Letter written by John Brown and Frederick Douglass to Brown's wife and children
date: label: Date
content: January 30, 1858
name: label: Written by
content: Frederick Douglass, American, 1818 - 1895
label: Written by
content: John Brown, American, 1800 - 1859
label: Received by
content: Mary Ann Brown, American, 1817 - 1884
notes: label: Description
content: A letter written by John Brown and Frederick Douglass from Rochester, New York, on January 30, 1858, to Brown's wife and children. The letter is handwritten in black ink on the front and back sides of a single sheet of paper. The letter is first written by Brown, who does not sign his portion beyond "Your Affectionate Husband and Father." Brown writes of missing his wife and children very much, but of not being able to visit them. He also asks his daughter Ruth about her husband, Henry Thompson, becoming involved in Brown's "school," coded language for Brown's militant abolitionist dealings. He further speaks of recruiting his sons for his work and requests that the family write to him under the name "N. Hawkins: Care of Fred'k Douglas [sic] Esq'r Rochester N[.] Y." Douglass writes on the lower half of the verso page with his words oriented three different directions to fit the page. He speaks of his friendship with the Brown family and invites any of them to his home, where John Brown is staying, signing as "Fred. Douglass."
label: Transcription Center Status
content: Transcribed by digital volunteers
place: label: Place made
content: Rochester, Monroe County, New York, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Antislavery
label: Topic
content: Correspondence
label: Topic
content: Domestic life
label: Topic
content: Fatherhood
label: Topic
content: Government
label: Topic
content: Resistance
label: Topic
content: Slavery
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Slavery and Freedom Objects
label: Classification
content: Documents and Manuscripts
label: Movement
content: Abolitionist movement
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2009.26.3
objectType: label: Type
content: letters (correspondence)
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Public Domain
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: ink on paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 9 7/8 x 7 7/8 in. (25.1 x 20 cm)