Like many Americans born into slavery, Henry Brown's exact birth date isn't known.
What we do know is that he was born in either 1815 or 1816 - at a time when he faced a life full of adversity, with little promise of freedom. However, through a combination of intelligence, determination, and luck, Brown would go on to escape bondage and spread a much-needed message of hope.
As highlighted in his book, Narrative of the Life of Henry Box Brown (published in 1849), America was boasting its freedom to the world while claiming to be the land of equality, all while holding "millions of her inhabitants in bondage."
Henry was one of those he eloquently described. He was raised in Louisa County, Virginia, and at the age of 15, he was sent to work in a tobacco factory in Richmond.
In 1849, Henry's wife and three children were to be sold to another slave master in North Carolina.
The owner of the tobacco factory refused to pay for Henry's loved ones, and he was forced to stand at the side of the road, watching 350 slaves in chains walk past him, including his three children and his wife who was pregnant with their fourth.
This stirred something in Henry. The loss of his family fueled his ambition to escape his life as a slave.
But if he was caught attempting to flee, that would result in severe consequences, so he needed to think outside the box - or in his case, inside.
Henry knew he would need to enlist the help of others to aid in his escape attempt, so he gained the friendship of James Caesar Anthony Smith, a free Black man who attended the same local church. The duo also recruited a white sympathizer, Samuel Smith. Samuel liked to gamble so he only agreed to aid the pair if they could promise him financial gain, to which they obliged.
A plan needed to be hatched that would see Henry able to travel across the country undetected. His aim was to get to Philadelphia, a free state, but to do so he would need to pass through many places and checkpoints where if discovered, he would be swiftly returned to Richmond and any hope of freedom would be all but gone.
It was agreed that there was only one option to ensure he was not caught - Henry would have to be mailed to freedom in a wooden box.
Sometimes the plans that seem the most bizarre and unlikely to succeed are the ones that will give the greatest results, and this is what Henry was about to discover.
Samuel contacted James Miller McKim, who was part of the Philadelphia Anti-Slavery Society, and let him know that he was going to receive a box with a very special delivery.
On March 23, 1849, Henry got into a box measuring three feet long, two feet eight inches deep, and two feet wide. It was labeled "dry goods." The box was lined with cloth and Henry only had a small amount of water and a couple of biscuits for his journey.
The situation was now clear, Henry would either emerge from the box in a free state, or he would perish on his journey. There was a hole for air, and despite the wooden frame clearly labeled "this side up," those handling it didn't take much notice, as Henry noted that he was upside down for some of the journey.
In his autobiography, Henry penned the details about the trip which saw him transported in all manner of vehicles. "[I was] resolved to conquer or die," he wrote. "I felt my eyes swelling as if they would burst from their sockets, and the veins on my temples were dreadfully distended with the pressure of blood upon my head."
The box was eventually delivered to its intended destination in Philadelphia, where it was received by members of the Philadelphia Anti-Slavery Society, which included William Still, James Miller McKim, Professor C.D. Cleveland, and Lewis Thompson.
After 27 hours inside the box - which included being upside down, handled roughly and a shortage of food and drink - Henry emerged with a cheerier expression than most would if they had endured such a feat. When he sprang out of the box, he happily proclaimed: "How do you do, Gentlemen?"
News of Henry's incredible escape spread like wildfire, although, the legendary Frederick Douglass wanted to keep it quiet so others could use the same means of escape without detection.
Samuel, the white man who aided Henry, was captured as he attempted to use the same method to transport other slaves to freedom and was sentenced to six and a half years in prison. James Caesar Anthony Smith was also arrested for his part in the escape, but the trial came to no conclusion about his fate and instead he traveled to Boston where he reconnected with Henry.
Henry, clearly a creative individual, used his talents to rally those into standing up against slavery. He would become a performer who would create shows about his escape, and the horrors of slavery that he endured.
Being in a free state did not mean he was a safe man. Despite there being no slavery, the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act meant Henry was still the legal property of his slave master in the eyes of the law and he could be arrested and taken back to his former life, so he set sail for the relative safety of England.
When in the UK, Henry continued his stage show which involved a panorama on the institution of slavery, but it wasn't long until he came under fire. The performer was questioned about his finances, and how he wasn't using his newfound wealth to buy the freedom of his family who was still locked in a life of slavery in North Carolina. Henry decided to remove himself from the abolitionist circuit. Instead, he turned his attention to being an entertainer, including dabbling in spiritualism and magic.
He remained in the UK for the next 25 years, where he wowed audiences all across the country and got married in 1859 before having a daughter, Annie. Henry returned to the US in 1875, 10 years after the end of the civil war which brought with it the end of slavery across the country. He continued being an entertainer along the east coast and his performance included climbing in and out of the original box that transported him to safety.
His last recorded performance came in 1889 in Brantford, Ontario, Canada, before he passed away in 1897 in Toronto.
Henry's escape was a beacon of hope for those in the confines of slavery, but his ingenious method isn't the only thing that defines him. He defied the odds and transported himself from the grips of slavery into a respected artist who, when using the original box that housed him, stood up to a system that was constructed to suppress him - and he did it loudly.
Sources: Biography, African Stories in Hull and East Yorkshire, Underground Railroad, Frederick Douglass In Britain, Revealing Histories, Encyclopedia Virginia