- Arthur Tappan
Arthur Tappan (
May 22 ,1786 –July 23 ,1865 ) was an Americanabolitionist . He was the brother of SenatorBenjamin Tappan and abolitionistLewis Tappan .Biography
Born in
Northampton, Massachusetts , he moved to Boston at the age of 15. In 1807 he established a dry goods business inPortland, Maine . Arthur and his brother, Lewis, established asilk importing business inNew York in 1826. After ThePanic of 1837 , which caused their silk business to go bankrupt, they started what became the first American commercial credit-rating service. In 1827, Arthur and Lewis founded the "New York Journal of Commerce".In 1833, Arthur co-founded the
American Anti-Slavery Society withWilliam Lloyd Garrison , and served as its first president until 1840, when he resigned based on his opposition to the society's new founded support ofwomen's suffrage andfeminism . Continuing his support for abolition, Arthur and his brother founded theAmerican and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society in 1840, and theAmerican Missionary Society in 1846. After the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 was passed, he refused comply with the new law, and financially supported theUnderground Railroad .External links
* [http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USAStappanA.htm Biography of Tappan from Spartacus Educational]
* [http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0772576.html Biography from InfoPlease]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.