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Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, later known as Frederick Douglass, was a slave from Talbot County, Maryland. When he was only an infant, he was separated from his mother, and she subsequently died when he was about seven years old. He then lived with his grandmother, Betty Bailey.
Who his father is remains unclear. Douglass had stated that his father was a white man, possibly his owner, Aaron Anthony, but later he stated that he did not know his father's identity. At the age of seven, Douglass was separated from his grandmother and was moved to where Aaron Anthony worked as an overseer at the Wye House Plantation. When Anthony passed away, he was given to Lucretia Auld, who was the wife of Thomas Auld. He was sent to live with Thomas's brother in Baltimore, named Hugh Auld.
At about the age of twelve, Sophia Auld, Hugh's wife, began teaching Frederick the alphabet. This was against the law, and when her husband realized it, he forbade it. Douglass began to read political materials and newspapers, and through this reading, he was able to learn other points of view, including those against slavery. Douglass was hired to a Mr. Freeman. There Douglass shared his knowledge of how to read with other slaves on Sundays of each week. For around six months, their study of reading was fairly unnoticed. This was discovered by other slave owners who burst into their gathering to put an end to the studies.
In 1833, Thomas Auld took Douglass back and sent him to work for Edward Covey, who was a poor farmer who had a reputation for his ability to break slaves. Douglass was whipped on a regular basis. At one point Douglass fought back, and after losing the confrontation, Covey never beat him again.
Douglass's first escape attempt was from Mr. Freeman, but he was unsuccessful. He also attempted to escape from Edward Covey, but again was unsuccessful. On September 3, 1838, Frederick Douglass escaped successfully by getting on a train to Havre de Grace, Maryland, wearing a sailor's uniform and carrying identification papers that had been given to him by a free black seaman. He was able to cross the Susquehanna River by means of a ferry, take a train to Wilmington, Delaware, and then go by a steamboat to Philadelphia. Pennsylvania. He eventually reached New York. His entire successful journey took less than 24 hours.
Frederick Douglass met William Lloyd Garrison, the creator of the weekly abolitionist journal, The Liberator. Douglass began attending meetings and was asked to speak. He told his story. After that, Douglass began giving speeches. Douglass is also well known for his autobiography, published in 1845. It is called, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave. His book became a bestseller. It had been reprinted nine different times and there were 11,000 copies going around the United States. It was also published in Europe and translated into Dutch and French. Because of the book's popularity, friends of Douglass were concerned that his old owner, Hugh Auld, might try to take Douglass back, so they encouraged Douglass to go to Europe. Douglass went to Ireland just at the beginning of the Irish Potato Famine. During his lifetime, Frederick Douglass wrote three versions of his autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, My Bondage and My Freedom, and Life and Times of Frederick Douglass.
Douglass spent two years in Ireland and Great Britain. Here he gave lectures. It was during this time that Douglass officially became free, as British sympathizers collected the money necessary to buy his freedom. Following his return to the United States, he produced some abolitionist papers, and the best known was The North Star. Driving Frederick Douglass was the belief that education was necessary for African Americans to improve their lives. He even advocated desegregation of schools. Douglass spoke to President Abraham Lincoln about the treatment of black soldiers in 1863, and to President Andrew Johnson about black suffrage.
Frederick Douglass spent his life working for human rights. He was an abolitionist, women's suffragist, speaker, editor, author, reformer, and statesmen. He is a prominent figure in United States history and African American history. He believed that all people were equal, regardless of color, sex, or immigration status.
In 1837, Douglas met Anna Murray, a free Black woman in Baltimore. Later they were married. Together they had five children: Charles Remond Douglass, Rosetta Douglass, Lewis Henry Douglass, Frederick Douglass Jr., and Annie Douglass. In 1884, Frederick Douglass married Helen Pitts, who was a white feminist from Honeoye, New York. Her father was a colleague and abolitionist friend of Frederick Douglass. Helen was a graduate of Mount Holyoke College. Their marriage caused much controversy, as they were an interracial couple and she was 20 years younger than he was. Her family stopped communicating with her, and his children felt that the marriage was a repudiation of their mother.
On February 20, 1895, Frederick Douglass died of a stroke or a massive heart attack. He was buried in Rochester, New York in Mount Hope Cemetery. Frederick Douglass can today be remembered as a man of incredible courage, intelligence, and for his progressive views.
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this guy got some skills and is very brave