Stolen: Five Free Boys Kidnapped into Slavery and Their Astonishing Odyssey Home

In 1825, five African American boys were kidnapped in Philadelphia and taken on a journey on the Reverse Underground Railroad that took them as far as Alabama, where they were sold into slavery. Bell (history, Univ. of Maryland) demonstrates that their story was not an unusual one: even in so-called “free” states, African Americans were routinely kidnapped and taken South to feed the insatiable demand for enslaved labor on cotton plantations. Children were especially vulnerable. What is unusual about this case is that the kidnapped boys eventually returned home, thanks to an unlikely partnership between the Philadelphia mayor and an Alabama lawyer. It’s a fascinating story, but one in which the voices and experiences of the victims are largely absent. The few primary sources available give only a hint of the details, and Bell frequently resorts to guesses as to what they “probably” or “must have” felt.