Black History Month: Harriet Beecher Stowe
![]() |
When Harriet Beecher Stowe was a young teacher in Cincinnati, Colonel Marshall Key of Washington Kentucky sent his daughter to study at her school. In 1833 Miss Beecher went to visit the Key family at their home in Old Washington. It was there that one day Mr. Key invited Harriet to visit the nearby slave auction at the Washington Courthouse.
According to the Washington Kentucky web site, "She was much distressed and this vivid scene so impressed Harriet Beecher that she never forgot it, and twenty-odd years later she wrote her book, 'Uncle Tom's Cabin.' She received the inspiration for her characters, 'Uncle Tom' and a 'Topsy,' on this visit. Topsy's real name was Jane who later married Isham Anderson. Aunt Jane and Uncle Isham lived in a little frame house on the corner of William and Green here in Washington."
Today, the Marshall Key House is the Harriet Beecher Stowe, Slavery to Freedom Museum, open all Festivals and most Saturdays 12-4, Sundays 1-4.
Post a Comment
« Home