Used by permission of the Kentucky Gazette

    Literary works can pack a political and social punch. Mason Locke "Parson" Weems (1759-1825) is responsible for the legendary view most of us have of George Washington. In his classic, but fictional account, The Life and Memorable Actions of George Washington, written in 1800, he relates the story of the young George chopping down the cherry tree and then confessing his mischievousness to his father with the immortal words, "I can not tell a lie." Inadvertently, Weems became one of the first political publicity men.

    Although Weems' work on Washington purported to be a true account, fiction often had far more clout than historical writing. By the mid-nineteenth century, the art of the novel had reached new heights. While there were numerous works of fiction of that era that fell into the category of pulp fiction, one work penned by a woman became so influential as to be pivotal in changing the history of America and the world. Historians rank it as a contributing factor in the demise of slavery. The novel, authored by Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896), is Uncle Tom's Cabin, Or Life Among the Lowly.

    Published in 1852, the book sold 300,000 copies within a year. Many critics hailed the work as a great American novel, worthy of high praise for exposing the evils of slavery to the world.

    The story is a simple but powerful tale of Tom, a faithful slave to his Kentucky master. Tom is sold from his "old Kentucky home" to the St. Clare family. He befriends Eva, the little daughter of his owner.

    "Little Eva" becomes ill and on her deathbed pleads with her father to free "Uncle Tom." St. Clare is killed in a barroom brawl, and Tom is then sold to a plantation on the Red River of Louisiana where he falls under the cruel oversight of one of the most despicable and cruel characters in fiction - Simon Legree. Tom dies from injuries received from a beating, and a legend is born.

    Uncle Tom's Cabin not only became a best seller (the book remains in print), it also became a stage hit. A great deal of what people remember about the story actually comes from the 1852 play adapted from the novel by George L. Aiken. The anti-slavery public could not get enough of the tragic story.

    Songs, toys and "Tom Shows" celebrating the novel's characters became all the rage. Translated into many languages, Stowe's book struck a chord with its readers. Men and women wept when they read of the plight of poor old Tom. Little Eva's death scene became an emotional experience for countless patrons of the theatre. The comical antics of "Topsy," the little slave companion of Eva, charmed audiences.

    The heroics of George and Eliza Harris thrilled devotees of the work. The famous scene of Eliza, with her child, crossing the frozen Ohio River to freedom, remains one of the great dramatic scenes of American literature.

    Kentucky plays an important part in the story of Uncle Tom. Not only did Stowe give some of her characters a Kentucky background, she also showed how slaves from the upper South feared the dreaded sugar cane plantations of Louisiana. The threat to sell a slave south filled the hearts of bondsmen with terror.

    Just how a New England woman of gentle birth came to write so dramatic and emotional piece of fiction is a fascinating story itself. Born in Litchfield, Conn., the daughter of Lyman and Roxanna Foote Beecher, Harriet Beecher came from a remarkable and very well-read family.

    She displayed a talent for writing at an early age. Her father's reputation as one of the great evangelical ministers of his day inspired her to be an excellent and eloquent writer. Since her gender forbade her from following her father and brothers info the pulpit, Beecher decided to "preach on paper."

    In 1832, the Beecher family moved to Cincinnati where Lyman Beecher had accepted the presidency of Lane Seminary.

    In 1836, Harriet married Calvin Elias Stowe, a professor at Lane. She found the Cincinnati area fascinating, especially the many dialects she heard on the Ohio riverfront. She also witnessed human slavery across the river in Kentucky.

    Stowe maintained an active writing career. She wrote a widely acclaimed book on geography and contributed to a number of periodicals. In 1849, the Stowes lost their 18 month old son to a cholera epidemic. Heartbroken, Harriet wrote that she now knew "what a poor slave mother may feel when her child is torn away from her."

    Anti-slavery feelings intensified with the Compromise of 1850. Kentucky's great statesman, Henry Clay (1771-1852), made one last effort to keep the Union from disintegrating with his compromise between North and South.

    The most controversial portions of the compromise stemmed from the South's insistence that runaway slaves be returned to their owners and the North's equally adamant stand that once a slave entered free territory he should remain free.

    Stowe, like so many of her anti-slavery counterparts, decried the Fugitive Slave Law as an affront to humanity.

    In response to the Fugitive Slave Law, she began writing Uncle Tom's Cabin. Her knowledge of slavery as it existed across the Ohio River in Kentucky gave her the background for her work.

    Stowe had observed slavery with the eye of an abolitionist. The South's "peculiar institution" had to be destroyed. One way to do this was to show the world just how bad slavery could be.

    Fortunately, she met a former slave who gave her the prototype of Uncle Tom around whom she wove her story.

    Josiah Henson (1789-1883), an escaped slave and minister, is credited with being the inspiration for Uncle Tom. Born in Charles County, Md., Henson experienced the cruelties of slavery. He witnessed the beatings of his parents, and the abuse and humiliation of his fellow slaves. As a young boy he displayed extraordinary strength and excellent judgment.

    Sold to Isaac Riley, Henson impressed his new master, who placed him in charge of the farm. He devoted his life to his master, but received shockingly callous treatment for his service.

    In 1825, Henson's master became bankrupt. To start anew, he decided to go to Kentucky where his brother had established a farm. In an act of unquestioning trust, Henson's owner asked him to take 18 slaves from Maryland to Daviess County, Ky. Henson agreed and undertook the journey with a one-horse wagon. Most of the slaves walked from Maryland to western Kentucky.

    On their way to the commonwealth, the little band of slaves crossed through free territory. Some of Henson's charges pleaded with him to let them go free while they had the chance. The ever-faithful Henson refused, saying that he had promised to see them safely to Kentucky. True to his word, he arrived at the farm of Amos Riley in Daviess County with the eighteen slaves entrusted to his care.

    For the next five years, Henson served the Riley family as overseer. Although he worked for his owners with all his might, even saving the ill son of his master, the Rileys considered selling him. This traumatic experience dramatically changed Henson's view of his servitude.

    Another factor altering his life came with in his embracing of religion. After hearing the sermons of a Methodist minister, Henson converted to that faith and later became a preacher. These events contributed to his decision to obtain his freedom. After efforts at buying his freedom failed, Henson made plans to escape from his master and go to Canada.

    In October 1830, Henson, his wife and four children successfully fled his master and left Kentucky for freedom. Arriving in Canada, he and his family made their home in Bothwell County, Ontario. There he preached and became a leader in the anti-slavery movement. He worked to free as many slaves as possible by means of the Underground Railroad. He also helped found the Dawn Community and Institute in Ontario where former slaves found a home.

    Henson began a series of lecture tours promoting the cause of abolition. He traveled to England on three occasions where he received numerous invitations to some of the homes of the British elite. Lord Grey invited him to travel to India to oversee the cotton production in that colony.

    One of the great highlights of his tour came when Queen Victoria (1818-1901) invited him to Windsor Castle and presented him with a gold-framed photograph of herself. The former slave from Daviess County had indeed come a long way.

    In 1849 and in 1858, Henson wrote his autobiographies. The first work, The Life of Josiah Henson Formerly a Slave, received good reviews in the Northern press. The latter book entitled, Father Henson s Story of His Own Life, continued his story to 1858. Published in Boston, both works helped popularize Canada as a refuge for runaway slaves.

    He wrote that the former slaves in Canada were "vastly superior" to the free blacks in Northern cities of the United States. He advised blacks to come to Canada and be farmers, unmolested by the law, living under their "own vine and fig tree."

    When Josiah Henson died in the spring of 1883, the institution of slavery in America had disappeared in the sea of blood shed during the Civil War.

    Henson and a number of other former slaves formed the basis of Harriet Beecher Stowe's character, Uncle Tom. Kentucky Historical Highway Marker No. 1241 in Daviess County marks the site of the Riley farm. Part of the legend on the marker tells the passerby that "Uncle Tom Lived Here."

    Stowe and her novel are often credited with fanning the fires of the abolitionist movement, which in turn led to the widening gulf between North and South. The intense emotions Uncle Tom s Cabin generated on both sides helped further divide the nation.

    Abraham Lincoln, upon meeting Stowe supposedly said, "So you're the little lady hat helped start this great war." By today's standards the story of Uncle Tom is an overblown melodrama, but in the mid 19th century the work struck a nerve with the pubic that could not be denied. Such is the power of the written word that a novel could awake the emotions of a generation and help inspire them to fight to the death, in part, over slavery.

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