SLAVE NARRATIVES VOLUME XII OHIO NARRATIVES

Slave Narratives - Volume XII: Ohio Narratives is part of the landmark Federal Writers' Project collection created by the Work Projects Administration in the 1930s. This volume collects interviews and personal testimonies from formerly enslaved individuals who later lived in or migrated through Ohio, presenting firsthand accounts of life under slavery, emancipation, and the resilience required to build new lives in freedom. Although Ohio was a free state, it played a significant role in the broader story of American slavery-serving as a key region for abolitionist activity, the Underground Railroad, and post-emancipation migration. The narratives in this volume reflect that complex history. Through vivid memories, dialect storytelling, and raw reflections, these interviews reveal the trauma of enslavement, the courage of escape, and the struggles and triumphs of early Black settlement in the Midwest. Meticulously preserved, these primary-source records remain indispensable for historians, educators, researchers, and anyone seeking to understand the personal dimensions of America's past. This volume offers an irreplaceable human perspective on the lived experience of slavery and the long journey toward freedom.