Tag Archives: slavery

Paper 4 — A Cracker Cowtown at War: Households, Slavery, and Survival, 1840s–1870s

Posted on July 20, 2026 by nathanalbright

Introduction Between the end of the Second Seminole War and the close of Reconstruction, Tampa grew from a garrison village into a small Southern town—and then was nearly unmade by war. This paper follows that arc from below: not through … Continue reading →

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Paper 3 — Fort Brooke, the Enslaved, and the Seminoles: The American Frontier from Its Margins, 1824–1860s

Posted on July 20, 2026 by nathanalbright

Introduction When the United States built Fort Brooke at the mouth of the Hillsborough River in 1824, it planted the seed of the city that would become Tampa. The standard telling makes this a story of national expansion: a frontier … Continue reading →

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White Paper: The Pattern of Paired Free and Slave State Admissions (1820–1850) and the Delays It Imposed on American Statehood

Posted on December 6, 2025 by nathanalbright

Executive Summary Between 1820 and 1850, the United States Senate became the institutional battleground for maintaining a sectional equilibrium between free and slave states. This equilibrium—never formally codified but fiercely enforced through political custom—dictated that every new free state must … Continue reading →

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White Paper: A Typology of Property Rights in Persons: Historical, Legal, and Moral Perspectives

Posted on November 12, 2025 by nathanalbright

Abstract This paper presents a typology of property rights that people have claimed, exercised, or theoretically could hold in other human beings. It explores the full spectrum of these rights—ranging from overt ownership, as in slavery, to partial or symbolic … Continue reading →

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White Paper: Assessing Claims of Secondary Income Streams in the Entertainment Industry: A Framework for Evidence, Privacy, and Ethics

Posted on October 17, 2025 by nathanalbright

Abstract The global entertainment industry operates in a complex web of legitimate and opaque financial arrangements. Rumors of “yacht culture,” private patronage, and escorting among singers, actresses, and models periodically capture public imagination, often without substantiation. This white paper analyzes … Continue reading →

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White Paper: The Importance of the Nethinim in Ezra: Their Role and Symbolism in the Worship System of Ancient Israel and Judah

Posted on September 30, 2025 by nathanalbright

Executive Summary The Nethinim, a group mentioned in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, represent one of the most intriguing classes within post-exilic Israelite society. Though often overlooked, they served as essential temple servants, ensuring that the restored worship system … Continue reading →

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White Paper: The Timing and Nature of the Abolition of Slavery in the Northern States

Posted on September 8, 2025 by nathanalbright

Executive Summary The abolition of slavery in the northern United States was not a singular or uniform event, but rather a gradual and regionally diverse process that unfolded between the late 18th and mid-19th centuries. It reflected a combination of … Continue reading →

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The Fancy Trade: Geography, Nature, and Cultural Implications of a Gendered Slave Economy

Posted on June 22, 2025 by nathanalbright

The “fancy trade” was a euphemism used in the antebellum United States to describe the commercial sale of enslaved women—primarily of mixed African and European descent—specifically for the purposes of sexual exploitation. Though situated within the broader framework of American … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Breaking Chains

Posted on May 2, 2024 by nathanalbright

Breaking Chains: Slavery On Trial In The Oregon Territory, by R. Gregory Nokes There is definitely room for a good or even great book on the subject of slavery and the freeish black experience during the territorial phase of Oregon. … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Soldier Of Destiny

Posted on January 5, 2024 by nathanalbright

Soldier Of Destiny: Slavery, Secession, And The Redemption Of Ulysses S. Grant, by John Reeves This book is, at least so far, the best book by far that John Reeves has written. That said, it is not nearly the sort of book … Continue reading →

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