Letter to Stephen Higginson III from his father

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From the collections of PVMA • Digital image © Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Assoc. • Image use information


About this item

In A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin Harriet Beecher Stowe chronicled the evidence she employed to write her moving novel of the same name. Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin was so popular it sold over 300,000 copies in the United States in its first year. This letter reveals the rapture in which her novel enthralled one family. Stephen Higginson II wrote to his son and sent a copy of the “Key” the day it became available. He marveled at its prepublication sales and reported that his wife was already “fearfully dipping” into the book. Higginson pinpointed the importance of A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin by stating the facts are more provoking than fiction. He hoped the two books would educate “even New England people” to the true horrors of slavery.

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Details

Item typeLetter
AuthorHigginson II, Stephen
Date1850-04-15
PlaceBoston, Massachusetts
TopicArt, Music, Literature, Crafts
African American, Black Life
Slavery, Indenture
EraNational Expansion and Reform, 1816–1860
MaterialPaper
Process/FormatHandwriting
Dimension detailsProcess Material: manuscript, paper, ink Height: 10.00 in Width: 8.00 in
Catalog #L05.130
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Higginson II, Stephen. Letter to Stephen Higginson III from his father. April 15, 1850. Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, American Centuries. https://americancenturies.org/collection/l05-130/. Accessed on November 13, 2024.

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