ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Solomon Northup (1808–1863) was a farmer, professional musician, American abolitionist, and author of the memoir, Twelve Years a Slave. Born in New York, Northup was raised a free man. A married landowner with three children, he worked as a carpenter and violinist when he was conned into accepting a job as a musician with a traveling circus. Drugged, kidnapped, and sold into slavery, Northup finally regained his freedom twelve years later with the help of the governor of New York. After the publication of his bestselling memoir, Northup lectured about slavery throughout the Northeast and aided fugitive slaves on the Underground Railroad during the Civil War. (Location 3417)