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The Pass to Freedom

This is an original copy of a "Pass to Freedom owned by a former slave named Elisabeth Welb. Elisabeth was born in Neuse River, North Carolina. The Neuse River provides the background for the "Pass to Freedom. Just as a "Pass to Freedom was needed during slavery, a "Pass to Freedom" is needed today as a living reminder of the value of Freedom. Let us share with you and the world, a copy of this unique historical document as a plaque or as a medallion. Truly an item of African American history and a missing page in American history.

upon the enactment of the Emancipation Procla-mation, most Blacks burned their "free" pass. This document is probably one of the very few items in existence today associated with slavery.

In 1961, young Jimmy Allen, in the town of Stoughton, Massachusetts, was investigating the contents of his Great Grandmother's storage chest, impelled by the curiosity of youth to do so. On finding an interesting

rectangle of yellowed cloth the size of a dollar bill, Jimmy was struck by the inch-high letters of the word "FREE" stamped in the center of the cloth. He was also able to makeout a woman's name and birthplace, obviously penned in longhand many years ago. Fascinated by his discovery, Jimmy brought it to his mother Louise and asked her about the story behind the cloth. Part of that story-the tale of Elisabeth Welb and her "Pass to Freedom" is recounted on this web site.

Freedom was an empty word for most Blacks in America before 1863, the year the Emancipation Proclamation was signed. Plantation workers passed their days in dogged drudgery, laboring beneath the whip, while most household servants lived slightly better. Even those Blacks who had been released from SLAVERY were not free from anxiety, knowing they might an any time be returned to a system which prospered under SLAVE LABOR.

We have duplicated the "Pass to Freedom" to share with you as a symbol of freedom and endurance typifying America's effort to overcome the injustices that enslaved Black Americans. We have embossed the "Pass to Freedom" on a gold platted medallion that can be worn proudly selling for $29.95 plus shipping, handling and taxes. We have also duplicated the pass and encased it in a very attractive marble type frame that can be proudly displayed in your home or office selling for $39.95 plus shipping, handling and taxes. A copy of the pass can be made available for $4.95 plus shipping, handling and taxes. The "Pass to Freedom" has been displayed on television and in newspaper articles and copies are also on display at several libraries, businesses and public schools. Our email address is [email protected] or tel: 520 458 7245 WE ARE STILL UNDER CONSTRUCTION.

In 1830, there were in the United States a reorted 319,000 Blacks who were no longer slaves. Thirty years later there were some 488,000 free resident Blacks, 44% of whom lived in the South. Among these men and women were many who had been set free by their masters, either by the spoken word or through a written document. Some had purchased their freedom through years of hard labor or sudden good fortune. Others had been born free because of a White mother and some were born free of free Black mothers. Comparatively few were children of slaves who had run away and made good their bid for freedom by starting a new life elsewhere.