Robert Purvis Serves as President of Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society

Robert Purvis, son of a free Black mother and a wealthy English cotton broker, served as president of the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society and was a founder of the American Anti-Slavery Society. His Philadelphia home was a major Underground Railroad station. Purvis was one of the most prominent Black leaders in any integrated abolitionist organization in antebellum America, combining social status with radical activism.