Douglass, Frederick, 1818-1895

Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey was born into slavery on the Eastern Shore of Maryland in 1818. He barely knew his mother, who lived on a different plantation and died when he was a young child and never discovered the identity of his father. When he turned eight years old, his slaveowner hired him out to work as a body servant in Baltimore. At an early age, Frederick realized there was a connection between literacy and freedom. Not allowed to attend school, he taught himself to read and write in the streets of Baltimore.

When Frederick was fifteen, his slaveowner sent him back to the Eastern Shore to labor as a fieldhand. Frederick rebelled intensely. He educated other slaves, physically fought back against a "slave-breaker," and plotted an unsuccessful escape. Frustrated, his slaveowner returned him to Baltimore. This time, Frederick met a young free black woman named Anna Murray, who agreed to help him escape.

On September 3, 1838, he disguised himself as a sailor and boarded a northbound train, using money from Anna to pay for his ticket. In less than 24 hours, Frederick arrived in New York City and declared himself free; he had successfully escaped from slavery.

After escaping from slavery, Frederick married Anna. They settled in New Bedford, Massachusetts. There, they adopted the last name "Douglass" and started their family, which would eventually grow to include five children: Rosetta, Lewis, Frederick, Charles, and Annie. After finding employment as a laborer, Douglass began to attend abolitionist meetings and speak about his experiences in slavery. He soon gained a reputation as an orator, landing a job as an agent for the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society. The job took him on speaking tours across the North and Midwest.

After relocating to Rochester, New York, Rochester, Douglass took his work in new directions. He embraced the women's rights movement, helped people on the Underground Railroad, and supported anti-slavery political parties. Douglass bought a printing press and ran his own newspaper, The North Star.

Frederick Douglass worked tirelessly to make sure that emancipation would be one of the Civil War's outcomes. He recruited African-American men to fight in the U.S. Army, including two of his own sons, who served in the famous 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. When black troops protested they were not receiving pay and treatment equal to that of white troops, Douglass met with President Abraham Lincoln to advocate on their behalf.

In 1872, the Douglasses moved to Washington, D.C. A widely known public figure by the time of Reconstruction, Douglass started to hold prestigious offices, including assistant secretary of the Santo Domingo Commission, legislative council member of the D.C. Territorial Government, board member of Howard University, and president of the Freedman's Bank. After the fall of Reconstruction, Frederick Douglass managed to retain high-ranking federal appointments. He served under five presidents as U.S. Marshal for D.C. (1877-1881), Recorder of Deeds for D.C. (1881-1886), and Minister Resident and Consul General to Haiti (1889-1891). Significantly, he held these positions at a time when violence and fraud severely restricted African-American political activism. On top of his federal work, Douglass kept a vigorous speaking tour schedule. His speeches continued to agitate for racial equality and women's rights. In 1881, Douglass published his third autobiography, Life and Times of Frederick Douglass, which took a long view of his life's work, the nation's progress, and the work left to do.

On February 20, 1895, Douglass attended a meeting for the National Council of Women. When he returned home he suffered a heart attack and passed away. Douglass was 77.