William Morgan (abolitionist)


William Morgan was a leading member of the Birmingham Anti-Slavery Society whose members were very influential in abolitionist movements in Britain. He became the Town clerk in Birmingham and gave a collection of books to Birmingham Library.
Morgan was the third son of the Reverend Thomas Morgan.
Morgan was trained as a solicitor and worked in Birmingham. He was an active member of the Birmingham Anti-Slavery Society which campaigned for abolition of slavery in the British Empire in 1838. On the anniversary of the abolition a celebration was again held in Birmingham and it was Morgan who distributed information and invitations to the local Sunday Schools.
Morgan was a founder of the local Baptist Union and served as secretary to the Birmingham Anti-Slavery Society when British slavery was made illegal. The picture above shows him at the 1840 Anti-Slavery Convention which was organised by Morgan's colleague Joseph Sturge. Morgan served as a secretary at the 1840 convention. He continued to work with Sturge during the 1850s.
In 1866, the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society sent Morgan to Jamaica.
Morgam had married Henrietta Barnard on 6 March 1841 from Nailsworth in Gloucestershire.

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