Henry Bibb
Henry Walton Bibb
1815 - 1854
Henry Walton Bibb was born into enslavement, but he died an abolitionist, an inspiration, and hero to other enslaved people. After escaping the tortures ohe faced in the South, Bibb traveled to Detroit to work with Michigan abolitionists fighting for freedom. After the U.S. Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act, Bibb continued north, eventually settling in Sandwich, Canada. Bibb provides a detailed account of these experiences in his autobiography, Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Henry Bibb.
In efforts to dismantle the oppressive racial caste in the United States, Bibb started the first Black-owned newspaper in Canada, the Voice of the Fugitive. The publication was released once every two weeks and it addressed America’s chattel slavery system while advocating for its abolishment. In addition to his work with the Voice, Bibb was a founding director of the Refugee Home Society, a black colonization project that was established in Detroit. The mission of the project was to support and provide aid to the roughly 30,000 fugitive formerly enslaved persons living in Canada.
The Refugee Society thrived off of donations from American and Canadian groups advocating an end to enslavement. The society made the Voice of the Fugitive its official vehicle for sharing its message. As the official arm, the Voice was used to disseminate the society’s constitution, bylaws, and regularly reported on its affairs.
The Voice of the Fugitive remained in print till a fire destroyed Bibb’s printing office in 1853. Consequently, Bibb published at the same frequency, but only a one-page newsletter. The Voice of the Fugitive left a legacy as the voice for the struggle to end chattel slavery. Having the Voice being owned and operated by a Black man, made the publication that much more special.
