Thomas W. Higginson

a.k.a. Thomas Wentworth Higginson

Author Code: ATWH

Reformer and dedicated Abolitionist leading up to the Civil War, Higginson was an ordained minister, but lost his congregation because of his ultra-liberal views, especially on women's rights and slavery.He was a member of the Boston Vigilance Committee which assisted escaping slaves after the Fugitive Slave Act was passed in 1850. During the Civil War he commanded the 1st South Carolina Volunteers, which later became the 33rd U.S. Colored Troops, the first black regiment in the US military. After the war, he began to write and published a number of biographies and historical works including a novel. He was also instrumental in encouraging Emily Dickinson, whom he had discovered, in her writing.