Birmingham Ladies Society for the Relief of Negro Slaves
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The Birmingham Ladies Society for the Relief of Negro Slaves, also known as the Birmingham and West Bromwich Ladies Society for the Relief of Negro Slaves,[1] was founded in Birmingham, England, on 8 April 1825. It was the first anti-slavery society for women, and sometimes referred to as the Ladies' Anti-Slavery Society. Lucy Townsend and Mary Lloyd were the first joint secretaries, while other founding members included Elizabeth Heyrick, Sophia Sturge and Sarah Wedgwood.[2]
The society was supported by the Society for the Mitigation and Gradual Abolition of Slavery Throughout the British Dominions (Anti-Slavery Society).[1]
Around 1830, it became the Female Society for Birmingham.[3] By 1831 there were over seventy similar anti-slavery organisations.[2]
In 2026, the archive of the organisation, held at the Library of Birmingham,[4] was inscribed onto the UNESCO Memory of the World National Register, marking the collection's international historical, cultural and social importance.[5]
References
- 1 2 Hall, Catherine (2008). "Anti-Slavery Society". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/96359. ISBN 978-0-19-861412-8. Retrieved 20 December 2020. (Subscription, Wikipedia Library access or UK public library membership required.)
- 1 2 Simkin, John. "Women and the Anti-Slavery Movement". Spartacus Educational. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
- ↑ "Birmingham Ladies Society for the Relief of Negro Slaves Bag". National Gallery of Victoria. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
- ↑ "MS 3173 - Records of the 'Birmingham Ladies Negro's Friend Society for the Relief of Negro Slaves' - 1825 - 1919". calmview.birmingham.gov.uk. Retrieved 9 June 2026.
- ↑ "Five outstanding collections join the UNESCO Memory of the World National Register". UNESCO in the UK. 8 June 2026. Retrieved 9 June 2026.