We in the house were always decently dressed, while some Richmond slaves didn't even have shoes to wear on the City's unpaved streets. Though Old Master Van Lew's family held slaves, including Mama and Old Sam, when he lived in New York, neither Old Master Van Lew nor his Philadelphia-born bride could quite abide the way human chattel were treated in Virginia.The Secrets of Mary Bowser by Lois Leveen.
See my interview of Lois, here, with links to event information, reviews, and more.
