Redeemed Slave Child

The text reads:

Fannie Virginia Casseopia Lawrence

A Redeemed SLAVE CHILD, 5 years of age.

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Fannie Virginia Casseopia Lawrence, born into slavery in 1858 near Alexandria, Virginia, became widely recognized due to an iconic photograph taken of her when she was about 8 years old. This photograph, titled "A Redeemed Slave Child, 8 Years of Age," was taken in 1863 by M. H. Kimball in New York and was used by abolitionists to garner support for the Union cause in the Civil War. It depicted Fannie with light skin and curly hair, characteristics that played into contemporary racial stereotypes and narratives used by the abolitionist movement to evoke sympathy and support for their cause. Little is known about her life beyond this photograph, including her life post-emancipation, highlighting how her story, like many others, became obscured by the passage of time and the focus on her symbolic representation in the fight against slavery.