Courtesy of Lancaster County Historical Society

 

 

Introduction to the Resistance

The story of the Christiana Resistance starts at Edward Gorsuch's farm. Gorsuch reportedly showed concern for his slaves, ensuring that they were reasonably clothed and fed. In addition to this, Gorsuch allowed his slaves to earn a wage when the wheat season on his farm was slow. He was one of the few remaining slave holders in Maryland during the 1840's. Furthermore, Gorsuch was a minority because having ownership of so many slaves was controversial in Maryland. In any event, a situation rose on the Gorsuch farm which in the years to come would bitterly, divide the attitudes of the north and south. It also increased the sectionalism and fear of abolitionists movement in the south.

Gorsuch had discovered some wheat missing from his grain supply. After some time, word came back to Gorsuch that his slaves had sold the wheat to a local farmer. Gorsuch became upset with a free slave who Gorsuch believed instigated the situation. Four of Gorsuch's slaves were so concerned about their master's reaction that they decided to flee toward Pennsylvania under cover of darkness.

 What occurred on September 11, 1851 at William Parker's home in Christiana, Pennsylvania? Narratives and editorials written immediately following the death of Edward Gorsuch could reach no consensus of opinion. Narratives alternately referred to it as a riot, resistance, a murder, an assassination, a tragedy, or the justifiable defense of freedom. Some narratives used more than one descriptor. A paradox was created in that authors who could not choose one uniform term with which to describe the events of the day, tended to describe the event as if one definitive explanation of the events existed. Depending upon the author's point of view, the author would define heroes, villains, and perspectives in absolute terms. A paradox existed in using absolute terms to describe very complex conceptual ideas. This created a confusion which the use of absolute terms was intended to eliminate.

The perspectives drawn from the events which occurred on September 11, 1851 tended to be written in narratives and editorials which presented the event in absolute terms. A difficulty in drawing an accurate portrayal of events rested in a very static one dimensional interpretation of history and the history of slavery. Absolute statements which depicted the term Southerners as meaning all Southerners and slavery as indicating all slavery, would depict uniformity which didn't exist. Socially, culturally, economically, and in the nature of labor slavery in the Tropical South differed extensively from slavery in Maryland. As Ira Berlin illustrated in Many Thousands Gone: The First Two Centuries of Slavery in North America, slavery and the nature of slavery underwent an evolutionary process which continued throughout the antebellum period. The nature of slavery was impacted by such factors as geography, the crop being grown, individual slave owners economic status, religion, rural and urban slavery, the autonomy given or taken by the individual slave, skill level of a slave, the original birthplace of the slave, the gender of the slave, and slave owners' attitudes towards slaves.

When D.F. Magee described slavery and the Southern perspective on Christiana, he used anecdotal logic and reasoning to describe a vast concept. The isolated incident at Christiana warranted and received national attention, but each author or editor applied regional and personal anecdotal experience in the same manner as Magee to explain the overall national perspective. D.F. Magee applied his experiences in Maryland to describe all slavery in the context of Maryland slavery. Editors from states in the Deep South such as Alabama or Georgia wrote of Maryland slavery as being synonymous with Deep South slavery. Slavery which existed in what Berlin called societies with slaves was radically different from slavery in slave societies. National perspectives were drawn by making the experiences parallel.

While Magee and the majority of Southern newspaper editors wrote of what appeared to be the same basic concepts, their personal insights into the significance of those concepts varied tremendously. To conclude on a uniform Southern or uniform Northern perspective wasn't applicable because it did not exist. The existence of absolutes in reference to the meaning of the Christiana Resistance rested only in the minds of the individual authors. There could be no absolute meaning. The multi-faceted nature of the event rendered concrete understanding elusive.

There are themes which were apparent throughout the narratives. Abolitionism was seen as an extreme viewpoint and radical movement which was unpopular with the majority of Americans. The Fugitive Slave Law in combination with abolitionism were viewed as the root causes for the Christiana Resistance. Castner Hanway was attributed a role far more significant than the role which he actually held and the role of William Parker was diminished. The role of the women at Christiana wasn't mentioned until the more recent scholarship.

Recent scholarship such as Thomas Slaughter's Bloody Dawn has presented a more balanced perspective. Questions of the real events of the day and the role of the characters in those events, what motivations existed for actions of parties on both sides, and who were the heroes and villains have been written in a manner which impartially examines the event. Modern writers have benefited from the opportunity to view Christiana from the distance of more than a century in an attempt to tell an accurate story of the impact of that day.