A Narrative of the Life and Adventure of Venture

A Narrative of the Life and Adventure of Venture
Author: Venture Smith
Publisher: Graphic Arts Books
Total Pages: 25
Release: 2021-12-07
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1513284770

A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Venture (1798) is an autobiography by Venture Smith. Written while Smith was living in freedom on his own farm in Connecticut, A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Venture is recognized by scholars as a pioneering work of African American nonfiction and one of the earliest known slave narratives in American history. Born the son of Saugnm Furro, a prince of Dukandarra, Smith was captured as a boy and sold into slavery on the Gold Coast of Africa. Brought to Barbados by way of the Middle Passage, Smith was eventually sold to Robinson Mumford, a landowner from Rhode Island. Upon arrival in the British colony, Smith was put to work in the Mumford household, gaining the trust of his enslaver while enduring the abuses of Mumford’s young son. At 22, he married Meg, a fellow enslaved woman, and was soon swept up in an escape attempt with an Irish indentured servant. Betrayed at Montauk Point by the Irishman, Smith was forced to capture him and return to Rhode Island, where he was sold to Thomas Stanton in Connecticut. Separated from his wife and daughter, subjected to worse abuses than before, Smith sought to gain his freedom by any means necessary. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Venture Smith’s A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Venture is a classic of African American literature reimagined for modern readers.

Making Freedom

Making Freedom
Author: Chandler B. Saint
Publisher: Wesleyan University Press
Total Pages: 201
Release: 2009-02-26
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0819568546

The inspiring story of an 18th-century New England slave who emancipated himself

The Freedom Business

The Freedom Business
Author: Marilyn Nelson
Publisher: Boyds Mills Press
Total Pages: 82
Release: 2008
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 9781932425574

A collection of poems by Marilyn Nelson, accompanied by prose by African slave Venture Smith and watercolor painting by Deborah Dancy.

A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Venture

A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Venture
Author: Venture Smith
Publisher: CreateSpace
Total Pages: 28
Release: 2014-06-18
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 9781500239367

A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Venture - A Native of Africa - Venture Smith. Venture Smith (1729–1805) was an African captured as a child and transported to the American colonies to be sold as a slave. As an adult, he purchased his freedom and that of his family. His history was documented when he gave a narrative of his life to a schoolteacher, who wrote it down and published it under the title A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Venture, a Native of Africa: But Resident above Sixty Years in the United States of America, Related by Himself. Venture Smith was born Broteer Furro in a place he recalls as Dukandarra in "Guinea"—a term that at the time referred to much of West Africa. Clues in the narrative make it clear that he was from the savannah region and the fact that he was sold at the seaport of Anomabu, in modern Ghana, suggests that he was probably originally from somewhere in what is now Ghana, Togo, or Benin. He was the son of a prince who had several wives. As a young child, he was kidnapped by a tribe of Africans who were employed by slave dealers. The boy was purchased by Robertson Mumford for four gallons of rum and a piece of calico. Mumford decided to call him Venture because he considered purchasing him to be a business venture. Venture was taken aboard a ship that sailed to Barbados.

Into Africa

Into Africa
Author: Martin Dugard
Publisher: Crown
Total Pages: 442
Release: 2003-05-06
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0385504527

What really happened to Dr. David Livingstone? The New York Times bestselling coauthor of Survivor: The Ultimate Game investigates in this thrilling account. With the utterance of a single line—“Doctor Livingstone, I presume?”—a remote meeting in the heart of Africa was transformed into one of the most famous encounters in exploration history. But the true story behind Dr. David Livingstone and journalist Henry Morton Stanley is one that has escaped telling. Into Africa is an extraordinarily researched account of a thrilling adventure—defined by alarming foolishness, intense courage, and raw human achievement. In the mid-1860s, exploration had reached a plateau. The seas and continents had been mapped, the globe circumnavigated. Yet one vexing puzzle remained unsolved: what was the source of the mighty Nile river? Aiming to settle the mystery once and for all, Great Britain called upon its legendary explorer, Dr. David Livingstone, who had spent years in Africa as a missionary. In March 1866, Livingstone steered a massive expedition into the heart of Africa. In his path lay nearly impenetrable, uncharted terrain, hostile cannibals, and deadly predators. Within weeks, the explorer had vanished without a trace. Years passed with no word. While debate raged in England over whether Livingstone could be found—or rescued—from a place as daunting as Africa, James Gordon Bennett, Jr., the brash American newspaper tycoon, hatched a plan to capitalize on the world’s fascination with the missing legend. He would send a young journalist, Henry Morton Stanley, into Africa to search for Livingstone. A drifter with great ambition, but little success to show for it, Stanley undertook his assignment with gusto, filing reports that would one day captivate readers and dominate the front page of the New York Herald. Tracing the amazing journeys of Livingstone and Stanley in alternating chapters, author Martin Dugard captures with breathtaking immediacy the perils and challenges these men faced. Woven into the narrative, Dugard tells an equally compelling story of the remarkable transformation that occurred over the course of nine years, as Stanley rose in power and prominence and Livingstone found himself alone and in mortal danger. The first book to draw on modern research and to explore the combination of adventure, politics, and larger-than-life personalities involved, Into Africa is a riveting read.

Slave

Slave
Author: Mende Nazer
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Total Pages: 370
Release: 2009-04-28
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0786738979

Mende Nazer lost her childhood at age twelve, when she was sold into slavery. It all began one horrific night in 1993, when Arab raiders swept through her Nuba village, murdering the adults and rounding up thirty-one children, including Mende. Mende was sold to a wealthy Arab family who lived in Sudan's capital city, Khartoum. So began her dark years of enslavement. Her Arab owners called her "Yebit," or "black slave." She called them "master." She was subjected to appalling physical, sexual, and mental abuse. She slept in a shed and ate the family leftovers like a dog. She had no rights, no freedom, and no life of her own. Normally, Mende's story never would have come to light. But seven years after she was seized and sold into slavery, she was sent to work for another master-a diplomat working in the United Kingdom. In London, she managed to make contact with other Sudanese, who took pity on her. In September 2000, she made a dramatic break for freedom. Slave is a story almost beyond belief. It depicts the strength and dignity of the Nuba tribe. It recounts the savage way in which the Nuba and their ancient culture are being destroyed by a secret modern-day trade in slaves. Most of all, it is a remarkable testimony to one young woman's unbreakable spirit and tremendous courage.

Travel & Adventure in South-East Africa

Travel & Adventure in South-East Africa
Author: Frederick Courtney Selous
Publisher: Cosimo, Inc.
Total Pages: 525
Release: 2007-03-01
Genre: Travel
ISBN: 1602061319

In this first-hand account from explorer Frederick Selous, first published in 1893, readers follow the true story of a trailblazing adventurer in an unknown land. Selous explored the area around the Limpopo River in what is now northern South Africa and Zimbabwe. From fending off lions and hyenas to hunting the most dangerous game Africa, Selous' safari was mythic-the very foundation of the Western world's romance with the Dark Continent. Anyone who has ever dreamed of visiting Africa will be enchanted by the real-life adventures of the man who inspired the fictional Allan Quatermain. British hunter and explorer FREDERICK COURTENEY SELOUS (1851-1917) was a renowned traveler and conservationist, spending much of his time charting the continent of Africa. He sent many animal trophies back to England to be displayed in museums and helped American president Teddy Roosevelt on a similar mission to supply the Smithsonian. Selous wrote a number of books about his adventures, including A Hunter's Wanderings in Africa (1881) and Sunshine & Storm in Rhodesia (1896). A hunting reserve in Tanzania now bears his name.

A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Venture

A Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Venture
Author: Venture Smith
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Total Pages: 26
Release: 2016-07-22
Genre:
ISBN: 9781503312364

"[...]themselves against such a formidable train of invaders, and must therefore necessarily evacuate their lands to the fierce enemy, and fly to the protection of some chief; and that if he would permit them they should come under his rule and protection when they had to retreat from their own possessions. He was a kind and merciful prince, and therefore consented to these proposals. He had scarcely returned to his nation with the message, before the whole of his people were obliged to retreat from their country, and come to my fathers dominions.[...]".