(SLAVERY AND ABOLITION) [WEBB SAMUEL] History of Pennsylvani

Sale 2171 - Lot 92

Unsold

Estimate: $ 300 - $ 400

(SLAVERY AND ABOLITION.) [WEBB, SAMUEL]. History of Pennsylvania Hall, Which Was Destroyed by a Mob on the 17th of May, 1838. Handcolored frontispiece and three additional plates, including a dramatic mezzotint by John Sartain of the Hall in flames. Tall 8vo, original patterned cloth, stamped in gilt on the upper cover; re-backed, preserving the original spine. Philadelphia, 1838

Set Alert for Similar Items

Additional Details

first edition. Pennsylvania Hall was erected by abolitionists so that "the evils of slavery could be "fearlessly portrayed." It was intended to be a bastion of liberty and free speech, with the proviso that the Hall could not be rented "for any purpose not of a moral character," which became an arguable point with pro-slavery advocates. Anti-slavery advocates came from far and wide to attend the opening. But on the fourth day a pro-slavery mob set fire to the building, threatening to hang the poet John Greenleaf Whittier, who had braved the flames to rescue some papers left inside. Includes addresses by a virtual who''s who of the movement, including a poem by Whittier appearing here for the first time. Sabin 102228