Harriet Tubman
Abolitionist
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Harriet Tubman was born a slave in 1820 in Maryland. When she was five or six she started working as a house servant and later as a field hand on a large plantation. When she was 13 she was hit in the head with a two-pound weight as she was helping a slave to escape. |
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She married John Tubman in 1844. During this time, people against slavery, were saying slaves should be free. Harriet wanted freedom and ran away north to Pennsylvania
in 1849. She left behind her husband, parents and family.
She spent the next 10 years helping over 300 slaves escape to freedom. She was a “conductor” on the Underground Railroad. The Underground Railroad was a secret route of hiding places, or “stations,” for slaves running away to the North. Harriet and the runaway slaves would always travel at night. They would spend the days hiding in swamps, forests or “safe” houses. They were always in danger of being caught and punished. Harriet made 19 trips and never lost a passenger.
During the Civil War, Harriet worked as a nurse, cook and spy for the northern army. After the war, slavery was no longer allowed in the United States. Harriet then helped to build schools for freed slaves. She bought a farm in New York and turned it into a home for old and poor ex-slaves. She died when she was 93 years old.
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Harriet Tubman Timeline |
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