author

L. S. (Lucy S.) Thompson

1813–1881

Best remembered for helping bring Mattie J. Jackson’s story to print, this 19th-century writer is linked to one of the early published firsthand accounts of slavery and escape during the Civil War era.

1 Audiobook

The Story of Mattie J. Jackson Her Parentage—Experience of Eighteen years in Slavery—Incidents during the War—Her Escape from Slavery

The Story of Mattie J. Jackson Her Parentage—Experience of Eighteen years in Slavery—Incidents during the War—Her Escape from Slavery

by L. S. (Lucy S.) Thompson

About the author

Lucy S. Thompson (1813–1881), sometimes identified in records as Dr. L. S. Thompson and noted on the title page as "formerly Mrs. Schuyler," is known for The Story of Mattie J. Jackson. The 1866 book presents Jackson’s account of her life in slavery, the war years, and her escape to freedom, with Thompson credited as the person who wrote and arranged the narrative from Mattie’s telling.

Modern catalog and library records consistently connect Thompson with that work, but biographical details about her life appear to be scarce and not well documented in widely available sources. Because of that, it is safest to describe her as an editor or arranger of an important post–Civil War narrative rather than make broader claims that cannot be firmly confirmed.

Her lasting place in literary history comes from her role in preserving and shaping a powerful survivor’s testimony for publication. For readers interested in early Black life writing and slavery narratives, her work remains tied to a book of real historical and emotional weight.