A moving narrative that offers a rare glimpse into the lives of
African American men, women, and children on the cusp of freedom,
First Fruits of Freedom chronicles one of the first
collective migrations of blacks from the South to the North during
and after the Civil War.
Janette Thomas Greenwood relates the history of a network forged
between Worcester County, Massachusetts, and eastern North Carolina
as a result of Worcester regiments taking control of northeastern
North Carolina during the war. White soldiers from Worcester, a
hotbed of abolitionism, protected refugee slaves, set up schools
for them, and led them north at war's end. White patrons and a
supportive black community helped many migrants fulfill their
aspirations for complete emancipation and facilitated the arrival
of additional family members and friends. Migrants established a
small black community in Worcester with a distinctive southern
flavor.
But even in the North, white sympathy did not continue after the
Civil War. Despite their many efforts, black Worcesterites were
generally disappointed in their hopes for full-fledged citizenship,
reflecting the larger national trajectory of Reconstruction and its
aftermath.