Hearts Beating for Liberty

“Stacey Robertson’s analysis of midwestern abolitionism is more expansive, sophisticated, and finely drawn than those of previous scholars, particularly because of her revealing emphasis on gender and because of her recognition that our task is to see this region’s reformers with reference to the abolitionist movement as a whole. She brings a persuasive and clear argument to a significant history of radical activism that has hitherto been underexplored and widely overlooked.” — James Brewer Stewart, author of Abolitionist Politics and the Coming of the Civil War

“Hearts Beating for Liberty offers a fresh and necessary perspective on grassroots abolitionism. Stacey Robertson makes a compelling case for the distinctiveness both of midwestern abolitionism and of midwestern women’s activism within the antislavery movement. This book presents an important new argument about the significance of both region and gender in shaping abolitionist agitation.” — Anne M. Boylan, author of The Origins of Women’s Activism: New York and Boston, 1797–1840

“An important addition to the historiography of American abolitionism. . . .A substantive work of scholarship that enriches our understanding of the western women who participated in the antebellum abolitionist struggle.” — The Journal of American History

“This book…sheds light on two critical issues in U.S. history. It adds valuable information to our conceptualization of the abolition movement, and it also demonstrates the pre-Civil War foundation of women’s activism in the Old Northwest.” — American Historical Review

“A valuable addition to our understanding of abolitionism and women’s history.” — Journal of Southern History

“A concise and significant contribution to the existing literature on abolitionism in the nineteenth-century United States.” — Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society

“[Robertson’s] findings. . . are very interesting for what they tell about women in abolition. . . . This book is valuable for what it adds to the story of American abolition.” — Journal of American Ethnic History

“A lively and engaging book.” — Journal of the North Carolina Association of Historians