author
Phillis Wheatley
1753–1784
Taken from West Africa as a child and enslaved in Boston, she became one of the first widely known Black poets in America. Her poems brought her international attention and helped mark an early turning point in American literary history.
1 Audiobook
Poems on various subjects, religious and moral
by Phillis Wheatley
About the author
Born in West Africa around 1753, Phillis Wheatley was brought to Boston in 1761 aboard the ship Phillis, from which she received the name by which she is known. Enslaved by the Wheatley family, she was taught to read and write at a young age, an education that was rare for an enslaved child in colonial America.
Her talent for poetry appeared early. In 1773, her collection Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral was published in London, making her the first African American author to publish a book of poetry and bringing her recognition in both America and Britain. Her work often joined Christian themes, classical learning, and reflections shaped by the world around her.
After the American Revolution, she married John Peters and is often referred to as Phillis Wheatley Peters. Her later years were marked by hardship, and she died in Boston on December 5, 1784. Even so, her life and writing remain central to the story of early American literature.