Harriet Tubman Research Paper

Jasmine Buford
Mr. Johnson
History 2020
18 April 2011
Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad
Harriet Tubman, also known as “Moses”, played a big part in American history for her role as a conductor on the Underground Railroad. A former slave, Tubman was a determined woman who never gave up and knew she would one day fulfill her dream of becoming a free woman. She was born somewhere around 1820 as Araminta Ross in Dorchester County, Maryland. Her parents were Harriet Green and Benjamin Ross, slaves to Anthony Thompson and his stepson Edward Brodess (Clinton 4-5). As a child, she was hired out to many temporary masters where she suffered from cruel and harsh punishments that caused her to be considered as “not useful” and sent back
Begging for food, money, and clothing was reduced as she welcomed others who needed help into her home. These people included orphaned children, destitute and sick former slaves, and any others in need. She maintained her relationships with multiple former white abolitionists, keeping her life elevated between two very different and highly segregated worlds. Through them, however, she remained an active presence in the woman suffrage movement that struggled, foundered, and renewed itself in the latter part of the nineteenth century. Though destitute and frail, she continued her campaign for civil rights until her death (Larson
She was buried with military rites in Fort Hill Cemetery, which was not far from her home. In 1914, a year after her death, Auburn declared a one-day memorial to its anti-slavery hero. A plaque was revealed by residents on June 14, 1914, exactly one year after Tubman died. They named it the Harriet Tubman Plaque, which is on display at the entrance of the Cayuga County Court house. She has still received many honors since then, including the naming of the Liberty Ship Harriet Tubman, christened in 1944 by Eleanor Roosevelt. Freedom Park, a tribute to the memory of Harriet Tubman, opened in the summer of 1994 at 17 North Street in Auburn. In 1995, Harriet Tubman was honored by the federal government with a commemorative postage stamp bearing her name and likeness (Bradford 148).
Tubman’s monumental and dangerous efforts to bring away her enslaved friends and family elevated her status to that of a heroine without equal. In conclusion, Harriet Tubman, also known as “Moses”, played a big part in American history for her role as a conductor on the Underground Railroad (Clinton