Before he was kidnapped and and sold into slavery for 12 years, Solomon Northup had three children: Elizabeth, Margaret, and Alonzo. Those children also had children, who in turn had children of their own.
Now in the new issue of The Hollywood Reporter, five generations of Northup’s family tree have gathered together for one epic photo shoot. And paying them a surprise visit was none other than filmmaker Steve McQueen, who turned Northup’s harrowing memoir of his ordeal into an Oscar-winning film.
“Growing up hearing the story and then seeing it gave me mixed feelings. I was upset because of what happened, but excited that I finally got to see this real thing.”; Milan Linzy, 15, of Valencia, CA told the magazine. “There are people in our family who are very strong, and I think they get that from Solomon’s side,”; added Rebecca Bicksler, a white fifth-generation descendant from upstate New York.
Click here for portraits of all 47 of Northup’s known descendants.
