The Players
Nelson Hackett
An escaped slave who fled to Canada only to be captured and brought back to Arkansas.
Alfred Wallace
The man who claimed to own Nelson Hackett and accused him of stealing a race horse, saddle, coat, 100 £ ($500) in silver and gold coin, and a watch.
Sir Charles Bagot
Soon after assuming office, Governor General Sir Charles Bagot made the decision to send Nelson Hackett back to Arkansas on charges of theft.
Follow Hackett's Flight
A primary problem in trying to reconstruct Hackett’s flight is that there are few records of his words and thoughts. This problem is rooted in the racism that undergirded chattel slavery and created most of its archival record. Hackett’s flight is therefore reconstructed using other voices, including abolitionists (both white and black), journalists, colonial and elected officials, and slave owners and their apologists.
The Documents
Annual Report of the Colored Vigilant Committee of Detroit
Delivered at Detroit City Hall, Detroit, Michigan 10 January 1843. The committee would respectfully report, that their efforts for the past year, though few and feeble, have far exceeded our most sanguine expectations. At the time it was first proposed to organize...
Hiram Wilson, “The Case of Nelson Hackett,” Anti-Slavery Reporter, January 11, 1843, p. 2.
THE CASE OF NELSON HACKET. THE following important letter has been received from our respected correspondent, the Rev. Hiram Wilson, in reply to certain queries forwarded to him some time since, relative to Nelson Hacket, the fugitive slave, who, as we think, was...
Joshua Leavitt, “The Case of Nelson Hacket,“ Anti-Slavery Reporter, February 22, 1843, p. 30.
30 THE ANTI-SLAVERY REPORTER. [WEDNESDAY, THE CASE OF NELSON HACKET. TO JOHN SCOBLE, ESQ., SECRETARY OF THE BRITISH AND FOREIGN ANTI-SLAVERY SOCIETY. Washington City, Dec. 27, 1842. DEAR SIR, -- I hasten to...