Olaudah Equiano (c.1745-31 March 1797):
Grave unknown, but marker in American International Church, 79a Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4TD
Olaudah Equiano was one of the most prominent voices in the abolitionist movement. His autobiography, The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavas Vassa, the African, was published in 1789, was to have to have enormous impact, rapidly going into nine editions before his death. It told of his life as a child in Igboland in present-day Nigeria, his capture as a boy, and the barbaric horrors of his life as a slave.
He died a free man in London on 31 March 1797. Obituaries appeared in both British and American newspapers. His burial records, however, appeared to have been lost until recently. It is now known that he was buried at Whitefield’s Methodist Chapel on 6th April 1797. The Chapel has undergone a number of major changes over the years, including being destroyed by the last V2 rocket to fall on London in WW2, and is now the American International Church. Although his grave has been lost, a green plaque was erected in 2000 to mark his final resting place.
