20. Susie King Taylor, Author
Susie King Taylor is the only black woman confirmed to have published a biography of the US Civil War. Taylor was born into slavery in the south. She taught herself to read in slavery and opened a school when she escaped to St. Simon’s Island, Georgia. She later married a man who served in the Union army in the civil war, while she served as a laundress and nurse to Union forces. In many ways, her story mirrors that of Frederick Douglass, who is more widely known for his escape from slavery and self-taught reading and writing skills.
