Henry Highland Garnet
| Henry H. Garnet | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
December 23, 1815 New Market, Maryland, U.S. |
| Died | February 13, 1882 (aged 66) Monrovia, Liberia |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | African Free School |
| Occupation | Minister (Christianity), Abolitionist |
Henry Highland Garnet (December 23, 1815 – February 13, 1882) was an African-American abolitionist, minister, educator and orator. An advocate of militant abolitionism, Garnet was a prominent member of the movement that led beyond moral suasion toward more political action. Renowned for his skills as a public speaker, he urged blacks to take action and claim their own destinies. For a period, he supported emigration of American free blacks to Mexico, Liberia or the West Indies, but the American Civil War ended that effort.
Henry Garnet was born into slavery in New Market, Kent County, Maryland, on December 23, 1815. According to James McCune Smith, Garnet's father was George Trusty and his mother was "a woman of extraordinary energy." In 1824, the family, which included a total of 11 members, secured permission to attend a funeral, and from there, they all escaped in a covered wagon, first to Wilmington, Delaware, and then to New York City. When Garnet was ten years old, his family reunited and moved to New York City, where from 1826 through 1833, Garnet attended the African Free School, and the Phoenix High School for Colored Youth. While in school, Garnet began his career in abolitionism. His classmates at the African free school included Charles L. Reason, George T. Downing, and Ira Aldridge.
In 1834, he joined William H. Day and David Ruggles to establish the all-male Garrison Literary and Benevolent Association. It garnered mass support among whites, but the club ultimately had to move due to racist feelings. Two years later, in 1835, he started studies at the Noyes Academy in Canaan, New Hampshire.
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