Frederick Douglass 1How did Frederick Douglass's early life influence the beliefs of the man he would become? Frederick Douglass's adulthood was characterized by triumph and prestige. However, he did not acquire virtue at all without struggle and conflict. There was a lot of opposition and hostility against him. To fully understand all of his thoughts and beliefs, one must first look at his childhood. Frederick Augustus Bailey was born in February 1818 to a black farmhand named Harriet. He grew up on the banks of Tuckahoe Creek, deep in the woods of Maryland. Separated from his mother at an early age, he was raised by his grandparents Betsy and Isaac Bailey. Isaac and Betsy are believed to be unrelated. Isaac was a free man and a sawyer, while Betsy was an owned slave, but kept her rules. Her owner trusted her to care for and raise the slaves' children until they were old enough to begin work. She was allowed to maintain her own hut and grow food for the children and herself. It wasn't an easy job. While all the mothers were busy working in the fields of their master, Aaron Anthony, she was busy taking care of their children. Betsy Bailey was a real woman. She was a skilled fisherman and spent most of her days in the river or in the cultivated fields. He was very intelligent and physically able. Most historians attribute Frederick's intelligence to his extraordinary grandmother. Douglass later recalled that he did not see his mother very often, only on the few times she would come to visit him later in his life. At the age of six, Frederick's carefree days spent running and playing in the fields came to an abrupt end. He was taken away from his grandmother to begin the toil and sweat of the... middle of paper... of the Civil War and thereafter. He was the most influential of all black leaders throughout the mid-19th century. Bibliography Bailey, Thomas A. The American Spirit. (Lexington: DC Health and Company, 1991), 666.Blight, David. The Civil War by Frederick Douglass. (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1989), 270. Bontemps, Arna. Finally free. (New York: Dodd, Mead and Company, 1971), 309.Martin, Waldo E. The Mind of Frederick Douglass. (Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 1984), 333.McFreely, William S. Frederick Douglass. (New York: W.W. Norton and Company, Inc, 1991),465. Meyer, Michael-ed., Frederick Douglass: The Narrative and Selected Writings. (New York: The Modern Libray, 1984.), 391. Preston Dickson J. Young Frederick Douglass. (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1980.) , 242.