Frederick Douglass
c. 1818–1895 · Escaped from slavery to become a great orator, writer and leader of the abolition movement.
Frederick Douglass was born into slavery on Maryland's Eastern Shore and never knew his exact birthday. As a boy in Baltimore he secretly learned to read, partly by trading bread to white children for lessons. At about sixteen he was sent to a man known for breaking the spirit of enslaved workers, and he fought back. In 1838 he escaped to the North disguised as a sailor, settled in Massachusetts with his wife Anna, and soon became a powerful speaker for the American Anti-Slavery Society. His Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, published in 1845, became a bestseller; to avoid capture he spent nearly two years lecturing in Britain, where supporters bought his freedom. Back in America he published his own newspaper, The North Star, and supported women's rights. During the Civil War he urged Lincoln to let Black men fight and recruited soldiers, including two of his sons. Later he served as U.S. Marshal for Washington, D.C., and as minister to Haiti. He died in 1895.
Frederick Douglass is also an author in the library: author page and works.
Faith: A Christian abolitionist and preacher who joined the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, while condemning slaveholding religion. Source: Wikipedia
Key dates
- c. 1818 Born enslaved in Talbot County, Maryland
- 1838 Escapes to freedom
- 1845 Publishes his Narrative
- 1852 Delivers What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?
- 1889 Named U.S. minister to Haiti
- 1895 Dies in Washington, D.C.
See where they lived
Official museums and historic homes we don’t run. Follow each site’s link for learning resources and current visiting information.
Cedar Hill in Washington, D.C. was Frederick Douglass’s home for his last 17 years. The National Park Service offers classroom resources and a virtual tour of the house.
Frederick Douglass National Historic Site — house and virtual tour
Fun facts
- During a lecture tour abroad he took up the violin, which he played for pleasure for the rest of his life. (Source: Frederick Douglass (Wikipedia))
Record-breaker
Firsts and records, worded as the sources give them ("first known", "at the time").
- In 1872 he became the first African American nominated for vice president of the United States, without his knowledge. (Source: Frederick Douglass (Wikipedia))
Watch
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In their words
“You have seen how a man was made a slave; you shall see how a slave was made a man.”
Read about them
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Grades K–2
- A Picture Book of Frederick Douglass by David A. Adler (Holiday House, 1993; ISBN 9780823412051)
Bookshop.org · Amazon
Grades 3–5
- Who Was Frederick Douglass? by April Jones Prince (Grosset & Dunlap, 2014; ISBN 9780448479118)
Bookshop.org · Amazon
Grades 6–8
- Narrative of the Life and What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July? · In the library
More lives
John Quincy Adams · Jane Addams · Susan B. Anthony · Clara Barton · Frédéric Bastiat · Otto von Bismarck