author
John Thompson
1812–1860
A freedom seeker, sailor, and memoirist, this 19th-century writer left behind a vivid firsthand account of slavery in Maryland and his escape to liberty. His story is direct, deeply personal, and valuable both as testimony and as literature.
1 Audiobook
About the author
Born in Maryland in 1812, John Thompson was enslaved for roughly twenty-five years before escaping and later publishing The Life of John Thompson, a Fugitive Slave in 1856. Library and catalog records identify him as the author of that autobiography, and modern historical projects describe him as a fugitive slave, memoirist, and sailor.
His book recounts bondage in Maryland, his escape, and the experiences that followed, making it part of the important body of 19th-century slave narratives written in the authors' own words. The record of his life is fragmentary, but the work itself preserves a powerful personal voice and a detailed witness to slavery and the struggle for freedom.
Some sources list his life dates as 1812–1860, while others are less certain about the year of his death. What is clear is that his memoir remains the reason he is remembered: not only as a historical figure, but as a writer who turned lived experience into enduring testimony.