Posted on July 3rd, 2025

The Saddlebag Preacher of Pike County is set rural Southern Ohio in the 1850s. Ohio produced many talented novelists and poets but most of them either weren’t born or did not achieve recognition until later in the 1800s. A significant exception to this was Harriet Beecher Stowe from Cincinnati. Her book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, was a powerful force in the anti-slavery movement.

It is a book Rev. Jacob Chandler sees in Dr. Zimmerman’s library in The Saddlebag Preacher of Pike County.

Harriet Beecher received a strong education, especially for a woman of her time. She attended the Hartford Female Seminary, founded by her sister Catharine Beecher, where she was trained in classical studies and encouraged to think critically. This academic background, coupled with her exposure to theological and moral debates at home, laid the foundation for her future work as a writer and reformer.

In 1836, she married Calvin Ellis Stowe, a professor and outspoken opponent of slavery. The couple moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, a city on the border between the slave and free states, where Harriet came into direct contact with fugitive slaves and the realities of the institution. These experiences profoundly influenced her views on slavery and fueled her desire to address the issue through her writing.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin depicts the cruelty of slavery in the United States and its impact on families, particularly through the experiences of Uncle Tom, a devoutly Christian enslaved man. The story follow’s Tom’s journey as he is sold away from his family, encountering various characters and situations that highlight the moral and social tensions of the time.

The novel also features the dramatic escape of Eliza, who flees with her son to avoid being sold, showcasing the lengths to which enslaved people would go for freedom. Other memorable characters were the cruel slave owner Simon Legree and the virtuous, angelic child Eva.

In 1851, Harriet Beecher Stowe began publishing Uncle Tom’s Cabin as a serialized story in the anti-slavery newspaper The National Era. It was published in book form in 1852 and quickly became a bestseller, selling over 300,000 copies in the United States in its first year. The book was soon sold beyond the United States and was translated into numerous languages. A theatrical production was developed and, 75 years later, the book was made into a movie in 1927.