[African-Americana] May, Rev. Samuel J. Printed Invitation, "A Call to the New-England Anti Slavery Convention"

Boston, March 19, 1836. Bifolium, 9 3/4 x 8 1/2 in. (248 x 216 mm). Two-page printed circular, signed in type by Rev. Samuel J. May, issued to recruit attendees for the 1836 Convention of the New England Anti-Slavery Society. In part: "Come, then, we entreat you, friends of humanity, impartial advocates of the rights of man, ye, who are not despisers of the poor and degraded, ye, who would avert from our guilty nation the displeasure of the Almighty, come ye to the great assembly!...The Convention, to which you are hereby invited, will be held in Boston, on the 24th of May next...Distinguished abolitionists from other parts of the country are expected to be present..." Creasing from old folds, a few small closed tears or chips along same.

Rare printed circular issued by the New-England Anti-Slavery Society, inviting all those who support the cause to attend the Convention in Boston, which was held on May 24, 1836. Rev. Samuel J. May oversaw the event as chairman of the society's standing committee.

Rev. Samuel J. May (1797-1871) was an American Unitarian minister, and ardent supporter of abolition, women's rights, and educational reform. Born in Boston, he was a descendant of two renowned colonial families, the Quincys and the Hancocks. His sister, Abby May Alcott was the mother of author Louisa May Alcott. May was one of the founding members of the New England Anti-Slavery society, being a close supporter of William Lloyd Garrison, the publisher of the famous Liberator newspaper. Throughout the 1830s and 40s, he was actively involved in the national abolition movement, traveling throughout the northeastern United States to local anti-slavery chapters or societies as a lecturer and agent. A friend to Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, and Douglass, May aided freedom seekers directly, led the Syracuse Fugitive Aid Society, and founded one of the nation's first Freedmen's Relief Associations in 1862. He was a prolific author and orator, writing a multitude of essays and speeches on reforming political and religious society until his death in 1871.

From the personal papers of American minister and abolitionist, Rev. Samuel J. May (1797-1871), thence by descent in the family

[African-Americana] May, Rev. Samuel J. Printed Invitation, "A Call to the New-England Anti Slavery Convention"