Harriet Ann Jacobs

Date of Birth: February 11, 1813

Zodiac Sign: Aquarius

Date of Death: March 7, 1897

Biography

Harriet Ann Jacobs was an African-American writer who is best known for her autobiography, “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl,” published in 1861 under the pseudonym Linda Brent. Born into slavery in Edenton, North Carolina, Jacobs faced immense hardships, including sexual harassment from her owner, Dr. James Norcom. Her book is one of the few first-person accounts by women who escaped from slavery and provides a poignant, detailed account of the struggles faced by enslaved women, particularly the sexual abuse and exploitation. Jacobs escaped from her owner in 1835 and spent nearly seven years hiding in a tiny attic space at her grandmother’s house before finally escaping to the North in 1842. She became an abolitionist speaker and reformer, working closely with figures like Frederick Douglass and Amy Post. Jacobs also dedicated her life to helping fugitive slaves and the freed African-American population in the North.

5 Interesting Facts about Harriet Ann Jacobs

1. Harriet Jacobs was one of the first African-American women to author a narrative about her life as a slave.

2. She spent nearly seven years hiding in a tiny garret space above her grandmother’s porch to evade her owner.

3. Jacobs’ book, “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl,” was initially published under a pseudonym to protect her identity.

4. She worked closely with prominent abolitionists, including Frederick Douglass and Amy Post, to promote her book and the abolitionist cause.

5. Jacobs dedicated much of her later life to helping fugitive slaves and newly freed African Americans, particularly focusing on education and welfare.

5 Most Interesting Quotes from Harriet Ann Jacobs

1. “The secrets of slavery are concealed like those of the Inquisition.”

2. “There is something akin to freedom in having a lover who has no control over you, except that which he gains by kindness and attachment.”

3. “Reader, did you ever hate? I hope not. I never did but once; and I trust I never shall again.”

4. “When they told me my new-born babe was a girl, my heart was heavier than it had ever been before.”

5. “Why does the slave ever love? Why allow the tendrils of the heart to twine around objects which may at any moment be wrenched away by the hand of violence?”

Highest Net Worth Achieved

There is no recorded net worth for Harriet Ann Jacobs, as she lived during a time when the accumulation of personal wealth was not common, especially for former slaves and abolitionists.

Children

Harriet Jacobs had two children with Samuel Tredwell Sawyer, a white lawyer who also fathered her children while she was still enslaved: 1. Joseph Jacobs (born 1829) 2. Louisa Matilda Jacobs (born 1833)