Set against the backdrop of a young nation struggling to define its identity, Miss Blue Jacket traces the remarkable life of Frances Lloyd Garrison (1776-1823), mother of the renowned abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison. From New Brunswick to New England to Baltimore, she was forced to navigate a world torn by war, upended by trade disruptions, and burdened by disease and slavery. Sustained by her steadfast faith, she weathered loss and separation—and in doing so, helped form the conscience of her surviving son, William, who would rise to become one of the fiercest voices in the American abolitionist movement.
