The Underground Railroad: The Journey to Freedom

by Malaspina, Ann

• ISBN13: 9781604136944
• ISBN10: 1604136944
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-01-30
• Publisher: Facts on File

Summary

When the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 was passed by Congress, the flight to freedom for runaway slaves became even more dangerous. Abolitionists who despised slavery had to turn in fugitives, and even the free cities of Boston and Philadelphia were no longer safe. But the Underground Railroad, the secret and loosely organized network of people and safe houses that led slaves to freedom, only grew stronger. Since the late 1700s, free blacks, whites, Native Americans, and other slaves had banded together to aid runaways, despite violence and threat of imprisonment from those that supported slavery. During the 1800s, these secret routes and safe houses were used by an estimated 100,000 enslaved people seeking freedom. In The Underground Railroad read how this secret system worked in the days leading up to the Civil War and the pivotal role it played in the abolitionist movement.

Author Biography

Ann Malaspina has lived near several places that were sites for the Underground Railroad, including her birthplace of Brooklyn, New York; Ken-yon College in Ohio; and New Jersey, where she currently lives.

Table of Contents

Escaping the Lion's Den	p. 1
Liberty to All	p. 9
House on Fire	p. 26
Journey of Mercy	p. 46
A Law of Right	p. 62
The Mighty Ohio	p. 77
War	p. 92
A Slave Named Hadizatou	p. 106
Chronology	p. 125
Notes	p. 128
Bibliography	p. 133
Further Reading136
Index	p. 140
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

When the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 was passed by Congress, the flight to freedom for runaway slaves became even more dangerous. Even the free cities of Boston and Philadelphia were no longer safe, and abolitionists who despised slavery had to turn in fugitives. But the Underground Railroad, a secret and loosely organized network of people and safe houses that led slaves to freedom, only grew stronger. Since the late 1700s, blacks and whites had banded together to aid runaways like Maryland slave Frederick Douglass, who disguised himself as a sailor to board a train to New York. Virginia slave Henry Brown packed himself in a box to get to Philadelphia. The minister John Rankin, who hung a lantern to guide runaways to his house by the Ohio River, endured beatings for speaking against slavery. Quaker storeowner Thomas Garrett was put on trial for helping fugitives in Delaware. Meanwhile, the nation marched on toward Civil War. At its height, between 1810 and 1850, these secret routes and safe houses were used by an estimated 30,000 people escaping enslavement. InThe Underground Railroad: The Journey to Freedom, read how this secret system worked in the days leading up to the Civil War and the pivotal role it played in the abolitionist movement.

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Excerpted from The Underground Railroad: The Journey to Freedom by Ann Malaspina
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