Enlarged by Caucus and Compromise”: Freethinkers, Celebrity Preachers, and the American Anti-Slavery Society

The American Anti-Slavery Society (AASS) was one of the most radical antislavery societies in America, especially known for its rigid expectations. Members of the AASS espoused “come-outerism,” an intellectual posture that demanded Americans “come out” of institutions cooperating with enslavers. Northern evangelicals feared that the AASS was an irreligious organization, with many anti-abolitionists labeling them “infidels.” But throughout the 1850s, in a process of association and accommodation, Garrisonians and politically orientated evangelicals, namely Henry Ward Beecher and George Cheever, maintained overlapping spheres of influence. This accommodation came at the expense of marginalizing an outspoken freethinker and original member of the AASS, Orson Murray. As a result, this newfound bond between Garrisonians and evangelical celebrities helped generate broader public support for antislavery, especially as the Northern public began to accept that emancipation would ultimately come by the hand of Providence.