The Underground Railroad

1. The Underground Railroad By: Kory Nolan

2. Federal marshals and professional bounty hunters known as slave catchers pursued escaped slaves as far as the Canadian boarder. • The Underground Railroad consisted of meeting points, secret routes, transportation, and personal assistance provided by abolitionist sympathizer. • Participants often organized in small, independent groups. This helped maintain secrecy because individuals knew some connecting stations along the route but knew few details of their immediate area. • The stations where slaves would meet the people who were to help them were usually located in barns, under church floors, or in places such as caves and hollowed out river banks.

3. The escaped slaves wanted to get to the free states or Canada. But some routes led to Mexico or over seas. (The free states were the states that didn’t allow slavery like the Northern states or Canada. • While the fugitives rested at one station, a message was sent to the next station master who knew the runaways were on their way. • Some of the escaped slaves travelled on boat or train, most of the escaped slaves travelled by foot or wagon. Most of the times the escaped slaves travelled in groups of 1-3. But Charles Turner Torrey rented wagons and horses and had as many as 15-20 travelling at one time.

4. By 1850 there were more than 100,000 escaped slaves by the use of the railroad. • The Underground Railroad was not underground or a railroad. The reason it is called underground is because it was an underground resistance. The reason it was known as a railroad is because of the use of rail technology in the code. • Most of the time the journey was seen as difficult for women and children to participate in. • British North America (which is present day Canada) where slavery was prohibited, was a popular destination, as its long boarder gave many points of access.

5. Harriet Tubman was the daring conductor on the Underground Railroad who got more than 300 other slaves to freedom. • More than 30,000 people were said to have escaped there via the network during this 20 year period. • William Still helped as many as 60 slaves per month. William Still is often called the father of the underground railroad. Sometimes he had hid them in his Philadelphia home.

6. 5 most important facts 1.Harriet Tubman was the daring conductor on the Underground Railroad who got more than 300 other slaves to freedom. 2.By 1850 there were more than 100,000 escaped slaves by the use of the railroad. 3.The Underground Railroad was not underground or a railroad. The reason it is called underground is because it was an underground resistance. The reason it was known as a railroad is because of the use of rail technology in the code. 4.The escaped slaves wanted to get to the free states or Canada. But some routes led to Mexico or over seas. 5.Federal marshals and professional bounty hunters known as slave catchers pursued escaped slaves as far as the Canadian boarder.