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Chapter 1 - Encounter at Angola

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 June 2024

Sheila Curran Bernard
Sheila Curran Bernard
Affiliation:
University at Albany, State University of New York
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Summary

John and Alan Lomax first encountered Huddie Ledbetter at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola in the summer of 1933, while they were recording songs for a book eventually titled American Ballads and Folk Songs. A year later, they recorded him again, including an appeal he made to Louisiana governor O.K. Allen. This chapter explores the history of Angola, conditions there during Ledbetter’s incarceration, and Ledbetter’s extensive efforts to achieve his own early release.

Keywords

Convict leasingPlantations to prison farmsLouisiana State Penitentiary at AngolaPardon songBrutalityWhipping
Type
Chapter
Information
Bring Judgment Day
Reclaiming Lead Belly's Truths from Jim Crow's Lies
 , pp. 8 - 27
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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  • Encounter at Angola
  • Sheila Curran Bernard, University at Albany, State University of New York
  • Book: Bring Judgment Day
  • Online publication: 21 June 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009103619.003
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  • Encounter at Angola
  • Sheila Curran Bernard, University at Albany, State University of New York
  • Book: Bring Judgment Day
  • Online publication: 21 June 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009103619.003
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Encounter at Angola
  • Sheila Curran Bernard, University at Albany, State University of New York
  • Book: Bring Judgment Day
  • Online publication: 21 June 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009103619.003
Available formats
×