Frederick Douglass – ‘the workie ticket’ by David Young

Continuing our theme of North Shields’s links with anti-slavery campaigns, David Young will talk about how Frederick Douglass, born into a life of slavery, later becoming a leading abolitionist, orator, newspaper publisher, and author who was arguably the most important black man in 19th century America, had links to Tyneside, speaking three times at North Shields.

As the 180th anniversary of Douglass’s first visit to North Shields approaches, David will explain how, invited by the North Shields Anti-Slavery Society, he spoke at the Baptist Church, Howard Street, first on 4 August 1846 and then, a second time on 8 September. Fourteen years later, on 22 February 1860 he addressed a meeting at the now demolished Albion Assembly Rooms, Norfolk Street.

Douglass was born into slavery on a Maryland plantation in 1818 and was still the property of another human being on his first visit to the town, even though he had escaped to freedom eight years earlier.

It wasn’t until 12 December 1846 that his freedom was bought by two Newcastle women Anna and Ellen Richardson, a year after the publication of his first of three autobiographies on 1 May 1845.

Douglass was self-educated as slaves were not allowed to be taught to read or write. A member of the underground railway, which helped slaves to escape, he raised two black regiments to fight for the Union cause during the American Civil War. He also held three significant appointments to federal offices after that conflict ended.

David said: “In recent months North Shields people have been proud to celebrate the unveiling of the statue of escaped enslaved woman, Mary Ann Macham. As this talk will show, townspeople engaged in abolitionist campaigns over many years.”

In 2019, David, a former trustee of the Old Low Light, and one of our popular speakers, was part of a team of volunteers who researched and curated an award-winning exhibition ‘Breaking Chains’, North Shields and Slavery. The story of Mary Ann Macham was highlighted in this exhibition.

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