The Vice President's Black Wife

The Untold Life of Julia Chinn

By: Amrita Chakrabarti Myers

Narrated by: Janina Edwards

Award-winning historian Amrita Chakrabarti Myers has recovered the riveting, troubling, and complicated story of Julia Ann Chinn (ca. 1796–1833), the enslaved wife of Richard Mentor Johnson, owner of Blue Spring Farm, veteran of the War of 1812, and US vice president under Martin Van Buren. Johnson never freed Chinn, but during his frequent absences from his estate, he delegated to her the management of his property, including Choctaw Academy, a boarding school for Indigenous men and boys on the grounds of the estate. This meant that Chinn, although enslaved herself, oversaw Blue Spring's slave labor force and had substantial control over economic, social, financial, and personal affairs within the couple's world. Chinn's relationship with Johnson was unlikely to have been consensual since she was never manumitted.

What makes Chinn's life exceptional is the power that Johnson invested in her, the opportunities the couple's relationship afforded her and her daughters, and their community's tacit acceptance of the family—up to a point. When the family left their farm, they faced steep limits. Johnson's relationship with Chinn ruined his political career and Myers compellingly demonstrates that it wasn't interracial sex that led to his downfall but his refusal to keep it—and Julia Chinn—behind closed doors.

©2023 Amrita Chakrabarti Myers (P)2025 Tantor Media

Interesting story

I enjoyed learning about Julia Chinn and her family. What an amazing history lesson. I didn't enjoy the redundancy in this book.

Amazingly researched important story

This is a powerful and important story, and Julia and her descendants deserve recognition for the sacrifices made by each generation. However, I found the first six chapters to be highly repetitive. I understand that the use of primary sources can be limited, and I do not fault the author for any lack of research. Still, the narrative would have benefited from an additional round of editing to tighten the pacing and reduce redundancy.