Samuel Gridley Howe was an abolitionist and husband to poet Julia Ward Howe. In 1871, Howe, Douglass and others completed an eight week mission to Santo Domingo in what is now the Dominican Republic. The purpose of the trip was to determine the viability of the U.S. annexing a part of the island of Hispaniola. Douglass was sent along in a subordinate role to the other commissioners but was still eager to bring America’s newly found freedom and hopeful prosperity to other black populations. In the end, the annexation never took place.
Samuel Gridley Howe died on January 9, 1876 at the age of 74. He was buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Exact Grave GPS coordinates: 42.369612, -71.147075