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Black Abolitionist Archive
J. W. C. Pennington
Colored American - February 9, 1839
Elevator - June 16, 1865
James W. C. Pennington
Elevator - June 23, 1865
William C. Nell
Henry Highland Garnet
Frederick Douglass' Paper - December 15, 1854
Colored American - October 9, 1841
James McCune Smith
Provincial Freeman - November 18, 1854
Colored American - October 7, 1837
Voice of the Fugitive - February 12, 1852
William C. Nell
Weekly Anglo-African - December 14, 1861
Colored Citizen - November 7, 1863
Colored American - October 2, 1841
Pacific Appeal - May 10, 1862

From the 1820s to the Civil War, African Americans assumed prominent roles in the transatlantic struggle to abolish slavery. In contrast to the popular belief that the abolitionist crusade was driven by wealthy whites, some 300 black abolitionists were regularly involved in the antislavery movement, heightening its credibility and broadening its agenda. The Black Abolitionist Digital Archive is a collection of over 800 speeches by antebellum blacks and approximately 1,000 editorials from the period. These important documents provide a portrait of black involvement in the anti-slavery movement; scans of these documents are provided as images and PDF files.For assistance with this collection, please contact the the University Archivist, Mara Powell at 313-993-1950 or the library reference desk at 313-993-1071. You may also email the reference desk for assistance at edesk@udmercy.edu.

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