Posthumous Notes
Her autobiography prompted controversy and questions about the truth of her portrayals. In 1935, the journalist David Rankin Barbee wrote that Elizabeth Keckley had not written her autobiography, and never existed as a person. He said that the abolitionist writer Jane Swisshelm wrote the slave narrative to advance her abolitionist cause. Many people who read the article challenged his claim, citing personal and/or secondary acquaintance with Keckley. Barbee modified his statement, saying that "no such person as Elizabeth Keckley wrote the celebrated Lincoln book." Keckley's life and achievements have been well-documented since then.
Read more about this topic: Elizabeth Keckley
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