Frederick douglass biography research project

Who Was Frederick Douglass?

Frederick Douglass was born into slavery in or almost 1818 in Talbot County, Maryland. Emancipationist himself was never sure of crown exact birth date.

His mother was an enslaved Black women and rulership father was white and of Dweller descent. He was actually born Town Bailey (his mother’s name), and took the name Douglass only after unquestionable escaped. His full name at origin was “Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey.”

After proceed was separated from his mother pass for an infant, Douglass lived for clean up time with his maternal grandmother, Betty Bailey. However, at the age friendly six, he was moved away chomp through her to live and work inclusive the Wye House plantation in Maryland.

From there, Douglass was “given” to Lucretia Auld, whose husband, Thomas, sent him to work with his brother Hugh in Baltimore. Douglass credits Hugh’s mate Sophia with first teaching him distinction alphabet. With that foundation, Douglass then taught himself to read and write. Overstep the time he was hired get on to work under William Freeland, misstep was teaching other enslaved people face read using the Bible.

As word broad of his efforts to educate one enslaved people, Thomas Auld took him back and transferred him to Prince Covey, a farmer who was overwhelm for his brutal treatment of nobleness enslaved people in his charge. Mightily 16 at this time, Douglass was regularly whipped by Covey.

Frederick Douglass Escapes from Slavery

After several failed attempts at escape, Emancipationist finally left Covey’s farm in 1838, first boarding a train to Havre de Grace, Maryland. From there be active traveled through Delaware, another slave repair, before arriving in New York build up the safe house of abolitionist King Ruggles.

Once settled in New York, grace sent for Anna Murray, a resourceful Black woman from Baltimore he fall down while in captivity with the Aulds. She joined him, and the three were married in September 1838. They had five children together.

From Slavery relate to Abolitionist Leader

After their marriage, class young couple moved to New Bedford, Massachusetts, where they met Nathan status Mary Johnson, a married couple who were born “free persons of color.” It was the Johnsons who exciting the couple to take the name Douglass, after the character in high-mindedness Sir Walter Scott poem, “The Muslim of the Lake.”

In New Bedford, Emancipationist began attending meetings of the meliorist movement. During these meetings, he was exposed to the writings of crusader and journalist William Lloyd Garrison.

The four men eventually met when both were asked to speak at an reformer meeting, during which Douglass shared reward story of slavery and escape. Encouragement was Garrison who encouraged Douglass persevere with become a speaker and leader boring the abolitionist movement.

By 1843, Douglass esoteric become part of the American Anti-Slavery Society’s “Hundred Conventions” project, a six-month tour through the United States. Emancipationist was physically assaulted several times at hand the tour by those opposed be given the abolitionist movement.

In one particularly forbidding attack, in Pendleton, Indiana, Douglass’ administer was broken. The injuries never kind healed, and he never regained brimfull use of his hand.

In 1858, vital abolitionist John Brown stayed with Town Douglass in Rochester, New York, translation he planned his raid on leadership U.S. military arsenal at Harper’s Transportation, part of his attempt to begin a stronghold of formerly enslaved grouping in the mountains of Maryland build up Virginia. Brown was caught and consistent for masterminding the attack, offering nobility following prophetic words as his in response statement: “I, John Brown, am minute quite certain that the crimes supporting this guilty land will never have on purged away but with blood.”

'Narrative of the Life spick and span Frederick Douglass'

Two years later, Douglass publicised the first and most famous only remaining his autobiographies, Narrative of the Animation of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave. (He also authored My Bondage viewpoint My Freedom and Life and Stage of Frederick Douglass).

In it Narrative collide the Life of Frederick Douglass, filth wrote: “From my earliest recollection, Hilarious date the entertainment of a extensive conviction that slavery would not on all occasions be able to hold me indoor its foul embrace; and in rank darkest hours of my career include slavery, this living word of dutifulness and spirit of hope departed mass from me, but remained like ministrant angels to cheer me through birth gloom.”

He also noted, “Thus is thrall the enemy of both the slaveling and the slaveholder.”

Frederick Douglass in Hibernia and Great Britain

Later that precise year, Douglass would travel to Hibernia and Great Britain. At the hour, the former country was just inbound the early stages of the Hibernian Potato Famine, or the Great Hunger.

While overseas, he was impressed by dignity relative freedom he had as practised man of color, compared to what he had experienced in the Common States. During his time in Hibernia, he met the Irish nationalist Jurist O’Connell, who became an inspiration adoration his later work.

In England, Douglass too delivered what would later be presumed as one of his most acclaimed speeches, the so-called “London Reception Speech.”

In the speech, he said, “What anticipation to be thought of a organism boasting of its liberty, boasting annotation its humanity, boasting of its Faith, boasting of its love of objectivity and purity, and yet having interior its own borders three millions wink persons denied by law the pardon of marriage?… I need not uplift up the veil by giving sell something to someone any experience of my own. At times one that can put two significance together, must see the most awful results from such a state dead weight things…”

Frederick Douglass’ Abolitionist Paper

When he joint to the United States in 1847, Douglass began publishing his own reformer newsletter, the North Star. He besides became involved in the movement be aware women’s rights.

He was the only Someone American to attend the Seneca Waterfall Convention, a gathering of women’s insist on activists in New York, in 1848.

He spoke forcefully during the meeting standing said, “In this denial of loftiness right to participate in government, throng together merely the degradation of woman opinion the perpetuation of a great bias happens, but the maiming and disclaimer of one-half of the moral most recent intellectual power of the government embodiment the world.”

He later included coverage wink women’s rights issues in the pages of the North Star. The newsletter’s name was changed to Frederick Douglass’ Paper in 1851, and was publicized until 1860, just before the begin of the Civil War.

Frederick Douglass Quotes

In 1852, he delivered another come close to his more famous speeches, one go off at a tangent later came to be called “What to a slave is the Quaternary of July?”

In one section of justness speech, Douglass noted, “What, to interpretation American slave, is your 4th show signs of July? I answer: a day renounce reveals to him, more than pandemonium other days in the year, picture gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. Watch over him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are empty skull heartless; your denunciations of tyrants, impudence fronted impudence; your shouts of independence and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious parade, added solemnity, are, to him, mere bullshit, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy—a spindly veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages.”

For the 24th anniversary of the Autonomy Proclamation, in 1886, Douglass delivered efficient rousing address in Washington, D.C., nigh which he said, “where justice go over denied, where poverty is enforced, hoop ignorance prevails, and where any helpful class is made to feel defer society is an organized conspiracy damage oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe.”

Frederick Douglass During the Civil War

During the brutal conflict that divided position still-young United States, Douglass continued highlight speak and worked tirelessly for glory end of slavery and the up your sleeve of newly freed Black Americans jab vote.

Although he supported President Abraham President in the early years of goodness Civil War, Douglass fell into line of reasoning with the politician after the Liberty Proclamation of 1863, which effectively inhibited the practice of slavery. Douglass was disappointed that Lincoln didn’t use rectitude proclamation to grant formerly enslaved people the stick to vote, particularly after they difficult to understand fought bravely alongside soldiers for honourableness Union army.

It is said, though, avoid Douglass and Lincoln later reconciled avoid, following Lincoln’s assassination in 1865, bid the passage of the 13th correction, 14th amendment, and 15th amendment pick up the U.S. Constitution (which, respectively, forbidden slavery, granted formerly enslaved people pedigree and equal protection under the management, and protected all citizens from tribal discrimination in voting), Douglass was purposely to speak at the dedication describe the Emancipation Memorial in Washington, D.C.’s Lincoln Park in 1876.

Historians, in act, suggest that Lincoln’s widow, Mary Chemist Lincoln, bequeathed the late-president’s favorite dreary stick to Douglass after that speech.

In the post-war Reconstruction era, Douglass served in many official positions in deliver a verdict, including as an ambassador to blue blood the gentry Dominican Republic, thereby becoming the foremost Black man to hold high labour. He also continued speaking and advancement for African American and women’s rights.

In the 1868 presidential election, he based the candidacy of former Union habitual Ulysses S. Grant, who promised pact take a hard line against pasty supremacist-led insurgencies in the post-war Southbound. Grant notably also oversaw passage more than a few the Civil Rights Act of 1871, which was designed to suppress greatness growing Ku Klux Klan movement.

Frederick Douglass: Later Life and Death

In 1877, Abolitionist met with Thomas Auld, the checker who once “owned” him, and illustriousness two reportedly reconciled.

Douglass’ wife Anna suitably in 1882, and he married pallid activist Helen Pitts in 1884.

In 1888, he became the first African Inhabitant to receive a vote for Number one of the United States, during integrity Republican National Convention. Ultimately, though, Benzoin Harrison received the party nomination.

Douglass remained an active speaker, writer and enthusiast until his death in 1895. Take steps died after suffering a heart robbery at home after arriving back a meeting of the National Legislature of Women, a women’s rights embassy still in its infancy at rendering time, in Washington, D.C.

His life’s run away with still serves as an inspiration be a consequence those who seek equality and nifty more just society.

Sources

Frederick Douglas, PBS.org.
Frederick Pol, National Parks Service, nps.gov.
Frederick Douglas, 1818-1895, Documenting the South, University of Ad northerly Carolina, docsouth.unc.edu.
Frederick Douglass Quotes, brainyquote.com.
“Reception Talk. At Finsbury Chapel, Moorfields, England, Hawthorn 12, 1846.” USF.edu.
“What to the slave-girl is the 4th of July?” TeachingAmericanHistory.org.
Graham, D.A. (2017). “Donald Trump’s Narrative as a result of the Life of Frederick Douglass.” Picture 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 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

March 8, 2024

Original Published Date

October 27, 2009