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Date of Birth
She was born in Senegal, West Africa around 1753. Her real parents are not known. -
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Phillis Wheatley
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Boston Arrival
Around the age of eight, she was kidnapped and brought to Boston on a slave ship. She was bought by John Wheatley as a servant for his wife, Susanna. -
Learning Other Languages
By the age of twelve, she was reading Greek and Latin classics and reading difficult passages from the Bible. She was tutored by Mary and Nathaniel Wheatly. -
First Poem
At the age of fourteen, Phillis wrote her first poem, "To The University of Cambridge, in New England". The Wheatleys recognized her strong abilities in literature so, they left most of the work to their domestic slaves. -
Traveling to London
At the age of 20, she traveled to London with Nathaniel Wheatley. This was for health reasons but also because Susanna believed that going there would give her a better chance of getting published. -
Letter on Slave Rights
Phillis wrote a letter to Reverend Samson Occom, commending him on her ideas and beliefs about how the slaves should be given their natural born rights in America. This also gave her a chance to share her poetry with others. -
Sharing Poems
During the next years, she continued to share her poems with people who could make a difference. One of her poems that she shared was "To His Excellency, George Washington". -
VIsiting Washington
George Washington invited Wheatley to visit him in his headquarters in Cambridge. She didn't visit until March of 1776. -
Being Republished
Thomas Paine republished her poem about Washington in the Pensylvania Gazette in April 1776. -
Finally Free
Wheatley was offically freed from slavery through owners will. Even though she was a very well treated and fourtunate slave, she was still very pleased to finally be her own person. -
Marriage
Three months after she was freed she married John Peters, a free black grocer. They struggled with poor living conditions and the death of two babies. -
Going Downhill
John was imprisoned for debt. This left Phillis impoverished with a sickly infant son. She went to work as a maid for a boarding house to support them. The racisim and sexiam going on in this era made things a lot worse. -
Date of Death
Wheatley died on December 5, 1784 at the age of thirty-one. Her infant son died three and a half hours after her death.
