Christopher P. Lehman, author of It Took Courage: Eliza Winston’s Quest for Freedom
Emilie Buchwald Award for Minnesota Nonfiction Category, sponsored by Annette and John Whaley
Each week leading up to the 37th annual Minnesota Book Awards, we are featuring exclusive interviews with our finalists. You can also watch the authors in conversation with their fellow category finalists here.
What inspired you to write this book – or inspired you while writing it?
My previous book Slavery’s Reach was about slaveholders who invested in Minnesota, but many readers asked me about the enslaved people I briefly mentioned in the book, especially the captives who successfully sued for emancipation. I decided that I would see which of those people had the most documentation about them, and then I would write a biography of whoever had the largest paper trail. Eliza Winston had the largest trail, by far.
Tell us about someone (whose name isn’t on the cover!) who proved instrumental to the creation of this book.
Bill Green–a phenomenal scholar and author–has written about Eliza Winston for years. His guidance helped me greatly with my writing of my book about her.
Please tell us something about yourself that is not widely known. (It doesn’t have to be about the book in question – or even about your writing at all!)
I enjoy researching my family tree. I am usually spending my free time engaging in that hobby.
Share your thoughts about the role and value of libraries.
Libraries are great places for people to engage with each other on public matters, and they are great services providing resources for people seeking information. They are my favorite places to visit, whether as a patron seeking literature or as an author giving a book-talk.
Christopher P. Lehman is a professor of ethnic studies at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota. He has written six other books, including Slavery’s Reach: Southern Slaveholders in the North Star State, which won the Minnesota Book Award for Minnesota Nonfiction in 2020.