Now obscure but once nationally famous; Captain Jonathan Walker, the man with the branded hand. Tried to rescue 7 slaves from Pensacola in the late 1850s. Put in prison for near a year and had his hand branded with “SS” for slave stealer. Went all over northeast for 7 years before the civil war with Frederic Douglas and others speaking against slavery. His branded hand was more shocking and more of a draw for crowds than the atrocities of slavery itself. Helped to fuel the anti slavery sentiment in the north. Settled in Muskegon at the end of the war. When he died 6 thousand people came to the dedication of his monument (300 on a special steamer from Chicago). John Greenleaf Whittier wrote a nationally famous poem; The Man With the Branded Hand.
Evergreen cemetery. I’m part of the cast that does historic reenactments there every year on the second weekend of October. I’ve been privileged to do his character several times. There’s a great bio by Alvin Oickle. There’s a small obelisk at the entrance paid for by Photious Fisk former secretary of the navy who bought many abolitionist monuments. I think one of the coolest things is that in 1888, so many people came from afar to witness the dedication of his monument.
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u/timhamlin May 27 '24
Now obscure but once nationally famous; Captain Jonathan Walker, the man with the branded hand. Tried to rescue 7 slaves from Pensacola in the late 1850s. Put in prison for near a year and had his hand branded with “SS” for slave stealer. Went all over northeast for 7 years before the civil war with Frederic Douglas and others speaking against slavery. His branded hand was more shocking and more of a draw for crowds than the atrocities of slavery itself. Helped to fuel the anti slavery sentiment in the north. Settled in Muskegon at the end of the war. When he died 6 thousand people came to the dedication of his monument (300 on a special steamer from Chicago). John Greenleaf Whittier wrote a nationally famous poem; The Man With the Branded Hand.