William W. Brown was born a slave near Lexington, Kentucky in 1814. He was the son of a white plantation owner, likely the son of his master, and an enslaved woman. Brown grew up near St. Louis, Missouri and served several slave-masters before escaping in 1834. In 1843 he became a lecturing agent for the New York Anti-Slavery Society, and a prolific writer, penning poetry, novels, historical volumes and plays. After moving back to America after living...