History Commons^™

This chapter examines cross-border fugitive slave activities in continental North America (the United States, Canada, Florida, and Mexico) during the 19th century. It begins with examples of fugitive slaves crossing borders in search of individual liberation. The second section examines diplomatic responses to these fugitive escapees, especially the signing of international treaties to prevent fugitive escape. The third part focuses on the contributions of fugitive slaves to antislavery mobilization across borders. These organizing efforts in different nations and territories took place because such efforts were either illegal or difficult to accomplish within the existing boundaries of the nation-state. The fourth …