A founding member of the American Antislavery Society in 1833, James Forten was one of the leading American abolitionists until to his death in 1842. Born free in Philadelphia in 1766, Forten dedicated his life to black freedom and equality. After joining Revolutionary forces as a teenager, he apprenticed as a sailmaker and eventually took over the business on Philadelphia’s waterfront. He soon became one of the city’s wealthiest businessmen. Forten also joined abolitionist petition drives, helped found free black churches and benevolent societies, and published essays against racial oppression. In the 1830s, the elderly Forten secured financial support for William Lloyd Garrison's radical antislavery newspaper, The Liberator.
Document: Map from Abraham Ritter, "Philadelphia and Her Merchants" (Philadelphia, 1860). Shows the site of Forten’s sail loft business on the Delaware River. CLICK HERE to view record on WolfPAC, the Library Company’s collections catalog.
Document: James Forten to George Thatcher, in John Parrish, “Remarks on the Slavery of the Black People,” pp. 51-52 (Philadelphia, 1806). CLICK HERE to view record on WolfPAC, the Library Company’s collections catalog.
Document: Map from Abraham Ritter, "Philadelphia and Her Merchants" (Philadelphia, 1860). Shows the site of Forten’s sail loft business on the Delaware River. CLICK HERE to view record on WolfPAC, the Library Company’s collections catalog.
Document: James Forten to George Thatcher, in John Parrish, “Remarks on the Slavery of the Black People,” pp. 51-52 (Philadelphia, 1806). CLICK HERE to view record on WolfPAC, the Library Company’s collections catalog.
