Making Freedom: The Extraordinary Life of Venture Smith

By Chandler B. Saint and George A. Krimsky

The inspiring story of an 18th-century New England slave who emancipated himself

Making Freedom is the first in-depth exploration of the life of Venture Smith (1728-1805), a New England slave who was sold into bondage as a boy in Africa and labored for nearly a quarter-century before purchasing his own freedom and transforming himself into a highly respected American citizen. Drawing on years of research and documentation, including Venture Smith's rare personal autobiography, Saint and Krimsky vividly recount the extraordinary challenges he overcame. They cast a rare light on what it was like to be an African American in the north during the Colonial era. This story's relevance today prompted the BBC to produce a documentary on scholars' efforts to learn more about Venture Smith, his life, and family. The book includes a wealth of illustrations, a timeline, and Smith's original 1798 narrative in facsimile form.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0819568546
• ISBN13: 9780819568540
• Release Date: February 2009
• Publisher: Wesleyan University Press
• Length: 204 Pages
• Weight: 1.17 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.9" x 9.3"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Venture Smith is an interesting man

Venture Smith, the subject of this biography, is just plain fascinating. The inclusion of the full text of his very early 1800s autobiography makes the book, but the editor's lengthy introduction is also well done and very approachable. The press is to be commended on the lavish illustrations. We can approach this as essential African-American history, but I suspect that many will find that his life story, showing as it does in his own words, the after-effects of traumatic events, captivating in and of itself regardless of race. The book is memorable, because Venture Smith has a personality and then some. This is a good quick read that will stay with you.

Highly recommended as a worthy addition to American biography shelves

Making Friendship: The Extraordinary Life of Venture Smith is an amazing, in-depth biography of Venture Smith (1728-1805), a New England slave sold into slavery as a boy in Africa who worked for a quarter century, then purchased his own freedom and became a respectable and noted American citizen. Meticulously reconstructing Smith's life from years of research and documentation, Making Friendship stretches beyond Smith's life to touch upon the lives of his descendants. Smith's own 1978 narrative is also included in facsimile form, as are a proliferation of black-and-white photographs and illustrations. Highly recommended as a worthy addition to American biography shelves.