Harriet Tubman and the Fight for Freedom A Brief History with Documents

by Horton, Lois E.

• ISBN13: 9780312464516
• ISBN10: 0312464517
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781319241605
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2013-02-15
• Publisher: Bedford/St. Martin's
• More Book Details

Summary

Harriet Tubman is a legendary figure in the history of American slavery and the Underground Railroad. In the introduction to this compelling volume, Lois Horton reveals the woman behind the legend and addresses the ways in which Tubman's mythic status emerged in her own lifetime and beyond. Going beyond mere biography, Horton weaves through Tubman's story the larger history of slavery, the antislavery movement, the Underground Railroad, the increasing sectionalism of the pre-Civil War era, as well as the war and post-war Reconstruction. A rich collection of accompanying documents including the Fugitive Slave Acts, letters, newspaper articles, advertisements and tributes to Tubman shed light on Tubman's relationships with key abolitionist figures such as Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison; her role in the women's rights movement; and her efforts on behalf of fugitive slaves and freed blacks through the Civil War and beyond. A chronology of Tubman's life, along with questions for consideration and a selected bibliography, enhance this important volume.

Author Biography

Lois E. Horton (Ph.D., Brandeis University) is Professor of History Emerita at George Mason University. Her work focuses on African American communities, race, gender, and social change. With James Oliver Horton she has written and edited numerous books, including Slavery and Public History: The Tough Stuff of American Memory; Slavery and the Making of America; Hard Road to Freedom: The Story of African America; and In Hope of Liberty: Culture, Community and Protest among Northern Free Blacks, 1700-1860. For several years she also served on the scholarly advisory committee of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Table of Contents

Foreword

Preface

PART ONE. Introduction: An Uncommon Woman and Her Times

Myth and Reality

Slavery in Maryland

The Multiracial Underground Railroad and Antislavery Movement

Resistance and the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850

The Moses of Her People

Growing Sectional Tensions and Greater Militancy

Tubman and the Antislavery Network

John Brown’s War

Fighting the War to End Slavery

Going Home

Tubman’s Life into the Twentieth Century

Harriet Tubman in History and Memory

PART TWO. The Documents

1. United States Constitution, Provision Regarding Fugitive Slaves, 1787

2. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1793

3. The Fugitive Slave Law of 1850

4. Austin Bearse, Reminiscences of Fugitive-Slave Law Days in Boston

5. Solomon Northup, Kidnapped Into Slavery, 1841

6. Eliza Ann Brodess, Runaway Advertisement, 1849

7. Liberator, Slave-Hunters in Boston, November 1, 1850

8. Thomas Garrett, Sending Underground Railroad Passengers to Philadelphia, 1854

9. William Still, ‘Moses’ Arrives with Six Passengers, December 29, 1854

10. Fugitive Slaves aided by the Vigilance Committee since the passage of The Fugitive slave Bill 1850, Boston, Massachusetts, 1850-1858

11. John Brown, Letter to John Brown, Jr., April 8, 1858

12. Liberator, Tubman Addresses July 4th Outdoor Meeting, Framingham, Massachusetts, 1859

13. Lewis Hayden, Letter to John Brown, September 16, 1859

14. Douglass’ Monthly, Charles Nalle Rescue, Troy, New York, April, 1860

15. Songs of Freedom, Emancipation Eve, 1862

16. Commonwealth, Harriet Tubman, Combahee River Raid, June, 1863

17. Commonwealth, Harriet Tubman, Boston, 1864

18. Freedmen’s Record, Moses, March, 1865

19. Thomas Garrett, Memories of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad

20. Frederick Douglass and Wendell Phillips, 1868 Testimonials

21. William Wells Brown, Moses, 1874

22. Sarah H. Bradford, Harriet Tubman Biographies, 1869 and 1886

23. Harriet Davis, Affidavit, May 28, 1892

24. Harriet Davis, Affidavit, November 10, 1894

25. Wilbur H. Siebert, Letter to Earl Conrad, September 4, 1940

26. U. S. Senate, Committee on Pensions Report, 1899

27. Syracuse Herald, To End Days in Home She Founded, June 4, 1911

28. New York Times, Harriet Tubman Davis, Obituary, March 14, 1913

29. Auburn Citizen, Harriet Tubman Memorialized, Auburn, New York, June 12, 1914

Appendixes

A Chronology of the Life and Times of Harriet Tubman (1822 – 1913)

Questions for Consideration

Selected Bibliography

Index