Victoria Ranger of Ranger Technical Resources narrates this episode of History Matters about Phillis Wheatley, the first ever published African-American female poet. At the age of seven, Wheatley was taken from her home in West Africa and sold into North American Slavery.

After being purchased by the Wheatley family of Boston, they taught her to read, write, and later encouraged her to pursue her writing and poetry. She was emancipated after her master’s death, marrying soon after.