In Boston's, Chinatown District, at the corner of Tyler Street and Beach Street, is a sign about Phillis Wheatley.
The sign is located on a light brick building at the corner, facing Tyler Street (east). The sign has the following text:
"Phillis Wheatley
In 1761 at Griffin's Wharf, near this site, John Wheatley purchased eight year old African-American Phillis Wheatley (c. 1753-1784) to serve as a domestic slave.
Only twelve years later, in 1773, Phillis Wheately would become the first published African-American with her acclaimed book, 'Poems on Various Subjects, Religions and Moral.'
A Boston Women's Heritage Trail Site
Boston Women's Heritage Trail
Boston Public Schools
The Bostonian Society"
About Phillis Wheatley
Phillis Wheatley was born in Senegal or Gambia, then in 1761 she was brought over on the ship, Phillis. John Wheatley, a merchant and tailor, bought the girl at auction and gave her to his wife, Susanna, as a house servant. Their daughter, Mary, with help from her brother, Nathanial, tutored Phillis in reading and writing. Providing education to an eslaved person was unprecedented. Later, she would write poetry, which was read widely, including George Washington, who invited her to see him after she had written a poem dedicated to him. After she was emancipated, life for her was very hard. She married, but the family struggled to make ends meet. She died at the age of 31, very poor.
About the Area
The sign mentions that this was the site of Griffin Wharf, yet, you have to ask, "Where's the water?" The shoreline is now across the South Station train yard. The shoreline was extended as the harbor and marshes were filled in to make more room. Nothing of the colonial era exists in this part of Boston.
About the Boston Women's Heritage Trail
The Boston Women's Heritage Trail is really a series of tours in various parts of the city. A blog about the trail states the following:
"...a group of Boston Public School teachers, librarians, and their students brainstormed and inaugurated the Boston Women’s Heritage Trail. Like The Hub’s two extant walks—the Freedom Trail and the Black Heritage Trail—this new historic trek promised to take visitors through fascinating slices and stories from Boston’s illustrious past. Unlike its predecessors, the Boston Women’s Heritage Trail highlighted the work of women..."
"The seven walks in our guidebook introduce more than 200 Boston women in a wide variety of settings, occupations, and backgrounds. BWHT has also sponsored the development of six mini-trails in Boston neighborhoods blazed by teachers and students in the Boston Public Schools ad a city charter school."
The exact date that the sign was mounted is not printed on the sign or stated on the web site. In 1989, the trail was established. A curriculum on teaching the history about women in Boston was written about 2004. There was a special event was in 2009 on the 20th Anniversary of the Boston Women's Heritage Trail. Thus, the year 2009 was used in the field below, with an uncertainty of probably a few years.
Other Sources:
Wikipedia (Phillis Wheatley):
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