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How SCSM’s new acquisition can help us learn from the past

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Museum staff with Turpin Bible on table

SCSM staff study the museum’s new acquisition, the Turpin Bible.

Photo provided by the South Carolina State Museum

The South Carolina State Museum recently acquired a rare bible dating back to 1815 and owned by William Turpin, a merchant and enslaver turned abolitionist.

What makes this object such an important addition to the museum’s collection? Inside the front cover is a handwritten list of 31 enslaved people Turpin freed between 1807 and 1826. According to Turpin scholar David Dangerfield, “I’ve never seen so many people emancipated by an individual or partnership.”

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