Tubman first encountered the Underground Railroad when she used it to escape slavery herself in 1849. Following a bout of illness and the death of her owner, Tubman decided to escape slavery in Maryland for Philadelphia. Making use of the Underground Railroad, Tubman traveled nearly 90 miles to Philadelphia.
What inspired the Underground Railroad?
Quaker Abolitionists In the early 1800s, Quaker abolitionist Isaac T. Hopper set up a network in Philadelphia that helped enslaved people on the run. At the same time, Quakers in North Carolina established abolitionist groups that laid the groundwork for routes and shelters for escapees.
What is the main idea of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad?
Harriet Tubman was an escaped enslaved woman who became a “conductor” on the Underground Railroad, leading enslaved people to freedom before the Civil War, all while carrying a bounty on her head.
When did Harriet Tubman start the Underground Railroad?
The Underground Railroad and Siblings Tubman first encountered the Underground Railroad when she used it to escape slavery herself in 1849. Following a bout of illness and the death of her owner, Tubman decided to escape slavery in Maryland for Philadelphia.
How many slaves did Harriet Tubman save?
Fact: According to Tubman’s own words, and extensive documentation on her rescue missions, we know that she rescued about 70 people —family and friends—during approximately 13 trips to Maryland.
Why did Harriet Tubman help slaves?
Who was Harriet Tubman? Harriet Tubman escaped from slavery in the South to become a leading abolitionist before the American Civil War. She led hundreds of enslaved people to freedom in the North along the route of the Underground Railroad.
Was the Underground Railroad an actual railroad?
Nope! Despite its name, the Underground Railroad wasn’t a railroad in the way Amtrak or commuter rail is. It wasn’t even a real railroad. The Underground Railroad of history was simply a loose network of safe houses and top secret routes to states where slavery was banned.
What are 5 facts about Harriet Tubman?
8 amazing facts about Harriet Tubman
- Tubman’s codename was “Moses,” and she was illiterate her entire life.
- She suffered from narcolepsy.
- Her work as “Moses” was serious business.
- She never lost a slave.
- Tubman was a Union scout during the Civil War.
- She cured dysentery.
- She was the first woman to lead a combat assault.
Is Gertie Davis died?
Harriet Tubman (1822-1913), a renowned leader in the Underground Railroad movement, established the Home for the Aged in 1908. Born into slavery in Dorchester County, Maryland, Tubman gained her freedom in 1849 when she escaped to Philadelphia.
Did Harriet Tubman have epilepsy?
Her mission was getting as many men, women and children out of bondage into freedom. When Tubman was a teenager, she acquired a traumatic brain injury when a slave owner struck her in the head. This resulted in her developing epileptic seizures and hypersomnia.
Harriet Tubman
As an escaped enslaved woman, Harriet Tubman worked as a “conductor” on the Underground Railroad, guiding enslaved individuals to freedom before the Civil War, all while a bounty was placed on her head. But she was also a nurse, a spy for the Union, and a proponent of women’s rights. Tubman is one of the most well-known figures in American history, and her legacy has inspired countless individuals of all races and ethnicities around the world.
When Was Harriet Tubman Born?
As an escaped enslaved woman, Harriet Tubman worked as a “conductor” on the Underground Railroad, guiding enslaved individuals to freedom before the Civil War, even while a reward was placed on her life. Nevertheless, she worked as a nurse, a spy for the Union, and a proponent of women’s suffrage. Tubman is one of the most well-known figures in American history, and her legacy has inspired many individuals of all races and ethnicities throughout the country.
A Good Deed Gone Bad
Harriet’s yearning for justice first manifested itself when she was 12 years old and witnessed an overseer prepare to hurl a heavy weight at a runaway. Harriet took a step between the enslaved person and the overseer, and the weight of the person smacked her in the head. Afterwards, she described the occurrence as follows: “The weight cracked my head. They had to carry me to the home because I was bleeding and fainting. Because I was without a bed or any place to lie down at all, they threw me on the loom’s seat, where I stayed for the rest of the day and the following day.” As a result of her good act, Harriet has suffered from migraines and narcolepsy for the remainder of her life, forcing her to go into a deep slumber at any time of day.
She was undesirable to potential slave purchasers and renters because of her physical disability.
Escape from Slavery
Harriet’s father was freed in 1840, and Harriet later discovered that Rit’s owner’s final will and testament had freed Rit and her children, including Harriet, from slavery. Despite this, Rit’s new owner refused to accept the will and instead held Rit, Harriett, and the rest of her children in bondage for the remainder of their lives. Harriet married John Tubman, a free Black man, in 1844, and changed her last name from Ross to Tubman in honor of her new husband. Harriet’s marriage was in shambles, and the idea that two of her brothers—Ben and Henry—were going to be sold prompted her to devise a plan to flee.
Harriet Tubman: Underground Railroad
On September 17, 1849, Harriet, Ben, and Henry managed to flee their Maryland farm and reach the United States. The brothers, on the other hand, changed their minds and returned. Harriet persisted, and with the assistance of the Underground Railroad, she was able to journey 90 miles north to Pennsylvania and freedom. Tubman got employment as a housekeeper in Philadelphia, but she wasn’t content with simply being free on her own; she desired freedom for her family and friends, as well as for herself.
She attempted to relocate her husband John to the north at one time, but he had remarried and preferred to remain in Maryland with his new wife. MORE INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND AT: Harriet Tubman and her fellow fugitives used the following strategies to escape through the Underground Railroad:
Fugitive Slave Act
The Runaway Slave Act of 1850 authorized the apprehension and enslavement of fugitive and released laborers in the northern United States. Consequently, Harriet’s task as an Underground Railroad guide became much more difficult, and she was obliged to take enslaved people even farther north into Canada by leading them through the night, generally during the spring or fall when the days were shorter. She carried a revolver for her personal security as well as to “encourage” any of her charges who might be having second thoughts about following her orders.
Within 10 years, Harriet became acquainted with other abolitionists like as Frederick Douglass, Thomas Garrett, and Martha Coffin Wright, and she built her own Underground Railroad network of her own.
Despite this, it is thought that Harriet personally guided at least 70 enslaved persons to freedom, including her elderly parents, and that she educated scores of others on how to escape on their own in the years following the Civil War.
The Little-Known Underground Railroad That Ran South to Mexico.
Harriet Tubman’s Civil War Service
The Runaway Slave Act of 1850 authorized fugitive and liberated laborers in the northern United States to be apprehended and enslaved in the southern United States. Consequently, Harriet’s role as an Underground Railroad guide became much more difficult, and she was compelled to take enslaved people even farther north into Canada by leading them through the night, generally during the spring or fall when the days were shorter. In addition to her personal security, she carried a revolver in order to “encourage” any of her charges who might be having second thoughts about joining her.
After that, Harriet became friends with other abolitionists like as Frederick Douglass, Thomas Garrett, and Martha Coffin Wright, and she began to build up her own Underground Railroad network.
Despite this, it is thought that Harriet personally led at least 70 enslaved persons to freedom, including her elderly parents, and that she also trained scores of others on how to escape on their own in the years after her capture.
In her defense, she stated, “I never lost a passenger or ran my train off the track.” More information may be found at: The Little-Known Underground Railroad That Ran South to Mexico.
Harriet Tubman’s Later Years
Following the Civil War, Harriet moved to Auburn, New York, where she lived with her family and friends on land she owned. After her husband John died in 1867, she married Nelson Davis, a former enslaved man and Civil War soldier, in 1869. A few years later, they adopted a tiny girl named Gertie, who became their daughter. Harriet maintained an open-door policy for anyone who was in need of assistance. In order to sustain her philanthropic endeavors, she sold her homegrown fruit, raised pigs, accepted gifts, and borrowed money from family and friends.
- She also collaborated with famed suffrage activist Susan B.
- Harriet Tubman acquired land close to her home in 1896 and built the Harriet Tubman Home for Aged and Indigent Colored People, which opened in 1897.
- However, her health continued to deteriorate, and she was finally compelled to relocate to the rest home that bears her name in 1911.
- Schools and museums carry her name, and her life story has been told in novels, films, and documentaries, among other mediums.
Harriet Tubman: 20 Dollar Bill
Harriet moved to Auburn, New York, with her family and friends after the Civil War. She bought land there. Several years after her marriage to John Davis, she married former enslaved man and Civil War soldier Nelson Davis. They adopted a young daughter called Gertie from the same orphanage. Those in need were welcome to come to Harriet’s house whenever they needed to. In order to sustain her philanthropic endeavors, she sold her homegrown fruit, raised pigs, accepted gifts, and took out loans from her circle of acquaintances.
- Anthony.
- In order to alleviate the effects of the head damage she sustained as a young child, she was forced to undergo brain surgery.
- Harriet Tubman died on March 10, 1913, as a result of pneumonia, but her legacy endures.
- Continue reading “After the Underground Railroad, Harriet Tubman Led a Bold Civil War Raid”
Sources
Early years of one’s life. The Harriet Tubman Historical Society was founded in 1908. General Tubman was a female abolitionist who also served as a secret military weapon during the Civil War. Military Times is a publication that publishes news on the military. Harriet Tubman is a historical figure. Biography. Biography. Harriet Tubman is a historical figure. Thompson AME Zion Church, Thompson Home for the Aged, and Thompson Residence are all located in Thompson. The National Park Service is a federal agency.
- Myths against facts.
- Kate Clifford Larson, Ph.D.
- Harriet Tubman is a historical figure.
- National Women’s History Museum exhibit about Harriet Tubman.
Harriet Tubman, “The Moses of Her People,” is a fictional character created by author Harriet Tubman. The Harriet Tubman Historical Society was founded in 1908. Harriet Tubman is a historical figure. The Underground Railroad (Urban Railroad). The National Park Service is a federal agency.
Harriet Tubman
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Harriet Tubman?
In the United States, Harriet Tubman, née Araminta Ross, (born c. 1820 in Dorchester County, Maryland, U.S.—died March 10, 1913 in Auburn, New York) was an abolitionist who managed to escape from slavery in the South and rise to prominence before the American Civil War. As part of the Underground Railroad, which was an extensive covert network of safe homes built specifically for this reason, she was responsible for guiding scores of enslaved persons to freedom in the North. Araminta Ross was born into slavery and eventually assumed her mother’s maiden name, Harriet, as her own.
- When she was approximately 12 years old, she reportedly refused to assist an overseer in punishing another enslaved person; as a result, he hurled an iron weight that accidently struck her, causing her to suffer a terrible brain injury, which she would endure for the rest of her life.
- Tubman went to Philadelphia in 1849, allegedly on the basis of rumors that she was due to be sold.
- In December 1850, she made her way to Baltimore, Maryland, where she was reunited with her sister and two children who had joined her in exile.
- A long-held belief that Tubman made around 19 excursions into Maryland and assisted upwards of 300 individuals out of servitude was based on inflated estimates in Sara Bradford’s 1868 biography of Tubman.
- If anyone opted to turn back, putting the operation in jeopardy, she reportedly threatened them with a revolver and stated, “You’ll either be free or die,” according to reports.
- One such example was evading capture on Saturday evenings since the story would not emerge in the newspapers until the following Monday.
- It has been stated that she never lost sight of a runaway she was escorting to safety.
Abolitionists, on the other hand, praised her for her bravery.
Her parents (whom she had brought from Maryland in June 1857) and herself moved to a tiny farm outside Auburn, New York, about 1858, and remained there for the rest of her life.
Tubman spied on Confederate territory while serving with the Second Carolina Volunteers, who were under the leadership of Col.
Montgomery’s forces were able to launch well-coordinated attacks once she returned with intelligence regarding the locations of munitions stockpiles and other strategic assets.
Immediately following the Civil War, Tubman relocated to Auburn, where she began caring for orphans and the elderly, a practice that culminated in the establishment of the Harriet Tubman Home for IndigentAged Negroes in 1892.
Aside from suffrage, Tubman became interested in a variety of other issues, including the abolition of slavery.
A private measure providing for a $20 monthly stipend was enacted by Congress some 30 years after her contribution was recognized. Those in charge of editing the Encyclopaedia Britannica Jeff Wallenfeldt was the author of the most recent revision and update to this article.
Harriet Tubman Biography
She was known as the “Moses of her people” because she was enslaved and then fled to become a “conductor” of the Underground Railroad, where she assisted others in gaining their freedom. Aside from being a scout, spy, and guerilla fighter for the Union Army during the Civil War, Tubman also worked as a medic for the army. She is widely regarded as the first African-American woman to serve in the United States armed forces. Tubman’s precise birthdate is uncertain, however it is believed to have occurred between 1820 and 1822 in Dorchester County, Maryland, according to some estimations.
- She had eight siblings, all of whom survived.
- Early indications of her opposition to slavery and its abuses appeared when she was twelve years old and intervened to prevent her owner from striking an enslaved man who attempted to flee.
- However, despite the fact that slaves were not permitted to marry, Tubman entered into a marriage partnership with John Tubman, a free black man, in 1844.
- Tubman did not construct the Underground Railroad, contrary to popular belief; rather, it was built in the late eighteenth century by both black and white abolitionists.
- The man she married refused to accompany her, and by 1851, he had married a free black lady from the South.
- As a result of her achievement, slaveowners have offered a $40,000 reward for her arrest or murder.
- She also took part in various anti-slavery campaigns, including assisting John Brown in his failed attack on the Harpers Ferry arsenal in Virginia in 1859, which she helped organize.
As a spy and scout for the Union army, Tubman frequently disguised herself as an elderly woman.
Tubman assisted a large number of these people in obtaining food, housing, and even employment in the North.
During her time as a nurse, Tubman administered herbal cures to black and white troops who were dying of sickness or illness.
Anthony, looked after her aging parents, and collaborated with white writer Sarah Bradford on her autobiography, which she hoped would be a source of income.
She lived in Auburn, New York, and cared for the elderly in her house.
In 1895, as Davis’s widow (he died in 1888), she was ultimately given a $8 per month military pension, followed by a $20 pension in 1899 for her service in the army.
In 1896, she donated land near her home to the Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged, which is still in operation today. Tuberculosis was discovered in 1913 and Tubman was interred at Fort Hill Cemetery in Auburn, New York, with full military honors.
Aboard the Underground Railroad- Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged
| Images of the Harriet Tubman Home for theAged, Harriet TubmanNationalHistoric Landmarks photographs |
Harriet Tubman
| Harriet Tubman is perhaps the most well-known of all the Underground Railroad’s “conductors.” During a ten-year span she made 19 trips into the South and escorted over 300 slaves to freedom. And, as she once proudly pointed out to Frederick Douglass, in all of her journeys she “never lost a single passenger.” Tubman was born a slave in Maryland’s Dorchester County around 1820. At age five or six, she began to work as a house servant. Seven years later she was sent to work in the fields. While she was still in her early teens, she suffered an injury that would follow her for the rest of her life. Always ready to stand up for someone else, Tubman blocked a doorway to protect another field hand from an angry overseer. The overseer picked up and threw a two-pound weight at the field hand. It fell short, striking Tubman on the head. She never fully recovered from the blow, which subjected her to spells in which she would fall into a deep sleep.Around 1844 she married a free black named John Tubman and took his last name. (She was born Araminta Ross; she later changed her first name to Harriet, after her mother.) In 1849, in fear that she, along with the other slaves on the plantation, was to be sold, Tubman resolved to run away. She set out one night on foot. With some assistance from a friendly white woman, Tubman was on her way. She followed the North Star by night, making her way to Pennsylvania and soon after to Philadelphia, where she found work and saved her money. The following year she returned to Maryland and escorted her sister and her sister’s two children to freedom. She made the dangerous trip back to the South soon after to rescue her brother and two other men. On her third return, she went after her husband, only to find he had taken another wife. Undeterred, she found other slaves seeking freedom and escorted them to the North.Tubman returned to the South again and again. She devised clever techniques that helped make her “forays” successful, including using the master’s horse and buggy for the first leg of the journey; leaving on a Saturday night, since runaway notices couldn’t be placed in newspapers until Monday morning; turning about and heading south if she encountered possible slave hunters; and carrying a drug to use on a baby if its crying might put the fugitives in danger. Tubman even carried a gun which she used to threaten the fugitives if they became too tired or decided to turn back, telling them, “You’ll be free or die.”By 1856, Tubman’s capture would have brought a $40,000 reward from the South. On one occasion, she overheard some men reading her wanted poster, which stated that she was illiterate. She promptly pulled out a book and feigned reading it. The ploy was enough to fool the men.Tubman had made the perilous trip to slave country 19 times by 1860, including one especially challenging journey in which she rescued her 70-year-old parents. Of the famed heroine, who became known as “Moses,” Frederick Douglass said, “Excepting John Brown – of sacred memory – I know of no one who has willingly encountered more perils and hardships to serve our enslaved people than.” And John Brown, who conferred with “General Tubman” about his plans to raid Harpers Ferry, once said that she was “one of the bravest persons on this continent.”Becoming friends with the leading abolitionists of the day, Tubman took part in antislavery meetings. On the way to such a meeting in Boston in 1860, in an incident in Troy, New York, she helped a fugitive slave who had been captured.During the Civil War Harriet Tubman worked for the Union as a cook, a nurse, and even a spy. After the war she settled in Auburn, New York, where she would spend the rest of her long life. She died in 1913.Image Credit: Moorland-Spingarn Research Center |
Harriet Tubman
She was known as the “Moses of her people” because she was enslaved and then fled to become a “conductor” of the Underground Railroad, where she assisted other slaves in gaining their liberation. For the Union Army during the Civil War, Tubman also performed duties as a scout, spies, guerilla soldier, and nurse. The first African American woman to serve in the military, she is widely regarded as having made history. It is uncertain when Tubman was born, although it is believed to have occurred between 1820 and 1822 in Dorchester County, Maryland.
- She had eight siblings, all of whom were born in the South.
- When she was twelve years old, she demonstrated her opposition to slavery and its injustices by interfering to prevent her owner from beating an enslaved man who attempted to flee.
- Tubman married John Tubman, a free black man, in 1844, despite the fact that slaves were not allowed to marry in the United States.
- Tubman did not start the Underground Railroad, contrary to popular belief; it was built in the late eighteenth century by both black and white abolitionists.
- The guy she married refused to accompany her, and by 1851, he had married a free black lady from another state.
- Her accomplishments prompted slaveowners to offer a $40,000 bounty for her arrest or death, which she accepted.
- Among her other anti-slavery activities was her support for John Brown during his failed attack on the Harpers Ferry arsenal in 1859, which took place in Virginia.
As a spy and scout for the Union army, Tubman often disguised herself as an elderly woman to avoid detection.
Tubman assisted a large number of these people in obtaining food, housing, and even employment in the Northern United States of America.
Tubman worked as a nurse, dispensing herbal cures to black and white troops who were dying of sickness or disease.
Anthony, looked after her aging parents, and collaborated with white writer Sarah Bradford on her autobiography, which she hoped would be a potential source of income.
The Davises adopted a daughter in 1874 when they moved to Auburn, New York, where she was caring for the elderly.
The Harriet Tubman House for the Aged, located close to her home, was founded in 1896 by her. Tubman passed away in 1913 and was buried with military honors at Fort Hill Cemetery in Auburn, New York, where he had been a resident.
A courageous leader
Harriet Tubman was the middle child of nine enslaved siblings, and she was reared by parents who had to fight against overwhelming difficulties to keep their family together. In spite of her terrible impairment, she grew up to become an accomplished hunter, lumberjack, and fieldworker. Her athletic skills prepared her for the potentially hazardous road she would choose as an adult. Tubman was able to make it to Philadelphia in 1849 after a daring escape. Once free, she went on to become an operator of the Underground Railroad, a hidden network of people, places, and routes that gave sanctuary and support to fugitive slaves during the American Civil War.
By 1860, Tubman had gained the moniker “Moses” for her work in rescuing so many enslaved people while putting her own life in danger to do it.
Did youknow?
- The fact that she had never learned to read or write did not detract from her ability to be intelligent, cunning, and brave, and she was never caught during her 13 perilous trips to free her friends and family from slavery. In June 1863, she made history by being the first woman to command an armed military raid during the American Civil War. Additionally, Tubman served as a Union spy and nurse
- She was a suffragist who campaigned for women’s rights
- She founded an African-American Nursing Home on her farm in Auburn, New York
- And she came close to death as a young child after suffering a concussion and traumatic brain injury. She suffered from seizures, discomfort, and other health difficulties for the remainder of her life, despite the fact that she was devout. When she began seeing visions and intense dreams, she took them to be revelations from God
- Nevertheless, she later came to believe otherwise.
A dedicated humanitarian
As a result of her widespread admiration among abolitionists in the North, Tubman established herself as a valued friend and counselor to many, earning her a position in the Union Army as a scout, spy, nurse, and confidante of generals. After the Civil War, she relocated to Auburn, New York, where she devoted her time and energy to the misery of the poor, opening her house as a haven for the aged, the sick, and those who were physically handicapped. Even before the American Civil War, she was a tireless advocate for the rights of women, minorities, the crippled, and the elderly in general.
She went on to establish a nursing home for African Americans on her land in New York, which she owned at the time.
Tubman had already been the topic of a slew of articles, recollections, and an autobiography at that point.
It is only necessary to go along the Byway that bears her name to appreciate the significance of her humble origins and the scope of her accomplishment.
- She was born into slavery as Araminta “Minty” Ross in Dorchester County, Maryland, most likely around the year 1822. Her parents, Harriet (“Rit”) Green and Ben Ross, were both enslaved
- She was born into this situation. A family member of Harriet’s mother’s “ownership,” the Brodess family, rented Harriet out and assigned her to do various jobs, including caring for children, checking muskrat traps, agricultural and forest labor, driving oxen, plowing, and moving logs. During her childhood, most likely in the 1830s, she had a serious brain injury that required surgery. Seizures, migraines, and visions plagued the victim for the rest of his life. Around the time of her marriage to John Tubman, a free Black man, in 1844, she changed her name from Araminta to Harriet, and so became known as Harriet Tubman 1849: She managed to escape slavery and make her way to Philadelphia on her own, primarily through the darkness of the night.
- Following her emancipation, she spent more than a decade making secret return journeys to Maryland in order to assist her friends and family members who were also fleeing slavery. With each journey, she put her life in danger. Tubman’s last rescue expedition took place in 1860
- When the Civil War broke out, she joined the Union Army, first as a cook and nurse, then as an armed scout and spy, among other roles. With the liberation of more than 700 slaves in 1863, she made history as the first woman to command an armed expedition during the war. The next year she relocated to a home she had acquired in Auburn, New York (where she cared for her aged parents) that she had purchased in 1859. She was active in the suffrage campaign, advocating not just for the rights of women, but also for the rights of minorities, the crippled, and the elderly
- And On March 10, 1913, she passed away. Tubman is buried in Auburn, New York
- On April 20, 2016, the United States Treasury Department announced a plan for Tubman to replace Andrew Jackson as the portrait gracing the $20 bill
- And on April 20, 2016, the United States Treasury Department announced a plan for Tubman to replace Andrew Jackson as the portrait gracing the $20 bill.
Dispelling the myths about Harriet Tubman
“We believe we are familiar with Harriet Tubman, a former slave who went on to become an Underground Railroad conductor and an abolitionist. However, much of Tubman’s true life narrative has been clouded by years of myths and bogus tales, which have been spread through children’s books and have only served to obfuscate her enormous accomplishments in the process. This woman’s story is significantly more intriguing and astonishing than everything that has been spoken about her previously.” — Kate Clifford Larson, author of Bound for the Promised Land: Harriet Tubman: Portrait of an American Hero (Harriet Tubman: Portrait of an American Hero), Several misconceptions and facts regarding Harriet Tubman’s life are debunked by Kate Clifford Larson, author of the well-regarded book Harriet Tubman: Portrait of an American Hero (Bound for the Promised Land: Harriet Tubman: Portrait of an American Hero).
- We have included some of the myths in this section with the author’s permission.
- While speaking at public and private gatherings in 1858 and 1859, Tubman regularly stated that she had saved between 50 and 60 persons in eight or nine visits to different locations.
- In her 1868 biography, Sarah Bradford overstated the figures to make a point.
- Other individuals who were close to Tubman expressed strong disagreement with the statistics.
- Additionally, in addition to teaching his family and friends, Tubman also provided education to around 70 other freedom seekers from the Eastern Shore who had discovered their own route to freedom.
- The property was located south of Madison in a location known as Peter’s Neck in Dorchester County, and was owned by Brodess.
- FACT: The sole reward for Tubman’s arrest was provided in an advertising for the return of “Minty” and her brothers “Ben” and “Harry” published on October 3, 1849, in which their mistress, Eliza Brodess, paid $100 for each of them if they were apprehended outside the state of Maryland.
- Sallie Holley, a former anti-slavery activist in New York who sent a letter to a newspaper in 1867 pleading for support for Tubman in her pursuit of back pay and pension from the Union Army, concocted the number of $40,000 as a reward for Tubman’s capture and execution.
- For $40,000, which is the equivalent of many million dollars today, she would have been apprehended, and every newspaper in the country would have run an advertising announcing her arrest.
- It was too perilous for her to venture into unfamiliar territory where she did not know the people or the terrain.
During her captivity in Philadelphia, Tubman had a coded letter composed for her that was delivered to Jackson in December 1854, telling him to inform her brothers that she was on her way to rescue them and that they needed to be prepared to “climb onboard” the “Old Ship of Zion.” There is no evidence that he genuinely provided refuge to runaways in his home.
- FAITHFUL:Harriet Tubman did not participate in the construction of the canal, which was completed between 1810 and 1830 while she was still a kid.
- We do not know whether her father, Ben Ross, was involved in the construction of the canal, but he would almost probably have utilized it to move lumber.
- Tubman used a variety of ways and routes to escape slavery and to return to help others who were in need of rescue.
- She utilized disguises, walked, rode horses and wagons, sailed on boats, and rode genuine trains to get where she needed to go.
- She communicated with people through letters prepared for her by someone else and addressed to trusted persons such as Jacob Jackson, as well as by direct conversation with them.
- Rivers snaked northward, and she followed their course.
- Harriet Tubman took a tiny handgun with her on her rescue operations, mostly to protect herself from slave catchers, but also to discourage weak-hearted runaways from turning around and jeopardizing the group’s overall safety.
- TRUTH: While on her rescue operations, Tubman performed two songs to keep herself entertained.
- Tubman explained that she altered the speed of the songs to signify whether or not it was safe to come out.
- Because “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” was written and composed post-Civil War by an Afro-Cherokee Indian residing in Oklahoma, Tubman would not have been familiar with it prior to the Civil War.
- She was 27 years old when she fled slavery on her own in the fall of 1849, when she was 27 years old.
Photographs shot later in her life, as highlighted by Washington Postcritic Philip Kennicott, “had the effect of softening the wider sense of who she was, and how she achieved her heroic legacy.”
Learn Harriet Tubman’s Story at the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center
The Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center, located in Church Creek on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, first opened its doors to the public in March 2017. Several locations surrounding the visitor center were used by Harriet Tubman during her childhood as a slave in Dorchester County. She lived, worked, and prayed in these locations. The place is where she originally fled slavery, and it is where she returned around 13 times over the course of a decade, risking her life time and time again in order to free over 70 friends and family members.
- Located at 4068 Golden Hill Road in Church Creek, Maryland.
- Donations are accepted in lieu of admission to the tourist center, which is free.
- The magnificent visitor center, which is located near the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge and about 25 minutes from Cambridge, Maryland, has an exhibit hall with compelling and thought-provoking multimedia exhibits, a theater, and a gift shop, among other amenities.
- There is also a huge picnic pavilion with a stone fireplace that may be rented out for special occasions.
- In addition to the visitor center, there are more than 30 historical sites along the Maryland part of the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway, which is a self-guided, beautiful driving tour of the Underground Railroad.
- NOTE: The Harriet Tubman Visitor Center is not to be confused with the Harriet Tubman MuseumEducational Center, which has been in operation for more than 20 years and is maintained entirely by volunteers in the heart of Cambridge’s downtown.
- Visit the Tubman Visitor Center website for additional information, or call or email them at 410-221-2290 or htursp.d[email protected] to learn more about their programs and services.
Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park
As a result of an executive order issued in March 2013, the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Monument was established and the landscape of Dorchester County, Maryland was designated as a historical landmark for its association with Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad. When the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park was established a year later, the National Park Service designated area in Dorchester, Talbot, and Caroline Counties for possible future acquisition by the National Park Service.
It also maintains a sister park, Harriet Tubman National Historical Park in Auburn, New York.
At the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center, you may get stamps for your passport that will allow you to visit all of the National Parks. Learn more about the park by visiting its website. a link to the page’s load
Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad, often regarded as one of the most brave efforts to rescue imprisoned slaves, was a vital network of individuals and ways that enabled slaves attempting to flee to the northern United States and Canada. The actual date of the building’s construction is uncertain, although specialists at the Independence Hall Association assume that it was built around the end of the 17th century. The route to liberation was far from being as straightforward as a train journey. In reality, according to the United States National Park Service, the slaves passed through difficult terrain, both natural and man-made, on their journey.
Additionally, individuals on the run sought refuge in areas like as Mexico, the Caribbean Islands, and even Europe in order to avoid capture.
Learn more about the significance of the Underground Railroad and the people who labored to keep it running smoothly as part of Black History Month celebrations.
How it Started
According to the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, it is the Quakers of the 18th century who are credited with the formation of the underground railroad network. As members of the Religious Society of Friends, the organized abolitionists thought that slavery was incompatible with their Christian beliefs, which prompted them to become involved in the battle for equal rights. The hazards were so great for those engaged that they had to come up with their own nomenclature for discussing participants, safe spots, and secret codes.
Harriet Tubman
“I worked as a conductor on the Underground Railroad for eight years, and I can claim something that most conductors cannot: I never ran my train off the track or lost a passenger.” Harriet Tubman was a well-known conductor of the Underground Railroad, and she was one of the most well-known women in the world. A former slave herself, she achieved freedom in 1849 before bringing hundreds more convicts and family members to freedom the following year. It was the next year that the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was established, making life as a conductor much more difficult and perhaps dangerous.
It also imposed severe penalties, including as fines and imprisonment, on people who were participating in the network.
Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad
- “I worked as a conductor on the Underground Railroad for eight years, and I can claim something that most conductors can’t: I never ran my train off the tracks or lost a single passenger. Harriet Tubman was a well-known conductor of the Underground Railroad and one of the most well-known women in the world. In 1849, she fled to freedom from slavery, and she went on to escort hundreds of other fugitives and family members to safety. To make life as a conductor far more difficult and hazardous, the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was passed the following year. In accordance with the National Park Service, this statute was intended to compel the reporting and detention of anybody suspected of being a runaway slave, as well as to provide an incentive for kidnapping African-Americans of African origin. It also imposed severe penalties on people who were participating in the network, including fines and imprisonment. It was during the Civil War that Tubman would continue to assist her fellow slaves on the Underground Railroad, which would eventually come to an end in 1863.
Harriet Tubman was faced with a dreadful decision in 1849, after having endured the harsh circumstances of slavery for 24 years and fearing that she would be separated from her family again, she had to choose. On the one hand, she desired the protection of her unalienable right to liberty, which would ensure that no one could unilaterally rule over her. To obtain it, on the other hand, she would have to leave her husband and family behind in order to do so. Tubman took the decision to flee slavery and the chains of servitude by rushing away to the North through the Underground Railroad, which was a network of people who assisted enslaved people in securely escaping slavery in the United States.
- Her mother and father were both abolitionists (many slaves, like Frederick Douglass, guessed at their birth year).
- When she was in her thirties, she married a free black man called John Tubman and changed her given name to Harriet in honor of her mother, who had died when she was young.
- This terrible life of hard labor and physical punishment produced lifelong scars from lashes and brain damage from uncontrolled beatings, which she carried with her for the rest of her life.
- When she refused, the man hurled a two-pound weight at her and whacked her in the head with it, breaking her skull.
- She had seizures and migraines for the remainder of her life, and she was hospitalized several times.
- After escaping to Pennsylvania on her own, Tubman went on to work as a conductor in the Underground Railroad, returning to the South on several occasions to assist others from slavery.
- Tubman’s voyages were aided by members of the Quaker church, who were opposed to slavery, as well as by numerous African Americans.
Tubman made the decision to assist others in fleeing because she thought that their freedom was more important than her own safety and that it was her obligation to assist those who were unable to flee on their own own.
She disguised herself in order to avoid being apprehended, and she faced several challenges in order to complete the travels.
Adding to the risk, in 1850, Congress passed a tougher Fugitive Slave Act, which permitted slave catchers to go to the northern United States and apprehend alleged runaway slaves, who were then returned to their masters.
Slaveholders placed advertisements in newspapers describing the runaways and offering monetary rewards, but abolitionists mobilized large groups of people to defend the runaways from slave hunters.
Faced with the ongoing threats, her strength, courage, drive, and sense of duty enabled her to confront them with dignity.
Harriet Tubman, depicted here in her older years, rose to prominence as a symbol of heroism and independence.
As a teacher in Beaufort, South Carolina, in 1862, she educated former enslaved people who were living in Union-controlled territory, according to her bio.
Navy ships, and she took part in the Combahee River Raid, which removed Confederate defenses from the region.
The packed ships aided in the emancipation of 750 slaves, many of whom enlisted in the Union Army to fight for the expansion of freedom.
To build the Home for the Aged in Auburn, New York, she sought assistance from abolitionists like as Fredrick Douglass, Susan B.
When she became too elderly and infirm to administer the house, she deeded the property to the Church of Zion, which agreed to take over management of the facility for her.
Harriet Tubman never lost sight of her sense that she had a responsibility to accomplish as much good as she could for as long as she had the ability to continue.
She was never apprehended, and she never lost sight of anybody she was guiding to freedom. The abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison dubbed her “Moses” because she had led her people out of slavery in the same way as the historical Moses did.
Review Questions
Harriet Tubman was forced to make a horrible decision in 1849 after 24 years of living under the harsh circumstances of slavery and fearing that she would be separated from her family again. On the one hand, she desired the protection of her unalienable right to freedom, which would ensure that no one could unilaterally reign over her. She would, on the other hand, have to abandon her husband and children in order to obtain it. When Tubman took the decision to flee from slavery, he did so by fleeing away to the North, where he joined the Underground Railroad, a network of people who assisted enslaved people in safely escaping their bindings.
- (many slaves, like Frederick Douglass, guessed at their birth year).
- During her twenties, she married John Tubman, a free black man, and changed her first name to Harriet as a tribute to her deceased mother.
- This terrible life of hard labor and physical punishment produced lifelong scars from lashes and brain damage from uncontrolled beatings, which she carried with her for the rest of her days.
- A two-pound weight had been thrown at her, and she had been smacked in the head by it when she refused to accept it.
- Throughout the remainder of her life, she was plagued with seizures and severe headaches.
- She became an Underground Railroad conductor after her own successful escape to Pennsylvania, and she returned to the southern United States on several occasions to assist others in their escape from slavery.
- Supporters of Tubman’s voyages included adherents of the Quaker church, who were anti-slavery, and a large number of African Americans.
When Tubman chose to assist others in fleeing, she did so because she thought that their freedom was more important than her own safety and that she had a responsibility to assist those who were unable to flee on their own.
For the travels, she disguised herself in order to avoid being apprehended and overcame several challenges.
Add to the risk the passage of a tougher Fugitive Slave Act in 1850, which authorized slave catchers to go north and apprehend alleged fugitive slaves, who were then returned to their owners.
a However, abolitionists created enormous crowds to shield runaways from slave catchers, despite the fact that slaveholders placed advertisements in newspapers describing the runaways and offering financial prizes.
Faced with the ongoing hazards, her strength, courage, drive, and sense of duty enabled her to tackle them all.
With each stride ahead, she knew that the horror of slavery would be left in the rear view mirror for those she assisted.
Tubman, as she was referred to, was active throughout the Civil War, working as a Union scout, spy, and nurse among other roles.
It was in 1863 that she accompanied Union forces in raids on coastal rivers aboard U.S.
She also took part in the Combahee River Raid, which drove Confederate defenses from the area.
More than 750 slaves were rescued by the packed ships, and many of them enlisted in the Union Army to fight for the abolition of slavery.
To build the Home for the Aged in Auburn, New York, she sought backing from abolitionists like as Fredrick Douglass, Susan B.
In her later years, when she became too old and infirm to administer the house, she deeded the property to the Church of Zion, which consented to take over management duties.
Harriet Tubman never lost sight of her sense that she had a responsibility to do as much good as she could for as long as she had the ability to do it for.
Nobody she led to freedom was ever captured, and she was never separated from her passengers. For her role in guiding her people out of slavery, as the legendary Moses had done, abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison called her “Moses.”
- It made it impossible for slaveholders to track down escaped enslaved folks. It allowed for heavier penalty for anyone who assisted fugitive enslaved individuals in their escape
- Therefore, Northerners who supported runaways would no longer face criminal prosecution. Its laws were applicable to the northern United States and Canada
- Nonetheless,
Runaway enslaved individuals were not pursued by slaveholders because of this law. There was a tougher retaliation for individuals who assisted fugitive and enslaved people escape. Therefore, Northerners who supported runaways would no longer be penalized under the law. This act’s provisions apply to the northern United States as well as Canada.
- Harriet Tubman, Harriet Beecher Stowe, William Lloyd Garrison, and John Calhoun are all historical figures.
W. L. Garrison; John Calhoun; Harriet Tubman; Harriet Beecher Stowe; Harriet Tubman; Harriet Beecher Stowe 4. During the period leading up to the Civil War, Harriet Tubman served as a conductor on the underground railroad.
- The War of 1812, the Mexican-American War, the Civil War, and the Plains Wars are all examples of historical events.
5. Harriet Tubman was referred to as “Moses” by William Lloyd Garrison since she was a descendant of Moses.
- Ran escaped from slavery and was born into it
- Published a successful abolitionist book
- Manumitted her own enslaved people
- And fought for the abolition of slavery.
6. With the passing of the Compromise of 1850, the subterranean railroad’s final goal shifted, owing to the fact that
- Canadian authorities ensured safe passage for fugitive slaves, and the completion of the Erie Canal made it easier and less expensive for them to reach New York City. There were numerous economic opportunities in the new western territories, but the new fugitive slave law increased the risks for escapees.
7. Even after the Civil War, Harriet Tubman demonstrated her conviction that she should do good for others by establishing the Harriet Tubman Foundation.
- Building a home for elderly and impoverished blacks in Auburn, New York
- Continuing to aid enslaved people in their escape from slavery by leading raids on southern plantations
- Disguising herself in order to escape from a Confederate prison and serve as a teacher
- Writing an inspiring autobiography detailing her heroic life
Free Response Questions
- Explain why Harriet Tubman made the decision to flee slavery in the first place. Give an explanation of how Harriet Tubman came to be known as “Moses.” Give an explanation as to why Underground Railroad operators like as Harriet Tubman, were forced, after 1850, to expand their routes to include Canada.
AP Practice Questions
Tell us what motivated Harriet Tubman’s decision to flee slavery. What is the origin of Harriet Tubman’s nick name “Moses?” Explain why Underground Railroad conductors, such as Harriet Tubman, had to change their routes to include Canada after 1850 in order to remain safe.
- The influence of the transportation revolution of the Jacksonian Era
- The limits of westward expansion
- Opposition to state and federal laws
- And the fall in cotton farming are all discussed in detail in this chapter.
2. What is the source of the pattern shown on the supplied map?
- There was the greatest amount of engagement in free states that were closest to slave states
- New England, on the other hand, had just a tiny link to the abolitionist cause. The Erie Canal boats provided safe passage for enslaved people who were fleeing their masters. Communities of fugitive enslaved people established themselves around the southern coasts of the Great Lakes.
Primary Sources
Lois E. Horton, ed., Harriet Tubman and the Fight for Freedom: A Brief History with Documents. Harriet Tubman and the Fight for Freedom: A Brief History with Documents. Bedford Books, Boston, Massachusetts, 2013.
Suggested Resources
Bordewich, Fergus M., ed., Bound for Canaan: The Epic Story of the Underground Railroad, America’s First Civil Rights Movement (Bound for Canaan: The Epic Story of the Underground Railroad, America’s First Civil Rights Movement). Amistad Publishing Company, New York, 2005. Catherine Clinton is the author of this work. Road to Freedom: Harriet Tubman’s Journey to Emancipation. Little Brown and Company, Boston, 2004. Eric Foner is the author of this work. Gateway to Freedom: The Underground Railroad’s Untold Story is a book on the history of the Underground Railroad.
Norton & Company, New York, 2015.
Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad: how one woman saved hundreds from hell
She had managed to get away from hell. Slavery in the United States was a hellish experience characterised by bondage, racist treatment, terrorism, degrading conditions, backbreaking labor, beatings, and whippings. Harriet Tubman escaped from her Maryland farm and walked over 90 miles by herself to reach the free state of Pennsylvania, where she died in 1865. In order to make the perilous voyage, she had to go at night through woods and through streams, with little food, and dreading anybody who would gladly give her back to her masters in order to receive a reward.
Her 1849 escape from slavery was described as follows: “When I realized I had crossed the border, I glanced at my hands to check if I was the same person.” “There was such a radiance in everything.” I had the feeling that I was in heaven as the sun filtered through the trees and over the meadows.” Tubman was transferred to a region where she could live somewhat free of bondage thanks to the Underground Railroad; but, while others endured cruelty and misery, she would risk her life as the network’s most renowned conductor.
Tubman made it out of hell just to turn around and walk right back into it.
When and where was Harriet Tubman born?
Araminta Ross, Tubman’s given name, would have been put to work on her family’s plantation in Dorchester County, Maryland, practically as soon as she began to walk, according to family legend. It was the same terrible initiation to slavery that she and her eight siblings endured when they were born into it. Her rigorous outdoor job, along with long hours of domestic employment as a maid and then as a cook, resulted in her being underweight and unwell at times. The little Minty, like millions of other slaves in America, became all-too familiar with the awful physical and mental torture she suffered at the hands of her owners.
- She would have been put to work on her family’s plantation in Dorchester County, Maryland, practically as soon as she learnt to walk, as Araminta Ross was her given name at birth. It was the same terrible initiation to slavery that her eight siblings and sisters had experienced. Despite her efforts, she suffered from malnutrition and illness due to the arduous field labor and long hours of domestic employment as a maid and, subsequently, a chef. Minty, like millions of other slaves in America, grew all-too familiar with the awful physical and mental torture she suffered at the hands of her owners when she was young. She was spanked and flogged as punishment anytime the baby screamed when she was working as a nursemaid when she was just five or six years old — believed to have occurred about 1825-30.
Minty’s harsh upbringing resulted in a fervent Christian faith, which she developed as a result of hearing Bible tales read to her by her mother, as well as extraordinary strength, courage, and a desire to put herself in danger in order to save others. These characteristics helped her so effectively in the Underground Railroad, yet they almost resulted in her death when she was a little girl. Once, as Minty was on her way to get supplies from a dry goods store, she found herself stuck between an overseer who was looking for a slave who had fled his property without permission and the slave’s pursuing master.
What was the Underground Railroad?
Minty’s harsh upbringing resulted in a fervent Christian faith, which she developed as a result of hearing Bible tales read to her by her mother, as well as extraordinary strength, courage, and a willingness to put herself in harm’s way in order to assist others. As a youngster, though, these characteristics almost cost her her life while she was on the Underground Railroad. When Minty was dispatched to a dry goods store one day, she found herself stuck between a slave who had escaped his farm without permission and the plantation’s overseer who was chasing after him.
How did Harriet Tubman escape from slavery?
What makes Tubman’s escape from slavery even more remarkable is that she had to accomplish it twice before she was successful. When Mary left the plantation with two of her brothers on September 17, 1849, Harry and Ben had second thoughts and returned to the plantation with her mother and father. Instead of continuing without them, Tubman made sure they returned before attempting a second time to save her life. The 90-mile trek could have taken her anywhere from one to three weeks if she had done it on foot.
As a result, in 1850, she returned to Maryland to pick up her niece Kessiah and her husband, as well as their two kids, and bring them back to Pennsylvania.
(some accounts say she went as many as 19 times).
It is estimated that she personally freed roughly 300 slaves – including some of her brothers and their families, as well as her own parents – and gave instructions to dozens of others in the process. Tubman liked to brag about how she had never lost a single passenger on her journey.
An advertising for the ‘Liberty Line’ in 1844, which was a thinly veiled allusion to the Underground Railroad, and which promised “seats free, regardless of race,” is seen below. (Image courtesy of the Chicago History Museum/Getty Images.) ) Due to the fact that being a conductor required Tubman to go across slavery zone where she could be seized by armed slave hunters, she knowingly and intentionally put her life in danger on a regular basis. It only grew more perilous after the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act, which made it possible for runaway slaves to be apprehended in the North and returned to their original owners.
As a result, Tubman had to find a way to get to Canada, which was under British control.
When Tubman was a conductor, her colleague William Still remarked, “Great anxieties were expressed for her safety, yet she appeared to be completely devoid of personal dread.” With her success in exploiting and growing the network to transport escaped slaves to safety, abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison dubbed Tubman the ‘Moses of her people’ for her efforts.
- She would frequently travel during the winter, when the nights were longer, and would leave with her ‘passengers’ on a Saturday evening – since runaway notices would not appear in newspapers until the following Monday – in order to avoid being discovered.
- “Either you’ll be free or you’ll die,” she declared emphatically.
- ‘General Tubman’ was contacted before to his failed 1859 raid on Harpers Ferry in the hopes of igniting a slave insurrection, and it is said that he wanted her to take part in the attack as a member of the armed forces.
- Seward was so impressed with Tubman’s work that she purchased a small plot of land near Auburn, New York – where she lived with her elderly parents, whom she had rescued during one of her final journeys – from her friend and admirer.
- In connection with the Underground Railroad, there is a widespread idea that songs had hidden messages in the lyrics that either assisted slaves in finding their path to freedom or served as a warning.
- “Go Down Moses” and “Bound for the Promised Land” are two songs that Harriet Tubman is said to have used on the Underground Railroad, according to Sarah Hopkins Bradford’s biography of the pioneering abolitionist.
- Some historians, on the other hand, are skeptical of the notion that songs included codes, claiming that there is no concrete proof from the historical period and that the myth really dates back to the twentieth century rather than the nineteenth.
- The reality has remained a mystery, which is exacerbated by the fact that comprehensive records of slaves’ lives in America are extremely few.
They gave people hope when there seemed to be none, and they gave them a sense of belonging when everyone sang together.
Harriet Tubman and the American Civil War
Although the Underground Railroad came to a close with the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861, it did not mark the end of Tubman’s heroic efforts on the Underground Railroad. She worked in the Union Army as a cook, laundress, and nurse, caring for wounded troops and escaped slaves, who were referred to as ‘contrabands,’ without regard for her own well-being. Tubman led a troop of scouts into Confederate territory after Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, laying the groundwork for the abolition of slavery.
Because of the intelligence she acquired, Colonel James Montgomery was able to launch a deadly attack on enemy fortifications, making her the first woman to command an armed assault in the United States history.
More than 750 slaves were liberated during the uprising.
What were Harriet Tubman’s actions during the American Civil War?
Sophie Beale, a journalist, investigates. The first bullets of the American Civil War were fired on April 12, 1861, in the state of Virginia. Tubman had a large number of abolitionist admirers by this time, and Massachusetts governor John Andrew funded her to travel to Port Royal, South Carolina, which had recently been liberated from the Confederates by Union forces. Her first assignment after the onset of war was as a volunteer with Union troops stationed near Fort Munroe in Virginia. Harriet worked wherever she was needed: nursing those suffering from disease, which was common in the hot climate; coordinating the distribution of charitable aid to the thousands of ex-slaves who lived behind union lines; and supervising the construction of a laundry house, where she taught women how to earn money by washing clothes for others.
Hunter delegated power to Tubman to assemble a group of scouts who would enter and survey the interior of the country.
This persuaded Union leaders of the value of guerrilla operations, which led to the infamous Combahee River Raid, in which Tubman served as scout and adviser to Colonel Montgomery, commander of the second South Carolina volunteers, one of the new black infantry regiments, during the American Civil War.
- In order to avoid rebel underwater explosives, Tubman escorted them to certain locations along the beach.
- Others seized thousands of dollars’ worth of crops and animals, destroying whatever that was left behind as they did so.
- As soon as everyone had boarded the steamers, they began their journey back up the river, transporting the 756 freshly freed slaves to Port Royal.
- Using the exact people the Confederates wished to keep subdued and enslaved, this well-coordinated invasion had dealt a devastating blow to the Confederates’ cause.
- She received such low salary that she was forced to sustain herself by selling handmade pies, ginger bread, and root beer, and she received no remuneration at all for more than three decades.
- A renowned icon of the anti-slavery movement today, she was the subject of two biographies (written in 1869 and 1866) with the revenues going entirely to assist her pay her debts to the institution of slavery.
- As a result of her lectures in favour of women’s suffrage, she was invited to be the keynote speaker at the first conference of the National Association of Colored Women, which took place in 1896.
- (When she was a conductor, she had returned to save John Tubman, but he had remarried by the time she returned.) Tubman and Davis became the parents of a newborn girl named Gertie, whom they adopted as a couple.
She died of pneumonia on March 10, 1913, in the presence of her family and close friends. Her dying words, spoken as a fervent Christian till the end, were, “I am going to prepare a place for you.”
- When it comes to slavery, Lincoln said, “If I could save the union without liberating a single slave, I would.”
If her deeds and accomplishments aren’t enough of a testament, these final remarks eloquently depict a lady who has dedicated her life to others while seeking no recognition or glory for herself. A lady who rose to prominence in the United States while remaining anonymous. A lady who was able to escape the misery of being a slave and went on to assist others in doing the same has been honored. “Most of what I have done and suffered in the service of our cause has been done and suffered in public, and I have received much encouragement at every step of the way,” Frederick Douglass, Tubman’s friend and revered abolitionist, wrote to Tubman about her time as a conductor on the Underground Railroad.
“I have worked throughout the day; you have worked during the night.”
Jonny Wilkes is a freelance writer specialising in history
This article was first published in History Revealed in January 2017 and has since been updated.