For Light and Liberty: African Americans and Civil War Espionage in Washington and Beyond

Join Hari Jones, curator of the African American Civil War Memorial Freedom Foundation and Museum, to discuss the activities of the “Loyal League,” a secret national organization made of men and women of African descent whose extensive efforts helped the Union war effort to end slavery. Jones, a foremost authority on the role of African Americans in the Civil War, will deliver a two-part lecture highlighting the League’s covert operations in Washington and beyond.
 
Famed railroad detective Allan Pinkerton, the first head of Lincoln’s Secret Service, arrived in Washington, DC in July 1861. He noted that wealthy Southern sympathizers in the city were aiding the Rebels, and secured the “faithful” service of some of their African American servants as informants. Such secret agents proved to be invaluable to the Union intelligence efforts throughout the war.
 
This program on the intersection of espionage and local history is presented in partnership with the African American Civil War Memorial Freedom Foundation and Museum, International Spy Museum, and the Historical Society of Washington, DC.