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John Woolman (October 19, 1720 – October 7, 1772) was an itinerant Quaker preacher, traveling throughout the American colonies, advocating against conscription, military taxation, and particularly slavery. October 19 is the 292nd day of the year (293rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
// Events January 6 - The Committee of Inquiry on the South Sea Bubble publishes its findings February 11 - Sweden and Prussia sign the (2nd Treaty of Stockholm) declaring peace. ...
October 7 is the 280th day of the year (281st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 1772 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...
The Religious Society of Friends (commonly known as Quakers) is a Christian religious denomination that began in England in the 17th century by people who were dissatisfied with the existing denominations and sects of Christianity. ...
In 1775, the British claimed authority over the red and pink areas on this map and Spain ruled the orange. ...
The Buxton Memorial Fountain, celebrating the emancipation of slaves in the British Empire in 1834, London. ...
Origins and early life John Woolman came from a family of Friends (Quakers). His grandfather, also named John Woolman, was one of the early settlers of New Jersey. His father Samuel Woolman was a farmer. Their estate was between Burlington and Mount Holly Township in that state. The Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as Quakers, or Friends, is a religious community founded in England in the 17th century. ...
Official language(s) None, English de facto Capital Trenton Largest city Newark Area Ranked 47th - Total 8,729 sq mi (22,608 km²) - Width 70 miles (110 km) - Length 150 miles (240 km) - % water 14. ...
See also: Burlington Township, New Jersey The City of Burlington highlighted in Burlington County. ...
Mount Holly Township highlighted in Burlington County. ...
John Woolman tells a story in his journal about a major turning point in his life. During his youth he happened upon a robin's nest with hatchlings in it. Woolman, as many young people would do, began throwing rocks at the mother robin just to see if he could hit her. He ended up killing the mother bird, but then remorse filled him as he thought of the baby birds who had no chance of surviving without her. He got the nest down from the tree and quickly killed the hatchlings — believing it to be the most merciful thing to do. This experience weighed on his heart, and inspired in him a love and protectiveness for all living things from then on.
At age 23 his employer asked him to write a bill of sale for a slave. He told his employer that he thought that slavekeeping was inconsistent with the Christian religion. Many Friends believed that slavery was bad — even a sin — but there was not a universal condemnation of it among Friends. Some Friends bought slaves from other people in order to treat them humanely and educate them. Other Friends seemed to have no conviction against slavery whatsoever. Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ...
Ministry Woolman took up a concern to minister to Friends and others in remote places. He went on his first ministry trip in 1746 with Isaac Andrews. They went about 1,500 miles round-trip in three months, going as far south as North Carolina. He preached on many topics, including slavery during this and other such trips.
In 1754 Woolman wrote Some Considerations on the Keeping of Negroes. He refused to draw up wills transferring slaves. Working on a nonconfrontational, personal level, he individually convinced many Quaker slaveholders to free their slaves. He attempted personally to avoid using the products of slavery; for example, he wore undyed clothing because slaves were used in the making of dyes. Whenever he received hospitality from a slaveholder, he insisted on paying the slaves for their work in attending him. 1754 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...
Woolman worked within the Friends traditions of seeking the guidance of the Spirit of Christ and patiently waiting to achieve unity in the Spirit. He went from one Friends meeting to another and expressed his concern about slaveholding. One by one the various meetings began to see the evils of slavery and wrote minutes condemning it.
In his lifetime, Woolman did not succeed in eradicating slavery even within the Society of Friends in the United States; however, his personal efforts changed Quaker viewpoints. In 1790 the Society of Friends petitioned the United States Congress for the abolition of slavery. The fair treatment of people of all races is now part of the Friends Testimony of Equality. Year 1790 (MDCCXC) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ...
Type Bicameralism Houses Senate House of Representatives United States Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D, since January 4, 2007 Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D, since January 4, 2007 Members 535 plus 4 Delegates and 1 Resident Commissioner Political groups (as of November 7, 2006 elections) Democratic Party Republican...
This English poster depicting the horrific conditions on slave ships was influential in mobilizing public opinion against slavery. ...
The Testimony of Equality is the Quaker belief that all people are created equal in the eyes of God. ...
Woolman was also committed to the Friends Testimony of Simplicity. When his business was booming he felt convicted that it was taking too much time and was distracting him from the more important matter of fulfilling the calling that God had given him to spread truth and light to other Friends and other people in general. He gave up his retail business and made a living as a tailor and an orchard tender. The Testimony of Simplicity is the Quaker belief that a person ought to live his or her life simply in order to focus on what is most important and ignore or play down what is least important. ...
Woolman also lived out the Friends Peace Testimony by protesting the French and Indian War. He went so far as to refuse paying taxes to support the war.[1] The Peace Testimony, also known as the Testimony Against War, is a shorthand description of the stand generally taken by the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) against participation in war, and against military service as combatants. ...
Combatants France First Nations allies: * Algonquin * Huron * Ojibwa * Ottawa * Shawnee Great Britain Iroquois Confederacy Strength 3,900 regulars 7,900 militia 2,200 natives (1759) 50,000 regulars and militia (1759) The French and Indian War was the nine-year North American chapter of the Seven Years War. ...
Woolman showed unusual insight for the time, in that he lived and worked among the Indians, recognising that the Spirit moved among them also. He showed concern for the poor, for animals, and for the environment and is a precursor of several modern campaigns.
The Journal of John Woolman is considered to be an important spiritual document, as shown by its inclusion in the Harvard Classics. The Harvard Classics, originally known as Dr. Eliots Five Foot Shelf, was a fifty-volume anthology of works selected by Charles W. Eliot. ...
Final days Woolman's final journey was to England in 1772. During the voyage he stayed in steerage and spent time with the crew rather than in the better accommodations of the other passengers. He attended the London Yearly Meeting, and the Friends there were persuaded to oppose slavery in their Epistle (letter sent to other Friends in other places). John Woolman went from London to York where he contracted smallpox and died. A memorial to him is located in Mount Holly, New Jersey on the site of one of his orchards. Britain Yearly Meeting is the umbrella body for the Britain (England, Scotland, Wales, the Channel Isles and the Isle of Man). ...
York is a city in North Yorkshire, England, at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss. ...
Works by Woolman - Essays
- "Some Considerations on Keeping Negroes", 1753
- "Some Considerations on Keeping Negroes, Part Second", 1762
- "Considerations on Pure Wisdom and Human Policy, on Labor, on Schools, and on the Right Use of the Lord's Outward Gifts", 1768
- "Considerations on the True Harmony of Mankind, and How it is to be Maintained", 1770
- Book
- The Journal of John Woolman, published posthumously
Works About Woolman - Cady, Edwin H. John Woolman: The Mind of the Quaker Saint. New York: Washington Square, 1966.
- Fager, Charles. John Woolman and the Slave Girl. Kimo, 1993.
- Gummere, Amelia Mott (1922), The journal and essays of John Woolman, New York: The Macmillan Company
- Heller, Mike, ed. The Tendering Presence: Essays on John Woolman. Wallingford, PA: Pendle Hill, 2003.
- Hynes, Judy (1997), The Descendants of John and Elizabeth (Borton) Woolman, Mount Holly, New Jersey: John Woolman Memorial Association
- Reynolds, Reginald, The wisdom of John Woolman / with a selection from his writings as a guide to the seekers of today,(1948)
- Some Stories About John Woolman, 1720-1772. Quaker Home Service, 1973, 1980.
- Swayne, Amelia. John Woolman. Friends General Conference Committee on Education, 1942.
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