“I freed a thousand slaves I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves” - Harriet Tubman
(Harriet Tubman)
Harriet Tubman was born as Araminta Ross on an unknown date in 1822 in Dorchester County, Maryland, USA. She was born into slavery. There is a discrepancy as to what exact year she was born. Ross took care of her younger siblings because her mother worked in the slave master’s house and didn't have too much time for the children. During childhood she would find ways to resist by wearing layers of clothing as protection against beatings and fighting back. As she grew older she was assigned to working in the field. One day Ross was sent to go get supplies from a store. At the store she saw a dispute between a slave and a slaveowner. The slave tried to run out of the store away from his master and his master threw a 2 pound weight at him but he struck Ross on accident. The injury caused disabling epileptic seizures, headaches, powerful visions, and dream experiences, which occurred throughout her life. Around 1844 Ross married a free Black man named John Tubman. Soon after the marriage she changed her name to Harriet Tubman, Harriet being her mother’s name. In 1849 Tubman’s master died and there was an increased likelihood that she was going to be sold and her family broken up. On September 17th, 1849 Tubman and her 2 brothers escaped. Her brothers had second thoughts about escaping so then they all returned back. Tubman escaped again this time alone. Tubman used the Underground Railroad to help her get North. She traveled through Delaware then through Pennsylvania. While in Philadelphia, PA she worked jobs to save up money.
(A painting of Tubman)
In December of 1850 Tubman went to Baltimore, MD to help in the assistance of her niece and her kids escape. In the spring of 1851 she returned to help more families escape including one of her brothers. She was given the name “Moses” by abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison due to the connection of Moses from the Bible leading the Hebrews from slavery and Tubman leading African-Americans from slavery. She had a lot of help freeing slaves throughout Maryland. In the Fall of 1851 she returned to her place of birth to find her husband John Tubman. She found out that her husband had remarried and instead she found a group of slaves that she helped escape to Pennsylvania. In December of 1851 Tubman guided a group of 11 slaves into Canada due to the US’s Fugitive Slave Act of 1850. On the way to Canada they stopped at the home of abolitionist Frederick Douglass. Over 11 years Tubman freed 70 slaves from Maryland in 13 expeditions. She mostly worked in the Winter months due to the fact the nights were longer. She risked being seen by her former masters many times while going back to Maryland. She also had visions of herself speaking with God and she stated that God would protect her during her expeditions. Tubman carried firearms with her aswell for protection from slave catchers and to use if any slave she was helping was going to sell her out and get her caught.
(A painting of Tubman (Left))
A lot of slaveholders thought a Northern White abolitionist were enticing slaves to run away or that John Brown was aiding in the escape of slaves. There has been an estimation of between $12,000 and $40,000 for Tubman’s capture. Tubman was never captured and none of the slaves she helped escaped were ever captured. Abolitionist John Brown worked with Tubman to recruit supporters for an attack on slave owners. Tubman was supposed to be with John Brown on his Raid on Harper’s Ferry in 1859 but she wasn't able to be contacted. In 1859 Tubman returned to the US and lived in Auburn, New York. In November of 1860 Tubman conducted her last rescue mission and brought a group of slaves to New York. During the Civil War, Tubman brought together a group of former slaves for a regiment of black soldiers.
(A drawing of Tubman)
Tubman served as a nurse during the Civil War in Port Royal, SC. In 1863 she began to lead scouts through South Carolina. Tubman became the 1st woman to lead an armed assault in the Civil War. This assault involved freeing slaves from several plantations. More than 750 slaves were rescued. After the confederacy surrendered in 1865 Tubman returned to her home in New York. On her way back she was forced into the smoking car of the train she was riding and she suffered a broken arm from it while the White passengers wanted her thrown off the train. She never received any salary for her work during the Civil War. On March 18th, 1869 she was married to a Civil War veteran named Nelson Davis. Also in 1869 a biography was written about her.
(Tubman in 1870)
In 1873 Tubman was involved in a gold swindle. In 1886 another biography about her was written. In 1896 Tubman became a speaker for the National Federation of Afro-American Women. In 1899 she finally received pension for her service in the Union Army.In the late 1890’s Tubman underwent brain surgery to help with her constant seizures, headaches, and suffering from her childhood head trauma. She didn't use anesthesia, preferring to bite down on a bullet like soldiers did in the Civil War while having limbs amputated. In 1900 she became involved with the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church. In 1908 a parcel of real estate that Tubman donated to her church became the Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged.
(Tubman (Left) with her family)
In 1911 she was admitted into the rest home. On March 10th, 1913 Harriet Tubman died of pneumonia in Auburn, New York. She was about 91 years old.
(Tubman in 1911)
Today is the 104th anniversary of her death. Take time to remember this great abolitionist today.
Books relating to Harriet Tubman
- Scenes in the Life of Harriet Tubman (1869) by Sarah H. Bradford
- Harriet Tubman: The Moses of Her People (1886) by Sarah H. Bradford
- Harriet Tubman (2004) by Catherine Clinton
(P.S. sorry for the late post)
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