The Tie That Bound Us: The Women of John Brown's Family and the Legacy of Radical Abolitionism
"To the vast literature on John Brown, Laughlin-Schultz offers something new and revealing—namely, an intelligent and informative study of the women who stood behind and for John Brown and his family in their radical abolitionism and then in preserving their memory as men of principle. . . . She shows how the private became public and the personal political. In doing so she brings us close to the man John Brown, and his sons, who understood and demanded the necessity of women's courage. This is a book every student of antislavery, women’s, and Civil War history will read with profit."—Library Journal, 1 August 2013 (starred review)"This book offers an approach to the John Brown saga that focuses on the women of the family, while not neglecting his importance. Laughlin-Schultz . . . emphasizes the fact that the Brown women made it possible for Brown to implement his militant abolition plans in Kansas and at Harpers Ferry. A poignant account of a neglected side of the John Brown saga."—Choice(1 January 2014)"InThe Tie That Bound Us, Bonnie Laughlin-Schultz liberates the John Brown story from its conventional manliness. She reveals the pivotal roles played by Brown's wife and daughters, who melded ordinary domestic duties with the extraordinary demands of militant abolitionism. Deeply researched and lucidly told, this is a pioneering exploration of the dramatic, often tragic lives of women in the Civil War era."—Tony Horwitz, author ofMidnight Rising: John Brown and the Raid that Sparked the Civil War"Bonnie Laughlin-Schultz has opened up new territory. Among its important original contributions,The Tie That Bound Usbrings the women of John Brown's family into rich and critical relation to Brown himself, explains how this relation continues to develop and change long after Brown's own death, and, for the first time, shows that these crucial associates of Brown are at the center of his story rather than at its margins. Such recentering casts new light on that story and on the larger stories of antislavery reform and militant abolitionism."—Evan Carton, University of Texas at Austin, author ofPatriotic Treason: John Brown and the Soul of America"The Tie That Bound Usis an essential read for anyone interested in John Brown, the fight against slavery, and the coming of the Civil War. Bonnie Laughlin-Schultz offers a new and fascinating look at John Brown and the raid on Harper's Ferry from the perspective of his wife and daughters. She shows how the Brown women participated in John's war on slavery in essential ways: by moving to North Elba; by sacrificing their husbands, brothers, and sons; and by housekeeping at Harper's Ferry. In addition, after John Brown's execution, the Brown women, especially his wife Mary, became public symbols of his martyrdom. As Laughlin-Schultz argues, their story is both ordinary, in their daily labors for their households, and extraordinary, in their famous connection to the antislavery warrior."—Carol Faulkner, Syracuse University, author ofLucretia Mott's Heresy: Abolition and Women's Rights in 19th-Century America