Twelve years a slave: narrative of Solomon Northup, a citizen of New-York, kidnapped in Washington City in 1841, and rescued in 1853 (1st edition.)

Born a free man in New York State in 1808, Solomon Northup was kidnapped in Washington, D.C., in 1841.

He spent the next 12 years as a slave on a Louisiana cotton plantation, and during this time he was frequently abused and often afraid for his life.

This is his detailed description of slave life and plantation society.