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James Redpath (August 24, 1833 in Berwick upon Tweed, England – February 10, 1891, in
New York, New York New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
) was an American
journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...
and anti-slavery activist.


Life

In 1848 or 1849, Redpath and his family emigrated from Scotland to a farm near
Kalamazoo, Michigan Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropoli ...
. He worked as a printer in Kalamazoo and
Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...
, where he wrote antislavery articles under the pseudonym "Berwick." Then he worked as a reporter for
Horace Greeley Horace Greeley (February 3, 1811 – November 29, 1872) was an American newspaper editor and publisher who was the founder and editor of the ''New-York Tribune''. Long active in politics, he served briefly as a congressman from New York, ...
's ''
New-York Tribune The ''New-York Tribune'' was an American newspaper founded in 1841 by editor Horace Greeley. It bore the moniker ''New-York Daily Tribune'' from 1842 to 1866 before returning to its original name. From the 1840s through the 1860s it was the domi ...
''. An early assignment at the ''Tribune'' involved compiling "Facts of Slavery", a regular series of articles gathered from Southern newspaper exchanges. Beginning in March 1854, he traveled in the
American South The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...
to examine slavery for himself, interviewing slaves and collecting material. It appeared early in 1859 as '' The Roving Editor: or, Talks with Slaves in the Southern States'', dedicated to "Old Hero" Captain John Brown. The book's production costs were covered by prominent antislavery philanthropist
Gerrit Smith Gerrit Smith (March 6, 1797 – December 28, 1874), also spelled Gerritt Smith, was a leading American social reformer, abolitionist, businessman, public intellectual, and philanthropist. Married to Ann Carroll Fitzhugh, Smith was a candid ...
. In 1855, Redpath moved to the Kansas-Missouri border and reported for a
Free Soil The Free Soil Party was a short-lived coalition political party in the United States active from 1848 to 1854, when it merged into the Republican Party. The party was largely focused on the single issue of opposing the expansion of slavery into ...
newspaper, the '' Missouri Democrat'', on the dispute over slavery in
Kansas Territory The Territory of Kansas was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the free state of Kansas. ...
. For the next three years, he was active in Kansas affairs, engaging in politics, writing dispatches, securing support in New England for
Free Soil The Free Soil Party was a short-lived coalition political party in the United States active from 1848 to 1854, when it merged into the Republican Party. The party was largely focused on the single issue of opposing the expansion of slavery into ...
settlers, and writing poetry about Kansas. In 1856, he interviewed John Brown just days after the massacre at Pottawatomie Creek. Redpath and Brown shared the same abolitionist views, and he became Brown's most fervent publicist. In addition to his abolitionist views, he also advocated
reparations for slavery Reparations for slavery is the application of the concept of reparations to victims of slavery and/or their descendants. There are concepts for reparations in legal philosophy and reparations in transitional justice. Reparations can take numer ...
. Redpath returned east from Kansas in July 1858. During the
Pike's Peak Gold Rush The Pike's Peak Gold Rush (later known as the Colorado Gold Rush) was the boom in gold prospecting and mining in the Pike's Peak Country of western Kansas Territory and southwestern Nebraska Territory of the United States that began in July 1858 a ...
of 1859, he and fellow journalist Richard J. Hinton prepared a guidebook for gold prospectors, ''Hand-Book to Kansas Territory and the Rocky Mountains' Gold Region.'' It was hoped that the book would spur a greater number of Free Soil immigrants to settle in Kansas Territory, which included part of what later became
Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...
. In 1858, Brown encouraged Redpath to move to Boston to help rally support for his plan for a Southern slave insurrection. After the failure of
John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...
(1859), Redpath wrote the first, and highly sympathetic, biography of the executed abolitionist, ''The Public Life of Capt. John Brown'' (1860). Announced on December 3, 1859, the day after Brown's execution, according to an advertisement from the publisher Thayer & Eldridge "a liberal percentage" of the profits were for Brown's family. In 1860, Redpath toured
Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and s ...
as a reporter and returned to the United States as the official Haitian lobbyist for diplomatic recognition, which he secured within two years. He simultaneously served as director of Haiti's campaign to attract free black emigrants from the United States and Canada. John Brown Jr. worked under him in 1860. His ''Guide to Hayti'' (1860), available on the
Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
, is an anthology of articles by various authors on a wide range of Haitian subjects. Redpath hoped that immigration of skilled blacks to Haiti would elevate conditions there and dispel racial prejudice in the United States. After the Civil War, he abandoned his ideas when he recognized that North American blacks preferred to remain at home. In 1863 and 1864, following the failure of Redpath's Boston publishers Thayer & Eldridge, he set up his own firm and began the series "Books for the Times," which included
William Wells Brown William Wells Brown (c. 1814 – November 6, 1884) was a prominent abolitionist lecturer, novelist, playwright, and historian in the United States. Born into slavery in Montgomery County, Kentucky, near the town of Mount Sterling, Brown escape ...
's ''The Black Man'', John R. Beard's ''Toussaint L'Ouverture'', and
Louisa May Alcott Louisa May Alcott (; November 29, 1832March 6, 1888) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet best known as the author of the novel ''Little Women'' (1868) and its sequels '' Little Men'' (1871) and '' Jo's Boys'' (1886). Raised i ...
's '' Hospital Sketches''. In 1864, he published another series of cheap paperbound books, titled "Books for the Campfires", principally intended for distribution to
Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. It proved essential to the ...
soldiers. Later that year he abandoned publishing to serve as a war correspondent with the armies of
George Henry Thomas George Henry Thomas (July 31, 1816March 28, 1870) was an American general in the Union Army during the American Civil War and one of the principal commanders in the Western Theater. Thomas served in the Mexican–American War and later chose ...
and
William Tecumseh Sherman William Tecumseh Sherman ( ; February 8, 1820February 14, 1891) was an American soldier, businessman, educator, and author. He served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War (1861–1865), achieving recognition for his com ...
in Georgia and South Carolina. In February 1865, federal military authorities appointed him the first superintendent of public schools in the
Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint ...
, region. He soon had more than 100 instructors at work teaching 3,500 African-American and white students. He also founded an orphan asylum. In May 1865 in Charleston, Redpath organized what has been called the first-ever
Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who have fought and died while serving in the United States armed forces. It is observed on the last Monday ...
service, to honor buried Union Army dead there. In 2014, however, this designation was disputed by Bellware and Gardiner in ''The Genesis of the Memorial Day Holiday in America''. They point out that it was actually a cemetery dedication, not meant to be repeated annually and not unlike the one that took place at
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Gettysburg (; non-locally ) is a borough and the county seat of Adams County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The Battle of Gettysburg (1863) and President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address are named for this town. Gettysburg is home to th ...
, in 1863, that debuted Lincoln's famous address.
David Blight David William Blight (born 1949) is the Sterling Professor of History, of African American Studies, and of American Studies and Director of the Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition at Yale University. Previou ...
, the main proponent of this thesis, confessed that he has no evidence that this cemetery dedication influenced General Logan to inaugurate the annual holiday. Bellware and Gardiner credit Mary Ann Williams and the Ladies Memorial Association of
Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee County, with which it of ...
, as the true originators of the holiday, though this is only one of many precedents from 1865-66 for the holiday, known for a time as "Decoration Day." His reputation as a radical abolitionist and his tentative steps toward integrating South Carolina's schools caused worried military officials to replace Redpath and remove an irritation to Southern-born president
Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. He assumed the presidency as he was vice president at the time of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a De ...
.


Boston Lyceum Bureau

In 1868, Redpath started one of the first professional lecturing bureaus in the country, the
Boston Lyceum Bureau __NOTOC__ The Boston Lyceum Bureau (est.1868) in Boston, Massachusetts, was a project of James Redpath and George L. Fall. Its office stood at no.36 Bromfield Street. "Through its agency, many ... lecturers and authors of celebrity have been intro ...
. Later known as the Redpath Bureau, it supplied speakers and performers for
lyceum The lyceum is a category of educational institution defined within the education system of many countries, mainly in Europe. The definition varies among countries; usually it is a type of secondary school. Generally in that type of school the ...
s all across the country. It represented figures such as
Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...
,
Julia Ward Howe Julia Ward Howe (; May 27, 1819 – October 17, 1910) was an American author and poet, known for writing the "Battle Hymn of the Republic" and the original 1870 pacifist Mother's Day Proclamation. She was also an advocate for abolitionism ...
, Charles Sumner,
Ralph Waldo Emerson Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803April 27, 1882), who went by his middle name Waldo, was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, abolitionist, and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champ ...
,
Wendell Phillips Wendell Phillips (November 29, 1811 – February 2, 1884) was an American abolitionist, advocate for Native Americans, orator, and attorney. According to George Lewis Ruffin, a Black attorney, Phillips was seen by many Blacks as "the one w ...
,
Henry Ward Beecher Henry Ward Beecher (June 24, 1813 – March 8, 1887) was an American Congregationalist clergyman, social reformer, and speaker, known for his support of the abolition of slavery, his emphasis on God's love, and his 1875 adultery trial. His rh ...
,
Susan B. Anthony Susan B. Anthony (born Susan Anthony; February 15, 1820 – March 13, 1906) was an American social reformer and women's rights activist who played a pivotal role in the women's suffrage movement. Born into a Quaker family committed to so ...
,
Lew Wallace Lewis Wallace (April 10, 1827February 15, 1905) was an American lawyer, Union general in the American Civil War, governor of the New Mexico Territory, politician, diplomat, and author from Indiana. Among his novels and biographies, Wallace is b ...
,''Crawfordsville Saturday Evening Journal'', September 18, 1886 and
Frederick Douglass Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, February 1817 or 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. After escaping from slavery in Maryland, he became ...
. The Redpath Bureau became the most prominent and successful agency of its kind. Leland Powers, a faculty at the Bureau, established his own school after Redpath left. Redpath sold his interest in the Bureau in 1875 and lived alternately in Washington, D.C., and New York, when not traveling. At the end of the decade, his health declined but, in 1880–81, he reported on famine and the land war in western Ireland. Redpath was deeply affected by the extreme poverty of much of rural Ireland and he convinced his friend and fellow-abolitionist
David Ross Locke David Ross Locke (also known by his pseudonym Petroleum V. Nasby) (September 20, 1833February 15, 1888) was an American journalist and early political commentator during and after the American Civil War. Biography Early life Locke was born ...
to support
Irish nationalism Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cu ...
by taking him up the
Galtee Mountains Galtymore or Galteemore () is a mountain in the province of Munster, Ireland. At , it is one of Ireland's highest mountains, being the 12th-highest on the Arderin list, and 14th-highest on the Vandeleur-Lynam list. Galtymore has the 4th-highe ...
to show him the condition of
smallholding A smallholding or smallholder is a small farm operating under a small-scale agriculture model. Definitions vary widely for what constitutes a smallholder or small-scale farm, including factors such as size, food production technique or technology ...
mountain tenants. Redpath became an outspoken advocate of the cause of the
Land League The Irish National Land League ( Irish: ''Conradh na Talún'') was an Irish political organisation of the late 19th century which sought to help poor tenant farmers. Its primary aim was to abolish landlordism in Ireland and enable tenant farme ...
and
Charles Stewart Parnell Charles Stewart Parnell (27 June 1846 – 6 October 1891) was an Irish nationalist politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1875 to 1891, also acting as Leader of the Home Rule League from 1880 to 1882 and then Leader of the ...
; pro-landlord commentators accused him of incitement to murder. Upon his return to the United States, he lectured on the lyceum circuit, wrote newspaper articles, and published ''Talks about Ireland'' and ''Redpath's Weekly'', both devoted to Irish causes. Redpath became editor of the ''
North American Review The ''North American Review'' (NAR) was the first literary magazine in the United States. It was founded in Boston in 1815 by journalist Nathan Hale and others. It was published continuously until 1940, after which it was inactive until revived at ...
'' in 1886. He died in 1891, shortly after being run over by a horse-drawn trolley in New York.


Works

* * * * * *


References


Further reading (most recent first)

* * McKivigan, John R. "James Redpath" in: ''Encyclopedia of Antislavery and Abolition''. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2007 * Koontz, John P. "James Redpath" in: ''Writers of the American Renaissance: an A-to-Z guide''. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2003 * Hart, Jim A. "James Redpath, Missouri Correspondent," ''Missouri Historical Review'', 57.1 (1962–63): 70–78. * * Horner, Charles F. ''The Life of James Redpath and the Development of the Modern Lyceum.'' New York: Barse and Hopkins, 1926. * "James Redpath and the Pioneer Bureau he Founded.
Lyceum Magazine
Aug. 1922. * ''Cyclopædia of American Biography''. 1915
Google books
* ''The Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans''. 1904
Google books
* Pond, James Burton. ''Eccentricities of Genius: Memories of Famous Men and Women of the Platform and Stage''. NY: G.W. Dillingham, 1900
Internet Archive


External links




"James Redpath", ''The Literary Encyclopedia''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Redpath, James 1833 births 1891 deaths People from Berwick-upon-Tweed Writers from Boston 19th century in Boston American abolitionists American book publishers (people) Bleeding Kansas John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry John Brown (abolitionist) People from Kalamazoo, Michigan American biographers American reparationists People from Detroit