[80] This act authorized the United States National Park Service to establish the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program to identify associated sites, as well as preserve them and popularize the Underground Railroad and stories of people involved in it. The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service. The scheme was assisted by abolitionists and others sympathetic to the cause of the escapees. According to Still, messages were often encoded so that they could be understood only by those active in the railroad. Various other routes led to Mexico, where slavery had been abolished, and t… The term quickly spread. (Actual underground railroads did not exist until 1863.) “Conductors” guided runaway enslaved people from place to place along the routes. Celebrate the achievements of African Americans past and present during Black History Month. 1870: The Fifteenth Amendment extends suffrage to African-Americans. A provision in the 1793 Act to Limit Slavery stated that any enslaved person who reached Upper Canada became free upon arrival. The resulting economic impact was minuscule, but the psychological influence on slave holders was immense. The quilt design theory is disputed. The name “Underground Railroad” was used metaphorically, not literally. Frederick Douglass was a writer, statesman, and had escaped slavery. There was slavery in all original thirteen colonies, in Spanish California, Louisiana, and Florida; Central and South America; and on all of the Caribbean islands until the Haitian Revolution (1791-1804) and British abolition of slavery (1834). For information on user permissions, please read our Terms of Service. [14], The escape network was neither literally underground nor a railroad. The Underground RailroadFor many people of African descent enslaved in the U.S. South, conditions were so intolerable that they opted to flee their masters and head northward to the free states, to Canada, or to points south, west, or out to sea. The railroad was comprised of dozens of secret routes and safe houses originating in the slaveholding states and extending all the way to the Canadian border, the only area where fugitives could be assured of their freedom. Further, slavery ended decades earlier in Canada than in the United States. According to John Rankin, "It was so called because they who took passage on it disappeared from public view as really as if they had gone into the ground. Thomas James Bigham was an abolitionist lawyer and the editor of The Commercial Journal Anti-Slavery Newspaper. Students will identify slave states and free states during the time of the Underground Railroad, explore the challenges of escaping, and choose the route they would have taken. The house of American Quaker and abolitionist Levi Coffin, in Cincinnati, Ohio. Most escapes were by individuals or small groups; occasionally, there were mass escapes, such as with the Pearl incident. Where did the Underground Railroad go? These images of the Underground Railroad stuck in the minds of the nation, and they captured the hearts of writers, who told suspenseful stories of dark, dangerous passages and dramatic enslaved person escapes. Its captain, C.W. Privacy Notice | The places that sheltered the runaways were referred to as “stations,” and the people who hid the enslaved people were called “station masters.” The fugitives traveling along the routes were called “passengers,” and those who had arrived at the safe houses were called “cargo.”. For example: The Big Dipper (whose "bowl" points to the North Star) was known as the drinkin' gourd. "[16] It was known as a railroad, using rail terminology such as stations and conductors, because that was the transportation system in use at the time. Gina Borgia, National Geographic Society During the era of slavery, the Underground Railroad was a network of routes, places, and people that helped enslaved people in the American South escape to the North. With the outbreak of the Civil War in the U.S., many black refugees left Canada to enlist in the Union Army. According to advocates of the quilt theory, ten quilt patterns were used to direct enslaved people to take particular actions. [17], The Underground Railroad did not have a headquarters, nor were there published guides, maps, pamphlets, or even newspaper articles. The conductors and passengers traveled from safe-house to safe-house, often with 16-19 kilometers (10–20 miles) between each stop. Important Black settlements also developed in other parts of British North America (now parts of Canada). Ridgeway is the first “enemy” to see the underground railroad with his own eyes. The darkness Cora moves through in the Underground Railroad tunnel is similar in concept to the limbo between the Randall plantation and the forest. Underground veteran Levi Coffin proclaims that the underground has reached its symbolic end. Several rural villages made up mostly of people freed from slavery were established in Kent and Essex counties in Ontario. Wesley Harris on November 2, 1853. William Still,[23] sometimes called "The Father of the Underground Railroad", helped hundreds of slaves escape (as many as 60 a month), sometimes hiding them in his Philadelphia home. Cora grabs him and they scuffle until Cora manages to throw him down the stairs, leaving his body mangled. It ran north and grew steadily until the Civil War began. Participants generally organized in small, independent groups; this helped to maintain secrecy because individuals knew some connecting "stations" along the route but knew few details of the escapees' immediate area. After 1850, most escaping enslaved people traveled all the way to Canada. [24], To reduce the risk of infiltration, many people associated with the Underground Railroad knew only their part of the operation and not of the whole scheme. Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad tells the story of Cora, a runaway slave who travels from state to state on railroad cars physically under the ground of the American South. Even so, the Underground Railroad was at the heart of the abolitionist movement. person who is owned by another person or group of people. Children were sometimes hard to keep quiet or were unable to keep up with a group. It also did not run underground, but through homes, barns, churches, and businesses. Network for fugitive slaves in 19th-century U.S. For train transportation used underground, see, Map of Underground Railroad routes to modern day Canada, Dictated by Robert Jackson a.k.a. Indiana: Crossroads of Freedom! Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. [51] Following Union victory in the Civil War, on December 6, 1865, the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution outlawed slavery. As the network grew, the railroad metaphor stuck. At its peak, nearly 1,000 enslaved people per year escaped from slave-holding states using the Underground Railroad – more than 5,000 court cases for escaped enslaved were recorded – many fewer than the natural increase of the enslaved population. Fugitives were not the only black people at risk from slave catchers. Margot Willis, National Geographic Society. One of the most famous and successful conductors (people who secretly traveled into slave states to rescue those seeking freedom) was Harriet Tubman, a woman who escaped slavery. [41] Numerous Black Canadian communities developed in Southern Ontario. It took the abolition movement, a civil war, and the ratification of the 13th amendment to end slavery. In addition, Underground Railroad historian Giles Wright has published a pamphlet debunking the quilt code. Use these resources to teach more about significant figures in the abolition movement, the causes of the Civil War, and how slavery sustained the agricultural economy in the United States for centuries. Putting distance between herself and the slave catcher, just as she has done numerous times before, Cora moves … The enslaved servants of US military officers from the South brought back word that there w… The name “Underground Railroad” was used metaphorically, not literally. Kwame Anthony Appiah and Henry Louis Gates Jr, Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, slavery in present-day Canada (and in most British colonies) in 1833, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park, "This underground railroad took slaves to freedom in Mexico, PRI's The World, Public Radio International, March 29, 2017", "For a century, Underground Railroad ran south", "Fort Moses's Call To Freedom. Susanna". There were people from many occupations and income levels, including former enslaved persons. [43]:110 Other fugitives at Fort Walden had been assisted by William Wells Brown, himself someone who had escaped slavery. Sometimes passengers stopped when they reached a free state such as Pennsylvania, New Jersey, or Ohio. [5] An earlier escape route running south toward Florida, then a Spanish possession (except 1763–83), existed from the late 17th century until approximately 1790. The Underground Railroad went north to freedom. Their influence may have been part of the reason Pennsylvania, where many Quakers lived, was the first state to b… Technically, they were guilty of no crime. They rested, and then a message was sent to the next station to let the station master know the escapees were on their way. [9] Because the law required sparse documentation to claim a person was a fugitive, slave catchers also kidnapped free blacks, especially children, and sold them into slavery. Even before the 1800s, a system to abet runaways seems to have existed. "Stockholders" gave money or supplies for assistance. The first published work documenting an oral history source was in 1999, and the first publication of this theory is believed to be a 1980 children's book. In addition, enslaved women were rarely allowed to leave the plantation, making it harder for them to escape in the same ways that men could. Sustainability Policy | The marshal or private slave-catcher needed only to swear an oath to acquire a writ of replevin for the return of property. "[44], Another important destination was Nova Scotia, which was first settled by Black Loyalists during the American Revolution and then by Black Refugees during the War of 1812 (see Black Nova Scotians). [3] Various other routes led to Mexico,[4] where slavery had been abolished, and to islands in the Caribbean that were not part of the slave trade. It stipulated a more stringent Fugitive Slave Law; ostensibly, the compromise addressed regional problems by compelling officials of free states to assist slave catchers, granting them immunity to operate in free states. Many of the new arrivals had to compete with mass European immigration for jobs, and overt racism was common. The Underground Railroad … The end of the Underground Railroad. The Underground Railroad begins on a particularly vicious Georgia plantation, where all anyone wants to do is escape. It was not an actual railroad, but it served the same purpose—it transported people long distances. The Underground Railroad, a vast network of people who helped fugitive slaves escape to the North and to Canada, was not run by any single organization or person. They were secretly passed from one depot to another until they arrived at a destination where they were able to remain free. The people who worked for the Underground Railroad had a passion for justice and drive to end the practice of slavery—a drive so strong that they risked their lives and jeopardized their own freedom to help enslaved people escape from bondage and keep them safe along the route. These were generally in the triangular region bounded by Niagara Falls, Toronto, and Windsor. He found employment on a Lake Erie steamer and transported numerous fugitives from Cleveland to Ontario by way of Buffalo or Detroit. It was a name given to the way that people escaped. Every stanza ends with a reference to Canada as the land "where colored men are free". "Conductors" led or transported the fugitives from station to station. [10] Southern politicians often exaggerated the number of escaped slaves and often blamed these escapes on Northerners interfering with Southern property rights. When the Civil War broke out, she used her knowledge from working the railroad to serve as a spy for the Union. During the era of slavery, the Underground Railroad was a network of routes, places, and people that helped enslaved people in the American South escape to the North. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited. The Underground Railroad was in operation for many years before and during the Civil War. (1860-1865) American conflict between the Union (north) and Confederacy (south). [47] Quilt historians and scholars of pre-Civil War (1820-1860) America have disputed this legend. Since the 1980s, claims have arisen that quilt designs were used to signal and direct enslaved people to escape routes and assistance. "It is well known", he tells us, "that a great number of fugitives make their escape to Canada, by way of Cleaveland. The Underground Railroad was not an actual railway. It was not an actual railroad, but it served the same purpose—it transported people long distances. He kept careful records, including short biographies of the people, that contained frequent railway metaphors. By the end of the decade, she was responsible for freeing about 300 slaves. The Underground Railroad Summary. Florida's Little-known Underground Railroad Was the Escape Route Taken by Slaves Who Fled to the State in the 1700s and Established America's First Black Town", "The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro", "Avalon Project – Confederate States of America – Declaration of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession of South Carolina from the Federal Union", "History – National Underground Railroad Freedom Center", "Point of interest at Oakland City--site of barn of Col. James W. Cockrum used as an underground railroad station", "The Smith Underground Railroad Station :: Ohio :: Henry Robert Burke :: Lest We Forget", "The most famous abductor on the Underground Railroad", "Underground Railroad - Black History - HISTORY.com", "Arrival of the Black Loyalists: Saint John's Black Community", "Unravelling the Myth of Quilts and the Underground Railroad", "Black History-From Slavery to Settlement", "Letters: Underground Railroad site threatened in Montco", "Aboard the Underground Railroad" – Boston African American NHS, "For the People: A Newsletter of the Abraham Lincoln Association v.8 number 1 Spring 2006, Springfield, Illinois", "Mary Meachum and the Underground Railroad", "The Underground Railroad Leaves its Tracks in History", "Actions - H.R.1635 - 105th Congress (1997-1998): National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Act of 1998", "Management - Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park (U.S. National Park Service)", "Harriet Tubman National Historical Park (U.S. National Park Service)", "The 2017 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Fiction", "Part 4: 1831–1865 Narrative, The Underground Railroad", "Documentary Evidence is Missing on Underground Railroad Quilts", "New Jersey's Underground Railroad Myth-Buster: Giles Wright is on a Mission to Fine Tune Black History", "Putting it in Perspective: The Symbolism of Underground Railroad quilts", "Underground Railroad Quilts & Abolitionist Fairs", National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Underground Railroad Research Institute at Georgetown College, Underground Railroad in Buffalo and Upstate New York, Newspaper articles and clippings about the Underground Railroad at Newspapers.com, Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad State Park, Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center, The Railroad to Freedom: A Story of the Civil War, List of Union Civil War monuments and memorials, List of memorials to the Grand Army of the Republic, Confederate artworks in the United States Capitol, List of Confederate monuments and memorials, Removal of Confederate monuments and memorials. Another article in the Journal of Black Studies estimates that between 1830 and 1860, only about 2,000 escaped using the Underground Railroad. [37], Most former enslaved, reaching Canada by boat across Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, settled in Ontario. Word that freedom could be had in Canada spread further following the War of 1812. process and condition of owning another human being or being owned by another human being. Although the Underground Railroad essentially ended when the American Civil War broke out in 1861, it did not signal the last of Tubman’s heroic deeds. [source: Okur] Historians do agree that, especially early on, most fugitives escaped from the border states -- Maryland, Kentucky and Virginia. Some buildings, such as the Crenshaw House in far southeastern Illinois, are known sites where free blacks were sold into slavery, known as the "Reverse Underground Railroad". With demand for slaves high in the Deep South as cotton was developed, strong, healthy blacks in their prime working and reproductive years were seen and treated as highly valuable commodities. When frictions between North and South culminated in the Civil War, many Blacks, both enslaved and free, fought for the Union Army. I have sometimes had four or five on board at one time. All rights reserved. Built in 1849, a stop on the Underground Railroad, located within Chatham Village. Timing. © 1996 - 2021 National Geographic Society. If you have questions about licensing content on this page, please contact ngimagecollection@natgeo.com for more information and to obtain a license. She or he will best know the preferred format. [citation needed], The resting spots where the escapees could sleep and eat were given the code names "stations" and "depots", which were held by "station masters". They would stop at the so-called "stations" or "depots" during the day and rest. Slavery in Upper Canada (now Ontario) was outlawed in 1793; in 1819, John Robinson, the Attorney General of Upper Canada, declared that by residing in Canada, black residents were set free, and that Canadian courts would[50] protect their freedom. Under the original Fugitive Slave Act of 1793, officials from free states were required to assist slaveholders or their agents who recaptured fugitives, but citizens and governments of many free states ignored the law, and the Underground Railroad thrived. The protagonist Cora’s grandmother, Ajarry, is kidnapped from Africa as a child and brought to America, where she is sold many times before ending up on Randall plantation. End of the Line on the Underground Railroad – Chatham, Ontario Gwen Robinson points out the history of slavery and the Underground Railroad stitched on this quilt, on display at the Chatham-Kent Black Historical Society The little town of Chatham, Ontario is the terminus of a very important railroad – one without tracks or engines. [34][35], Due to the risk of discovery, information about routes and safe havens was passed along by word of mouth. For example, "Song of the Free", written in 1860 about a man fleeing slavery in Tennessee by escaping to Canada, was composed to the tune of "Oh! During the era of slavery, the Underground Railroad was a network of routes, places, and people that helped enslaved people in the American South escape to the North. Read about part of Indiana's leg of the underground railroad, which many enslaved people used to run to freedom. The stations were often located in basements,[25] barns,[26] churches,[27] or in hiding places in caves[28] and hollowed-out riverbanks. This was a primary grievance cited by the Union during the American Civil War,[13] and the perception that Northern States ignored the fugitive slave laws and regulations was a major justification for secession. Estimates vary widely, but at least 30,000 slaves, and potentially more than 100,000, escaped to Canada via the Underground Railroad. Although they disliked Abolitionist talk and literature, this was far worse. In 1845, Frederick Douglass groused that reckless abolitionists had talked it up so much, it had become an “uppergroundrailroad.” Because the Underground Railroad operated in secrecy, it’s difficult to determine exactly when the organization started. [18][19] Church clergy and congregations of the North often played a role, especially the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), Congregationalists, Wesleyans, and Reformed Presbyterians, as well as the anti-slavery branches of mainstream denominations which split over the issue, such as the Methodist church and the Baptists. He maintained correspondence with many of them, often acting as a middleman in communications between people who had escaped slavery and those left behind. Chapter 1: Ajarry. "Engravings by Bensell, Schell, and others.". The Underground Railroad consisted of meeting points, secret routes, transportation, and safe houses, all of them maintained by abolitionist sympathizers and communicated by word of mouth. He dug deep into the history of the Railroad and found that though a large network did exist that kept its activities secret, the network became so powerful that it extended the limits of its myth. they attempted to end slavery by hiding slaves in their house and helping them escape slavery through the underground railroad. Slavery was a deeply rooted institution in North America that remained legal in the United States until 1865. Federal marshals and professional bounty hunters known as slave catchers pursued fugitives as far as the Canada–US border.[36]. No one is sure where it originally got its name, but the "underground" part of the name comes from its secrecy and the "railroad" part of the name comes from the way it was used to transport people. Using biblical references, fugitives referred to Canada as the "Promised Land" or "Heaven" and the Ohio River as the "River Jordan", which marked the boundary between slave states and free states. “Our work is done,” he declares. Find out how Hoosiers played a role in the Underground Railroad in this article. In this case, the authorities were tricked into going to the regular location (station) in an attempt to intercept the runaways, while Still met them at the correct station and guided them to safety. Slavery in Canada as a whole had been in rapid decline after an 1803 court ruling, and was finally abolished outright in 1834. Many Northerners who might have ignored enslavement issues in the South were confronted by local challenges that bound them to support slavery. Next. [29], Although the fugitives sometimes traveled on boat or train,[31] they usually traveled on foot or by wagon in groups of one to three escapees. Ajarry has three husbands and five children, and the only one of the children that survives is Mabel, Cora’s mother. According to historical accounts of the Railroad, conductors often posed as enslaved people and snuck the runaways out of plantations. He wrote critically of the attention drawn to the ostensibly secret Underground Railroad in his seminal autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave (1845): I have never approved of the very public manner in which some of our western friends have conducted what they call the Underground Railroad, but which I think, by their open declarations, has been made most emphatically the upperground railroad. In the morning and in … The code had a dual meaning: first to signal enslaved people to prepare to escape, and second to give clues and indicate directions on the journey.[46]. Terms of Service | Members of the Underground Railroad often used specific terms, based on the metaphor of the railway. It operated before the Civil War (1861-1865) ended slavery in the United States. Source for information on The Underground Railroad: Gale Library of Daily Life: Slavery in America dictionary. Why was it called the Underground Railroad? ...The friends of the slave, knowing that I would transport them without charge, never failed to have a delegation when the boat arrived at Cleaveland. While some later returned to Canada, many remained in the United States. [8] One estimate suggests that, by 1850, 100,000 enslaved people had escaped via the network.[8]. "Conductors" on the railroad came from various backgrounds and included free-born Blacks, white abolitionists, the former enslaved (either escaped or manumitted), and Native Americans. Similarly, some popular, nonacademic sources claim that spirituals and other songs, such as "Steal Away" or "Follow the Drinking Gourd", contained coded information and helped individuals navigate the railroad. Tradition states that Bigham's Black family nurse, Lucinda, faithfully watched from the tower of the Bigham home for fugitive slaves or professional slave hunters. The Railroad heightened divisions between the North and South, which set the stage for the Civil War. Under the terms of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, when suspected fugitives were seized and brought to a special magistrate known as a commissioner, they had no right to a jury trial and could not testify on their own behalf. He later published these accounts in the book The Underground Railroad: Authentic Narratives and First-Hand Accounts (1872), a valuable resource for historians to understand how the system worked and learn about individual ingenuity in escapes. But slaves had bee… The Underground Railroad was a network of secret routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early to mid-19th century, and used by enslaved African-Americans to primarily escape into free states and Canada. Cora and Ridgeway’s relationship is ultimately depicted as a mythical coupling of a hero and her arch enemy, doomed to be locked into battle until one of them dies. For example, the following message, "I have sent via at two o'clock four large hams and two small hams", indicated that four adults and two children were sent by train from Harrisburg to Philadelphia. The desire to reconnect with friends and family was strong, and most were hopeful about the changes emancipation and Reconstruction would bring. The Underground Railroad was the network used by enslaved black Americans to obtain their freedom in the 30 years before the Civil War (1860-1865). For instance, Indiana, whose area along the Ohio River was settled by Southerners, passed a constitutional amendment that barred free blacks from settling in that state. British North America (present-day Canada) was a desirable destination, as its long border gave many points of access, it was farther from slave catchers, and beyond the reach of the United States' Fugitive Slave Acts. Explore hands-on activities, maps, and more that will give students of all backgrounds new perspectives on this important part of American culture. The role of free Blacks was crucial; without it, there would have been almost no chance for fugitives from slavery to reach freedom safely.[20]. The quilts were placed one at a time on a fence as a means of nonverbal communication to alert escaping slaves. George Washington complained in 1786 that one of his runaway slaves was aided by \"a society of Quakers, formed for such purposes.\" Quakers, more correctly called the Religious Society of Friends, were among the earliest abolition groups. The Railroad was often known as the "freedom train" or "Gospel train", which headed towards "Heaven" or "the Promised Land", i.e., Canada.[22]. Find out how Hoosiers played a role in the South to reach places of safety in the and! Giles Wright has published a pamphlet debunking the quilt theory, ten patterns... 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And War heroine Mary Seacole a license law in 1998 friends and family was strong, Windsor... Take particular actions settlements also developed in Southern Ontario who is owned by another human or..., churches, and Windsor of replevin for the Union ( North ) and (... They eventually escaped either further North or to Canada as a spy for the return property. And more that will give students of all backgrounds New perspectives on this page only... America that remained legal in the Underground Railroad … they attempted to end by! Route from one way station to the danger associated with capture, they conducted much of their at... New perspectives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website in your project or presentation... Visiting our website in your project or classroom presentation, please contact your teacher by William Brown... 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Estimates that between 1830 and 1860, only about 2,000 escaped using the Underground Railroad was at heart. 14 ], routes were often encoded so that they could be understood only those!, it was not appreciated by the slaveowners not appreciated by the.! War heroine Mary Seacole Reconstruction would bring exaggerated the number of enslaved African Americans past present... To end slavery by hiding slaves in Confederate States 1863. `` where colored men are free.! 36 ] a plantation to see the Underground Railroad historian Giles Wright published...
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