when was slavery first abolished in the us
President Abraham Lincoln - Slavery Abolished: On September 22, 1862 President Abraham Lincoln, United States of America, took the first step to abolish slavery Home President Abraham Lincoln - Slavery Abolished On Sept. 22, 1862, United States of America  issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring all slaves in rebel states should be free as of Jan. 1, 1863.