So, I haven’t talked about Charles Howard Sr. very much and I love Jeff Bridges in the movie so, will stay as FC. He was one of those who was clever with the crowd, directed attention and ambition, knew every good pause to take for perfect effect. He grew his own name and passed the family fortune and good faith to his children.
I have been playing with the idea that Charles Sr. first built the family name on new money and fancy carriages that suited every family. He researched the materials and designs and commissioned the best people to get the strongest vehicle that weighed the least. Travel faster and gain time.
And somehow it turned into helping the lesser than escape less than ideal circumstances. Several families now mad at this silly man for helping their slaves escape. And it’s never made clearly known to Charlie Junior until it’s too late and his older brother shows up dead.