BHM: Escaping Slavery, Henry Brown

Henry's Freedom Box, by Ellen Levine, tells the story of Henry Brown. Born a slave in Virginia, he was taken away from his family when he was about 15, to work in a tobacco factory in Richmond, Virginia. While living there he married Nancy, and they had 3 children together. They were owned by different masters, and one day her master sold her and their children away to a plantation in North Carolina - Henry could do nothing about it. He was devastated, and eventually determined to escape to freedom. With the help of two friends, who nailed him into a box, he mailed himself to Philadelphia, where he was able to live as a free man.

We love Kadir Nelson's illustrations. Tomorrow, another book warmed by Nelson's illustrations.