Frederick Douglass & Helen Pitts

Frederick Douglass was born a slave in the early 1800s, the son of a black slave and her white owner. Separated from his mother, he was raised by a grandmother until the age of six, when she died and he was sold away. He taught himself to read, taught other slaves, was persecuted, escaped to the north, became free.

He believed that "Right is of no Sex — Truth is of no Color — God is the Father of us all, and we are all brethren."

In 1872, he was the first African American candidate to the vicepresidency. His presidential running mate was Victoria Woodhull, a suffragist. Their party was called "The Equal Rights Party". What happened to it?

In 1837 he met his future wife, Anna Murray, a free African American with whom he fathered 5 children. Anna died in 1882 and, after a year of depression, he became close to Helen Pitts, a white abolotionist and suffragist. Against the wishes of his children and her family, they married and lived together for 11 years, until his death in 1895.

"Love came to me, and I was not afraid to marry the man I loved because of his color", said Helen of their wedding. Frederick's words on the subject were: "This proves I am impartial. My first wife was the color of my mother and the second, the color of my father."

Douglass had willed his house to Pitts, but because there were not enough witness signatures on the deed, it was declared invalid. She then suggested to his children that the house be set apart as a memorial to their father, but they refused, wanting to sell it and then divide the money among themselves. With borrowed funds, she bought it herself and the memorial was started, and is alive still today.