Book/Printed Material Narrative of Sojourner Truth; a bondswoman of olden time, emancipated by the New York Legislature in the early part of the present century; with a history of her labors and correspondence drawn from her "Book of life." Sojourner Truth's narrative and Book of life
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About this Item
Title
Narrative of Sojourner Truth; a bondswoman of olden time, emancipated by the New York Legislature in the early part of the present century; with a history of her labors and correspondence drawn from her "Book of life."
Other Title
Sojourner Truth's narrative and Book of life
Summary
Sojourner Truth (1795-1883) was originally a Dutch-speaking slave in Hurley, New York (Ulster County) who became one of the nineteenth century's most eloquent voices for the causes of anti-slavery and women's rights. This work includes several important texts about her life, beginning with a dictated autobiography. In it, she tells of her early life in slavery and how she did not officially achieve freedom until 1827, under New York State's Anti- Slavery Act. The children she bore as a slave were taken from her, and it was her successful efforts to reclaim her son, Peter, who had been illegally sold out of state, that brought her into contact with anti-slavery advocates. Moving to New York City, she became involved in Evangelical religious and moral reform activities and began preaching at camp-meetings around the city. By 1832, she had come under the influence of the self-styled utopian prophet, Matthias, whom she helped to support with her savings and labor. In 1843, after Matthias's experimental community had failed, Truth left New York and traveled through Long Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts, singing and speaking out about public and religious issues. She lived for a time at the utopian Northampton Association of Education and Industry in Florence, Massachusetts, and after it disbanded in 1846, she dictated this account of her life's story to help purchase a home there. The narrative ends with her 1849 visit to New York to see her daughter and John Dumont, her former master, who finally acknowledges the evils of slavery. The Book of Life amplifies Truth's story with materials emphasizing her anti-slavery and women's-rights activism. Around 1857, she moved to Battle Creek, Michigan, though after the Emancipation Proclamation (1863), she worked in Washington as a counselor and educator for former slaves through the Freedman's Relief Association and the Freedmen's Hospital. She also crusaded for equal treatment for black and white passengers on local street cars. In 1874, she returned to Battle Creek to nurse an ill grandson, and after his death a year later, her own health irreversibly declined. Her famous "Ain't I a Woman?" speech, addressed to the Woman's Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio, in 1851, is also included here in a transcription by Mrs. Frances D. Gage.
Names
Gilbert, Olive
Titus, Frances W.
Anthony, Susan B. (Susan Brownell), 1820-1906, inscriber
Susan B. Anthony Collection (Library of Congress)
Created / Published
Battle Creek, Mich., Published for the Author, 1878.
Headings
- Truth, Sojourner,--1799-1883
Notes
- Inscribed: This most wonderful woman--born in New York--40 years a slave there--and the remainder of her 50 and more years in freedom--had she been educated--no woman could have matched her. Susan B. Anthony, 17 Madison st., Rochester, N.Y. Jan. 1. 1903.
- Also available in digital form.
- LAC ael 2019-04-11 no edits (1 card)
- LAC knj 2022-06-25 no edits (1 card)
- LAC knj 2022-07-20 update (1 card)
Medium
xii, 13-320 p. front. (port.) illus. 20 cm.
Call Number/Physical Location
E185.97 .T875
E185.97 .T875 Ms. note by Susan B. Anthony on half-title.
Library of Congress Control Number
29025244
Online Format
online text
image
pdf
LCCN Permalink
https://lccn.loc.gov/29025244
Additional Metadata Formats
MARCXML Record
MODS Record
Dublin Core Record
IIIF Presentation Manifest
Manifest (JSON/LD)
Part of
Pioneering the Upper Midwest: Books from Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, Ca. 1820 to 1910 (340)
Selected Digitized Books (161,244)
General Collections (215,153)
Library of Congress Online Catalog (1,717,753)
Format
Book/Printed Material
Contributor
Anthony, Susan B. (Susan Brownell)
Gilbert, Olive
Susan B. Anthony Collection (Library of Congress)
Titus, Frances W.
Dates
1878
Language
English
Subject
Truth, Sojourner
Featured in
Ain’t I a Woman? A Suffrage Story for Black History Month
Sojourner Truth’s Most Famous Speech
African American Women Authors of the Civil War Era: A Resource Guide
Rights & Access
The Library of Congress is not aware of any U.S. copyright protection (see Title 17, U.S.C.) or any other restrictions in the materials in the Pioneering the Upper Midwest: Books from Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, ca. 1820-1910 materials. The Library of Congress is providing access to these materials for educational and research purposes. The written permission of the copyright owners and/or other rights holders (such as publicity and/or privacy rights) is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use of protected items beyond that allowed by fair use or other statutory exemptions. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item.
Credit Line: Library of Congress, General Collections and Rare Book and Special Collections Division.
Further copyright information is also available at American Memory and Copyright.
Cite This Item
Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.
Chicago citation style:
Gilbert, Olive, Frances W Titus, Susan B Anthony, and Susan B. Anthony Collection. Narrative of Sojourner Truth; a bondswoman of olden time,emancipated by the New York Legislature in the early part of the present century; with a history of her labors and correspondence drawn from her "Book of life.". Battle Creek, Mich., Published for the Author, 1878. Pdf. https://www.loc.gov/item/29025244/.
APA citation style:
Gilbert, O., Titus, F. W., Anthony, S. B. & Susan B. Anthony Collection. (1878) Narrative of Sojourner Truth; a bondswoman of olden time,emancipated by the New York Legislature in the early part of the present century; with a history of her labors and correspondence drawn from her "Book of life.". Battle Creek, Mich., Published for the Author. [Pdf] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/29025244/.
MLA citation style:
Gilbert, Olive, et al. Narrative of Sojourner Truth; a bondswoman of olden time,emancipated by the New York Legislature in the early part of the present century; with a history of her labors and correspondence drawn from her "Book of life.". Battle Creek, Mich., Published for the Author, 1878. Pdf. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/29025244/>.
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