Escape to Freedom: The Story of William And Ellen Craft
Fugitive slaves created many ingenious ways to escape from enslavement. One of the most well-known involved a husband and wife named William and Ellen Craft. They were both slaves from Georgia. Ellen was a very light skinned woman, and she was able to pass for white. One of her slave master’s children was her half sister. When his wife found out she gave Ellen away as a wedding gift to a friend.
Later in life, Ellen married a dark skinned man named William. William was born in Macon, Georgia. He had witnessed his parents and siblings being sold. He was determined to be free. In December 1848, he came up with a plan to have his wife pose as a slave master. He took the role of her slave. Ellen disguised herself as a white southern gentleman. Her ward robe included a top hat, a jacket, and a tassel— all of which signified slave holder status.
During this period, domestic slaves frequently accompanied their masters while traveling, so the Crafts did not expect to be questioned. Ellen wore dark glasses to disguise the color of her eyes. Since she could not read or write she put her right arm in a sling making it impossible for her to be expected to sign hotel registers.
William and Ellen Craft completed their escape from the south and lived in Boston for two years before the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act in 1850. They were assisted by such abo litionists as William Lloyd Garrison and William Wells Brown. The Fugi tive Slave Law made it very dangerous for the Crafts to remain in Boston. President Millard Fillmore signed it into law. Under the Fugitive Slave Law, citizens could be fined $1000 and imprisoned for six months for giving food and shelter to fugitive slaves. Slave catchers were given the right to search private homes and to return fugitives to their owners. The former owners of William and Ellen Craft appealed to President Millard Fillmore for help in regaining their property. The President agreed that they should be returned to slavery. He authorized the use of military force to find the Crafts. The slave owners finally gave up looking for the Crafts and returned to the south. This harsh law sent thousands of slaves fleeing to Canada and other places where slavery was outlawed. The Crafts left the country with the help of abolitionists. They fled to Nova Scotia and later to England. Here they received support from anti-slavery groups.
In 1860, their story was published in London. They attended a school founded by Lady Noel Byron, the widow of the noted English poet. The Crafts became prominent in England and financially successful. They earned money by lecturing about the horrible conditions of slavery in the United States. The Crafts published numerous articles while in London in the anti-slavery press. They spent 19 years there with their five children. After the civil war they returned to the United States in 1868.
They purchased 1800 acres of land in Georgia and founded a school for freed slaves to help them learn how to read and write. The Crafts wrote a very important book that described their journey to freedom. It was entitled, “Running a Thou sand Miles for Freedom.” It was also known as “The Escape of William and Ellen Craft from Slavery.” The book included heart-wrenching details of the enslavement of both William and Ellen. Williams described how his fourteen-year-old sister was sold in the following way: “My poor sister was sold first. While the auctioneer was crying the bids, I saw the man that had purchased my sister getting her into a cart, to take her home. I asked a slave standing near the plat form to run and ask the man if he would wait till I was sold, in order that I might have a chance to bid her good-bye. He sent a word back that he could not wait. I then turned to the auctioneer, fell upon my knees, and I humbly prayed him to let me just step down and bid my sister farewell.” But, instead, he grasped me by the neck, and said that, “You can do the wench no good, therefore, there is no use in your seeing her.” Before I could recover, I looked and the poor girl was gone, never to be seen again.”
In poetic words from his book William proclaimed:
“No longer can my arm defend, No longer can I save My sister from the horrid fate That awaits her as a slave!”