Enslaved teenager Henry Shackleford, aka Little Onion, becomes a member in abolitionist John Brown’s motley family during the Bleeding Kansas era before the Civil War.
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John Brown and his remaining army take a last stand as more federal troops descend upon Harper’s Ferry. With John Brown captured and held for public execution, Onion, truly on his own, risks his life to say his goodbyes to Brown. Series finale.
The plan to take control of the nation's largest armory at Harper's Ferry is finally put into action. However, a crucial mistake by Onion threatens the success of the entire operation. John Brown's army takes hostages, grabbing the attention of an angry mob and local militia. With shots firing, Onion is sent out to get reinforcements.
Separated from Brown's army, Onion and fellow slave Bob leave the fight in Kansas only to cross paths with pro-slavery “red shirts” who escort them to the slave-trading town of Pikesville, Missouri. Onion is taken under the wing of Pie, a mixed-race prostitute working out of the local hotel, who instructs him in the ways of the world despite her discovering his dangerous secret. Onion soon finds himself enmeshed in a mounting slave insurrection where he learns the consequences of his own actions.
Following the battle in Pikesville, John Brown, now one of the most wanted men in America, travels north with Onion to raise funds for the abolitionist cause. They take refuge at the home of famed orator and “King of the Negroes” Frederick Douglass and his two wives. When Brown and Douglass clash over methodology, Onion discovers just how complex the fight for justice and human equality really is.
Each point is an episode, plotted in order. Colored bands mark season boundaries. Look for the rise, the plateau, or the decline.
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