Sojourner Truth

Table of Contents

Introduction Quotes References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images & Videos

The journey to women's voting rights and the Nineteenth Amendment

Read Next

The United States Supreme Court building, Washington, D.C.

14 Questions About Government in the United States Answered

Bar graph of the United States Death Toll during major events. Infogram chart.

U.S. Death Toll During Major Events

The Battle of New Orleans, by E. Percy Moran, c. 1910. Andrew Jackson, War of 1812.

26 Decade-Defining Events in U.S. History

Groups of depositors in front of the closed American Union Bank, New York City. April 26, 1932. Great Depression run on bank crowd

Causes of the Great Depression

Picking cotton on a Georgia plantation, 1858. Illustration published in Ballou's Pictorial, v. 14, 1858, p. 49. African Americans; Black Americans; cotton pickers; slavery; slaves; enslavement; Georgia

Pro and Con: Reparations for Slavery

Discover

Nativity Scene, Adoration of the Magi, Church of the Birth of the Virgin Mary, Montenegro

Why Is Christmas in December?

The Jeff Koons tulips sculputure outside the Guggenheim Museums in Bilbao, Spain, Basque Country.

What’s the Difference Between Modern and Contemporary Art?

Scottish fold cat. A genetic mutation caused (in the original cat-1961) the ears to bend forward and down.

Shorthair Cat Breeds

A mug shot taken by the regional Colombia control agency in Medellin

Pablo Escobar: 8 Interesting Facts About the King of Cocaine

Close-up of ostriches (Struthio camelus) necks and heads; location unknown.

6 of the World's Most Dangerous Birds

Watergate scandal. Richard M. Nixon. President Nixon gives a press conference and talks to the press, March 12, 1971.

9 American Political Scandals

9 Mind-Altering Plants

Sojourner Truth

American evangelist and social reformer

Also known as: Isabella Van Wagener

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Nov 22, 2024 • Article History

Quick Facts

Legal name:: Isabella Van Wagener

Born:: c. 1797, Ulster county, New York, U.S.

Died:: November 26, 1883, Battle Creek, Michigan

See all related content

Sojourner Truth (born c. 1797, Ulster county, New York, U.S.—died November 26, 1883, Battle Creek, Michigan) was an African American evangelist and reformer who applied her religious fervor to the abolitionist and women’s rights movements. Isabella was the daughter of enslaved people and spent her childhood as an abused chattel of several masters. Her first language was Dutch. Between 1810 and 1827 she bore at least five children to an enslaved man named Thomas. Just before New York state abolished slavery in 1827, she found refuge with Isaac Van Wagener, who manumitted her. With the help of Quaker friends, she ...(100 of 445 words)

Access the full article

Help support true facts by becoming a member.