Join us on Tuesday, November 15 at 7:00 p.m. for a lecture by scholar and historian Dee Morris entitled, “James Redpath: Malden’s Spirited Abolitionist and Agitator.” The lecture will explore the life of this complex reformer. Dedicated to his unique brand of fairness, Redpath, a radical freethinker, challenged the community to rethink their views about equality in all its forms. He inspired heated controversy, yet forged lasting friendships in the community – a true Malden original.
James Redpath (1833–1891) was an important figure in many of the key developments in nineteenth-century American political and cultural life. He advocated for abolition, civil rights, Irish nationalism, women’s suffrage, and labor unions. In 1868, Redpath founded The Boston Lyceum Bureau (later the Redpath Lyceum Bureau) which promoted lecturers and authors of celebrity including Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Mark Twain.
Dee Morris is a scholar and educational consultant specializing in the nineteenth-century history of Greater Boston. She is the author of Boston in the Golden Age of Spiritualism: Séances, Mediums & Immortality. Her goal is help us all connect to our civic ancestors.
For more information, check out the Malden Public Library website at www.maldenpubliclibrary.org.