Phillis Wheatley Peters was born around 1753 in Western Africa. Kidnapped from her home when she was around 7 or 8, she was brought to Boston in 1761. Shop owner John Wheatley bought her and named her Phillis, after the slave ship that brought her to Boston. Phillis was originally bought as a companion for Susannah Wheatley, following the recent death of one of her children. The Wheatleys soon discovered that Phillis was exceptionally bright, and their daughter Mary began teaching her Greek, Latin, and literature.

Wheatley Peters began to write poetry and often shared it informally with friends of the Wheatley family. In 1767, at the age of 14, her first poem, "On Messrs. Hussey and Coffin," was published in the Newport Mercury. After writing for several years, she collected her poems, intending to have them published as a book. Because she was Black and so young, many people believed that she had not written the poems herself. A panel of white men was convened in Boston to ascertain her authorship. Unfortunately, despite the panel's findings that she was the author of the poems, she was ultimately unable to find enough subscribers (a person who pays for the book in advance) to support publication in Boston. However, through Susannah Wheatley's connections to Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon, the Wheatleys were able to secure a publisher in London. Accompanied by one of Wheatley's sons, Nathan, Phillis traveled to London to oversee publication. While in London, Wheatley Peters visited the Tower of London Zoo and had an audience with Benjamin Franklin. She was also supposed to meet King George, but she was forced to return to Boston early because Susannah Wheatley had fallen gravely ill.

After her return from London in 1774, Wheatley Peters was finally freed from enslavement. In 1778, she met and married John Peters, a Black lawyer and grocer in Boston. She and John eventually moved to Middleton, MA between 1780-83. After returning to Boston, Phillis Wheatley Peters died on December 5, 1784