Frederick Douglass’ exposure to the alphabet opened up a whole new world of possibilities for him. His fascination with reading became his gateway to freedom. He secretly taught himself to read and then bought a copy of the Columbian Orator which sharpened his speech. He also learned about human rights and freedom which caused him to defy his status as a slave. He was mercilessly whipped on numerous occasions for his defiance but his determination to break the bonds of slavery was relentless. After a few failed attempts, Douglass finally escaped to freedom on September 3rd, 1838.
Frederick Douglass later wrote of his arrival in New York: I have often been asked, how I felt when first I found myself on free soil. And my readers may share the same curiosity. There is scarcely anything in my experience about which I could not give a more satisfactory answer. A new world had opened upon me. If life is more than breath, and the 'quick round of blood,' I lived more in one day than in a year of my slave life. It was a time of joyous excitement which words can but tamely describe. In a letter written to a friend soon after reaching New York, I said: 'I felt as one might feel upon escape from a den of hungry lions.' Anguish and grief, like darkness and rain, may be depicted; but gladness and joy, like the rainbow, defy the skill of pen or pencil. - Frederick Douglass
Douglass's Gateway to Knowledge
The Columbian Orator -
At about the age of twelve or thirteen Douglass purchased a copy of The Columbian Orator, a popular schoolbook of the time, which helped him to gain an understanding and appreciation of the power of the spoken and the written word, as two of the most effective means by which to bring about permanent, positive change.
Douglass's Escape from Slavery
A seaman's protection certificate from 1854
On September 3, 1838, Douglass successfully escaped by boarding a train to Havre de Grace, Maryland. He was dressed in a sailor's uniform and carried a Seaman's Protection Certificate, which proved that a sailor was a citizen of the U.S. He crossed the Susquehanna River by ferry at Havre de Grace, then continued by train to Wilmington, Delaware. From there he went by steamboat to "Quaker City" — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — and eventually reached New York; the whole journey took less than 24 hours. Along with the other black passengers, Douglass had to show his identification along with his ticket. Douglass described his nervousness when the conductor came by to collect tickets and look over papers: "My whole future depended upon the decision of this conductor." Source: americaslibrary.gov
Bill of Sale for Frederick Douglass - November 30, 1846
Bill of Sale for Frederick Douglass
Written in ink by Thomas Auld to Hugh Auld of Baltimore in the sale of a negro man named Frederick Baily alias Douglas (sic) for $100. Mary Richardson, a Quaker and the wife of Henry Richardson of Newcastle-upon-tyne, England, wrote to Hugh Auld asking him whether Douglass's freedom had a price. Hugh Auld replied in October of 1846 that he would manumit Douglass for £150 sterling. Anna Richardson and her sister-in-law, Ellen Richardson, took steps to raise the purchase money and made arrangements with american abolitionist, Ellis Gray Loring of Boston to handle the details of the negotiation. On November 24, 1846, Walter Lowrie of New York City, an abolitionist, also carried out the negotiations and notified Hugh Auld that the £150 had arrived in New York and directed him to produce proof of legal ownership of Douglass. Less than a week later Thomas Auld filed a bill of sale (FRDO 3861) in Talbot County signifying the transfer of Douglass to Hugh Auld, and on December 5, 1846, Hugh Auld filed Douglass's manumission papers in Baltimore county. One week later the transaction was consummated, Hugh Auld handed over the papers to Lowrie a copy of the bill of sale from Thomas Auld, a deed of manumission for Douglass and a receipt showing he had received $711.66 for Douglass's freedom. All of these papers were placed in Douglass's hands shortly afterwards. Source: nps.gov
Letter from the Department of the Interior - August 10, 1863
Letter giving Douglass the rights of a free man
This letter from the Department of the Interior granted Frederick Douglass the rights of a free man. Four signatures at bottom with Abraham Lincoln's on left (dated). (Frederick Douglass National Historic Site, FRDO 3863) Source: nps.gov