Slavery in the South has been documented in volumes ranging from exhaustive histories to bestselling novels. But the North’s profit from–indeed, dependence on–slavery has mostly been a shameful and well-kept secret . . . until now. In this startling and superbly researched new book, three veteran New England journalists demythologize the region of America known for tolerance and liberation, revealing a place where thousands of people were held in bondage and slavery was both an economic dynamo and a necessary way of life. Complicity reveals the cruel truth about the Triangle Trade of molasses, rum, and slaves that lucratively linked the North to the West Indies and Africa; discloses the reality of Northern empires built on profits from rum, cotton, and ivory–and run, in some cases, by abolitionists; and exposes the thousand-acre plantations that existed in towns such as Salem, Connecticut. Here, too, are eye-opening accounts of the individuals who profited directly from slavery far from the Mason-Dixon line–including Nathaniel Gordon of Maine, the only slave trader sentenced to die in the United States, who even as an inmate of New York’s infamous Tombs prison was supported by a shockingly large percentage of the city; Patty Cannon, whose brutal gang kidnapped free blacks from Northern states and sold them into slavery; and the Philadelphia doctor Samuel Morton, eminent in the nineteenth-century field of “race science,” which purported to prove the inferiority of African-born black people. Culled from long-ignored documents and reports–and bolstered by rarely seen photos, publications, maps, and period drawings–Complicity is a fascinating and sobering work that actually does what so many books pretend to do: shed light on America’s past. Expanded from the celebrated Hartford Courant special report that the Connecticut Department of Education sent to every middle school and high school in the state (the original work is required readings in many college classrooms,) this new book is sure to become a must-read reference everywhere.

Complicity: How the North Promoted, Prolonged, and Profited from Slavery

History

Farrow, Anne

Lang, Joel

Frank, Jenifer

Americas

Ballantine Books

"The next years should be full ones for Hartford, full of ideas and hope." So says author Joel Lang as he guides us through the historical Greater Hartford areas, aided by a panoramic sampler of colorful images captured by the area's finest photographers. 
In a series of concise essays, Lang shares his insights about the character of the region, as well as his outlook for its future. He manages to get behind the stereotypes of the "Insurance Capital of the World" to reveal a community with a strong Puritan heritage and a fierce independence. 
The unifying Hartford character has been ascribed to the Puritan influence, the Yankee work ethic, the prudence of the insurance industry, and perhaps the creative tension among the distinctive towns and villages that make up the Greater Hartford region. 
Yet, through the years, the "Land of Steady Habits" has steadily adapted to waves of new immigrants, adding strength through cultural diversity to its rich tradition. 
Indeed, Greater Hartford Horizons comprises a biography of time and place, in which its people, architecture, surroundings, history, business, and leisure pursuits are thoughtfully examined and beautifully presented.

Hartford: Horizons (Urban Tapestry Series)

Arts & Photography

Photography & Video

Towery Pub

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Lang, Joel. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Lang, Joel