In our ongoing series #WomenThatDid, ENTITY profiles inspirational and famous women in history whose impact on our world can still be felt today. If you have a suggestion for a historical powerhouse you would like to see featured, tweet us with the hashtag #WomenThatDid.
Name: Phillis Wheatley
Lifetime: 1753 – December 5, 1784
What she’s known for: Phillis Wheatley was the first published African-American poet, the first African-American female to publish a book and the first to make a living from her writing.
Why we love her: At age seven, Wheatley was sold into slavery and given the name Phillis from the ship that carried her across the Atlantic. When she arrived in Boston, she began working for the Wheatley family. It was here that she learned to read and write, and when they discovered her poetic talent, they encouraged her to write and publish.
Wheatley began writing poetry at 14 and wrote about life, religion and the upcoming Revolutionary War. In 1772, she was forced to defend the authorship of her poems in court because the public did not believe that she could be the author. She won her case.
After the death of her owner, Wheatley was freed and married a free grocer. The couple struggled to make ends meet because she had lost her patrons when her owner died and she could not get her latest book of poetry published. Wheatley soon fell ill and died from poverty at 31 years old.
Fun fact: Wheatley wrote a poem that was honored by George Washington and published by “Common Sense” writer Thomas Paine. Because of her contributions to the literary world, Wheatley was named one of the 100 Greatest African-Americans.
