Frances Harper

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (24 September, 1825 - 22 February, 1911) born to free parents in Baltimore, Maryland, was an African-American abolitionist and poet.

Her mother died three years later and she was looked after by relatives. She was educated at a school run by her uncle, Rev. William Watkins until the age of thirteen when she found work as a seamstress.

Her first volume of verse, Forest Leaves , was published in 1845, the book was extremely popular and over the next few years went through 20 editions. In 1850, she started working in Columbus, Ohio as a schoolteacher. Three years later in 1853, she joined the American Anti-Slavery Society and became a travelling lecturer for the group. She was also a strong supporter of prohibition and woman's suffrage. She often read her poetry at these public meetings, including the extremely popular Bury Me in a Free Land .

In 1892, she published a novel about a rescued black slave and the Reconstructed South, called Iola Leroy , which was the first book published by an African-American. Later, she also wrote Minnie's Sacrifice , Sowing and Reaping and Trial and Triumph .

Harper was a strong supporter of women's suffrage and was a member of the American Woman Suffrage Association (AWSA).