Owen Lovejoy plays a significant role in my Lincoln novel. He appears in several scenes, but in the chapters I’ve been working on recently, he becomes more intimately involved in what is happening. While tensions rise and the trheat to his brother grows more intense, Owen moves among those gathering against them, watching, listening, spying. It is a dangerous position, and not one that history recorded.
Owen Lovejoy later became a congressman and a close ally of Abraham Lincoln. He is often remembered for his public role and his firm opposition to slavery. But in writing him at this earlier point, we can see him as a young man, a brother, in the process of becoming a leader–someone acting in uncertain circumstances, making decisions without knowing how events will unfold
He became deeply involved in the Underground Railroad, part of the same network of individuals who worked, silently, to assist those seeking freedom. Writing a figure like Owen brings together several threads that have been on my mind–family history, the Underground Railroad, and the larger events surrounding Lincoln’s time. Those that are lesser known. It is quite intimidating to me at first to try to bring them together into a story.
Current projects:
- My book: revising chapter 9 as the conflict deepens
- Edward Bryant: continuing to review stories for the next publication
History often remembers people for what they became, but a story allows us to see them before that moment.
Thanks for reading and walking alongside me.
The View From The Imaginarium 