Legacies of Slavery: Inverclyde's Slave Trade Connections

A graphic novel made by Magic Torch Comics and Jideofor (J.I.M) Muotune in collaboration with Proud2Care. Follow the story of American Abolitionist Frederick Douglass (1818-1895) and explore Inverclyde's connections to the transatlantic slave trade.

Frederick Douglass was born into chattel slavery as Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey in Maryland, USA (c.1817 or 1818).

A living witness to the horrors of slavery, Douglass told and retold ‘The Story of the Slave’ in impassioned speeches he delivered to audiences in their thousands. In 1845, following the publication of his first autobiography, ‘Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave’, and fearing for his safety and freedom, Douglass made the decision to embark on a tour of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.

Frederick Douglass visited Greenock on at least three separate occasions (twice in 1846 and once in 1860).