In this revised edition of his earlier biography, Paul Simon provides an inspiring account of the life and work of Elijah Lovejoy, an avid abolitionist in the 1830s and the first martyr to freedom of the press in the United States. Lovejoy was a native New Englander, the son of a Congregational minister. He came to the Midwest in 1827 in pursuit of a teaching career and succeeded in running his own school for two years in St. Louis. Teaching failed to challenge Lovejoy, however, so he bought a half interest in the St . ...
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In this revised edition of his earlier biography, Paul Simon provides an inspiring account of the life and work of Elijah Lovejoy, an avid abolitionist in the 1830s and the first martyr to freedom of the press in the United States. Lovejoy was a native New Englander, the son of a Congregational minister. He came to the Midwest in 1827 in pursuit of a teaching career and succeeded in running his own school for two years in St. Louis. Teaching failed to challenge Lovejoy, however, so he bought a half interest in the St . Louis Times and became its editor. In 1832, after experiencing a religious conversion, he returned east to study for the ministry at Princeton Theological Seminary. After his graduation, Lovejoy was called back to St. Louis by a group of Christian businessmen to serve as the editor of a new religious newspaper, the Observer, promoting religion, morality, and education. It was through this forum that Lovejoy took an ever stronger stance against slavery. In the slave state of Missouri, such a view was not only unpopular, but in the eyes of many, criminal. As a result, Lovejoy and his family suffered repeated persecution and acts of violence from angry mobs. In July 1836, in hopes of finding a more tolerant community in a "free" state, he moved both his printing press and his family across the Mississippi River to Alton, Illinois. The move to Alton was a fateful one. Lovejoy's press was dismantled and thrown into the river by a mob on the night of its arrival. Lovejoy ordered a new printing press, and it, too, was destroyed eleven months later. A determined and dedicated man, Lovejoy ordered a third press, and city officials took special precautions to ensure its safety after delivery. Nevertheless, an organized and angry mob rolled this third press, still in its crate, into the river exactly one month after Lovejoy's second press had been destroyed. A fourth press, housed in a large stone warehouse and guarded by Lovejoy and his supporters, met the same fate but only after a drunken mob had killed Lovejoy himself. He was buried two days later, 9 November 1837, on his thirty-fifth birthday. No one was ever convicted of his murder. Rather than suppressing the abolitionist movement, Lovejoy's death caused an eruption of antislavery activity throughout the nation. At a protest meeting in Ohio, John Brown dedicated his life to fighting slavery, and Wendell Phillips emerged from a Lovejoy protest meeting in Boston to become a leader in the antislavery fight. Simon defines Lovejoy's fight as a struggle for human dignity and the oppressed. He distinguishes Lovejoy as a courageous and admirable individual and his story as an important and enduring one for both the cause of freedom for the slaves and the cause of freedom of the press.
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Seller's Description:
Good. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 240 p. May show signs of wear, highlighting, writing, and previous use. This item may be a former library book with typical markings. No guarantee on products that contain supplements Your satisfaction is 100% guaranteed. Twenty-five year bookseller with shipments to over fifty million happy customers.
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Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used textbooks may not include companion materials such as access codes, etc. May have some wear or writing/highlighting. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority!
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Paperback. NOT Ex-library. Good condition. Slight edgewear and bumping. Clean pages and tight binding. Page edges soiled. Proceeds benefit the Pima County Public Library system, which serves Tucson and southern Arizona. Until further notice, USPS Priority Mail only reliable option for Hawaii.
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Very Good in Very Good dust jacket. 0809319403. Signed and dated by author on second page. First edition, first printing of this edition published by Southern Illinois Univ. Press in 1994. Tan covers with black lettering on spine. Book is in very good condition. Dust jacket is faded along spine, has some creasing along top edge and is in good plus condition. 206 pages, 1.1 lbs.; 8vo 8"-9" tall; 206 pages; Signed by Author.
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Fine in Fine jacket. Book FIRST PRINTING of the First Edition. The interesting biography of the early nineteenth century abolitionist and possibly the first American martyr to freedom of the press, discussing his upbringing, education, his political, philosophical, and religious views, his business enterprises, how his views and activities were received in his native slave-owning state of Missouri, his move to Illinois and his press activities there, much more, his life culminating in his ultimate and unsolved murder in 1937 at the young age of thirty-five. Hardcover with dust jacket, illustrations, notes, indexed, 206pp. A very nice copy, the jacket neatly encased in an acid-free archival plastic protector. Very rare in this condition and original printing. Size: 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall.
