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Born in Philadelphia to free Black parents.
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Attends a Quaker school but leaves after his father dies in 1779.
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Joins the Revolutionary War as a powder boy, gets captured, and is imprisoned for seven months.
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Starts a sailmaking apprenticeship under Robert Bridges.
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Takes over Bridges' sailmaking business, later becoming one of Philadelphia's most successful Black businessmen.
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Hires Black and white workers, promoting racial integration.
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Becomes an abolitionist, speaking against slavery and racial injustice.
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Fights for Black voting rights and opposes laws restricting free African Americans. Helps establish the American Anti-Slavery Society.
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Funds The Liberator, joins the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society, and continues activism.
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Passes away, leaving a legacy of business success and abolitionist leadership.