Slavery and antislavery in the United States of America

SLAVERY existed on American soil from the colonial period until the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865. Contemporary sources of information about this 'peculiar institution' include slave narratives, journals and tracts published by abolitionist societies, travellers' reports, political speeches, religious sermons, newspaper articles and advertisements, and works of fiction. The British Library has a rich collection of all of these materials.