Church, Mary pseud. [Temple, Catherine]
Sierra Leone or, the Liberated Africans, in a Series of Letters from a Young Lady to her Sister in 1833 & 34. Longman & Co., 1835. 8vo, green pebble cloth, upper board with printed label; pp. 49; provenance: Mary Parkinson, Ravendale July 1835 (owner's pen ink inscription on title).
The Liberated Africans of the title were African slaves rescued by the West Africa Squadron of the Royal Navy during the Blockade of Africa. They were officially liberated by tribunals in Freetown, and sadly frequently consigned to apprenticeships little removed from their previous condition.

Catherine Temple was the daughter of Major Octavius Temple who was Lieutenant-Govenor of Sierra Leone between 1831-34, as well as General Superintendant of the Liberated Africans department. Although the rigours of military and diplomatic postings did not allow for formal schooling, Temple was taught by her mother to read and write. This work appears to be her only publication and shows keen powers of observation and curiosity, describing efforts to engage with the locals in their own dialects despite their suspicion. She was a dedicated abolitionist and devoted her last letter to this cause, as well as the benefits of Christian Mission in changing lives for the better in Africa. Whatever the modern reader may make of her 19th-century cultural beliefs, there is no mistaking a genuine concern for the betterment of the lives of those she meets and a desire to set right prejudice about the nature of the Liberated Africans.