HISTORY MINUTE

Slavery bitterly divided North against South and neighbor against neighbor throughout the early history of the United States. While slavery was debated in legislatures, newspapers, and churches, countless slaves moved to escape their bondage to a life of freedom. One such incident in the early 1840s became an international controversy, all stemming from the daring escape of one slave from Arkansas to Canada.

The story began with Alfred Wallace, a planter and land speculator as well as an early Fayetteville store owner. His Washington County plantation was a spacious expression of his material success. In June 1840, he bought Nelson Hackett to serve as a butler.

There were few slaves in Northwest Arkansas, as the mountainous region was not fit for widespread cotton or tobacco cultivation. However, there were a handful of plantation owners in the region who owned slaves and used slaves as much for various household tasks as they did as a representation of their wealth.

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