NEW YORK, March 4 (UPI) -- The New York Times issued a belated correction Tuesday that in 1853 it twice misspelled the name of Solomon Northup, author of "12 Years a Slave."
The newspaper said that in a story that ran Jan. 20, 1853, covering Northup's escape from a Louisiana plantation, his name was spelled Northrop in the body of the story and Northrup in the headline. It said it learned of the error Monday from a Twitter user.
Northup's book, noted by the Times in April 1853, sold 30,000 copies. Northup gained new prominence last year with the release of the movie, which won the Best Picture award at Sunday night's Oscars.
The January 1853 article dealt with Northup's kidnapping in Washington and his sale in Louisiana and his failure to win a legal case against his kidnappers.
