Taking their seats : Massachusetts, 1838-1843

Harlan of Kentucky : 1853-1857

Brown of New England : 1856-1857

Tourgee of Ohio : 1858-1860

The free people of color : New 0rleans, 1860

"The Harlan name" : Kentucky, 1858-1862

"A war of which no man can see the end" : Brown in Detroit, 1860-1864

"For this I am willing to die" : Tourgee on the march, 1861-1863

"Claim your rights" : New Orleans and Washington, 1863-1864

Choosing sides : Harlan in Kentucky, 1865-1871

"A taste for judicial life" : Brown in Detroit, 1866-1872

Tourgee goes South : North Carolina, 1865-1870

Equal but separate : New Orleans and the north, 1867-1871

"Is not Harlan the man?" : Kentucky and Washington, 1875-1878

"Uncongenial strifes" : Brown and Tourgee, 1875-1879

Fool's errand : north and south, 1880-1883

The color line sharpens : 1883-1888

"The Negro question" : Mayville, Washington, and New Orleans, 1889-1890

"On behalf of 7,999,999 of my race" : New Orleans, Mayville, Detroit, and Washington, 1890-1891

Arrest : Mayville and New Orleans, 1892/-893

"You are fighting a great battle" : Washington, Mayville, and New Orleans, 1893-1895

In the nature of things : March, April, May 1896

Epilogue