Anti-Slavery Collection: Primary Source Materials at the BPL

This guide provides researchers and students with access to resources related to the American Anti-Slavery movement of the 19th century in New England.

Primary Source Collections Related to Anti-Slavery at the BPL

The Boston Public Library's Anti-Slavery collection contains approximately 40,000 pieces of correspondence as well as newspapers and broadsides, photographs, pamphlets, books, and realia. The major holdings consist of the personal papers of abolitionists William Lloyd Garrison, Maria Weston Chapman and her sisters, Wendell Phillips, John Brown, Lydia Maria Child, Amos Augustus Phelps, and Samuel May Jr. The collection also includes organizational documents and records of the American, Massachusetts, New England, and Female Anti-Slavery Societies.

Most content is available via Digital Commonwealth and the Internet Archive. Physical materials are held primarily by the Rare Books & Manuscripts Department (some prints and photographs are housed in the Print Department). For contact information, please refer to the Collection Overview tab.

Manuscripts & Correspondence

Anti-Slavery Letters/Correspondence
Search/browse across the digitized collection of more than 12,000 letters and documents related to the American anti-slavery movement held by the BPL. Major figures include William Lloyd Garrison, Frederick Douglass, Wendell Phillips, Lydia Maria Child, and many others. Please note that materials continue to be digitized and uploaded.
John Brown's Correspondence
Correspondence relating to the abolitionist John Brown (1800-1859), who led the unsuccessful armed slave rebellion at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. Brown was convicted of treason and murder and was hanged on December 2, 1859. Most material dates between 1858 and 1860. Letters concern fundraising, preparations for the uprising; the aftermath of the failed raid, and the trial. Correspondents include Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Franklin Benjamin Sanborn,
John Brown's Day Book (volume 1)
Handwritten diary relating to management of Brown's farm, Portage Co., Ohio, 1838-1845.
John Brown's Day Book (volume 2)
Handwritten chronology of correspondence with abolitionists and records of the Free State Regular Volunteers of Kansas; 1855-1859.
The Weston Sisters Correspondence
The five Weston sisters of Weymouth, Massachusetts, were leading advocates for abolition and important contributors to multiple anti-slavery organizations throughout New England. This collection of more than 3,000 letters were penned by Maria Weston Chapman and her sisters Deborah, Anne, Caroline, and Lucia about their activism and home lives.
William Lloyd Garrison Correspondence
Over 4,500 letters and documents written to, by, and about abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison. This material was a gift of the family to the BPL in the 1890s.
Ziba B. Oakes Papers
The letters in this collection document the business dealings of Ziba B. Oakes, a broker of enslaved persons who lived in Charleston, South Carolina. Oakes's real estate business and other financial matters are also documented. This collection was presented to the BPL by the family of William Lloyd Garrison.

Visual & Printed Materials

Abolitionist Portraits
Photographs of prominent abolitionists including William Lloyd Garrison, Wendell Phillips, Charles Lenox Remond, and Maria Weston Chapman.
Anti-Slavery Books and Pamphlets
Books, pamphlets, and other printed material related to the anti-slavery movement. Some volumes come from the personal libraries of William Lloyd Garrison and Theodore Parker. Digitized by the Internet Archive: full-text, searchable, and downloadable.
Anti-Slavery Broadsides
Single-sheet notices and posters featuring slogans or promotional information about meetings and rallies in support of the anti-slavery movement in New England.
The Liberator
The BPL's collection includes a full run of William Lloyd Garrison’s The Liberator, a weekly newspaper that was published continuously from 1831 to 1866. This newspaper was the official publication of the abolitionist movement. The full run of the paper has been conserved and digitized with the support of the Associates of the Boston Public Library.

Finding Aids and Pathfinders

A variety of legacy finding aids and paper pathfinders exist for this collection. Not all material has been electronically cataloged or digitized; some items are documented via physical catalog cards. Contact the Rare Books & Manuscripts Department for more information.

Ziba B. Oakes Papers (Electronic Finding Aid)
The 650+ letters in this collection document the business of Ziba B. Oakes, a broker of enslaved persons, who lived in Charleston, South Carolina. A link to the digitized letters is available in the "Manuscripts and Correspondence" section above.
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The Ziba Oakes papers were found in Charleston, South Carolina, on February 20, 1865 by James Redpath. In April 1865, Redpath presented them to William Lloyd Garrison. The collection was donated to the Boston Public Library on November 11, 1891 by Francis Gardner Garrison.

Finding Aid: Anti-Slavery Collections by Type
This copy of a paper finding aid includes major groupings of Anti-Slavery material organized by type. Major groupings include correspondence, societies, slave trade, publications, manuscripts, scrapbooks, and other miscellaneous items. Call number ranges for the various areas are identified.
Finding Aid: Anti-Slavery Collections by Volume
The Anti-Slavery collection was originally organized and bound into volumes, primarily by correspondent. This legacy finding aid outlines the organization scheme and classification system (which is still used for individually foldered letters).