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The Underground Railroad Essay

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The Underground Railroad. A metaphor as it was, it was neither a railroad nor was it even underground. In the time where slavery became a divided issue with the status of legality in various parts of the country, the underground railroad found its beginnings through collective organized efforts from abolitionists and allies alike to help enslaved African americans to escape to territories and states where they could be free from slavery. It was a loosely-developed system that also included series of routes led by “conductors” such as Harriet Tubman, for escaping slaves, or “passengers”. It is imperative to know the conditions of the time prior to the beginnings of the underground railroad and the impact it left on the country in order to understand …show more content…

These conductors guided these fugitive slaves to escape from their enslavement in order to be free as part of the “underground railroad”. Among these conductors is the notable Harriet Tubman, a former slave who led three hundred slaves to safety in the North (McGill, 2005). Besides assisting these fugitives in escapement, other efforts included housing these slaves, recapturing them from authorities, and providing resources for the fugitives to settle in once freed. To further illustrate the metaphor of the underground railroad umbrella, “the homes and businesses where fugitives would rest and eat were called "stations" and "depots" and were run by "stationmasters," those who contributed money or goods were "stockholders," and the "conductor" was responsible for moving fugitives from one station to the next” (“The Underground Railroad”, n.d.). This network of systems continued on and as it became more widespread and more known about, the underground railroad found success in bringing the issue of slavery “to the forefront of public consciousness and convinced a substantial and growing segment of the northern population that the South’s peculiar institution was morally wrong and potentially dangerous to the American way of life” (Devine, 2011). Thus, as the seriousness of the conflict over the issue of slavery heightened, so did the division between the North and the

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The Underground Railroad was one of the more popular ways slaves could escape from their bondage and obtain their freedom. Many people would not assume that New York City was an important station on the Underground Railroad. Eric Foner, a professor and prominent historian from Columbia University, has published a monograph about the Underground Railroad. His monograph, titled Gateway to Freedom: The Hidden History of the Underground Railroad describes how New York City “was a crucial waystation in the metropolitan corridor through which fugitive slaves made their way from the Upper South” (Foner, 2015, pg. 7). Foner also explains about how the fugitive slaves issue affected the coming of the Civil War and the national debate about it.

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Harriet was the creator of many of the paths on the underground railroad, as well as she acted as an escorter of cargo (Slaves on the underground railroad). On her numerous trips, she saved more than 38 slaves in a span of 10 years” (Document B). She risked 10 years of her life and her freedom to save these people. After Congress Enacted the Bloodhound Act Harriet lead 8 rescue missions, traveling approximately 400 miles past police (Document A). She was the Moses of the underground railroad taking slaves to New Canaan ”Canada”.

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Both Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad played a huge role in causing the Civil War. They both helped slaves escape the torture that they had to face every day, and were able to give them the lives that they deserved. Many enslaved people’s lives were changed due to the generosity and courage of Harriet Tubman and anyone else who worked on the Underground Railroad. These people risked their freedom everyday helping these slaves whom they did not even know, all because they knew that what they had to face was inhumane. The world was forever changed by the efforts that Harriet Tubman and everyone else put into the Underground Railroad, and we will always recognize the sacrifice that they had to make.

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The Significance of Harriet Tubman and Harriet Beecher Stowe’s involvement in the Underground Railroad (as part of the Abolitionist Movement, 1850-1860) The Underground Railroad is not what it may appear in its most literal sense; it is in fact a symbolical term for the two hundred year long struggle to break free from slavery in the U.S. It encompasses every slave who tried to escape and every free person who helped them to do so. The origins of the railroad are hidden in obscurity yet eventually it expanded into one of the earliest Civil Rights movements in the US.

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The Abolitionists were people that were against slavery, and the group was dedicated to the cause of getting rid of it. Most of abolitionists were from the North, and the Abolitionist movement started in the 1830s. The Underground Railroad is the most thought of when we think of the Abolitionist Movement. The Underground Railrod helped fugitive slaves from the south, get to the North. Most of the slaves that went through this process made it to their destination, and became free African Americans like they had wanted to be.

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There were many secret ways people would talk about the Underground Railroad using codes or names. The way each slave went through this was different and each have their own experiences getting help. The most famous conductor was Harriet Tubman because she was known by all and was a big part of helping slaves escape. The Underground Railroad was a great way to get the slaves where they belonged, free and able to live on their own without being mistreated and well taken care of. There were many generous

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The Underground Railroad was a secret group of very organized people who hid slaves in their homes until they could be further transported up north to Canada to their freedom where no slave laws were in place. The Underground railroad was formed in the 1700s, they began operating in the 1850s then in the 1860s the Underground Railroad quiet operating. The Underground Railroad helped free many slaves, but it was also very dangerous for the slaves who could of been caught.

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The Underground Railroad Harriet Tubman was considered to be the “conductor of the Underground Railroad.” Harriet Tubman was born into slavery in 1819 or 1822, in Dorchester County, Maryland. “Her Birth date is unknown as paper records of slaves’ births were not kept at the time. Araminta Ross also known as Harriet Tubman changed her name to Harriet, after her mother and adopted her last name from her husband.

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However, the Underground Railroad isn’t what it seems to be, it was neither underground nor a railroad. Slave Owners would wake up, and find their entire plantation workers missing, and as you could imagine they weren’t happy. The Underground Railroad got its railroad terms, because of the way it had worked. Various routes were formed, and those who aided these escaped slaves were known as conductors. The network of routes had gone through fourteen northern states, and Canada.

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The underground railroad was something many slaves used to escape to freedom, and there were a lot of ways that they would travel around. Wickham

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The Tremendous Impact of Railroads on America In the late 19th century, railroads propelled America into an era of unprecedented growth, prosperity, and convenient transportation. Prior to the building of the railroads, America lacked the proper and rapid transportation to make traveling across the country economical or practical. Lengthy travel was often cumbersome, costly, and dangerous.

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She was a conductor in the Underground Railroad. She helped slaves escape from slavery. The last time she stepped out to do her job was three days ago and she never came back” the boy sobbed. I looked around and it seemed like he stayed alone at home. “The Underground Railroad’’?

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Harriet’s last few trips took a stretch of four-hundred eighty miles from Dorchester County, Maryland to St. Catherines in Canada and these trips took approximately more than 1 year each. In these cases, it was very complex for one person to lead five people out of slavery and journey along with them to freedom due to the Fugitive Slave Act that was passed in 1850 and many other factors as well. The Fugitive Slave Act was a main issue that conductors, like Harriet Tubman faced. Basically, this law says that Northerners have to turn in escaped slaves, and if they did not it would be considered against the law. In addition to this requirement, the government decided to give a cash prize for slaves.

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Literature is often credited with the ability to enhance one’s understanding of history by providing a view of a former conflict. In doing so, the reader is able to gain both an emotional and logistical understanding of a historically significant event. Additionally, literature provides context that can help the reader develop a deeper understanding of the political climate of a time period. Within the text of The Underground Railroad, by Colson Whitehead’s, the use of literary elements such as imagery, metaphor, and paradox amplifies the reader’s understanding of early 19th century slavery and its role in the South of the United States of America. Throughout the novel, Whitehead utilizes a girl named Cora to navigate the political and personal consequences of escaping slavery, the Underground Railroad, and her transition from the title of fugitive to freed. Cora’s ability to convey descriptions of events both tragic and hope-filled such as the dehumanization of slaves or the truth of freedom, while utilizing literary elements, create an emotional understanding of the 1800’s of the United States.

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She has helped the United States in many ways. After that she also purchased land to build a home in 1896 for needy and sick blacks. Harriet tubman was the conductor of the underground railroad The Underground Railroad was a bunch secret routes and safe houses that slaves used to escape to free states or Canada. Harriet was one of the people who helped establish the Underground Railroad. She was also known as “Moses.”

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