Nat Turner Rebellion: Fact-Checking His Confessions

There were dozens of other slave trials related to Turner's revolt. Rep. James Trezvant sat as a judge at most of them, including Turner's trial -- though his name is excluded as judge in Gray's pamphlet. Trezvant fed stories of the uprising to newspapers, controlling the spin, and soon Turner's infamy spread far and wide -- he became a household name.

Southerners reacted with fear and anger. It is estimated that hundreds of slaves and freemen were murdered by whites in the wake of the uprising. The severed heads of some were placed on poles as a warning. (The place of the impalement still bears the name Blackhead Signpost Road.)  The Root...