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The Underground Railroad
Underground Railroad Chronology
1607
Jamestown, Virginia, settled by English Colonies.
1619
Twenty Africans are shipped to Jamestown, Virginia, on Dutch Ships.
1641
Massachusetts colony legalizes slavery.
1642
Virginia colony enacts law to fine those who harbor or assist runaway slaves.
1660
Virginia colony legalizes slavery.
1741
North Carolina colony enacts laws to prosecute any person caught assisting runaways.
1775
The Pennsylvania Abolition Society is established to protect fugitives and freed blacks unlawfully held in bondage.
1776
North American colonies declare independence from Great Britain.
1777
Vermont became the first U.S. territory to abolish slavery.
1777-1804
Northern states abolish slavery through state constitutions.
1780
Pennsylvania became the first state to abolish slavery
1787
Northwest Ordinance prevents slavery to exist in the new federal territories. Free African Society of Philadelphia, an abolitionists group, is organized by Richard Allen and Absolm Jones.
1793
Fugitive Slave Act becomes a federal law. Allows slaveowners, their agents or attorneys to seize fugitive slaves in free states and territories.
1794
Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church is established in Philadelphia, PA.
1800
Nat Turner and John Brown are born. Gabriel Prosser stages an unsuccessful slave insurrection in Henrico County, VA.
1804
Underground Railroad is "incorporated" after slaveowner, Gen. Thomas Boudes of Columbia, PA refuses to surrender escaped slave to authorities.
1816
Seminole Wars begin in Florida as a result of many slaves taking refuge with Seminole Indians.
1818
As a response to the Fugitive Slave Act (1793), abolitionists use the "underground" to assist slaves to escape into Ohio and Canada.
1820
Missouri Compromise admits Missouri and Maine as slave and free states, respectively. The measure establishes the 36 degree, 30' parallel of latitude as a dividing line between free and slave areas of the territories.
1821
Kentucky representatives present resolution to Congress protesting Canada's reception of fugitive slaves.
1822
Former slave Denmark Vesey performs a slave uprising in Charleston, SC.
1829
Black abolitionist, David Walker issues David Walker's Appeal. Afterwards, severe slave revolts occurred throughout the South.
1830
Levi Coffin leaves North Carolina, settles in Indiana and continues abolitionist activities.
1831
William Lloyd Garrison prints first issues of this anti-slavery newspaper, The Liberator. Black entrepreneur and abolitionist Robert Forten becomes chief financial supporter of the publication.
Nat Turner stages insurrection in Southampton County, VA.
1832
Louisiana presents resolution requesting Federal Government to arrange with Mexico to permit runaway slaves from Louisiana to be claimed when found on foreign soil.
1834
National Antislavery Society organizes Underground Railroad as a response to pro-slavery argument.
1838
Underground Railroad is formally organized. Black abolitionist Robert Purvis, becomes chairman of the General Vigilance Committee and "president" of the Underground Railroad.
1842
Supreme Court rules in Prigg v. Pennsylvania that state officials are not required to assist in the return of fugitive slaves.
1845
Frederick Douglass prints Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an account of his slave experience and escape to freedom.
1847
Douglass edits anti-slavery newspaper, the North Star.
1849
Harriet Tubman makes her escape from Maryland.
1850
Compromise of 1850 attempts to settle slavery issue. As part of the Compromise, a new Fugitive Slave Act is added to enforce the 1793 law and allows slaveholders to retrieve slaves in northern states and free territories.
1852
Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin is published as a response to the pro-slavery argument.
1857
Supreme Court declares in Scott v. Sandford that blacks are not U.S. citizens, and slaveholders have the right to take slaves in free areas of the county.
1859
John Brown's failed raid on federal arsenal and armory in Harper's Ferry, Virginia which was aimed at starting a general slave insurrection.
1860
Republican candidate Abraham Lincoln is elected President of the United States.
1861
Civil War begins.
1863
President Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamationwhich declares "all persons held as slaves within any state...be in rebellion against the United States shall be then...forever free."
1865
Civil War ends.
Thirteenth Amendmentis amended to the U.S. Constitutionabolishing slavery permanently.
The Fugitive Slave Act and the Underground Railroad
Africans in America: Americas Journey Through Slavery
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia
The companion site to the PBS documentary explores the odyssey of African slaves in America, from the arrival of Europeans in Africa to the American Civil War.
Exploring Amistad
http://www.amistad.mysticseaport.org
This site recounts the 1839 rebellion of African slaves who commandeered their captors ship off the Cuban coast, stood trial before the U.S. Supreme Court, and later returned to Africa.
National Underground Railroad Freedom Center
http://www.undergroundrailroad.org
Find current news, recent historical research, video clips, links and other resources on this site maintained by a museum and education center in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Testimony of the Canadian Fugitives
http://www.ukans.edu/carrie/docs/texts/canadian_slaves.html
Read the accounts of three escaped slaves as told to Benjamin Drew, a Boston abolitionist who traveled through Canada in the 1850s.
The Underground Railroad in Franklin County
http://jefferson.village.virginia.edu/vshadow2/UGRR/underground.html
Pro- and antislavery forces converged in this Virginia county on the Mason-Dixon Line.
The William Still Underground Railroad Foundation, Inc.
http://www.undergroundrr.com
Find more information about William Still, a leader of the Underground Railroad. - A Bittersweet Journey on the Underground Railroad- When historian Anthony Cohen set out to retrace a route along the legendary Underground Railroad, he recovered a piece of the American past.
- Detroit-Windsor Freedom Tour- Describes sites in Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, Ontario related to the Underground Railroad and the Civil Rights Movement.
- Enlightenments from the Underground Railroad- Underground Railroad History Butler County Ohio. Highlights Methodist Church involvement. Special focus on the following people: James D Conrey, Anna Conrey, John Ford Conrey, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Van Zandt, Charles Elliott, Eliza Harris, Luther Bruen, Susan D. Howell, James Downing
- Horane Smith- The author of Lover's Leap and Underground to Freedom discusses his recent works.
- John Hossack- History and genealogy of John Hossack, Abolitionist, of Ottawa, Illinois. He was canal builder on the I&M, Illinois and Michigan Canal, a Lumber and Grain Merchant, and a conductor on the underground railroad.
- Levi Coffin House- Known as the "Grand Central Station" of the Underground Railroad. A designated national historic site." "Eliza", whose story is told in Uncle Tom's Cabin, stayed in this home on her way to freedom.
- Living the Experience- A reenactment production of the Underground Railroad at the historical Lancaster Bethel AME Church, Pennsylvania. Selection of scanned documents, photo gallery, timeline, and profiles of historical figures, as well as video clips, tickets, and other show information.
- Michigan Historical Museum- Before the war many Michigan citizens helped slaves escape from the South, via the Underground Railroad, a secret, often informal, organization of safe hiding places and people willing to provide transportation between them.
- North Carolina's Underground Railroad- Some 50,000 North Carolinians left the state and moved to Ohio or Indiana in protest to slavery during the thirty years before the Civil War is not widely known. As the frustration with more restrictive and harsh laws over slaves and slave owning were passed, some Quakers, like Levi Coffin, began to illegally assist escaping slaves to flee the state.
- A Secret Pathway- The Underground Railroad was a secret pathway organized by abolitionists--many of them free blacks and Quakers. Its purpose was to help runaway slaves escape to freedom in the North or in Canada.
- St. James AME Church- The Underground Railroad began when friends along the way helped the first fugitive slave. Find out more about the historical significance of this church's involvement.
- Under Ground Railroad House- This house was part of the underground railroad. There it a lot of pictures and information concerning this house.
- The Underground Railroad- Explore one of the most harrowing and inspiring chapters in American history. In this special feature, you'll find the story of the railroad and unique profiles of the Black Americans who made the railroad run.
- The Underground Railroad- This site allows you to go on the journey to the North from a slave's point of view and follow their path as they try to escape from their southern bondage. You can "visit safe houses which Harriet Tubman actually used" and see pictures. There are maps of her actual routes and information describing how she traveled them.
- Underground Railroad- Niagara County, New York, was extremely active in the organized effort to guide and help escaping slaves out of the United States and into the protective boundaries of Canada.
- Underground Railroad @ nationalgeographic.com- Links to various resources and links.
- Underground Railroad Association of Douglas County Kansas- Information on the Underground Railroad of Douglas County Kansas. Pictures and stories of the many famous people involved.
- The Underground Railroad in Rochester, New York- While the stringent laws of The Fugitive Slave Act were being enforced and the institution of slavery continued unabated, many abolitionists assisted escaped slaves regardless of the consequences. These abolitionists, who were primarily composed of Quakers, ex-slaves and other liberal thinking citizens, helped establish what was known as the Underground Railroad.
- The Underground Railroad Site- For the many African Americans who lived in the Slave States prior to and during the American Civil War, the Underground Railroad provided them the opportunity and assistance for escaping slavery and finding freedom. One of the most curious characteristics of the Underground Railroad was its lack of formal organization.
- Underground Railroad Special Resource Study- Provides detailed information on Resource book for sale on the history and meaning of the Underground Railroad, published by the National Park Service.
- Underground to Freedom- The relentless efforts of one American slave to reach the "Promised Land", Canada, through the underground railroad movement.
Book
Allen, Thomas B. THE BLUE AND THE GRAY. 1992.
Book
HISTORICAL ATLAS OF THE UNITED STATES, REGULAR EDITION. 1993.
WORLD
Zeinert, Karen. Against All Odds: The Incredible Journey of the Amistad Captives. Pages 10-14, April 1998.
-Additional Resources-
Ball, Edward. Slaves in the Family.Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1998.
Blockson, Charles L. The Underground Railroad: First-person Narratives of Escapes to Freedom in the North.Prentice Hall Press, 1987.
Curtis, John Obed. Following the Drinking Gourd. Early American Homes.Pages 34-36, February 1998.
Filler, Louis. Crusade Against Slavery: Friends, Foes, and Reforms, 1820-1860.Reference Publications, 1986.
Johnson, Charles and Patricia Smith. Africans in America: Americas Journey Through Slavery.Harcourt Brace, 1998.
Mallory, Maria. Bound for Freedom. U.S. News and World Report.Pages 78-83; April 14, 1997.
Meredith, Robyn. In Detroit, Black Pride Where Slaves Once Hid. The New York Times.Section 5, Page 8; July 6, 1997.
Sprague, Stuart Seely, ed. His Promised Land: The Autobiography of John P. Parker, Former Slave and Conductor on The Underground Railroad.W. W. Norton, 1996.
Still, William. The Underground Railroad: A Record of Facts, Authentic Narratives, Letters and C. Narrating the Hardships.Johnson Publishing, 1975.
Turner, Glennette Tilley. Forging the Freedom Trail. National Parks.Pages 30-33, July/August 1998.
Webster, Donovan. Traveling the Long Road to Freedom, One Step at a Time.Smithsonian.Pages 48-61, October 1996. |
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