behind the scenes book by elizabeth keckley

By 1860, she had her own business in Washington, D.C. In 1855, with loans from her clientele, Keckley secured freedom for herself and her son. Sent with her master's family to Missouri, she became a skilled dressmaker whose designs were in high demand. Born a slave in Dinwiddie, Virginia, Keckley describes the cruelties that tortured her body but failed to break her spirit. Following the arc of Keckley's eventful life, which began in slavery and saw her become dressmaker to the First Lady, her book's unique vantage point illustrates the country's violent transition from the slave era to emancipation. Frances Smith Foster's introduction traces the book's reception history and fills in biographical gaps in the text.From slavery to the White House In her riveting memoir, Elizabeth Keckley (1818–1907) takes us behind the scenes of her amazing story, set against some of the most dramatic elements of American history. President of the Contraband Relief Association and a friend of Frederick Douglass and other prominent African-American leaders, Keckley emerges as a remarkable, resourceful, and principled woman who helped mediate between black and white communities.

In dire financial straits, Mary Todd turned to Keckley, who spent several months in New York helping the former First Lady sell her elegant clothing.

She witnessed the grief of both parents at the death of their son Willie and Mary Todd's prostration after the president's assassination. Keckley's descriptions of the Lincolns at home reveal touching, unguarded moments of laughter, discussion, and affection. Before long, she was supplying not only beautiful clothing but also a sympathetic ear to Mary Todd Lincoln. She eventually was able to buy her freedom and went to Washington, D.C., where she established herself as modiste to some of the wives and daughters of high-level politicians and officers. Louis, where she began working as a modiste, or dress designer. In this unusual memoir, Keckley offers a rare, behind-the-scenes view of the formal and informal networks that African Americans established among themselves, as well as an insider's perspective of the men who made Civil War politics and the women who influenced them.Īs an enslaved young woman, Keckley was moved to the rough frontier city of St. 1824-1907) rose to a position of respect as a talented dressmaker and designer to the political elite of Washington, D.C., and a confidante of First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln. About the BookBorn into slavery, Elizabeth Hobbs Keckley (ca.

Behind the scenes book by elizabeth keckley