equal and everyone should be granted freedom and liberty to pursue their dreams. And that's a big part of why these settlements became important cogs in the functioning of the Underground Railroad. Violence in the settlements While the black settlers were an idealistic lot, their contemporaries did not necessarily share those views. And as Anna-Lisa told me, there was mass violence against the African-American pioneers, so much so that the Klan's origins can be traced to the attacks on the settlers. As she says, the word “pogrom” would not be out of place in describing what happened to the purest pioneers. This is truly an important and astounding piece of American history, and I feel very lucky to have been able to spend time talking with, and learning from, Anna-Lisa about this topic. Outline of This Episode [1:35] How did Anna-Lisa get interested in the subject [5:40] What the Northwest Territory was like [12:00] Charles and Keziah Grier [17:25] Underground Railroad [25:37] More family stories [32:00] The purest pioneers [42:42] What happened after Civil War [56:37] Where to visit to learn more about this history Resources Mentioned Anna-Lisa Cox The Bone and the Sinew of the Land Connect With Stephanie stephanie@historyfangirl.com https://historyfangirl.com Support Stephanie on Patreon Featuring the song “Places Unseen” by Lee Rosevere. More info and photographs for this episode at: https://historyfangirl.com/the-lost-history-of-black-pioneers/