![Gamaliel Bailey by Brady, 1857](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/Gamaliel_Bailey_by_Brady%2C_1857.jpg)
Gamaliel Bailey (December 3, 1807June 5, 1859) was an American physician who left that career to become an
abolitionist
Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people.
The British ...
journalist, editor, and publisher, working primarily in
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
, and
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
Anti-abolitionist mobs attacked his offices in both cities during the 1840s.
Biography
Born and raised in
Mount Holly Township, New Jersey
Mount Holly is a township that is the county seat of Burlington County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is an eastern suburb of Philadelphia, the nation's sixth largest city as of 2020, As of the 2020 U.S. census, the township's population w ...
, in 1807, Bailey moved with his family to
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
at the age of nine. He was educated at home and in local schools.
Bailey graduated from the
Jefferson Medical College
Thomas Jefferson University is a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Established in its earliest form in 1824, the university officially combined with Philadelphia University in 2017. To signify its heritage, the univer ...
,
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, in 1827. He moved to
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
, where he served as editor of the ''Methodist Protestant'', a religious journal.
In 1831, Bailey moved to
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
, where he set up a medical practice. He also lectured on
physiology
Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical ...
at the
Lane Theological Seminary
Lane Seminary, sometimes called Cincinnati Lane Seminary, and later renamed Lane Theological Seminary, was a Presbyterian theological college that operated from 1829 to 1932 in Walnut Hills, Ohio, today a neighborhood in Cincinnati. Its campus ...
. Attending the
Lane Debates on Slavery
Lane Seminary, sometimes called Cincinnati Lane Seminary, and later renamed Lane Theological Seminary, was a Presbyterian theological college that operated from 1829 to 1932 in Walnut Hills, Ohio, today a neighborhood in Cincinnati. Its campus ...
in February 1834 between pro- and anti-slavery students, he became an ardent abolitionist. The anti-slavery students withdrew from the seminary in protest for its condemnation of
abolitionism
Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people.
The Britis ...
.
In 1836, Bailey joined
James G. Birney in the editorial control of ''
The Philanthropist'', the official newspaper of the
Ohio Anti-Slavery Society The Ohio Anti-Slavery Society (1835-1845) was an abolitionist society established in Zanesville, Ohio, by American activists such as Gamaliel Bailey, Asa Mahan, John Rankin, Charles Finney and Theordore Dwight Weld.
Background Beginning
The O ...
. The following year he succeeded Birney as editor. He directed the paper in publishing anti-slavery articles until 1847, in spite of threats and acts of violence — the printing office of ''The Philanthropist'' was wrecked three times by pro-slavery mobs.
Beginning in 1843, Bailey also edited a daily paper, the ''Herald.'' In 1847, he assumed control of the new abolitionist publication, ''
The National Era
''The National Era'' was an abolitionist newspaper published weekly in Washington, D.C., from 1847 to 1860. Gamaliel Bailey was its editor in its first year. ''The National Era Prospectus'' stated in 1847:
Each number contained four pages of s ...
,'' in Washington, D.C.
His offices were attacked by pro-slavery mobs; in 1848, he and his printers were under siege for three days as a mob held them hostage. This paper had a considerable circulation nationally. In 1851–1852, it published
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Elisabeth Beecher Stowe (; June 14, 1811 – July 1, 1896) was an American author and abolitionist. She came from the religious Beecher family and became best known for her novel ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' (1852), which depicts the harsh ...
's novel, ''
Uncle Tom's Cabin
''Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly'' is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in two volumes in 1852, the novel had a profound effect on attitudes toward African Americans and slavery in the U. ...
,'' in serial form.
In December 1854, Bailey helped to persuade
Montgomery Blair
Montgomery Blair (May 10, 1813 – July 27, 1883) was an American politician and lawyer from Maryland. He served in the Lincoln administration cabinet as Postmaster-General from 1861 to 1864, during the Civil War. He was the son of Francis Presto ...
to represent Dred Scott in his Supreme Court case ''
pro bono
( en, 'for the public good'), usually shortened to , is a Latin phrase for professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment. In the United States, the term typically refers to provision of legal services by legal professionals for pe ...
'', by agreeing to underwrite his expenses.
By May 11, 1857, the Scott case had incurred $63.18 in court costs and $91.50 for the printing of briefs.
Bailey asked the 75 Republican members of Congress to contribute $2.00 each and covered the rest himself.
In 1859, Bailey died at the age of 51 at sea, aboard the steamship ''Arago'', while en route to Europe. His body was originally buried in
Congressional Cemetery
The Congressional Cemetery, officially Washington Parish Burial Ground, is a historic and active cemetery located at 1801 E Street, SE, in Washington, D.C., on the west bank of the Anacostia River. It is the only American "cemetery of national m ...
in Washington, D.C. His wife,
Margaret Lucy Shands Bailey
Margaret L. Bailey (, Shands; December 12, 1812 – 1888) was an American anti-slavery writer, poet, lyricist, as well as newspaper editor and publisher. She served as editor of ''The Youth's Monthly Visitor'', a children's magazine, and as the pu ...
,
[ ] died in 1888 and was buried at
Oak Hill Cemetery, across the city. Bailey's son, Marcellus, had his father's remains disinterred and reburied in an unmarked grave next to Margaret.
Writings
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References
Bibliography
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External links
Gamaliel Bailey Correspondenceat the
Princeton University Library Special Collections
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, Gamaliel
1807 births
1859 deaths
19th-century American physicians
19th-century American newspaper editors
American abolitionists
American Methodists
Burials at Oak Hill Cemetery (Washington, D.C.)
Lane Theological Seminary faculty
Writers from Cincinnati
People from Mount Holly, New Jersey
Writers from Philadelphia
People who died at sea
Jefferson Medical College alumni
Methodist abolitionists