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The development of slavery in Colonial America
The development of slavery in Colonial America
Railroads in the late 1800s
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In the 1800’s slavery was far from over. It was not until the 1840’s that the abolitionist, or anti-slavery movement was making its way around the country. The South was by far the worst place for slaves and the biggest participants of the slave trade. The Northeast on the other hand was the place slaves would find themselves on their voyage to freedom. Massachusetts, Ohio, even Canada was a final destination for the people who made their way through the underground railroad. One of the main heroes of the underground railroad system was Harriet Tubman who had gained her freedom with the help of her neighbor. A famous quote about Tubman’s venture through the Railroad was “I freed a thousand slaves I could have freed a thousand more if only they
During the mid-1800s, separation in America between the North and the South became prevalent, especially over the idea of slavery, which eventually led to the Civil War. Women did not have much power during this time period, but under the stress and shortages of the War, they became necessary to help in fighting on and off the battlefields, such as by becoming nurses, spies, soldiers, and abolitionists (Brown). Many women gave so much assistance and guidance, that they made lasting impacts on the War in favor of who they were fighting for. Three inspiring and determined women who made huge impacts on contributing to the American Civil War are Rose O’Neal Greenhow, who worked as a spy for the Confederacy leading to multiple victories, Clara Barton, who worked as a nurse, a soldier, and formed the American Red Cross to continue saving lives, and Harriet Tubman, who conducted the Underground Railroad sending slaves to freedom, which enabled them and their actions to be remembered forever (Brown).
Frederick Douglas’s 1852 short story, “The Heroic Slave”, was loosely based the true story of a slave rebellion that occurred on the American ship named Creole. Divided into four parts, the plot of this story follows a slave named Madison Washington, who would eventually be the leader of the story. At the start of the short story, a “northern traveller” named Mr. Listwell saw and overheard Washington in a field. As Mr. Listwell observes him, Washington is performing a soliloquy, in which he verbalizes his wishes of gaining freedom (Douglass 174-182). In part two, Washington acts upon his grievances and finally escapes from bondage. Coincidentally, he arrives at the home of the same traveller who eavesdropped
“ I had reasoned this out in my mind, there was one of two things I had a right to, liberty or death; if I could not have one, I would have the other.”~Harriet Tubman. Harriet Tubman sacrificed her life and freedom as well. She organized the Underground Railroad, and freed hundreds of slaves. As if the journey wasn’t difficult enough,stated by the book, Who Was Harriet Tubman, “But the trip was even more dangerous after 1850. That was because the Fugitive Slave Law had been passed.”(pg.56) The Fugitive Slave Law meant that runaway slaves who made it to the free states had to be sent back to their masters. People were allowed to beat the slaves and sell them back into the South too. Even though the situation was tough, Harriet Tubman never gave up on what she thought was
Between 1800 and 1860 slavery in the American South had become a ‘peculiar institution’ during these times. Although it may have seemed that the worst was over when it came to slavery, it had just begun. The time gap within 1800 and 1860 had slavery at an all time high from what it looks like. As soon as the cotton production had become a long staple trade source it gave more reason for slavery to exist. Varieties of slavery were instituted as well, especially once international slave trading was banned in America after 1808, they had to think of a way to keep it going – which they did. Nonetheless, slavery in the American South had never declined; it may have just come to a halt for a long while, but during this time between 1800 and 1860, it shows it could have been at an all time high.
As a child in elementary and high school, I was taught that President Abraham Lincoln was the reason that African slaves were freed from slavery. My teachers did not provide much more information than that. For an African American student, I should have received further historical information than that about my ancestors. Unfortunately, I did not have the opportunity or desire to research slavery on my own until college. And with my eagerness and thirst for more answers concerning my African American history, I set out to console my spirit, knowledge, and self-awareness of my ancestors’ history. I received the answers that my brain, mind, and soul need. Although Abraham Lincoln signed the 13th Amendment of the United States Constitution, courageous African American slaves were the real heroes and motivation of the movement.
The Underground Railroad was not a real railroad with a train, but a network of meeting places in which African slaves could follow to Canada where they could free. Those who helped were at risk of the law but got the satisfaction of knowing that they were helping those who did not deserve to be treated like less than everyone else. People who escaped had to take care, they were creative with giving instructions and the way they escaped their owners, but if they were caught the punishment was not very humane. John Fairfield was a white man, born into a family in Virginia who owned slaves; he never liked the idea of owning slaves, so he became friends with them. When he turned twenty, he helped his friend escape by taking him to Canada.
Another point that someone might argue about the Underground Railroad is Harriet Tubman. She was one of the conductors of the Underground Railroad. She would an African American born slave, spent most of her life on the plantation, who risked her life multiple to times to get her fellow slaves to safety. She escaped from Maryland but see continued to put her freedom on the line for fellow slaves who wanted to use the Underground Railroad. Her original intent was to go back to Maryland to get her husband, but to her surprise, he had taken a new wife. She was angered by this but this anger was only used for the good of getting her whole family out of slavery and to their freedom. She continued to travel back south help people about ten years
“Slavery existed in the nation’s capital from the very beginning of the city’s history in 1790 when Congress created the federal territory from land that was formerly held by Virginia and Maryland [which were slave states].” It was an accepted part of the life, but with each new year, people were getting more restless and started movements to abolish it in the nation. For instance, there was the formation of the Underground Railroad, which was a “secret organization that helped slaves from the South escape from slavery by providing shelter, transportation, forged documents, and other materials. It was illegal to do so, but it existed everywhere that there was slavery.” Members of the Under...
Harriet Tubman is probably the most famous “conductor” of all the Underground Railroads. Throughout a 10-year span, Tubman made more than 20 trips down to the South and lead over 300 slaves from bondage to freedom. Perhaps the most shocking fact about Tubman’s journeys back and forth from the South was that she “never lost a single passenger.”
Slavery in the eighteenth century was worst for African Americans. Observers of slaves suggested that slave characteristics like: clumsiness, untidiness, littleness, destructiveness, and inability to learn the white people were “better.” Despite white society's belief that slaves were nothing more than laborers when in fact they were a part of an elaborate and well defined social structure that gave them identity and sustained them in their silent protest.
"The Underground Railroad" was not really a railroad, but a title to a 200 year old struggle for freedom (Demand). "The Railroad" became the first civil rights movement for the United States, and one of the most impacting movements to date. It was also one of the first times in history where blacks and whites intermingled for the same cause in coherence. The actual operation was called "the freedom train" and on that imaginary train there were "conductors", these people later came to be known as the activists for the abolition of slavery. These brave men and women performed life risking tasks that led them to help as many slaves to escape as possible. These heroes gradually became incredibly well known over the decades. Many still have their names today like Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Henry Thoreau, Harriet Beecher Stowe and many more. (Demand)
Work Cited "William Lloyd Garrison Headed the Abolitionist Movement to Free slaves. " New Pittsburgh Courier RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. The Web. The Web. 04 Mar. 2014.
The underground railroad was a system organized to safely move slaves into free states (Coddon). Harriet Tubman was an outstanding abolitionist and black leader of her time. After freeing her whole family from slavery, Tubman’s main concern was the freedom of all slaves. She became well acquainted with many white abolitionists and often received food and shelter from them, while trying to free someone from slavery (Coddon). Most of the Underground Railroad was organized in Philadelphia, where Tubman became acquainted with William Still (Coddon). This was were the first anti-slavery society was established. Still was a black man who was the executive director of the General Vigilance Committee and later became known as “The Father of the Underground Railroad” (Coddon). Since written records were life-threatening to keep, many were burned or not kept at all. Although William Still did say this about Harriet Tubman, “She was a woman of no pretensions; indeed , a more ordinary specimen of humanity could hardly be found...Yet courage shrewdness, and disinterested exertions to rescue her fellow man, she was without equal. (Coddon)” Still encouraged African resistance to slavery, and even taught himself how to read (Turner). He worked nonstop to end race discrimination and, in 1867, he published A Brief Narrative of the Struggle for the Rights of Colored
Tubman and Jackson were on opposite ends of the spectrum. While Jackson owned slaves, Tubman rescued slaves and brought them to freedom. Tubman was born in Maryland, a slave state, in 1820. Around the age of 30, she left the plantation and fled to Pennsylvania. Soon after her escape, she returned to Maryland to guide the rest of her family to safety. Then, she began to help other slaves escape and became one of the most famous “conductors” of the Underground Railroad. She was very methodical in her approach of escape. She always began the heist at night. This prevented the runaways’ faces from being in the paper for a while, usually about 36 hours. Tubman also used the plantation owner’s horses to cover more ground. She even went as far as bringing drugs to make a baby stay quiet and bringing a gun so that no changed their mind about the journey. By 1860, Tubman made about 20 trips to the South and had liberated over 300 slaves. Due to her raw determination, she never lost a single passenger, and she took immense pride in this. Tubman, using her courage and intelligence, had a monumental impact on the course of the United States and is credited as being one of the most predominant abolitionists of her
“I freed a thousand slaves. I could have freed a thousand more, if only they had known they were slaves.” Harriet Tubman was a woman known for her important role during the time that led up to the Civil War. She was a woman of incredible strength, courage, and determination. And while Harriet Tubman is credited for giving the slaves an option as to what way they shall spend the rest of their life, the sad truth lies within the quote above. While many people like to believe that slavery was a horrendous act that happened only with small minded people from the south many years ago, that isn’t the case in all honesty. In fact, the idea of slavery was highly debated about and troubled more minds than many are led to believe. While there are