Douglass, Frederick (1818–1895)

Frederick Douglass rose to prominence in the mid-1800s as a key figure in the abolitionist movement. It was his active dissent from the schooling opportunities for Americans of African descent, which were limited to free Blacks at the time, and his consequent efforts to educate himself that would earn Douglass a vital place in American history. Born a slave in 1818, Douglass escaped to New York in 1838 at the age of 20. Three years later, on August 12, 1841, Douglass delivered an impassioned speech to the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society, marking the beginning of his career as one of the most famous orators, writers, and statesmen in U.S. history. Through his speeches and writings, Douglass championed a number of causes until his death at age 77. This entry reviews Douglass's formative years as a slave, his 55-year career as an American reformer, and the endurance of his legacy through his autobiographies.

Born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, Douglass was separated from his mother in infancy and raised by his grandmother. At age 8, he was sent to Baltimore, Maryland, to live with his master's brother, Hugh Auld. It was Auld's wife Sophia who would teach Douglass the alphabet. When Auld learned of these lessons, he demanded they stop. Undeterred, Douglass continued his education with the assistance of poor White boys he encountered while running errands for the Aulds.

At the age of 12, Douglass obtained a copy of The Columbian Orator, a popular classroom text containing a collection of political essays and speeches. In later writings, Douglass would credit two of the book's essays on liberty and democracy as having a powerful influence on him. Reading The Orator deepened his appreciation for the power and utility of the written word and the value of education. Moreover, it renewed his hatred of slavery and stoked his desire for freedom, which he achieved in 1838. Impersonating a sailor and carrying free papers, Douglass boarded a train to Havre de Grace, Maryland, and eventually made his way to New York. There, Douglass would marry Anna Murray, a free Black woman, and shortly thereafter, the couple settled in New Bedford, Massachusetts.

While in New Bedford, Douglass encountered The Liberator, an antislavery newsletter, edited by William Lloyd Garrison. Douglass found inspiration in the newspaper's arguments and attacks against the institution of slavery and kinship with the men and women who attended New Bedford's antislavery meetings. In August 1841, he accepted an invitation to speak at the annual meeting of the Massachusetts branch of the American Anti-Slavery Society. At first hesitant, Douglass eventually embraced the opportunity to speak out and share his firsthand account of the evils of slavery. Impressed by his oratory skills, Garrison tapped Douglass to become a speaker for the Society. At age 23, he began his career as an anti-slavery lecturer with a 3-month tour of meeting halls throughout New England and the Midwest. The tour, originally intended to be a “trial period,” would last over 50 years.

In the decade leading up to the Civil War, Douglass increased his involvement in the antislavery movement by speaking in various settings across the country and abroad. In 1847, he created The North Star (which later became The Frederick Douglass Paper), a newspaper that would become a vehicle for disseminating Douglass's thoughts on a variety of topics ranging from the denunciation of slavery to the moral and intellectual improvement of Blacks. It was also during this time that Douglass became associated with the women's suffrage movement. Douglass attended the famous Seneca Falls Convention, where he signed the Declaration of Sentiments and, in October 1850, he addressed the First National Woman's Rights Convention.

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