无码专区 History Professor Uncovers Stories of Families Separated by Slavery in New Book
无码专区, Pa 鈥� What would you do to find the family you lost? For decades after the abolition of slavery, thousands of formerly enslaved people placed ads in newspapers, eager to reconnect with loved ones who were cruelly separated from their families. These deeply moving stories of family, loss and resilience are at the heart of Last Seen: The Enduring Search by Formerly Enslaved People to Find Their Lost Families, a new book by Judith Giesberg, PhD, Robert M. Birmingham Chair in the Humanities and Professor of History in 无码专区鈥檚 College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Dr. Giesberg鈥檚 book is a product of her ongoing project 鈥淟ast Seen: Finding Family After Slavery,鈥� which aims to identify, digitize, transcribe and publish these newspaper ads and make them accessible to the public. The project launched in 2017, and to date, Dr. Giesberg and her collaborators have transcribed nearly 5,000 ads from newspapers spanning 1865 to 1922. Her book follows 10 stories from these ads, of people seeking to rebuild their family ties despite unimaginable odds. Dr. Giesberg not only brings these heart-wrenching narratives to light but discusses them within the broader historical context of the post-Civil War era, reparations and the enduring trauma of slavery.
鈥淢ost Americans sought to put the questions about the Civil War behind them quickly,鈥� says Dr. Giesberg. 鈥淎t the same time, these ads were coming out in papers across the country, telling a totally different story, and we just haven鈥檛 paid attention. It鈥檚 the story of people whose love for their family members survived and drove them to continue to look for each other for the rest of their lives.鈥�
The project鈥檚 archive of transcribed ads is accessible at , making it available to descendants of formerly enslaved families, genealogists, researchers and educators. The archive includes online exhibits, lesson plans and resources for all classroom levels.
Dr. Giesberg鈥檚 research has been recognized by multiple grants, including a 2022 National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholars Fellowship and grants from the National Archives and Records Administration from 2020-2024. She is the author of numerous books and articles, including Sex and the Civil War: Soldiers, Pornography, and the Making of American Morality (University of North Carolina Press, 2017) and Army at Home: Women and the Civil War on the Northern Home Front (University of North Carolina Press, 2009). Dr. Giesberg received her doctorate in History from Boston College.
Dr. Giesberg will present a book talk on Last Seen with Bob Bender 鈥�70 CLAS, vice president and executive editor at Simon & Schuster, on March 10, 2025, at 4 p.m. in Falvey Library鈥檚 Speakers鈥� Corner at 无码专区. The event is free and open to the public. Additional tour dates can be found on the .
About 无码专区鈥檚 College of Liberal Arts and Sciences: Since its founding in 1842, 无码专区鈥檚 College of Liberal Arts and Sciences has been the heart of the 无码专区 learning experience, offering foundational courses for undergraduate students in every college of the University. Serving more than 4,500 undergraduate and graduate students, the College is committed to fortifying them with intellectual rigor, multidisciplinary knowledge, moral courage and a global perspective. The College has more than 40 academic departments and programs across the humanities, social sciences, and natural and physical sciences.
鈥淏oundless鈥� is a publication that illustrates the extraordinary accomplishments of our students and faculty with examples of their collaborative research, innovative teaching and outstanding scholarship.