{"product_id":"a-peaceful-patch-of-earth-blacks-in-jamestown-rhode-island-in-a-time-of-racial-turbulence-in-america-1850-1920-paperback","title":"A Peaceful Patch of Earth: Blacks in Jamestown, Rhode Island, in a Time of Racial Turbulence in America, 1850-1920 - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003ePeter Fay\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eValerie J. Southern\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn Jamestown, a thriving Black community took root far earlier, in the late 19th century. \u003ci\u003eA Peaceful Patch of Earth\u003c\/i\u003e explores their remarkable journey in a time marked by racial turbulence in America.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e The story unfolds on a rustic island jutting into the vast Atlantic from Narragansett Bay, accessible only by boat and sheltered from the outside world. Through captivating narrative and in-depth research, the book brings to life the island's pioneering figures such as James Howland, one of Rhode Island's last survivors of slavery, and the Champlin family members who rose from slavery, established the first Black-owned farm, and were the first island Blacks to vote. The community lived within view of historic Newport; a city that controlled 70% of the American-owned slave trade in the 18th century and where their African ancestors disembarked into bondage. By the 19th century, Jamestown Blacks lived free and cultivated a community that offered refuge to the tide of newly freed survivors of slavery migrating from the South. Together they forged the social, cultural, and economic fabric of a multiracial rural New England. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e More than simply a local history, \u003ci\u003eA Peaceful Patch of Earth\u003c\/i\u003e also documents the rise and response of Black America to the racial oppression and explosive changes shaping the nation before and after the Civil War, from 1850 to 1920. The authors connect Rhode Island to pivotal events in history and underscore its presence and contributions to the national struggle for freedom and civil rights, such as Isaac Rice's warm embrace of frightened Underground Railroad freedom seekers in Newport and the training of nearly two thousand Black Civil War soldiers on Dutch Island near Jamestown.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePeter Fay \u003c\/b\u003eis an independent scholar, public historian, and writer with 25 years of uncovering hidden histories in New England archives. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eValerie J. Southern \u003c\/b\u003eis an independent scholar and co-founder of the Friends of Jamestown Black History.\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 192\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e January 22, 2026\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53709147767117,"sku":"9780761880752","price":46.27,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0927\/3304\/7117\/files\/RJPOXDXRPl9780761880752.webp?v=1776102618","url":"https:\/\/belfastbooks.us\/products\/a-peaceful-patch-of-earth-blacks-in-jamestown-rhode-island-in-a-time-of-racial-turbulence-in-america-1850-1920-paperback","provider":"belfastbooks.us","version":"1.0","type":"link"}