George Bourne

George Bourne (1780–1845) was a 19th-century abolitionist Presbyterian minister and editor in the United States, credited as the first public proclaimer of "immediate emancipation without compensation" of American slaves. He and his wife immigrated to the United States from England and settled in Virginia. Several of his sons were also prominent.

Born June 13, 1780 in Westbury, Wiltshire, England, he migrated to New York in 1804 and became the editor and co-owner of the ''Baltimore Daily Gazette'' in 1806. In 1810 he moved to Virginia and became a Presbyterian minister.

In 1816, he wrote and printed at home ''The Book and Slavery Irreconcilable'' by a citizen of Virginia. In his journalistic career, he wrote over twenty-two books including biographies of Rev John Wesley and Napoleon Bonaparte. His book on Thomas Jefferson and his presidency has been lost. He was one of the founders of the American Anti-Slavery Society and worked fervently at developing an American Protestant alliance of churches. His ''Picture of Slavery in the United States of America'' was published in 1834 and included illustrations of whippings and an auction. He also was the editor of various publications dealing with anti-slavery and poperism, most notably the ''Christian Intelligencer'' at the time of his death in New York City on November 20, 1845. Provided by Wikipedia