Phillis Wheatley, the first published African American poet, did not attend a formal school as we think of it today. Instead, she received her education at home. After being brought to Boston as a slave at the age of seven or eight, she was taken in by the Wheatley family. John Wheatley and his wife, Susanna, recognized her remarkable intelligence and interest in learning. They encouraged her education, allowing her to study literature, history, and astronomy, among other subjects.
Phillis showed a particular aptitude for poetry and began writing at a young age. Her education was unorthodox, reflecting the limited access to schooling for African Americans at the time, but the support she received from the Wheatleys enabled her to cultivate her talent and ultimately publish her poetry in 1773.