After emancipation, Boyd began a process of self-education, using "Webster's Blue-Backed Speller" and "McGuffey's First Reader" as texts, and hiring a white girl to teach him.
After emancipation, Boyd, who did not learn the alphabet until age 22, began a process of self-education. He used "Webster's Blue-Backed Speller" and "McGuffey's First Reader" as texts and hired a white girl to teach him.