Today, I’m delighted to welcome back H D Coulter, with a post about the historical research that went into writing Saving Grace.
Saving Grace is the sequel to Ropewalk, and the setting couldn’t be more different – from the North of England to Boston. Could you tell me about how you went about researching the setting for Saving Grace, and why you chose that particular location?
I would like to thank M J Porter for inviting me back again to guest post. Today I am discussing how book 1, Ropewalk, which took place in the north of England but book 2 mostly takes place in Beacon Hill, Boston and in the American deep south state of Georgia.
I will not go into spoilers here. But at the end of book 1, circumstances happened which meant that Bea and Joshua could no longer live in England and needed to flee. I choose to locate some of Saving Grace in Beacon Hill as it was a flourishing hub of Boston. It was a representation of what was happening across America in the 1830s, with various cultures descending on different areas of the hill. A class divide between north and south slope in wealth, with a sense of unrest bubbling underneath. With Joshua’s background in shipping, it was a natural selection for the character to choose that location with Boston harbour situated on the south slope and possible business connections. It was an area much like Ulverston, with new industrial advancement owned by the rich and yet filled with small clusters of different communities scattered from one street to the next.
For book 1, Ropewalk, there was a lot of research done locally whilst I lived there and into the Reformer’s. However for book 2, Saving Grace, I had to rely on research more for the locations, history, people and society. Moving the story to America and placing the characters into this alien landscape reflected my own sense of discovery into the local culture and the rules of this unknown society.
Since I couldn’t walk the streets and see Bea walking beside me, I needed more visual resources so that I could picture it in my mind’s eye. Thankfully, there are still locations in Beacon Hill and Georgia, that seem unchanged from that period. So, I read books, watched TV, You Tube documentaries and films, taking place in those locations. An interesting point I’ve noticed whilst I was researching book 2 and now that I’m deep down the rabbit hole for book 3, is that Georgia, South Carolina and into the wilds surrounding those states are like the fells around Cumbria and the south lakes. Which wouldn’t seem so alien to Bea.
For Beacon Hill, I gathered all the resources I could to transform the streets into the 1830s. There are a lot of original features still left in Beacon Hill of the time they developed it, like Charles Street and Acorn Street. Whilst I was researching Beacon Hill; I discovered the African Meeting house, which was a hub for the abolitionist movement and a rumoured connection to the underground railroad. Which created a whole new subplot to the novel and leading into book 3. It mirrored that of Bob Lightfoot and yet independent to Bea. Once I discovered the Underground Railroad, the story came to life and the character of Sarah was born; a strong, formidable and caring character who has her own story and their friendship becomes vital for Bea as she finds her voice once more.
One aspect I found, the Underground Railroad shows, documentaries and films, fixate on to the late 1840s and 1850s. Around the time the legendary Harriet Tubman escapes on the Underground Railroad to the north but had the strength in the characters to return and free her family and slaves from neighbouring plantations. She was another formidable character and opponent against the slave patrollers and developed the nickname “Mosses” as she delivered people to the promise land. But during the 1850 American congress signed the ‘Fugitive Slave Act’ which brought a new law allowing capture of escaped slaves and blocked the sanctuary in the northern states and allowed patrollers to roam the streets and drag them back down south.
“They were never really free.”
The more I discovered, the more I researched, looking into the tiny details and become fascinated by the smouldering embers that fuelled the American Civil War.
“She had been born a coastal cottage girl and now she was a lady. But it was all a lie. It wasn’t how she had thought it would be. She carried so many secret labels that she had given up wondering which one was her true calling; a lace-maker, a cottage girl, a wife, a mother, a murderer; a fugitive?”
Saving Grace, chapter 5.
Each one of the principal characters feels like they are battling their own form of deception, obsession and redemption. Unbeknown Hanley is watching in the shadows, controlling their lives and waiting to make his move.
Some resources I used:
- Beacon Hill (Images of America) Kindle Edition
by Cynthia Chalmers Bartlett (Author) Format: Kindle Edition.
- Beacon Hill, Back Bay and the Building of Boston’s Golden Age Kindle Edition
by Ted Clarke (Author) Format: Kindle Edition.
- The Underground Railroad: LONGLISTED FOR THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE 2017 Kindle Edition
by Colson Whitehead (Author) Format: Kindle Edition.
- Passengers: True Stories of the Underground Railroad Kindle Edition
by William Still (Author), Ta-Nehisi Coates (Introduction).
- The Underground Railroad: Authentic Narratives and First-Hand Accounts (African American) Kindle Edition
by William Still (Author), Ian Finseth (Editor).
- Underground, TV show about a group of slaves trying to escape the south.
Thank you so much for sharing your research. I do love a good rabbit hole! Good luck with the new book.
Intrigued?
Here’s the blurb;
Beacon Hill, Boston. 1832.
“You are innocent. You are loved. You are mine.”
After surviving the brutal attack and barely escaping death at Lancaster Castle, Beatrice Mason attempts to build a new life with her husband Joshua across the Atlantic in Beacon Hill. But, as Beatrice struggles to cope with the pregnancy and vivid nightmares, she questions whether she is worthy of redemption.
Determined to put the past behind her after the birth of her daughter Grace, Bea embraces her newfound roles of motherhood and being a wife. Nevertheless, when she meets Sarah Bateman, their friendship draws Bea towards the underground railroad and the hidden abolitionist movement, despite the dangerous secrets it poses. Whilst concealed in the shadows, Captain Victor Hanley returns, obsessed with revenge and the desire to lay claim to what is his, exposes deceptions and doubts as he threatens their newly established happiness.
Now, Beatrice must find the strength to fight once more and save Grace, even if it costs her life.
Amazon UK: Amazon US: Universal Link to other bookshops:
Ropewalk; Rebellion. Love. Survival (The Ropewalk Series, Book 1) is only 0.99 on ebook during the tour. Here are the buy link
Amazon UK: Amazon US: Universal Link to other bookshops:
Meet the Author
Hayley was born and raised in the lake district and across Cumbria. From a young age, Hayley loved learning about history, visiting castles and discovering local stories from the past. Hayley and her partner lived in Ulverston for three years and spent her weekends walking along the Ropewalk and down by the old harbour. She became inspired by the spirit of the area and stories that had taken place along the historic streets.
As a teacher, Hayley had loved the art of storytelling by studying drama and theatre. The power of the written word, how it can transport the reader to another world or even another time in history. But it wasn’t until living in Ulverston did she discover a story worth telling. From that point, the characters became alive and she fell in love with the story.
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M J Porter 
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