People, Locations, Episodes

Fanny Kemble, Actress, and Abolitionist Writer born

Frances “Fanny” Kemble was born on this date in 1809. She was a White British actress, author, and abolitionist.

Frances Anne Kemble was a member of the famous Kemble theatrical family, and the oldest daughter of actor Charles Kemble and his actress wife Maria Theresa De Camp, and the niece of noted tragedienne Sarah Siddons. Fanny was born in London, and educated chiefly in France.

Armand Lanusse, Poet, and Educator born

*The birth of Armand Lanusse is celebrated on this date in 1810.  He was a Creole educator and poet.  He was born in New Orleans as a free man of color. He lived his entire life in that city.  Due to majority-European ancestry, Lanusse could have passed as white, but he embraced his Black ancestry. […]

Horace Greeley, Journalist, and Abolitionist born

*Horace Greeley was born on this date in 1811. He was a White American journalist and abolitionist.

From in Amherst, New Hampshire, he trained as a printer moving to New York City where he became a journalist. Greeley worked for the New Yorker and in 1841 established the New York Tribune, a newspaper he edited for over thirty years. Greeley took a strong moral tone in his newspaper and campaigned against alcohol, tobacco, gambling, prostitution and capital punishment. However, Greeley’s main concern was the abolition of slavery.

Harriet Jacobs, Author, and Abolitionist born

*This date celebrates the birth of Harriet Jacobs in 1813. She was an Black abolitionist and author.

Sarah Forten Purvis, Poet born

*This date in 1814 is celebrated as the birth date of Sarah Forten Purvis, a Black poet and abolitionist. Sarah Louisa Forten was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, one of the “Forten Sisters,” which included Harriet and Margaretta. Her mother was Charlotte Vandine Forten, and her father was the Black abolitionist James Forten. Her sisters were Harriet Forten Purvis and […]

Henry Bibb, Author, and Emigration Advocate born

This date marks the birth of Henry Bibb in 1815. He was a Black author, editor, abolitionist, and advocate of emigration from the United States.

Elizabeth Keckley, Author, and Abolitionist born

On this date we remember the birth of Elizabeth Keckley in 1818. She was a Black domestic, author, and abolitionist.

Ann Plato, Author, and Educator born

*The birth of Ann Plato around 1820 is celebrated on this date. She was a nineteenth century Black educator and author.

Plato was born in Hartford, Connecticut. Like many Blacks that lived in America during this time, there is very little information recorded about her. Most of what is known about Plato comes from the introduction in her book that was written by Reverend W.C. Pennington, pastor of the Colored Congregational Church of Hartford, who also called her “Platoess”.

James Whitfield, Poet born

*James Whitfield was born on this date in 1822. He was a Black poet, abolitionist, and political activist.   James Monroe Whitfield was born in Exeter, New Hampshire, to Nancy (Paul) of Exeter and Joseph Whitfield, who escaped enslavement in Virginia. Through his mother, he was the nephew of Rev. Thomas Paul of the African Meeting House in Boston and Jude Hall, a veteran of […]

Alexandre Dumas Fils, Playwright born.

*Alexandre Dumas fils was born on this date in 1824. He was a Black French author and playwright. Dumas fils was born in Paris, France, the illegitimate quarteron child of Marie-Laure-Catherine Labay, a dressmaker, and novelist Alexandre Dumas. In 1831, his father legally recognized him and ensured that the young Dumas received the best education possible at the Goubaux Institution and […]

Harriet Wilson, Author born

*Harriet Wilson was born on this date in1825. She was a Black slave and author.

Frances E. Watkins Harper, Poet, and Abolitionist born

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper was born on this date in 1825. She was a Black poet, writer, and lecturer, as well as an anti-slavery, women’s rights, and temperance activist.

Harper was from Baltimore, MD., where she attended Baltimore’s Academy for Negro Youth school. There she studied Greek, Latin, and the Bible. Writing poetry as a teenager, she started her career as a writer in 1845 by publishing the poetry collection, “Forest Leaves.”

Maria Firmina dos Reis, Writer born

*Maria Firmina dos Reis was born on this date in 1825.  She was an Afro Brazilian teacher, author, and abolitionist.    Maria Firmina dos Reis was born in São Luís, Maranhão, Brazil. “At age five, her mother and relatives moved to Viamão, where she attended school. In 1847, due to outstanding performance, she won a […]

James M. Bell, Poet, and Abolitionist born

*On this date in 1826 James Bell was born. He was a Black poet, laborer and abolitionist.

Frank Webb, Author, and Poet born

*Frank Webb was born on this date in 1828. He was a Black novelist, poet, and essayist. Francis Johnson Webb was born in Philadelphia. He was the fifth and youngest child of Francis Webb and Louisa Burr Webb. Webb had one brother, John, and three sisters, Elizabeth, Ann, and Mary. His parents and older siblings […]