HISTORY: Discovered Prison Memoir of a Black Man in the 1850s to Be Published in 2016 | Neo-Griot

HISTORY: Discovered Prison Memoir of a Black Man in the 1850s to Be Published in 2016 | Neo-Griot:


Here’s an interesting previous discovery by Yale University that, even though not directly related to cinema, is still within the cinematic spirit of the times, given the recent surge in interest in pre-Civil War/slavery abolition stories as the subject of films and TV shows in the USA.

In late 2013, Yale discovered a mystery manuscript that was written by an imprisoned black man in the 1850s, in which he details his experiences at both the New York House of Refuge, which was the first juvenile detention center in the USA, and later in New York’s Auburn State Prison.

The young man’s name is Austin Reed, and the 304-page memoir is titled “The Life and Adventures of a Haunted Convict, or the Inmate of a Gloomy Prison. “The title alone immediately draws one’s attention. And if that isn’t already long enough, it’s subtitle is: “With the Mysteries and Miseries of the New York House of Refuge and Auburn Prison Unmasked.”

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