15 Public Domain Works by Black Authors
Black History Month is Here!
February is Black History Month in the United States. So I’d like to recommend these 15 works of public domain literature by black authors. As you might imagine, they discuss dark subjects such as slavery, racism, poverty, and lynchings. But its not all dark - there are inspiring stories of escape, education, activism, and world travel. There are also adventure and romance novels, as well as expressive poetry. Many of these authors have other lesser-known works in the public domain, as well. Literature created during the Harlem Renaissance is just beginning to enter the public domain, so I look forward to sharing more works by black writers in future Februaries*. Without further ado, here’s the list:
Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral (Phillis Wheatley, 1773)
Phillis Wheatley was captured in West Africa at the age of seven and sold into slavery in Boston, where the family that purchased her taught her to read and write. She used this knowledge to write poetry. Her work was known not only for its own beauty and depth, but for the intelligence and deep inner life that she expressed. She traveled widely and met many famous people. She was manumitted when Mrs. Wheatley died. She went on to marry a free black man and continued writing poetry for the rest of her life Poems on Various Subjects was her first published collection of poetry. The link above includes audio recordings of each poem read aloud as well as the text of the poems.
The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas, 1844)
Alexandre Dumas is the French author of famous novels including The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers. His paternal grandmother was an Afro-Caribbean enslaved woman who conceived Alexandre’s father with a French nobleman. This child was raised in Haiti until the age of 14, then freed and educated in France. He had a distinguished military career under his mother’s family name and married a French innkeeper. Together, they raised Alexandre, who became a celebrated author. This family history inspired one of Dumas’ early novels, Georges, which responds to racism, colonialism, and slavery in French territories. (Unfortunately, only the original French version of the novel is in the public domain. No English translations.) He’s best known for the action, adventure, heroism, and intrigue of his novels.
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (Frederick Douglass, 1845)
Frederick Douglass grew up in slavery, experiencing many of its hardships while learning to read and write in secret. Around age 20, he escaped to the north and joined the abolitionist cause. He wrote several books about his experiences in slavery and his work as an abolitionist. These books (and an abolitionist newspaper he edited), alongside his talent as a traveling public speaker brought many people to the cause. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is the first of his books, focused on the injustices of slavery and the inner freedom sparked by education.
Narrative of Sojourner Truth (Sojourner Truth, 1850)
Sojourner Truth was born into slavery in the United States, but escaped with her infant daughter to freedom in 1826. After going to court to recover her son in 1828, she became the first black woman to win such a case against a white man. She gave herself the name Sojourner Truth in 1843. She traveled and spoke as an abolitionist throughout the Northern states. Her best-known speech became widely publicized under the title "Ain't I a Woman?", which was also used as an abolitionist slogan. Her Narrative was dictated for publication soon after her escape to freedom. It was used to promote abolitionism.
Wonderful Adventures of Mrs. Seacole in Many Lands (Mary Seacole, 1857)
After being rejected by Florence Nightingale in her request to serve as a nurse in the Crimean war, Mary Seacole sets off for Crimea on her own, where she not only nurses the soldiers but also runs “the British hotel”, "a mess-table and comfortable quarters for sick and convalescent officers". This book is her autobiography of her travels and work on the battlefront.
The Underground Railroad (William Still 1872)
William Still was born into freedom. His father had bought his freedom and his mother had escaped to a free state, leaving two children in bondage. Growing up with the story of this escape, William was inspired to work with the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society. He became deeply involved with abolition and the Underground Railroad, helping as many as 800 slaves to escape to freedom. This book is his account of his life and work. It is an essential text for historians in understanding how the Underground Railroad worked.
A Voice from the South (Anna J. Cooper, 1892)
This book is a collection of essays on race, womanhood, and social uplift by Anna Cooper, an educator and activist living during the reconstruction area. This book was formative in the early development of black feminism.
Southern Horrors (Ida B. Wells-Barnett, 1892)
This book is an expose of lynchings in the South during the reconstruction era, published as a pamphlet by the activist and investigative journalist, Ida B. Wells. It explained how lynchings were motivated by retaliation against black economic progress, and enabled by the legal system of the South. Ida Wells’ posthumously published autobiography Crusade for Justice is also available to borrow at the Internet Archive.
Iola Leroy (Frances E.W. Harper, 1892)
This novel follows the life of Iola Leroy. She believes herself to be a white woman until the death of her father reveals her mother’s ancestry and plunges her into slavery under the ownership of a distant relative of her father’s. The story follows her through this enslavement, regaining her freedom during the Civil War, joining the Union cause, and struggling to reunite with her brother.
The Conjure Woman (Charles W. Chesnutt, 1899)
This book is a collection of short stories featuring black characters and folklore of the antebellum South. The stories are praised for depicting well-developed characters that flip the stereotypical depictions of black slaves.
Up From Slavery (Booker T. Washington, 1901)
This book is Booker T. Washington’s autobiographical narrative of his childhood in slavery, struggles to gain an education, and establishment of educational initiatives like the Tuskegee Institute for the advancement of black people through learning vocational skills. The narrative is interspersed with his philosophy of uplifting the black race through self-sufficiency and education.
The Souls of Black Folk (WEB Dubois, 1903)
This book is a collection of essays on race. WEB Dubois expresses a philosophy of uplift from within black souls themselves as they come to understand their own worth. Dubois overviews the history of black society. He coins the term “double consciousness” to describe how every black person is constantly at war with themself to measure up against the both white American standards and their own experiences of bias and contempt that reveal that those standards are impossible and undesirable to meet. DuBois believes that black people must stand up for their own rights and personhood through education, self-expression, activism, and self-esteem in opposition to the biases of white society.
The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man (James Weldon Johnson, 1912)
This novel tells of a young biracial man living in post-Reconstruction America. His experiences of racial bias, particularly witnessing a lynching, lead him to "pass" as white to secure his safety and advancement, but in order to do so he has to give up his dream of "glorifying" the black race by composing ragtime music.
A Negro Explorer at the North Pole (Matthew Henson, 1912)
The autobiographical account of Matthew Henson’s journeys to the Arctic as he accompanies explorer Robert Peary on seven voyages over the course of nearly 23 years. These journeys include successfully reaching the geographic North Pole.
The Weary Blues (Langston Hughes, 1926)
A collection of poems by Harlem Renaissance jazz poet Langston Hughes. The collection includes the titular “The Weary Blues”. This is the first published collection of Langston Hughes’ poetry and the first to enter the public domain in 2022. Langston Hughes also collaborated with another figure of the Harlem Renaissance, novelist and anthropologist Zora Neal Hurston, to write the comedic play Mule Bone. This is one of Hurston’s earlier books to hit the public domain, alongside five other lesser known plays.
Find more works of public domain black literature at the following links:
Project Gutenberg’s List of Books by African American Writers (but there are many that haven’t been tagged to this list, so I recommend checking Project Gutenberg for works you see on other lists)
The Project Gutenberg Project’s Wishlist: Black Writers in the Public Domain
Biblio Book Collecting Guide: African American Literature 1920-1929
Documenting the American South’s collection of North American Slave Narratives
For contextual information on slavery, reconstruction, lynching, and modern racial bias, see the Equal Justice Initiative’s free reports on those subjects.
Visit your favorite library or bookstore for more recent books by black authors. Let me know your favorites, new or old, in the comments. I’d also be interested to know which ones you had to read for school and what you thought of them.
*Only books (and other works of art) published in or before 1927 are in the public domain, with another year’s worth of books released to the public domain every January 1st (on January 1st, 2024 all books published in 1928 will become public domain). The Harlem Renaissance was at its height in the 1920s and 1930s, so there is over a decade of black artistry to look forward to the release of.
Thank you to the various websites and workers that make these public domain resources freely available!
Thank you for including links for access as well!
Thanks for this list! I just ordered Clotel and Iola Leroy.