Frances Ellen Watkins Harper was one of the most influential African American writers and activists of the nineteenth century. She gained fame as a poet, author, lecturer, and reformer. This was a time when few women, especially Black women, had public voices.
Harper began her career as a writer in the 1840s when she published her first book of poetry, Forest Leaves. Over time, her writing appeared in abolitionist newspapers, including The Liberator and Frederick Douglass’ Paper. Her poems and stories often focused on key issues like slavery, education, racism, women's rights, and economic inequality. In 1854, she released Poems on Miscellaneous Subjects, which sold thousands of copies and helped establish her national reputation.
Harper also became a powerful public speaker. She lectured across the United States and Canada for antislavery organizations, including the Maine and Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Societies. She was one of the first women in the country to earn a living as a professional lecturer. Harper supported women’s rights and the temperance movement. She often linked these causes in her speeches and writings.
After the Civil War, Harper focused on education. She also fought for equal rights and self-empowerment for people who were formerly enslaved. She spent years teaching and speaking in Southern churches and Freedmen’s schools. Later in life, she helped found national organizations for Black women and served as president of the National Association of Colored Women. Harper wrote novels, poetry, and essays until her death in 1911. She left a strong legacy of advocacy and literary success.
