Phillis Wheatley

Phillis Wheatley was born around 1753 in West Africa, likely in the Gambia or Senegambia region. In 1761, at about seven or eight years old, she was kidnapped, forced onto a slave ship called the Phillis, and brought to Boston. She was purchased by John and Susanna Wheatley, who named her after the ship. Their daughter Mary taught Phillis to read and write, and within 16 months she could read difficult passages from the Bible.

Wheatley began writing poetry around age 12. In 1773, her book Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral was published in London - making her the first African American to publish a book of poetry. She was freed around the time of publication. She later wrote a poem to George Washington, who invited her to visit him at his Cambridge headquarters in 1776.

Wheatley married John Peters in 1778 but her later years were marked by poverty. She died on December 5, 1784, at approximately age 31. Despite her short life, she proved that Black people possessed the same intellectual abilities as anyone else. Abolitionists used her work as evidence against slavery.