Austin Woolfolk
Austin Woolfolk | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1796 Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | 1847 Auburn, Alabama, U.S. |
| Occupation | Slave trader |
Austin Woolfolk (1796—1847) was an American slave trader. He became notorious for selling Frederick Douglass's aunt, and for assaulting Benjamin Lundy after the latter had criticized him.
Early life[]
Austin Woolfolk was born in 1796 in the U.S. state of Georgia.[1] He moved to Baltimore in 1819.[1]
Career[]
Woolfolk became a slave trader in Baltimore,[2] where he had an office on Pratt Street, with a pen where he kept his slaves.[1] Even though he advertised in newspapers, he moved his slaves at night to avoid attracting attention.[1] He became notorious for selling Frederick Douglass's aunt, and for assaulting Benjamin Lundy after the latter had criticized him.[1]
Woolfolk was driven "out of business" by slave traders Isaac Franklin and John Armfield when they moved to Baltimore.[3]
Death[]
Woolfolk died in 1847 in Auburn, Alabama.[4]
References[]
- ^ a b c d e Kerschen, Lois (2006). "Woolfolk, Austin". In Finkelman, Paul (ed.). Encyclopedia of African American History, 1619–1895: From the Colonial Period to the Age of Frederick Douglass ". Oxford University Press. pp. 360–61. doi:10.1093/acref/9780195167771.001.0001. ISBN 9780195167771. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
- ^ Calderhead, William (September 1977). "The Role of the Professional Slave Trader in a Slave Economy: Austin Woolfolk, A Case Study". Civil War History. 23 (3): 195–211. doi:10.1353/cwh.1977.0041. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
- ^ Gudmestad, Robert H. (Fall 2003). "The Troubled Legacy of Isaac Franklin: The Enterprise of Slave Trading". Tennessee Historical Quarterly. 62 (3): 193–217. JSTOR 42627764.
- ^ "DIED". The Tennessean. March 5, 1847. p. 2. Retrieved November 3, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1796 births
- 1847 deaths
- People from Georgia (U.S. state)
- People from Baltimore
- American slave traders
- 19th-century American businesspeople