Frederick Douglass's Bible

A worn leather-bound Bible embossed with "Frederick Douglass" on the cover.
Washington, D.C.'s Metropolitan A.M.E. Church gave this Bible to Frederick Douglass in 1889.

NPS

Frederick Douglass received this Holy Bible from members of the Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. Embossed with his name on the front cover, this handsome, leather-bound edition was published by Oxford University Press and contains both the Old and New Testaments. The congregation presented it to Douglass on September 1, 1889, as he prepared to travel to Haiti, where he had been appointed by President Benjamin Harrison to serve as U.S. Minister and Consul General. According to the Washington Evening Star, "Mr. Douglass warmly and eloquently thanked the donors for their kindness."

The Bible is part of the museum collections at the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site. Attorney General Loretta Lynch used this Bible to take her oath of office on June 17, 2015.
 
The cursive, handwritten, ink inscription inside the Bible reads "Presented to the Hon. Frederick Douglass by members of the Metropolitan A.M.E. Church, Washington, D.C."
The inscription in Frederick Douglass's Bible reads, "Presented to the Hon. Frederick Douglass by members of the Metropolitan A.M.E. Church, Washington, D.C."

NPS

Last updated: July 9, 2015

Contact Info

Mailing Address:

1411 W Street SE
Washington, DC 20020

Phone:

771-208-1499
This phone number is to the ranger offices at the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site.

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