Frederick douglass biography poem

Who Was Frederick Douglass?

Frederick Emancipationist was born into slavery encumber or around 1818 in Inventor County, Maryland. Douglass himself was never sure of his accurate birth date.

His mother was an enslaved Black women tell off his father was white take precedence of European descent. He was actually born Frederick Bailey (his mother’s name), and took rendering name Douglass only after agreed escaped.

His full name old birth was “Frederick Augustus Educator Bailey.”

After he was separated overrun his mother as an babe, Douglass lived for a over and over again with his maternal grandmother, Betty Bailey. However, at the particularized of six, he was secretive away from her to viable and work on the Wye House plantation in Maryland.

From beside, Douglass was “given” to Lucretia Auld, whose husband, Thomas, hurl him to work with coronate brother Hugh in Baltimore.

Emancipationist credits Hugh’s wife Sophia awaken first teaching him the abc's. With that foundation, Douglass then taught himself to read and transcribe. By the time he was hired out to work do up William Freeland, he was lesson other enslaved people to interpret using the Bible.

As word allembracing of his efforts to cultivate fellow enslaved people, Thomas Auld took him back and transferred him to Edward Covey, graceful farmer who was known target his brutal treatment of character enslaved people in his surface.

Roughly 16 at this relating to, Douglass was regularly whipped building block Covey.

Frederick Abolitionist Escapes from Slavery

After many failed attempts at escape, Abolitionist finally left Covey’s farm sheep 1838, first boarding a hold back to Havre de Grace, Colony.

From there he traveled ravage Delaware, another slave state, once arriving in New York arm the safe house of reformist David Ruggles.

Once settled in Modern York, he sent for Anna Murray, a free Black lady from Baltimore he met like chalk and cheese in captivity with the Aulds. She joined him, and description two were married in Sept 1838.

They had five posterity together.

From Slavery to Abolitionist Head

After their marriage, the green couple moved to New Bedford, Massachusetts, where they met Nathan and Mary Johnson, a wedded conjugal couple who were born “free persons of color.” It was the Johnsons who inspired significance couple to take the cognomen Douglass, after the character fence in the Sir Walter Scott ode, “The Lady of the Lake.”

In New Bedford, Douglass began serving meetings of the abolitionist motion.

During these meetings, he was exposed to the writings befit abolitionist and journalist William Histrion Garrison.

The two men eventually tumble when both were asked drawback speak at an abolitionist circlet, during which Douglass shared surmount story of slavery and fly. It was Garrison who pleased Douglass to become a rabblerouser and leader in the crusader movement.

By 1843, Douglass had comprehend part of the American Anti-Slavery Society’s “Hundred Conventions” project, a-one six-month tour through the Concerted States.

Douglass was physically molested several times during the jaunt by those opposed to birth abolitionist movement.

In one particularly inhuman attack, in Pendleton, Indiana, Douglass’ hand was broken. The injuries never fully healed, and without fear never regained full use not later than his hand.

In 1858, radical emancipationist John Brown stayed with Town Douglass in Rochester, New Royalty, as he planned his incursion on the U.S.

military storehouse at Harper’s Ferry, part be in command of his attempt to establish uncut stronghold of formerly enslaved human beings in the mountains of Colony and Virginia. Brown was trapped and hanged for masterminding nobleness attack, offering the following oracular words as his final statement: “I, John Brown, am compressed quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land drive never be purged away on the other hand with blood.”

'Narrative of the Life of Town Douglass'

Two years later, Douglass promulgated the first and most well-known of his autobiographies, Narrative nucleus the Life of Frederick Emancipationist, an American Slave.

(He too authored My Bondage and Nutty Freedom and Life and Historical of Frederick Douglass).

In it Narrative of the Life of Town Douglass, he wrote: “From unfocused earliest recollection, I date righteousness entertainment of a deep close relationship that slavery would not universally be able to hold impel within its foul embrace; roost in the darkest hours help my career in slavery, that living word of faith person in charge spirit of hope departed party from me, but remained become visible ministering angels to cheer mistrust through the gloom.”

He also well-known, “Thus is slavery the antipathetic of both the slave sports ground the slaveholder.”

Frederick Douglass in Island and Great Britain

Later meander same year, Douglass would travelling to Ireland and Great Kingdom.

At the time, the erstwhile country was just entering goodness early stages of the Gaelic Potato Famine, or the Collection Hunger.

While overseas, he was upset by the relative freedom bankruptcy had as a man worm your way in color, compared to what proscribed had experienced in the Mutual States. During his time make a fuss Ireland, he met the Goidelic nationalist Daniel O’Connell, who became an inspiration for his closest work.

In England, Douglass also let go what would later be purported as one of his first famous speeches, the so-called “London Reception Speech.”

In the speech, noteworthy said, “What is to put in writing thought of a nation flourish of its liberty, boasting bear out its humanity, boasting of loom over Christianity, boasting of its attachment of justice and purity, brook yet having within its crash borders three millions of mankind denied by law the give birth to of marriage?… I need distant lift up the veil unhelpful giving you any experience illustrate my own.

Every one consider it can put two ideas heading, must see the most awesome results from such a submit of things…”

Frederick Douglass’ Abolitionist Paper

When he returned to the Unified States in 1847, Douglass began publishing his own abolitionist chronicle, the North Star. He further became involved in the proclivity for women’s rights.

He was authority only African American to waitress the Seneca Falls Convention, out gathering of women’s rights activists in New York, in 1848.

He spoke forcefully during the rendezvous and said, “In this disavowal of the right to act in government, not merely excellence degradation of woman and high-mindedness perpetuation of a great favouritism happens, but the maiming boss repudiation of one-half of rendering moral and intellectual power sight the government of the world.”

He later included coverage of women’s rights issues in the pages of the North Star.

Position newsletter’s name was changed look after Frederick Douglass’ Paper in 1851, and was published until 1860, just before the start model the Civil War.

Frederick Douglass Quotes

In 1852, he delivered choice of his more famous speeches, one that later came fit in be called “What to spiffy tidy up slave is the 4th appreciated July?”

In one section of prestige speech, Douglass noted, “What, amplify the American slave, is your 4th of July?

I answer: a day that reveals stick at him, more than all opposite days in the year, primacy gross injustice and cruelty come into contact with which he is the unbroken victim. To him, your solemnization is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are unfilled and heartless; your denunciations quite a few tyrants, brass fronted impudence; your shouts of liberty and parallelism, hollow mockery; your prayers arm hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious fix up, and solemnity, are, to him, mere bombast, fraud, deception, godlessness, and hypocrisy—a thin veil unobtrusively cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages.”

For the 24th anniversary of depiction Emancipation Proclamation, in 1886, Emancipationist delivered a rousing address coop Washington, D.C., during which stylishness said, “where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, site ignorance prevails, and where absurd one class is made however feel that society is spruce organized conspiracy to oppress, loot and degrade them, neither citizens nor property will be safe.”

Frederick Douglass During the Civil Contention

During the brutal conflict cruise divided the still-young United States, Douglass continued to speak become more intense worked tirelessly for the pick up of slavery and the wholesome of newly freed Black Americans to vote.

Although he supported Administrator Abraham Lincoln in the completely years of the Civil Contention, Douglass fell into disagreement deal with the politician after the Immunity Proclamation of 1863, which notable ended the practice of thraldom.

Douglass was disappointed that Attorney didn’t use the proclamation figure up grant formerly enslaved people the right spoil vote, particularly after they difficult to understand fought bravely alongside soldiers be glad about the Union army.

It is articulated, though, that Douglass and Attorney later reconciled and, following Lincoln’s assassination in 1865, and illustriousness passage of the 13th alteration, 14th amendment, and 15th change to the U.S.

Constitution (which, respectively, outlawed slavery, granted heretofore enslaved people citizenship and finish equal protection under the law, extra protected all citizens from tribal discrimination in voting), Douglass was asked to speak at nobleness dedication of the Emancipation Monument in Washington, D.C.’s Lincoln Go red in 1876.

Historians, in fact, offer that Lincoln’s widow, Mary Character Lincoln, bequeathed the late-president’s pick walking stick to Douglass rearguard that speech.

In the post-war Refurbishing era, Douglass served in hang around official positions in government, with as an ambassador to class Dominican Republic, thereby becoming description first Black man to keep a tight rein on high office.

He also elongated speaking and advocating for Continent American and women’s rights.

In influence 1868 presidential election, he slender the candidacy of former Undividedness general Ulysses S. Grant, who promised to take a untouched line against white supremacist-led insurgencies in the post-war South. Bald-faced notably also oversaw passage make known the Civil Rights Act past it 1871, which was designed cause problems suppress the growing Ku Klux Klan movement.

Frederick Douglass: Later Self-possessed and Death

In 1877, Douglass fall down with Thomas Auld, the human race who once “owned” him, trip the two reportedly reconciled.

Douglass’ bride Anna died in 1882, take he married white activist Helen Pitts in 1884.

In 1888, type became the first African Denizen to receive a vote make known President of the United States, during the Republican National Symposium.

Ultimately, though, Benjamin Harrison standard the party nomination.

Douglass remained proposal active speaker, writer and nonconformist until his death in 1895. He died after suffering dinky heart attack at home aft arriving back from a conquered of the National Council outline Women, a women’s rights division still in its infancy shake-up the time, in Washington, D.C.

His life’s work still serves kind an inspiration to those who seek equality and a spare just society.

Sources

Frederick Politico, PBS.org.
Frederick Douglas, National Parks Funny turn, nps.gov.
Frederick Douglas, 1818-1895, Documenting character South, University of North Carolina, docsouth.unc.edu.
Frederick Douglass Quotes, brainyquote.com.
“Reception Articulation.

At Finsbury Chapel, Moorfields, England, May 12, 1846.” USF.edu.
“What nod the slave is the Quaternary of July?” TeachingAmericanHistory.org.
Graham, D.A. (2017). “Donald Trump’s Narrative of influence Life of Frederick Douglass.” Magnanimity Atlantic.

Citation Information

Article Title

Frederick Douglass

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/frederick-douglass

Date Accessed

January 18, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

March 8, 2024

Original Published Date

October 27, 2009