Frederick Douglass: A Lifetime Of Achievement

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Fredrick Douglass:
A Lifetime of Achievement


“A new world had opened upon me. Anguish and grief, like darkness and rain, may be depicted, but gladness and joy, like the rainbow, defy the skill of pen and pencil.” These are the words that Frederick Douglass spoke when he gained his freedom. Douglass was born a slave, but died a freeman. He fought all his life to be free and to free others. He not only fought for the rights of slaves, but for the rights of women. Frederick Douglass was one of the most powerful and influential speakers of his time.
Frederick Bailey was born February of 1818 on Holmes Hill Farm. The farm was located near the town of Easton in Maryland. It was owned by Aaron Anthony. Harriet Bailey, Frederick’s mother, worked in the fields surrounding the Holmes Hill Farm. Frederick was not raised by his mother, but by his grandmother until the age of six.
Frederick had begun his life as a slave. He joined his brother and sisters on the Anthony farm. The children were treated like animals. They were fed from a trough and were given only one linen shirt. They were forced to sleep on the floor with no blankets. Frederick soon learned what would happen to the slaves that did not obey orders. He woke one night to screams. He watched as a female slave was whipped.
Frederick was chosen to be the companion of Daniel Lloyd, the youngest son of the plantation owner. In 1826 Lucretia Auld, Aaron Anthony’s daughter, told Frederick that he was being sent to Baltimore. He would be living with Hugh Auld. Frederick’s duties included running errands and caring for the Auld’s son. Sophia Auld taught him the alphabet and had begun to teach him to read when her husband found out. He told her to stop immediately. It was unlawful to teach slaves to read or write.
Frederick realized that by becoming literate he could be on the path to freedom. He practiced the alphabet and secretly read books...