{"product_id":"from-slave-to-statesman-patricia-smith-prather-9780929398877","title":"From Slave to Statesman: The Legacy of Joshua Houston, Servant to Sam Houston","description":"\u003cp\u003e\"A fascinating . . . account of the life and legacy of . . . a slave . . . who became . . . one of the first black city aldermen and property owners during Reconstruction . . . A good example of history from the bottom up.\"\u003ci\u003e--\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Imaginative biography . . . Of particular interest is the authors' ingenious research: they assembled Joshua's story from Margaret and Sam Houston's correspondence and from the family stories of Joshua's descendants.\"\u003ci\u003e--\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is the story of the \"other\" Houston, Joshua, the slave of Margaret Lea until she married Sam Houston and moved to Texas in 1840. Joshua was unique among slaves: he was taught to read and write, and was allowed to keep money he earned. The story is set in a background of historical details about southern social history before, during, and after the Civil War.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSources include slave autobiographies and biographies; Houston family letters; oral histories of descendants of both Houston families; birth, marriage and death records; land records and deeds; church and school records.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Joshua Houston's story is absorbing and instructive by itself, but this book is more than the biography of one man . . . It provides nothing less than a detailed account of the emergence of a Black middle class . . . after the Civil War.\"\u003ci\u003e--\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eTexas Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Patricia Smith Prather,Jane Clements Monday\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0929398874\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780929398877\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University of North Texas Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/01\/1995\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 296\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.04lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.22h x 6.16w x 0.77d","brand":"Patricia Smith Prather","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":48930248261887,"sku":"9780929398877","price":16.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/from-slave-to-statesman-patricia-smith-prather-9780929398877","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}