The Underground Railroad
Harriet Tubman
An estimated 40,000 to 100,000 slaves escaped from their owners with the help of the Underground Railroad. The Underground Railroad was a network of many individuals—mostly free blacks, including ex-slaves; Quakers and other white abolitionists. Harriet Tubman is probably the most famous of the “conductors” from the Underground Railroad. She herself was a freed slave. She made 19 dangerous trips back into slave territory to free 300 slaves. Other notable participants included Levi Coffin, a Quaker who helped 3,000 slaves; also a young man by the name of John Fairfield, a slave owner’s son who helped many slaves escape as well.
The Underground Railroad didn’t get its name until 1831, although it started around the 1780’s. As it grew, it became known as the Underground Railroad, complete with “stations” and “depots” that were code names for the homes and businesses where fugitive slaves could rest in safety. The owners were called “stationmasters,” and the “conductors” helped lead the slaves from station to station. Also, “stockholders” represented those individuals who supported the Underground Railroad with goods and money.
As the Underground Railroad grew so did the voices of antislavery. One of the most outspoken and inspiring voices was that of William Lloyd Garrison. He started an abolitionist newspaper The Liberator in 1831. But the real voices of antislavery were the voices from the slave narratives that were published. These narratives were very popular and undeniably powerful first person accounts of life as a slave. Also, controversial today but helpful at the time, was the popularity of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin, which helped the antislavery movement greatly, even though it is thought to be racist today. Anything that helped to put a human voice and face to the evils of slavery helped in the fight to abolish it. All of these things helped fuel the Underground Railroad with more and more support.