What do you think?
Rate this book
James Montgomery: Abolitionist Warrior
The first full biography of James Montgomery, who through his actions before and during the Civil War, contributed towards the abolition of slavery.
James Montgomery was a leader of the free-state movement in pre-Civil War Kansas and Missouri, associated with its direct-action military wing. He then joined the Union Army and fought through most of the war.
A close associate and ally of other abolitionists including John Brown, Harriet Tubman, Colonels Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Robert G. Shaw, Montgomery led his African-American regiment along with Tubman and other civilians in the 1863 Combahee River raid, which freed almost 800 slaves from South Carolina plantations. He then commanded a brigade in the siege of Fort Wagner, near Charleston.
In 1864, still in brigade command, he fought at the Battle of Olustee in Florida, helping prevent the collapse and disintegration of Union General Truman Seymour’s army. Later that year he returned home and played a significant role in defeating Confederate General Sterling Price’s great raid, especially at the Battle of Westport.
This is the first published biography of Montgomery, who was and remains a controversial figure. It uncovers and deals honestly with his serious flaws, while debunking some wilder charges, and also bringing to light his considerable attributes and achievements. Montgomery’s life, from birth to death, is seen in the necessary perspective and clear delineation of the complex racial, political and military history of the Civil War era.
Table of Contents
Preface and Acknowledgments
From Guerrilla Outlaw to American Soldier
Chapter 1: Westward Bound
Chapter 2: Bleeding Kansas and John Brown
Chapter 3: Civil War
Chapter 4: With Tubman in the South
Chapter 5: Olustee and After
Chapter 6: The Westport Campaign
Chapter 7: Back to the Land and the Lord
James Montgomery was a leader of the free-state movement in pre-Civil War Kansas and Missouri, associated with its direct-action military wing. He then joined the Union Army and fought through most of the war.
A close associate and ally of other abolitionists including John Brown, Harriet Tubman, Colonels Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Robert G. Shaw, Montgomery led his African-American regiment along with Tubman and other civilians in the 1863 Combahee River raid, which freed almost 800 slaves from South Carolina plantations. He then commanded a brigade in the siege of Fort Wagner, near Charleston.
In 1864, still in brigade command, he fought at the Battle of Olustee in Florida, helping prevent the collapse and disintegration of Union General Truman Seymour’s army. Later that year he returned home and played a significant role in defeating Confederate General Sterling Price’s great raid, especially at the Battle of Westport.
This is the first published biography of Montgomery, who was and remains a controversial figure. It uncovers and deals honestly with his serious flaws, while debunking some wilder charges, and also bringing to light his considerable attributes and achievements. Montgomery’s life, from birth to death, is seen in the necessary perspective and clear delineation of the complex racial, political and military history of the Civil War era.
Table of Contents
Preface and Acknowledgments
From Guerrilla Outlaw to American Soldier
Chapter 1: Westward Bound
Chapter 2: Bleeding Kansas and John Brown
Chapter 3: Civil War
Chapter 4: With Tubman in the South
Chapter 5: Olustee and After
Chapter 6: The Westport Campaign
Chapter 7: Back to the Land and the Lord
240 pages, Hardcover
Published April 13, 2022
3 people are currently reading
11 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 11, 2023
A good effort at doing justice to this much maligned historical figure, this book was a long time coming. Being the first biography ever written on Montgomery, there is really nothing available to compare it to. There was a PhD. dissertation written on the subject back in the 70's, but it was never published in manuscript form. This book fills a void in the story of the Civil War and should be read by every true student of history.
April 16, 2025
A Warrior for Freedom
James Montgomery was a controversial and complex figure in the struggle to end slavery. As an early Kansa settler, he resisted the faction that wanted to make it a slave state. This was a perilous stand to take in pre-Civil War Kansas. He organized a company to defend the free soil settlers and led raids against Missouri Border Ruffians and local pro-slavery Bushwhackers. In spite of his Christian faith, he sometimes performed questionable deeds in the cause if freedom. When the war broke out he lead Black troops as a Colonel in the Union Army. His men fought bravely under his leadership. He worked with Harriet Tubman in conducting raids into Rebel territory that resulted in the freeing of hundreds of slaves. Well-written and well-researched narrative of a largely forgotten man who made a difference in ending human bondage.
James Montgomery was a controversial and complex figure in the struggle to end slavery. As an early Kansa settler, he resisted the faction that wanted to make it a slave state. This was a perilous stand to take in pre-Civil War Kansas. He organized a company to defend the free soil settlers and led raids against Missouri Border Ruffians and local pro-slavery Bushwhackers. In spite of his Christian faith, he sometimes performed questionable deeds in the cause if freedom. When the war broke out he lead Black troops as a Colonel in the Union Army. His men fought bravely under his leadership. He worked with Harriet Tubman in conducting raids into Rebel territory that resulted in the freeing of hundreds of slaves. Well-written and well-researched narrative of a largely forgotten man who made a difference in ending human bondage.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews