Abraham Lincoln: The Emancipation Proclamation

As the civil war drew to an end, the movement to abolish slavery became more and more realistic. As of January 1, 1863, all slaves living in the Confederate South were to ‘be then, thenceforward, and forever free’” (Schroeder quoting Abraham Lincoln The Emancipation Proclamation.) This new law put many newly freed slaves in a tight spot. Even though they were allowed to leave the plantations and homes in which they had worked, they had nowhere to go and no money to get anywhere. None of them had any jobs any longer, and did not have the means to provide themselves and their families with food which was previously given to them by their masters. A few of the slaves even made arrangements with their masters to stay at the plantation, but work
for pay. The Washington family had packed up and moved to Malden where Booker’s stepfather had found work as a salt packer. Booker soon started work with his father. Working at this new job would be the start of his education, even though he did not know it yet. “At the end of each day, the salt barrels were numbered according to who had done the packing” (Schroder pg 20). Booker’s family’s number was eighteen, which he quickly learned to recognize by drawing it in the dirt with a stick. In time, he also learned the other numbers from the barrels of the other families. One day after coming home from work, Booker’s mother presented him with a copy of Webster’s spelling book. With this book he manages to teach himself the alphabet. Booker moved on to attending Hampton Institute in the east, a school to educate freedmen. He worked to pay for his studies at this school. Later on he went to Washington D.C and attended Wayland Seminary in 1878.