Uncle Tom’s Cabin - The Book That Shook America’s Conscience

Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote many books, but none had a greater impact than Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Published in 1852, it became the best-selling novel of the 19th century and was second only to the Bible in overall sales.

The story centers on Uncle Tom, a deeply moral, long-suffering enslaved Black man, whose life connects the experiences of the other characters. Through their stories, Stowe showed the cruelty and injustice of slavery and challenged widely held beliefs that denied the humanity of Black people.

The book stirred strong emotions across the country. It inspired antislavery supporters in the North and angered many in the South.

According to popular accounts, when President Abraham Lincoln later met Stowe, he reportedly said, “So you’re the little lady who started this great war.”