The Underground Railroad was perhaps the most dramatic protest action against slavery in United States history. The operations of secret escape networks began in the 1700s, and was later connected with organized abolitionist activity of the 1800s. Neither "underground" nor a "railroad," this informal system arose as a loosely constructed network of escape routes that originated in the South, intertwined throughout the North and eventually ended in Canada. Escape routes were not just restricted to the North, but also extended into western territories, Mexico and the Caribbean. From 1830 to 1865, the Underground Railroad reached its peak as abolitionists and sympathizers who condemned human bondage aided large numbers of bondsmen to freedom. They not only called for slavery destruction, but also acted to assist its victims.

The Underground Railroad secretly resisted slavery by helping runaway slaves to freedom. The work of the underground was so effective that its action intimidated slave owners. Most regarded the underground as "organized theft" and a threat to their livelihood.

The most intriguing feature of the Underground Railroad was its lack of formal organization. Its existence often relied on concerted efforts of cooperating individuals of various ethnic and religious groups who helped bondsmen escape from slavery. To add to its mysterious doing, accounts are scarce for individuals who actually participated in its activities. Usually agents hid or destroyed their personal journals to protect themselves and the runaways.  The actual number of slaves aided by the Underground Railroad is uncertain. Historians believe that as many as 70,000 slaves were helped in their escape to freedom by people at "stations" on the Underground Railroad.

(excepted from The National Park Service site "Underground Railroad")

By the time you are done with this quest you will have:

• a greater knowledge of the Underground Railroad as a national institution
• the ability to describe the various routes taken by escaped slaves, the methods used to camouflage their escapes and some famous 'stations' on the UGRR
• followed a modern-day recreation of the UGRR
• written a description of various Indiana routes on the UGRR, including one famous 'station' in Indiana
• work in pairs to make a map that indicates where an escaped slave might have traveled in Indiana.

What follows is a short list of WWW resources that you and your team may wish to visit in order to complete the tasks described below.  These are general resources that not only provide an overview of the UGRR, but also provide some background information on slavery in general and on conditions in the south during the height of the UGRR (1835-1865).

Compton's Encyclopedia on the Web

Underground Railroad

Taking the Freedom Train

The Underground Railroad

The Underground Railroad Site - Abolitionists
 
 

After visiting the sites click the "Back" button on your browser to return to this page.

1. Use these resources to learn more about the the Underground Railroad in general.  Try to find the answers to the following questions:

National Geographic's UGRR site
PBS' Africans in America UGRR site
The Underground Railroad
The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center Links
How free slaves were transported

• Why was the Underground Railroad called "the Underground Railroad?"
• Who were the 'conductors' and how did they operate?
• What were some common ways that slaves were able to avoid detection and capture?
• What were the 'stations' on the UGRR?
• How did slaves know which direction to travel?  How did they avoid getting lost?

2. Print the UGRR Worksheet.  Go to The North Star: Tracing the Underground Railroad and read about Tony Cohen's reenactment of a slave's trip on the Underground Railroad. Pay special attention to his dispatches. Use the information you find to answer the worksheet questions.
 

3. Use the following resources to research one of the most famous conductors of the Underground Railroad, Levi Coffin.

• Levi Coffin - President of the Underground Railroad
• Levi Coffin
• The Levi Coffin House
• Levi Coffin House: State Historic Site

Find at least one image of Mr. Coffin and save that image to your disk.  Find an image of Mr. Coffin's house and save that your disk as well.  Use these images to illustrate a short report about the role of the UGRR in Indiana.  Be certain to answer the following:
 
• Why did Mr. Coffin become a 'station master' on the UGRR?
• Where was his house located (was this a popular route for runaway slaves?)
• What were some of the ways Mr. Coffin hid runaway slaves?

4. Print this map and plot the route that many slaves used to reach freedom. Discuss in your group what kinds of landmarks they might have seen on their way to freedom. Use these resources to find the most common routes:

• National Geographic's UGRR maps
• UGRR Map
• UC Davis' UGRR routes map

5. Look at this Reward poster for a runaway slave and discuss the questions at the bottom.
 
 

Here is where you would need to determine the exact nature of the product students would be producing.  They can develop their own UGRR web page, a multimedia presentation or simply illustrate a report with images from these sites.

Passengers, conductors and station masters of the Underground Railroad where certainly brave. If caught the slaves could have lost more than just their freedom, they could have lost their lives. The conductors (many of them ex-slaves) risked being sold back into slavery and had the station masters' identity been found out, they risked prison.  Once in Canada slaves were free from the prosecution mandated by the Fugitive Slave Acts. These statutes, passed by Congress in 1793 and 1850, provided for the capture and return of slaves who escaped into free states or territories. Would you have had the courage to "follow the drinking gourd" to your freedom?