By Lynn Burnett

Born in 1816, Frances Titus was a young woman during the era when abolitionism was growing into a major movement… and as a member of an antislavery Quaker community, she was in the thick of it. In 1856 she met Sojourner Truth at an antislavery Quaker gathering. Truth, who had escaped enslavement decades earlier, traveled the country speaking of the evils of slavery and the necessity of abolition, as well as of women’s rights. Frances Titus began supporting Sojourner Truth’s travels however she could, including securing housing for her children and grandchildren while Truth traveled.

After the Civil War, Truth and Titus worked closely together to secure land, employment, and education for former slaves. While Truth focused much of her efforts on securing land for former slaves in the expansive American West, Titus focused on local resettlement efforts, especially in Battle Creek, Michigan, where she leveraged her connections to wealthy White communities and founded a school for former slaves in the old city hall building. During Sojourner Truth’s old age, Frances Titus helped her revise her autobiography, and travelled with her on speaking tours serving as her business manger and personal secretary. When Truth fell ill in her old age, Titus tended to her and handled her correspondence.  

Additional Resources

Emily Joye: Sisterhood Solidarity: The Legacy of Sojourner Truth and Frances Titus.

Wikipedia entry.