Storyteller Eva Abram will share the history of one of the few documented cases of slavery in our state’s history at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 14 at Edmonds Community College’s Black Box Theatre.

Charles Mitchell, who was born a slave, was brought to Washington Territory in 1853. A tempest was building and citizens all over the state had opinions about a possible Civil War, influencing their opinions about Mitchell’s status as a slave. In this climate, Mitchell made a break for freedom – and his actions nearly started a war between the U.S. and Canada.

Through this story, Abram will examine how ideologies move geographically. The migration to Washington attracted Americans with different socioeconomic experiences from both Northern and Southern states. Did moving to Washington affect peoples’ opinions on slavery?

Abram uses her talents as an actress and storyteller to share American history from an African-American perspective. Over the 12 years, she has been commissioned to write a story about Charles Lindbergh’s historic flight and has written and performed a piece for the Washington State History Museum’s Women’s Suffrage Jubilee. She has also presented workshops on storytelling for the Seattle Storytelling Guild and the Museum of Flight in Seattle, and, as an alumnus of Freehold Acting, has performed in several plays around the region. Abram earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Washington.

The program, which is free and open to the public, is part of the Conversations in the Humanities series.