Austin Woolfolk

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.

Austin Woolfolk
Born1796
Georgia, U.S.
Died1847
Auburn, Alabama, U.S.
OccupationSlave trader

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
  1. 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.
  2. 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.
  3. 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.
  4. "DIED". The Tennessean. March 5, 1847. p. 2. Retrieved November 3, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
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