Still Standing: The Rochester Building Where ‘The North Star’ Began

The corner view of the Talman Building in Downtown Rochester where Frederick Douglass ran his anti-slavery publication, The North Star.

When I was a graduate student at Columbia University, I often reflected on Frederick Douglass’ novel, the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave. I thought a lot about the heroic acts he accomplished, from escaping slavery to becoming a political strategist and advisor to President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. His legacy is often forgotten in time even while his legacy lingers on. Sure, one can roam the stacks in local colleges and find a copy or digital print of his book, and even today you can see statues of Frederick Douglass across town as you drive through Rochester, New York, and in some parts of Maryland where he was born into slavery.

One building still stands in Downtown Rochester that many swiftly pass as they walk across Main Street, and unfortunately the legacy of this fierce orator, advocate, freedom fighter, and political philosopher feels unseen, and undervalued. The Talman Building that stands today at 25 E. Main St was once home to The North Star, an anti-slavery publication by Frederick Douglass that ran from 1847 to 1851. It was also a site on the Underground Railroad, an honorable site worth stopping by for a glance and a moment of reverence.

Today, as we enter another midterm election cycle, this building feels sacred, for Douglass was an advocate for voter rights and the 15th Amendment. Perhaps, in some ways, the Spirit of Frederick Douglass still exists somewhere in the walls of a historic building on Main Street in Downtown Rochester.

A placard on the Talman Building acknowledging the history of Douglass’ work, and journalistic contributions of The North Star.