HISTORICAL FICTION in the Canton Public Library Children's Department
1800 - 1859
Armstrong, Jennifer	Dear Mr. President: Thomas Jefferson: Letters from a Philadelphia Bookworm
An educated, inquisitive young girl in Philadelphia corresponds with President Thomas Jefferson about current events, including the Lewis and Clark expedition, new inventions, and life at Monticello.
Armstrong, Jennifer	Steal Away
Two 13-year-old girls, one an orphan and one a slave, run away together from a farm in Virginia in 1855.
Auch, Mary Jane	Frozen Summer
In 1816, 12-year-old Mem's new home in the wilderness of western New York is disrupted when the birth of another baby sends her mother into spells that disconnect her from reality.
Avi	Beyond the Western Sea: Book One, The Escape from Home
Patrick and his family, in Ireland in 1850, think their troubles are over when Da, who went on ahead to America, sends for them.
Avi	Beyond the Western Sea: Book Two, Lord Kirkle's Money
Driven from their impoverished Irish village, 15-year-old Maura and her younger brother meet their landlord's runaway son in Liverpool while all three wait for a ship to America; their fates continue to intertwine on board the ship and in the New World.
Avi	Encounter at Easton
The story of two runaway indentured servants is told through the testimony of one of the servants and other witnesses.
Avi	The Barn
Nine-year-old Ben convinces an older brother and sister to fulfill their dying father's last wish and build a barn on their land in the Oregon Territory in 1855.
Ayres, Katherine	North by Night: A Story of the Underground Railroad
The journal of a 16-year-old girl whose family operates a stop on the Underground Railroad.
Beatty, Patricia	Jonathan Down Under
Thirteen-year-old Jonathan learns how to respond to adversity when he goes to the Australian gold fields with his unlucky father.
Banks, Sara	Remember My Name
Eleven-year-old Annie, a Cherokee Indian sent to live on her uncle's Georgia plantation, becomes involved in the Indian Removal of 1838.
Blos, Joan	A Gathering of Days: A New England Girl's Journal 1830-1832
The journal of a 14-year-old girl relates the events in her life including her father's remarriage.
Burgess, Melvin	The Copper Treasure
In mid-19th century London, three young boys try to retrieve a valuable roll of copper from the bottom of the Thames River.
Cornelissen, Cornelia	Soft Rain: A Story of the Trail of Tears
Soft Rain, a 9-year-old Cherokee girl, is forced to relocate, along with her family, from North Carolina to the West.
DeFelice, Cynthia	The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker
After his family dies of consumption in 1849, 12-year-old Lucas becomes a doctor's apprentice.
DeFelice, Cynthia	Weasel
Alone in the frontier wilderness in the winter of 1839 while his father is recovering from an injury, 11-year-old Nathan runs afoul of the renegade killer known as Weasel and makes a surprising discovery about the concept of revenge.
Derleth, August	Sweet Land of Michigan
Dave joins the militia in Territorial Michigan and fights in the conflict against Ohio before Michigan became a state.
DeAngeli, Marguerite	Copper-Toed Boots
A boy in Michigan works hard to earn the things he wants most: a pair of copper-toed boots and a dog.
DeAngeli, Marguerite	Thee, Hannah!
A young girl helps a runaway slave escape and learns what being a Quaker means.
Doherty, Berlie	Street Child
Jim Jarvis, a homeless orphan, struggles to survive on the streets of London as he seeks a home.
Donaldson, Joan	A Pebble and a Pen
In 1853, 14-year-old Matty runs away from the drudgery of farm life to join Mr. Spencer's famous penmanship school and finds she must meet many challenges to make her way as a female penman.
Duey, Kathleen	Evie Peach, St. Louis, 1857
Emancipated by their owner's will, 13-year-old Evie and her father struggle to gain Mama's freedom and to make a home for themselves in the pre-Civil War South.
Eckert, Allan	Return to Hawk's Hill
Running away from a vicious trapper, 7-year-old Ben MacDonald is separated from his family and eventually ends up on the shores of Lake Winnipeg, where he is taken in by a tribe of Metis Indians.
Erdich, Louise	The Birchbark House
Omakayas, a 7-year-old Ojibwa girl, lives through the joys of summer and the perils of winter on an island in Lake Superior in 1847.
Fox, Paula	The Slave Dancer
In 1840, a 13-year-old musician is kidnapped to play his fife on a slave ship.
Fritz, Jean	Brady
In 1836, a young Pennsylvania boy has to decide how he feels about slavery when he learns of his father's involvement with the Underground Railroad.
Giff, Patricia Reilly	Nory Ryan's Song
When a terrible blight attacks Ireland's potato crop in 1845, 12-year-old Nory Ryan's courage and ingenuity help her family and neighbors survive.
Henry, Marguerite	Peter Lundy and the Medicine Hat Stallion
A 12-year-old boy's life changes when his mysterious father trades his horse to the Pony Express in the Wyoming Territory in the 1850s.
Hermann, Spring	Seeing Lessons: The Story of Abigail Carter and America's First School for the Blind
When 10-year-old Abby Carter attends the newly established school for the blind in Boston in 1832, she proves that blind people can learn and be independent.
Hermes, Patricia	Calling Me Home
Twelve-year-old Abbie struggles to accept her father's desire to make a new home for his family on the Nebraska prairie in the late 1850s.
Hickman, Janet	Susannah
After her mother's death, 14-year-old Susannah is taken by her father to live in a Shaker community in Ohio, but she does not find the same sense of peace there that he does.
Hurmence, Belinda	A Girl Called Boy
A modern day 11-year-old girl visiting North Carolina is transported through time to the 1850s where she makes some discoveries about slavery and herself.
Hurst, Carol Otis	Through the Lock
Etta, an orphan in 19th century Connecticut meets a boy living in an abandoned cabin on the New Haven and Northampton Canal and has adventures with him while trying to be reunited with her siblings.
Karr, Kathleen	Go West, Young Women!
When a disaster claims the men of their wagon train, spunky 12-year-old Phoebe, her mother, sister, and other women rely on their own resources to complete the journey to Oregon in 1845.
Karr, Kathleen	Phoebe's Folly (sequel to Go West, Young Women!)
Now armed with rifles, the self-reliant women of the Petticoat Party wagon train continue their journey to Oregon City and face more challenges including a shooting contest with a band of Snake Indians.
Karwoski, Gail	Seaman: The Dog Who Explored the West with Lewis & Clark
Seaman, a Newfoundland, proves his value as a hunter, navigator, and protector while serving with the Corps of Discovery when it explores the West under the leadership of Lewis and Clark.
Klass, Sheila	Little Women Next Door
Recounts the efforts of Louisa May Alcott's family to establish a utopian community known as Fruitlands in Massachusetts in 1843, as seen through the eyes of the shy 11-year-old girl next door.
Kudlinski, Kathleen	Night Bird: A Story of the Seminole Indians
In 1840, Night Bird's tribe must decide if they can survive in Florida or accept an offer of land in Oklahoma.
Kurtz, Jane	Saba: Under the Hyena's Foot
After being kidnapped and brought to the emperor's palace in Gondar, Ethiopia, twelve-year-old Saba discovers that she and her brother are part of the emperor's desperate attempt to consolidate political power in 1846.
Lawlor, Laurie	Addie Series: Addie Accross the Prarie Addie's Dakota Winter  Addie's Long Summer Addie's Forever Friend
Unhappy to leave her home and friends, Addie reluctantly accompanies her family to the Dakota Territory and slowly begins to adjust to life on the prairie.
Liles, Maurine	Kitty of Blossom Prairie
Twelve-year-old Kitty, her mother, and five siblings travel 700 miles in a covered wagon to Texas seeking a better although difficult life on the prairie.
Love, D. Anne	I Remember the Alamo
Twelve-year-old Jessie resents her father's decision to move his family to San Antonio where they are caught up in the revolution of 1835-1836 including the siege of the Alamo.
Lyons, Mary E.	Letters from a Slave Girl: The Story of Harriet Jacobs
An 11-year-old slave in North Carolina plans to escape to the North when she is not set free after the death of her mistress.
McGraw, Eloise	Moccasin Trail
A runaway boy, adopted by Crow Indians, is reunited with his family after nine years.
MacBride, Roger	Little Farm in the Ozarks
Eight-year-old Rose Wilder and her parents move to a farm in the Missouri Ozarks to start a new life.
O'Dell, Scott	Island of the Blue Dolphins
In the Pacific there is an island that looks like a big fish sunning itself in the sea. Around it, blue dolphins swim. Once, many people also lived on the island. When they left and sailed to the east, one young girl was left behind. It is not only an unusual adventure of survival, but also a tale of natural beauty and personal discovery.
Paterson, Katherine	Jip: His Story
While living on a Vermont poor farm during 1855 and 1856, Jip learns his identity and that of his mother and comes to understand how he arrived at this place.
Paterson, Katherine	Lyddie
In the 1840s, a young girl leaves Vermont to seek independence by becoming a factory worker in Lowell, Massachusetts.
Paterson, Katherine	Rebels of the Heavenly Kingdom
A 15-year-old boy is rescued from slavery by a mysterious girl who introduces him to a secret group planning to overthrow the Manchu government.
Pinkney, Andrea	Dear Mr. President: Abraham Lincoln: Letters from a Slave Girl
A fictional correspondence between President Abraham Lincoln and a 12-year-old slave girl that discusses his decision to write the Emancipation Proclamation.
Pryor, Bonnie	Luke on the High Seas
In 1850, Luke and Toby set sail from Boston to California on a voyage featuring shady characters, a story of a lost gold mine, and a cabin boy with a secret.
Steele, William O.	Wilderness Journey
A 10-year-old boy traveling with a frontier scout learns how to become self-reliant.
Stowe, Cynthia	The Second Escape of Arthur Cooper
In 1822, on Nantucket Island, runaway slave Arthur Cooper and his family are protected from slave catchers by a family of Quakers.
VanLeeuwen, Jean	Bound for Oregon
A fictionalized account of the journey made by 9-year-old Mary Ellen Todd and her family from their home in Arkansas westward over the Oregon Trail in 1852.
Whelan, Gloria	The Indian School
In 1839, newly orphaned 11-year-old Mary goes to live with her missionary aunt and uncle who run a school for Indian children in northern Michigan.
Whelan, Gloria	Once on This Island
Twelve-year-old Mary and her older siblings take care of the family farm on Mackinac Island while their father is away fighting the British during the War of 1812.
Woodruff, Elvira	Dear Austin: Letters from the Underground Railroad
In 1853, in letters to his older brother, 11-year-old Levi describes his adventures in the Pennsylvania countryside with his black friend, Jupiter, and his experiences with the Undeground Railroad.
Woodruff, Elvira	Dear Levi: Letters from the Overland Trail
Twelve-year-old Austin Ives writes letters to his younger brother describing his 3,000-mile journey from their home in Pennsylvania to Oregon in 1851.
Yep, Laurence	Mountain Light
After he loses his home during a rebellion against the Manchu in China, a young man goes to seek his fortune in the California gold fields.
Yep, Laurence	Spring Pearl: The Last Flower
Called boyish by her new family for being able to read and write, 12-year-old orphaned Spring Pearl's odd ways help save the family during the 1857 Opium War in Canton, China.
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