Description
In 1884, following the death of his first wife, Frederick Douglass married Helen Pitts from Honeoye, NY. As the first prominent interracial marriage in America, the event sent shockwaves through the country. Following Frederick’s death in 1895, Helen spent the rest of her life protecting and preserving his papers, his home in Washington (today’s Frederick Douglass National Historic Site), and his legacy. For many years Michael Nighan has written and lectured about the local history of the Genesee region. He currently serves as a trustee of the Honeoye-Richmond Historical Society.
