The Escape of Oney Judge by Emily Arnold McCully

Tue, 04/24/2007 - 4:43pm by Tahira

Oney Judge is Martha Washington’s ten-year-old slave. When she is asked to learn to sew in the Washington’s house she is thrilled that she will work side by side with her mother. After George Washington is elected president, Oney moves to New York City with the Washington’s away from her mother. Martha Washington tells Oney that when she dies she will become the slave of her granddaughter, Eliza. Oney fears that Eliza’s husband will sell her to a stranger. She realizes that her only chance for freedom is to escape. Through the story of Oney Judge, Caldecott Medalist Emily Arnold McCully reveals another side of America’s first family as slave owners.