African American History: Resistance, Abolition, and Emancipation

Vocabulary flashcards covering key events, figures, organizations, and legal milestones in the history of slavery, resistance, and emancipation in the United States and the Americas.

Fort Mose

The first legally sanctioned free Black settlement in what is now the United States, established in Spanish Florida in 1738.

Stono Rebellion

A 1739 slave rebellion in South Carolina where enslaved Africans fought for freedom.

Haitian Revolution

A successful revolution (1791–1804) in which enslaved people overthrew French colonial rule and created Haiti.

Toussaint Louverture

A leader of the Haitian Revolution who helped organize the fight against slavery and French control.

Jean-Jacques Dessalines

A Haitian revolutionary leader who declared Haiti independent in 1804.

Louisiana Slave Revolt (German Coast Uprising) of 1811

One of the largest slave uprisings in U.S. history, involving hundreds of enslaved people in Louisiana.

Nat Turner’s Rebellion

An 1831 slave rebellion in Virginia led by Nat Turner that increased fear among slaveholders.

Daily forms of resistance to slavery

Small acts of defiance, such as slowing work, preserving culture, escaping, and learning to read.

Maroon societies

Communities formed by formerly enslaved people who escaped slavery and lived independently.

Great Dismal Swamp

A swamp between Virginia and North Carolina where escaped enslaved people built communities and sought freedom.

Queen Nanny of Jamaica

Leader of the Jamaican Maroons who fought British forces and helped protect escaped enslaved people.

Maria Stewart

Early Black woman activist who spoke publicly against slavery and for Black rights and education.

Intersectionality

The idea that different identities, such as race and gender, overlap and affect people’s experiences.

American Colonization Society

An organization that supported sending free African Americans to Africa, especially Liberia.

Martin Delany

Black abolitionist who supported Black nationalism and emigration to Africa.

Frederick Douglass

Formerly enslaved abolitionist, writer, and speaker who fought for equality and freedom.

Fugitive Slave Act of 1850

A law requiring escaped enslaved people to be captured and returned to enslavers, even in free states.

Emigration and anti-emigration

Emigration supported Black people leaving the U.S.; anti-emigration opposed leaving and fought for equality in America.

David Walker

Abolitionist who wrote Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World, demanding an end to slavery.

Henry Highland Garnet

Black abolitionist who encouraged enslaved people to resist slavery and fight for freedom.

Radical resistance

Direct and forceful actions taken to challenge slavery and oppression.

Abolitionist movement

Movement to end slavery in the United States.

Underground Railroad

A secret network of people and safe places that helped enslaved people escape to freedom.

Harriet Tubman

Formerly enslaved abolitionist who helped many enslaved people escape through the Underground Railroad.

Combahee River Raid

An 1863 Union military raid led by Harriet Tubman that freed over 700 enslaved people in South Carolina.

Harriet Jacobs’ Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl

An autobiography describing the experiences of enslaved women, especially the abuse and challenges they faced.

Civil War (1861–1865)

War between the Union and Confederacy, largely over slavery and its expansion.

Confederate States of America (Confederacy)

Southern states that separated from the United States to protect slavery and their political interests.

Emancipation Proclamation

Abraham Lincoln’s 1863 order declaring enslaved people in rebelling areas free.

General Order No. 3 (1865)

Order issued by General Gordon Granger in Texas announcing that enslaved people were free.

Juneteenth

June 19, celebrating the announcement of freedom to enslaved people in Texas in 1865.

13th Amendment

Constitutional amendment that abolished slavery in the United States in 1865, except as punishment for a crime.