''The North Star'' was a nineteenth-century anti-slavery newspaper published from the Talman Building in

Rochester, New York Rochester () is a city in the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, and Yonkers, with a population of 211,328 at the 2020 United States census. Located in W ...

, by abolitionist Frederick Douglass. The paper commenced publication on December 3, 1847, and ceased as ''The North Star'' in June 1851, when it merged with Gerrit Smith's '' Liberty Party Paper'' (based in Syracuse, New York) to form ''Frederick Douglass' Paper''. At the time of the Civil War, it was ''Douglass' Monthly''. ''The North Star''s slogan was: "Right is of no Sex—Truth is of no Color—God is the Father of us all, and all we are Brethren.",

Inspiration

In 1846, Frederick Douglass was first inspired to publish ''The North Star'' after subscribing to '' The Liberator'', a weekly newspaper published by

William Lloyd Garrison William Lloyd Garrison (December , 1805 – May 24, 1879) was a prominent American Christian, abolitionist, journalist, suffragist, and social reformer. He is best known for his widely read antislavery newspaper '' The Liberator'', which he foun ...

. The ''Liberator'' was a newspaper established by Garrison and his supporters founded upon moral principles.David B. Chesebrough, ''Frederick Douglass; Oratory from Slavery'', (Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1998), 16–18. ''The North Star'' title was a reference to the directions given to runaway slaves trying to reach the Northern states and Canada: "Follow the

North Star Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude tha ...

." Figuratively, Canada was also "the north star." Like ''The Liberator'', ''The North Star'' published weekly and was four pages long. It sold by subscription of $2 per year to more than 4,000 readers in the United States, Europe, and the Caribbean. The first of its four pages focused on current events concerning abolitionist issues. The Garrisonian ''Liberator'' was founded upon the notion that the Constitution was fundamentally pro-slavery and that the Union ought to be dissolved. Douglass disagreed but supported the

nonviolent Nonviolence is the personal practice of not causing harm to others under any condition. It may come from the belief that hurting people, animals and/or the environment is unnecessary to achieve an outcome and it may refer to a general philosoph ...

approach to the emancipation of slaves by education and moral suasion. Under the guidance of the abolitionist society, Douglass became well acquainted with the pursuit of the emancipation of slaves through a New England religious perspective. Garrison had earlier convinced the

Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society The Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society, headquartered in Boston, was organized as an auxiliary of the American Anti-Slavery Society in 1835. Its roots were in the New England Anti-Slavery Society, organized by William Lloyd Garrison, editor of ' ...

to hire Douglass as an agent, touring with Garrison and telling audiences about his experiences as a slave. Douglass worked with another abolitionist, Martin R. Delany, who traveled to lecture, report, and generate subscriptions to ''The North Star''.

Editorial perspective and breadth

Douglass's thoughts toward political inaction changed when he attended the National Convention of Colored Citizens, an antislavery convention in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

, in August 1843. One of the many speakers present at the convention was

Henry Highland Garnet Henry Highland Garnet (December 23, 1815 – February 13, 1882) was an African-American abolitionist, minister, educator and orator. Having escaped as a child from slavery in Maryland with his family, he grew up in New York City. He was educat ...

. Formerly a slave in Maryland, Garnet was a Presbyterian minister who supported violent action against slaveholders. Garnet's demands of independent action addressed to the American slaves remained one of the leading issues of change for Douglass. During a nineteen-month stay in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, several of Douglass' supporters bought his freedom and assisted with the purchase of a

printing press A printing press is a mechanical device for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a print medium (such as paper or cloth), thereby transferring the ink. It marked a dramatic improvement on earlier printing methods in which the ...

. With this assistance, Douglass was determined to begin an

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

newspaper that would engage the anti-slavery movement politically. On his return to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

in March 1847, Douglass shared his ideas of ''The North Star'' with his mentors. Ignoring the advice of the American Anti-Slavery Society, Douglass moved to

to publish the first edition. When questioned on his decision to create ''The North Star'', Douglass is said to have responded,

I still see before me a life of toil and trials..., but, justice must be done, the truth must be told...I will not be silent.

In covering politics in Europe, literature, slavery in the United States, and culture generally in both ''The North Star'' and ''Frederick Douglass' Paper'', Douglass achieved unconstrained independence to write freely on topics from the California Gold Rush to ''

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 ...

'' to

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

's ''

Bleak House ''Bleak House'' is a novel by Charles Dickens, first published as a 20-episode serial between March 1852 and September 1853. The novel has many characters and several sub-plots, and is told partly by the novel's heroine, Esther Summerson, and ...

.''Janet Neary and Hollis Robbins, "African American Literature of the Gold Rush," in Edward Watts, Keri Holt, and John Funchion (eds), ''Mapping Region in Early American Writing'', Athens: University of Georgia Press (2015)., Besides Garnet, other

Oneida Institute The Oneida Institute was a short-lived (1827–1843) but highly influential school that was a national leader in the emerging abolitionist movement. It was the most radical school in the country, the first at which black men were just as welcome ...

alumni that collaborated with ''The North Star'' were

Samuel Ringgold Ward Samuel Ringgold Ward (October 17, 1817 – ) was an African American who escaped enslavement to become an abolitionist, newspaper editor, labor leader, and Congregational church minister. He was author of the influential book ''Autobiograp ...

and

Jermain Wesley Loguen Rev. Jermain Wesley Loguen (February 5, 1813 – September 30, 1872), born Jarm Logue, in slavery, was an African-American abolitionist and bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, and an author of a slave narrative. Biogr ...

. Douglass was assisted by philanthropist Gerrit Smith. Smith later merged his own anti-slavery paper with ''The North Star'' to create ''Frederick Douglass' Paper''.

References

Bibliography

* Ira Berlin, "Who Freed the Slaves; Emancipation and Its Meaning", in Blight and Simpson (eds), ''Union and Emancipation; Essays on Politics and Race in the Civil War Era'' (Kent State University Press, 1234), p. 121.

External links

* Digitized.
''The North Star'' newspaper archive
''The North Star'': Complete December 3, 1847 – April 17, 1851, Accessible Archives (institutional subscription required).
''The North Star''
''The North Star'': Online Collection, Lavery Library, St. John Fisher College (selected issues only).

''The North Star'', December 3, 1847. * ''Douglass' Monthly'' is available at the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:North Star, The (Anti-Slavery Newspaper) 1847 establishments in New York (state) Abolitionist newspapers published in the United States Defunct African-American newspapers Frederick Douglass History of Rochester, New York Newspapers published in Rochester, New York Publications disestablished in 1851 Newspapers established in 1847 Recipients of aid from Gerrit Smith Defunct newspapers published in New York (state) African-American newspapers published in New York (state)

Inspiration

Editorial perspective and breadth

See also

References

Bibliography

External links