The vice president's Black wife : the untold life of Julia Chinn
(Book)
Author
Published
Chapel Hill : The University of North Carolina Press, [2023].
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Description
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Copies
Location | Call Number | Status |
---|---|---|
Spring Valley-Finkelstein Memorial Library - New Adult Biography | B CHINN, JULIA | On Hold |
Subjects
LC Subjects
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Published
Chapel Hill : The University of North Carolina Press, [2023].
Format
Book
Physical Desc
xxii, 269 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm.
Language
English
Notes
General Note
"A Ferris and Ferris book."
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 251-259) and index.
Description
"Award-winning historian Amrita Chakrabarti Myers has recovered the riveting, troubling, and complicated story of Julia Ann Chinn (ca. 1796-1833), the enslaved mixed-race wife of Richard Mentor Johnson, owner of Blue Spring Farm, veteran of the War of 1812, and US vice president under Martin Van Buren. Johnson never freed Chinn, but during his frequent absences from his estate, he delegated to her management of his property, including Choctaw Academy, a boarding school for Indigenous men and boys. This meant that Chinn, while enslaved, had substantial control over economic, social, financial, and personal affairs within the couple's world, including overseeing Blue Spring's enslaved labor force. Chinn's relationship with Johnson was unlikely a consensual one since she was never manumitted. What makes Chinn's life exceptional is the power that Johnson invested in her, the opportunities the couple's relationship afforded her and her daughters, and their community's tacit acceptance of the family-up to a point. When the family left their farm, they faced steep limits: pews at the rear of church, burial in separate graveyards, exclusion from town dances, and more. Outliving Chinn, Johnson was ruined politically by his relationship with her, and Myers compellingly demonstrates that it wasn't interracial sex that led to his downfall but his refusal to keep it-and Julia Chinn-behind closed doors"--,Provided by publisher.
Citations
APA Citation, 7th Edition (style guide)
Myers, A. C. (2023). The vice president's Black wife: the untold life of Julia Chinn . The University of North Carolina Press.
Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)Myers, Amrita Chakrabarti. 2023. The Vice President's Black Wife: The Untold Life of Julia Chinn. The University of North Carolina Press.
Chicago / Turabian - Humanities (Notes and Bibliography) Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)Myers, Amrita Chakrabarti. The Vice President's Black Wife: The Untold Life of Julia Chinn The University of North Carolina Press, 2023.
MLA Citation, 9th Edition (style guide)Myers, Amrita Chakrabarti. The Vice President's Black Wife: The Untold Life of Julia Chinn The University of North Carolina Press, 2023.
Note! Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy. Citation formats are based on standards as of August 2021.