Speech Time Frame: 1801-1860
(1811) John Gloucester, “Dedication of the First African Presbyterian Church of Philadelphia”
In October of 1811, before the dedication of the first house of worship for African American Presbyterians in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,...
(1857) Abraham Lincoln, “The Dred Scott Decision and Slavery”
The Dred Scott Decision handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court on March 6, 1857 was supposed to end the...
(1860) Frederick Douglass, “The Constitution of the United States: Is It Pro-Slavery or Anti-slavery?”
In a speech before the Scottish Anti-Slavery Society in Glasgow, Scotland on March 26, 1860, Frederick Douglass outlines his views...
(1841) Frederick Douglass, “The Church and Prejudice”
Image Ownership: Public Domain Frederick Douglass would eventually become one of the most skilled and powerful orators of his day. ...
(1858) Abraham Lincoln, “A House Divided”
On June 16, 1858, only three hours after the Illinois Republican Party nominated him as its candidate for the United...
(1833) Maria W. Stewart, “An Address at the African Masonic Hall”
On February 27, 1833 Maria W. Stewart gave this speech before a racially integrated audience at the African Masonic Hall...
(1849) Charles Sumner, “Equality Before the Law: Unconstitutionality of Separate Colored Schools in Massachusetts”
In 1848 Benjamin Roberts filed a lawsuit against the city of Boston on behalf of his five year old daughter,...
(1859) William Lloyd Garrison, “On the Death of John Brown”
On December 2, 1859, John Brown was executed by Virginia authorities in Charles Town for his ill-fated raid on the...
(1860) Elizabeth Cady Stanton, “A Slave’s Appeal”
In an address to the Judiciary Committee of the State Legislature of New York, Elizabeth Cady Stanton compares the condition...
