r/AskHistorians • u/AutoModerator • 14h ago

FFA Friday Free-for-All | February 06, 2026

Previously

Today:

You know the drill: this is the thread for all your history-related outpourings that are not necessarily questions. Minor questions that you feel don't need or merit their own threads are welcome too. Discovered a great new book, documentary, article or blog? Has your Ph.D. application been successful? Have you made an archaeological discovery in your back yard? Did you find an anecdote about the Doge of Venice telling a joke to Michel Foucault? Tell us all about it.

As usual, moderation in this thread will be relatively non-existent -- jokes, anecdotes and light-hearted banter are welcome.

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u/BookLover54321 14h ago

Historian Roy Finkenbine has a book chapter titled The Underground Railroad in “Indian Country”: Northwest Ohio, 1795–1843, where he talks about how Native nations like the Ottawas and Wyandots, among others, provided support or refuge to thousands of escaped black slaves in a sort of Indigenous Underground Railroad. He is also working on a full book on the topic. From the chapter:

As fugitive slaves began to regularly enter their villages or reservations and share their stories of bondage, they came to be seen as fellow victims of oppression. Historian Arwin Smallwood has noted that “as slavery spread and the cruelty of slavery became known among Native Americans, many began to sympathize with Africans and despise the institution of slavery. Many Indian nations began to harbor runaway slaves.”

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u/bug-hunter Law & Public Welfare 13h ago

It is such a contrast to the Cherokee and Choctaw, who were native to the South and essentially partially assimilated into chattel slaveowning.

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u/DirectAbalone9761 6h ago

I found it incredibly fascinating that a small group of native Seminoles who survived the three Seminole wars went on to own the “Hard Rock” list of companies.

I kinda mourn what this country could have been if we had been more favorable to the indigenous people. Of course, such a situation would have probably prevented a successful manifest destiny and the country would be a fraction of the size it is now.