Movement and place in the African American past -- The transatlantic passage -- The passage to the interior -- The passage to the north -- Global passages.
Summary
Four great migrations defined the history of black people in America: the violent removal of Africans to the east coast of North America known as the Middle Passage; the relocation of one million slaves to the interior of the antebellum South; the movement of six million blacks to the industrial cities of the north and west a century later; and, since the late 1960s, the arrival of black immigrants from Africa, the Americas, and Europe. These epic migrations have made and remade African American life. This new account evokes both the terrible price and the moving triumphs of a people forcibly and then willingly migrating to America. Historian Ira Berlin finds a dynamic of change in which eras of deep rootedness alternate with eras of massive movement, tradition giving way to innovation. The culture of black America is constantly evolving, affected by (and affecting) places as far away from one another as Biloxi, Chicago, Kingston, and Lagos.--From publisher description.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 38) and index.
Contents
Contents: COLONIAL ROADS TO 1750 - The Boston Post Road and the King's Highway; The Lancaster Road; The Fall Line Road; The Great Valley Road; The Pioneer's Road; The Upper Road / COLONIAL ROADS, 1750 - 1775 - Braddock's Road, Forbes' Road, The Wilderness Road, New York Migrations / ROADS TO THE OHIO COUNTRY - Zane's Trace, The Nashville Road , The National Road / ROADS TO THE OLD SOUTHWEST- The Natchez Trace, The Federal Horse Path, The ways south after 1815
Summary
The author is a genealogist. The book provides maps of early American roads and descriptions of those roads as they relate to migration.
"These maps provide critical information for genealogists trying to locate the passages of early migration in America. The publication familiarizes readers about why and when the earliest wagon roads became available by discussing the significant historical events that led to the opening of new settlements. " [from Amazon.com]
