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Sojourner Truth is born.
Sojourner Truth (originial name was Isabelle Baumfree) was born into slavery in New York, estimated around 1797. Her birthdate is unknown, which is common for a child born into slavery. Her parents were James and Elizabeth Baumfree were both slaves as well, and she was 1 of 12 children. Her family was owned by Colonial Hardenbergh. After he died, the family was passed onto his son, Charles, where he separated the family. -
Sojourner Truth is sold 3 times to 3 different slave owners.
At age 9 Sojourner was sold to a slave owner name John Neely. Sojourner worked as a family cook for John Neely, but was then sold to another owner-a man named Martin Schryver in 1808. She worked in the fields. Then, in 1810 Schryver sold Sojourner to a slave owner named John Dumont. Sojourner had 5 five children there, but in 1826, she escapes to freedom with only Sophia (because the other had to work until they were 20.) -
Law passed to emancipate slaves born after 1799
On July 4th, 1827, New York state emancipates (sets free) slaves born after 1799, so in between 1827-1828, Sojourner sued to retrieve her son Peter, who had been sold illegally in Alabama. She with the help of a lawyer became the first black woman to take a white man to court and win. After, Sojourner moved to New York City with Peter, where they met Elijah Pierson and Matthias, who claimed to be the Messiah. -
Sojourner went to court for "being an accomplice in a murder"
Matthias and Elijah created a cult called the “kingdom,” which Sojourner stayed out of. But when Matthias got arrested for murdering Pierson, he accused Sojourner of being a part of it. A couple, “the Folgers,” also claimed Sojourner tried to poison them. So Sojourner went to court, again. She was found innocent, and filed a slander against the Folgers. She won, and became the first black person to win a case against a white person. -
¨The ¨spirit calls me, and I must go.¨
In 1843, Sojourner became a Methodist, and on June 1st, changed her name to Sojourner Truth. She told her friends that ¨the spirit calls her, and she must go, ¨ and she leaves to travel and preach about the abolition of slavery. She began attending Millerite Adventist campmeetings, but then left because ¨Jesus failed to appear.¨ She then in 1844, joined the Northampton Association of Education and Industry to support women´s rights, religious tolerance and pacifism. -
Sojourner Truth gets book published
In 1850, she decided to tell a story about her life to a member of a Northampton Association, Olive Gilbert. It was privately published by William Lloyd Garrison. The popularity of Frederick Douglass’ book about his freedom story gave her hope that her book will make money, but she really just wanted to tell the story of a northern slave. She traveled around the northern states selling her book and telling her life story. -
Sojourner´s Ain´t I a Woman¨Speech
After gaining her freedom in 1827, Sojourner became an anti-slavery speaker. She gave her “Ain’t I a Woman” at the Women’s Convention in Akron, Ohio on May 29, 1851. There was no original title. There are many different versions of the speech, but no single, clear, official version. The speech was mainly about rights, demanding equal rights for both all women and all blacks. The speech is still used today as an expression of women’s rights. -
Sojourner helps out in Civil War
During the Civil War in 1864, Sojourner raised food and clothing contributions for black regiments, and recruited soldiers. She met Abraham Lincoln at the White House, trying to challenge discrimination that segregated street cars by race. After the War ended, Sojourner spoke mainly to white audiences on religion, “Negro” and women’s rights, and on temperance. Immediately after the war, though, she tried to organize efforts to provide jobs for the black refugees who are from the war. -
Sojourner was a main speaker at the American Equal Rights Association.
Sojourner spoke to the American Equal Rights Association in 1867. She was one of the main convention speakers. She spokes about the rights of black women and about an issue she felt women ignored, women’s suffrage. Sojourner is one of the biggest feminist leaders and fearlessly spoke about topics besides women’s suffrage, like anti-slavery movements, women’s emancipation, capital punishment, prison reforms, and universal property rights. -
Sojourner Truth Death
Sojourner Truth died on November 26, 1883. She was interviewed several days before she died, but was said she looked “emaciated and was apparently suffering great pain. Her eyes were very bright and mind alert although it was difficult for her to talk.” She died in her home in Battle Creek, Michigan, and was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery. Her legacy still lives on, and she is one of the most popular African-American abolitionists and women’s rights activists.
