The Folger is closing at 4:30pm on Sunday, February 23, for a staff training exercise. Normal hours will resume when the Folger opens on Tuesday, February 25, at 11:00am.
In this, his first book, Frederick Douglass describes the events of his life: born into slavery in Maryland in 1818, and at age 20 he fled north, escaped his bondage, and became a nationally and internationally important orator, writer, and statesman. Douglass’s Narrative is considered one of the most influential pieces of literature to fuel the abolitionist movement of the early 19th century in the United States. It became a bestseller upon release, and by 1850, 30,000 copies of the Narrative had been published.
