Other
William Lloyd Garrison: Abolitionist and Leader
A several page article about William Lloyd Garrison and his actions in the abolition of slavery.
National Constitution Center
National Constitution Center: Thirteenth Amendment [Pdf]
Primary source document, informational text and questions for discussion included for students studying issues surrounding the abolition of slavery and the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: The Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 really didn't free a single slave. Read about why that was true, but also find out why Abraham Lincoln felt is was absolutely necessary to make a stand on ending slavery when he did, and how the...
PBS
Wnet: Thirteen: Freedom: A History of Us: A War to End Slavery Webisode 6
A wonderful, interactive site covering many aspects of the Civil War. See photographs, primary sources, and find interesting tidbits about the war. Included are links to lesson plans, teacher guides, resources, activities, and tools.
US National Archives
Nara: Charters of Freedom: Slavery and American Revolution: Voices of Protest
Primary source material includes Quaker petition to Congress, October 4, 1783 and Elizabeth "Mumbet" Freeman, watercolor (reproduction) by Susan Anne Livingston Ridley Sedgwick, 1811. Brief informational text.
Other
Online Archive of 19th Century u.s. Women's Writings: Emancipated Slaveholders
Writing in the 1840s, Lydia M. Child tells the story of ex-slavers living in Virginia. Demonstrates the complexity of the abolition debate in Pre-Civil War America.
US National Archives
Docsteach: Letter to President Abraham Lincoln From Annie Davis
Learners will study a letter from Annie Davis, a woman who was enslaved in Maryland and wrote a letter to President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War to find out if 'we are free.' The students will decide if she received her freedom...
Lumen Learning
Lumen: American Literature: Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
This is the text and audio of the novel Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe, an anti-slavery novel published in 1852, that was said to "helped lay the groundwork for the Civil War." It was the best-selling novel of the 19th...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Harcourt: Biographies: Sojourner Truth
Learn of Sojourner Truth's eventful life from runaway slave to advocate for freedom and fairness. She was the first African American woman to speak out against slavery in public. She continued her quest for fairness by being a...
BBC
Bbc: Bitesize History: Industrial Era: Triangular Slave Trade: Interpretations
Discusses the different interpretations that historians have had of the slave trade. It includes a video of Interpretations of the abolition of slavery, questions with answers, and a link to an assessment.
Social Studies for Kids
Social Studies for Kids: Sojourner Truth: Voice for Abolition and Women
Born into slavery and never able to read or write, Sojourner Truth nonetheless was a tired and famous advocate for both abolition and women's voting rights.
British Library
British Library: Discovering Literature: African Writers and Black Thought in 18th Century Britain
This article describes how four writers, taken from Africa as children and sold into slavery, grew up to write works that challenged British ideas about race, called for African brotherhood, and demanded the abolition of the slave trade.
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: The Events of 1831: Interactive Timeline
This interactive timeline helps you examine how some of the events of 1831 were related. Significant events include slavery, abolition, evangelical revivalism, and new inventions.
Read Works
Read Works: John Brown's Antislavery Raid
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students read about John Brown and his anti-slavery efforts. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Texas State Library and Archives Commission: Beginnings of the Movement: Abolition and Early Women's Rights Movement
How was the anti-slavery movement tightly connected with women's right to vote? Explore the efforts of women abolitionists, who realized that "the injustice they wanted to remedy for blacks also applied to women." Primary texts at this...
Stanford University
Beyond the Bubble: Slave Quarters
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students examine a photograph of former slave quarters in Georgia and answer questions about the living conditions of slaves. They will also observe how the fact that the photograph was taken decades...
Curated OER
Anti Slavery Banner for the Promotion of the Immediate Abolition of Slavery
A five-part article describing the British antislave trade movement. All major figures in the abolition movement discussed.
Siteseen
Siteseen: American Historama: The Gag Rule
Details concerning the Gag Rule that limited discussion or debate on a particular issue and banned petitions calling for the abolition of slavery.
United Nations
Unesco: The Slave Route
An excellent set of resources on slavery and the slave trade. Looks at artists' perceptions, interviews with historians and others, the Transatlantic Slave Trade, trade in the Indian Ocean, resistance and abolition, trade in the...
Digital History
Digital History: Radical Reform and Antislavery
Find a comprehensive history of the anti-slavery movement and how it fit into the larger reform movements of the first half of the 19th century.
Other
Alton Observer Report: Elijah Parish Lovejoy
This is the actual newspaper article that ran soon after journalist and minister Elijah P. Lovejoy was murdered by a pro-slavery mob. Very interesting.
CommonLit
Common Lit: "Frederick Douglass: A Biography" by National Park Service
CommonLit.org is a wonderful resource to use in a Language Arts classroom. Each story or article is accompanied by guided reading questions, assessment questions, and discussion questions. In addition, students can click on words to see...
Cornell University
Cornell University: Library: Abolitionism in America: Introduction
The introduction of an extensive website from the Cornell University Library, which includes text, documents, and other primary sources in an examination of the anti-slavery movement known as abolitionism.
Other
New York History Net: The Gerrit Smith Virtual Museum
Find a biography and primary source documents about Gerrit Smith, who was a leader of anti-slavery activities in Syracuse, and nationally. He converted Frederick Douglass to political abolitionism and helped to finance his work.