Douglassescaped from slavery to New York City in 1838, later settling in New Bedford, Massachusetts. At an 1841 antislavery convention, he was asked to recount his experiences. He so moved the audience that he became an agent for the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society. His first of three autobiographies,Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Written by Himself (1845) catapulted him to fame and cemented his place as anabolitionist leader.

During theAmerican Civil War, Douglass played a key role in persuading Lincoln to arm enslaved people and prioritize abolition. DuringReconstruction, he became the highest-ranking Black official of his time and advocated for full civil rights for Black people and for women. In 1877 he was appointed the first Black U.S. marshal by Pres. Rutherford B. Hayes, and in 1881 Pres. James Garfield appointed him the recorder of deeds for theDistrict of Columbia.