The Refugee: Narratives of Fugitive Slaves in Canada

by Benjamin Drew, George E. Clarke (Introduction)

In the early 1850s, white American abolitionist Benjamin Drew was commissioned to travel to Canada West (now Ontario) to interview escaped slaves from the United States. At the time the population of Canada West was just short of a million and about 30,000 black people lived in the colony, most of whom were escaped slaves from south of the border. One of the people Drew interviewed was Harriet Tubman, who was then based in St. Catharines but made several trips to the U.S. South to lead slaves to freedom in Canada. In the course of his journeys in Canada, Drew visited Chatham, Toronto, Galt, Hamilton, London, Dresden, Windsor, and a number of other communities. Originally published in 1856, Drews book is the only collection of first-hand interviews of fugitive slaves in Canada ever done. It is an invaluable record of early black Canadian experience.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Canada, Race, Biography

384 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2002

Reviews

[Kendra Carter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most slave stories I've come across end in total despair and hopelessness. This is different. These are the victory stories of freedom in the face of daunting hopelessness, but they did it, they freed themselves! Still the lives of those brave souls faced other troubles. You feel with them, but freedom often gave a sense of relief despite almost everything else.

[Sandra Oldfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

Given the written introduction by George Elliott Clarke, I read this book with a great deal of skepticism and really enjoyed it on a level as a propaganda tool for 19th century abolitionists. I was paying particular attention to the separation of churches and schools for black and white residents of Canada. Good accounts.

[Loreli Cockram · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book by chance at a library book sale!
It is a collection of over 100 testimonies of slaves who escaped the United States by way of the Underground Railroad to Canada.
The effect of reading testimony after testimony of the fugitive slaves as they enter Canada is incredibly moving. And these are simply reports, just taking down the facts. For any emotion, you'll have to read between the lines.
These accounts, as you can imagine, give the reader a glimpse into the brutality, loss of dignity, and inhumane-ness of the slave trade. Even the few who were "treated well" were longing for freedom and even willing to risk their lives to find it.
This book should be required reading! It is such a valuable record (straight from the mouths of slaves and not an interpretation of their stories) and gives insights into attitudes towards issues of race and slavery, the echoes of which we still - and must continue to - wrestle with today.

[Alisi ☆ wants to read too many books ☆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! These accounts are horrifying. I sure learned some new, horrifying ways people hurt each other. And I was struck by how whiny the white people were when they captured/tricked the runaway slaves. Like them saying 'but I could get $50 for you. That's a lot of money!' as if that should somehow excuse their actions.

[Clara Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book hard to read and did not finish the book. The cruelty inflicted on the slaves was too graphic. The evil of the slaveholders was too raw.