Although historically America has celebrated the activist and author’s birthday on the 14th of February, the actual month and date of Douglass’ birth are still unknown. The birth date Americans observe today was chosen based on his autobiographical writings, which revealed that he was told his birth month was February and the year was 1818.
According to the , Douglass wrote about speaking with Captain Thomas Auld, one of his former slave owners, in 1877 about wanting to know his birth details. “I told him I had always been curious to know how old I was and that it had been a serious trouble to me, to not know when was my birthday,” he wrote. “He said he could not tell me that, but he thought I was born in February 1818.”
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