PROPOSAL TYPE
Individual or Traditional Panel
SEEKING
- Seeking Additional Presenters
- Seeking General Feedback and Interest
RELATED TOPICS
- Museums/Exhibits
- Government Historians
ABSTRACT
As public historians we have a responsibility to present authentic history, to the public. It is also our responsibility to correct inaccurate information in order not to give a false impression of the past to the public, or to allow the true narrative to be changed by commercial or political interests. It is also of utmost importance that we be unified in solidarity with each other in presenting accurate information to the public. In my research on the life of Josiah Henson I have discovered much information that has been published in biographies of the man and re-published in interpretive panels, brochures and signage in museums and historic sites in Canada and in the United States. My book is an attempt to correct this misinformation.
DESCRIPTION
As an employee of Montgomery County, Maryland in 2006, I researched Josiah Henson for the nomination of the farm where he was raised to the National Network to Freedom. I realized then that no one had actually conducted any scholarly research on the history of the man. All of the several biographies of him at the time were based entirely on five of his autobiographies with no outside research. After 12 years researching, on-line, in person, and visiting the places where he lived and the paths he traveled, I have discovered that Henson’s autobiographies, except for the first and second, were extensively embellished by his publishers – one of whom, John Jewett, publicly admitting that he “wrote one-quarter of the book myself.” The first authentic autobiography by Henson was recorded from Henson’s dictation, read back to him for corrections, then published with the corrections. The original hand-written copy of the dictation is at the Boston Public Library. The second authentic autobiography, published in London, is a copy of the first with the addition of Henson’s two excursions into Kentucky to rescue others from enslavement. All of the autobiographies, including the first two, contain inaccuracies, omissions, and muddling of dates and the sequencing of events. In the biographies and autobiographies I have uncovered many myths about the man that had been accepted as truths in the previous biographies, some of which are now on interpretive signage at the Josiah Henson Museum of African Canadian History and Culture in Ontario Canada, the Josiah Henson Museum and Park in Montgomery County, Maryland, the Niagara River Crossing Park in Buffalo, New York, and others. The most prominent of these myths is that Josiah Henson was the model for Uncle Tom in the novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. In fact the author of the novel did not read Henson’s autobiography until she was writing the last chapter of the serialized novel, and used only one incident from his life. She backed this up herself in letters published in newspapers. Josiah himself proclaimed “My name is not Tom” in several speeches. Another misconception is that Henson could read and write. He was taught to read, but could only read print, not script, and could barely sign his name. An inaccuracy found in all biographies and interpretive signage is his age. Josiah claimed in his first autobiography that “I was born June 15, 1789,” when his actual birthdate, verified by three primary sources, is 1795.
If you have a direct offer of assistance, sensitive criticism, or wish to pass along someone’s contact information confidentially, please get in contact directly: Susan Cooke Soderberg, [email protected]
ALL FEEDBACK AND OFFERS OF ASSISTANCE SHOULD BE SUBMITTED BY JULY 10, 2024. If you have general ideas or feedback to share, please feel free to use the comments feature below.