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The way Frederick Douglass found out the year and month of his birth was by finding a ledger of his enslaver. What was missing from the ledger was the date.
The abolitionist picked Feb. 14 as the day to celebrate his birthday. The reason was because one of the few memories he had of his mother was when she called him her “little Valentine.”
Wednesday is the 206th anniversary of the birth of “The Lion of Anacostia.” You can celebrate the abolitionist, writer, orator and adviser to eight different presidents by visiting Frederick Douglass’ house, an estate named Cedar Hill.
“He moved here in 1877 and this is where he spent the last 18 years of his life with his family,” said John Fowler of the National Park Service.
The Frederick Douglass House is one of the four historic sites that Fowler oversees.
Fowler said his favorite room in Frederick Douglass’ house is the library.
“It was extremely rare for an African American to have a library on the inside of the home at this point in history. We have within our collection close to 3,000 books that Douglass would have read himself,” said Fowler.
Douglass spent $6,700 to buy Cedar Hill — which would be more than a million dollars today. The rocking chairs on the front porch are the perfect place to sit down and enjoy a view of the Capitol, and the monuments honoring Washington and Lincoln.
The “Sage of Cedar Hill” had a connection to both of those presidents. Douglass met with Lincoln personally several times and had a portrait of the 16th president in his library.
A trip to George Washington’s home was the inspiration to preserve Cedar Hill. A trip that Douglass took to Mount Vernon was especially memorable to his second wife.
Fowler explained, “after Douglass died, it’s Helen [Pitts Douglass] who gets the idea to preserve this home as a sort of Mount Vernon for African Americans.”
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