Underground Railroad

Slavery was a reality in our country before the Civil War. Many slaves risked their lives for a chance to be free. For most, that meant traveling on the "Underground Railroad". This wasn't a railroad at all, but a chain of safe houses called "stations" and free citizens and escaped slaves, like Harriet Tubman, who were willing to transport and hide the "runners". Rewards were offered by slave owners for the return of their "property". Discovery by slave hunters would mean severe punishment for all involved so secrecy was critical. Signals, codes, quilts with hidden messages, and secret rooms were all a part of the mystery of the "Underground Railroad". Escaped slaves were transported secretly from station to station, often hiding in the back of hay wagons. Chances were taken and the reward was freedom in Canada! Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote a book, and Frederick Douglas published a newspaper in an effort to build support for the abolition of slavery. Here are some links that will help you learn more about this time in our history. Underground Railroad Sites Underground Railroad BrainPop Slavery BrainPop Underground Railroad Adventure Underground Railroad Massachusetts Safe House Levi Coffin House "Station on the Underground Railroad" Civil War BrainPop Scholastic Books "The Underground Railroad" The music is "GO DOWN MOSES" Original Country Clipart by Lisa This site created and maintained by Deborah Thonus Ó 2002-2012

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