Julia Williams (abolitionist) facts for kids
Julia Williams (born July 1, 1811 – died January 7, 1870) was an important American woman who worked to end slavery. She was known as an abolitionist and was very active in Massachusetts. Julia was born free in Charleston, South Carolina. When she was a child, her family moved to Boston, Massachusetts, where she received her education.
Julia Williams was a member of the Boston Female Anti-Slavery Society. This group worked to stop slavery. In 1837, she went to the Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women in New York. Later, she married another abolitionist named Henry Highland Garnet. In 1852, they traveled to Jamaica to work as missionaries. There, Julia led a special school for girls. After the American Civil War, she helped freed people in Washington, DC start their new lives.
Early Life and Learning
Julia Williams was born in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1811. Her family was made up of free people of color. When she was young, her family moved to Boston, Massachusetts.
Julia was 21 years old when she went to school in Canterbury, Connecticut. She attended Prudence Crandall's Canterbury Female Boarding School. This school was for "young Ladies and little Misses of color." Sadly, the school had to close because of public violence against it.
After that, Julia went to the Noyes Academy in Canaan, New Hampshire. In 1835, this school also closed due to strong opposition from local white people. Julia finished her education at the Oneida Institute in New York.
Fighting for Freedom
After her education, Julia Williams became a strong voice for ending slavery and for the rights of African Americans. She returned to Boston to teach.
In the 1830s, she joined the Boston Female Anti-Slavery Society (BFASS). This group was very important in the fight against slavery. Julia was one of four women from the BFASS who went to the Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women in New York in 1837.
Family and Missionary Work
In 1841, Julia Williams married Henry Highland Garnet. He was a teacher, a minister, and a very important African-American leader in the abolitionist movement. They had first met as students at the Noyes Academy. Henry also finished his studies at the Oneida Institute. They had three children, but only one daughter lived to be an adult.
In 1852, the Garnet family moved to the Caribbean island of Jamaica. They went there to work as missionaries. Julia was in charge of a school called the Female Industrial School. After a few years, they came back to the United States because of her husband's health.
They settled in Washington, DC. There, Henry became the minister of the Fifteenth Street Presbyterian Church. After the Civil War, Julia Garnet worked to help freed people in Washington, DC. These were people who had been enslaved and were now free. She helped them build new lives.
Julia Williams passed away in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania, on January 7, 1870.
