Movie Review: Carry Me Home

I came across this movie short at Angel Studios.  I thought it was very well presented in depicting the personality of Harriet Tubman (Karen Abercrombie).  It really brings her to life, and some of her eccentric behaviors.  She relied on Jesus for guidance, and never lost an escapee.  In this case she was not able to rescue who she intended, but met a different family, Stephen and Maria Ennals (Joel Ashur and Lindsey Aeriel Grimble).  They are a bit hesitant, but do go with her.  A contact point on the underground railroad was compromised and they have to rely on other means, which are provided by a man wondering through the woods saying his wagon is available.  They procure it and make it to safety.  

I really like getting personal in this way with Harriet Tubman who helped so many people make it to the Underground Railroad.

Magazine Article Review: The Fever-Heated and Blood-Hot Abolitionists of Falls City

 The Fever-Heated and Blood-Hot Abolitionists of Falls City: Southeast Nevraska and the Battle for Bleeding Kansas by Robert Nelson, Nebraska History magazine, Vol. 104, No. 4 Winter 2023, pp 193-207.

The founding and growth of Falls City was very much tied to Kansas and the conflict that took place there over the slavery issue.  A group of abolitionist traveled from the north east.  A group of pro slavery people, mostly from Missouri had the intention of meeting them and not letting them into Kansas, or at least confiscating and weapons they might have.  They were particularly wary of James H. Lane and had they gotten him would have arrested im or worse.  He stayed in Falls City which is not far from the border.  People went into Kansas, but without weapons.  They were shipped by a different route, farther to the west.

With an influx of people who opposed slaverhy, Kansas became a free state.  John Brown frequented Falls City during this time, over a dozen times.  He and Lane helped direct the Kansas efforts from here.

Some of the people still living in Falls City became part of the Underground Railroad, helping runaway slaves escape to freedom.  Of particular note were David and Ann Dorrington.  Their barn became a stopping place for escaped slaves.  Mrs. Dorrington would often provide a meal and kept watch on those in the barn.  Runaways could access it freely.  It 2022 the area of the Dorrington house and barn (which had been removed) were recognized by the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Program.  This was the second location so noted in Nedbraska.  The other being in Nebraska City.

It is neat to think there are places involved in the abolitionist side of aBleeding Kansas and the Underground Railroad so close to me.

Book Review: Henry's Freedom Box

Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad, by Ellen Levine, illustrated by Kadir Nelson, Scholastic Press, New York, 2007.  Caldecott Honor Book.
This is a fascinating and beautifully illustrated telling of the story of Henry Box Brown.  He is the man who sent himself to freedom.  This was not without risk.  Even though they had painted "This side up" on the box, people did not always looking at the writing, and he suffered a bad time being upside down with the blood rushing to his head.
The book also explores his reason for escaping to freedom.  He was motivated by the loss of his wife and children.  Although he had been allowed to marry, his wife belonged to someone else, and she and the children were sold.  He watched helplessly as the took them away.  I want my children and grandchildren to know that people had to struggle for freedom in our country, and that others were willing to sacrifice to help them in this pursuit.

Book Review: Harriet Tubman: Hero of the Underground Railroad

Harriet Tubman: Hero of the Underground Railroad, by Lori Mortensen, illustrated by Frances Moore, Picture Window Books, Minneapolis, MN, 2007.

 

I enjoyed this brief history of Harriet Tubman in picture book format.  The artwork added something to the story as many of the illustrations had a fabric pattern.  Harriet Tubman did not have a good time as a slave.  She was taken from her mother.  She had to tend a baby, and was beaten if the baby cried.  She was disciplined for stealing sugar.  She did not prevent another man escaping, and her master through an iron at her, hitting her in the head.  This caused her to have headaches the rest of her life.

 

Tubman hated being a slave, and as a young woman, when she heard of intentions to sell her, she escaped.  Using referrals for the underground railroad she was able to make it to Philadelphia, free territory.  However. Tubman’s efforts did not stop there.  She made at least 19 trips back to slave territory, and brought about 300 people back with her in total.  She acted as a conductor for the underground railroad.  She helped her parents and other family members escape. 

With the commencement of the war, she still made trips to slave country, to serve as a nurse, and to help the Union effort as a spy.  She was able to conduct and direct an expedition to clear torpedo mines.  She knew where they were because of her spying efforts. 

Harriet Tubman was an interesting woman, who lived a long life.  When she passed away at age 93 she was buried with military honors, based on her service to many through the underground railroad and the Civil War. 

Slave Fugitive: Ann Maria Weems: Age Fifteen

Ann Maria Weems was fifteen when she ran from slavery.  She was the property of Mr. Price.  Mr. Price would rape his young female slaves, so as to breed them and make more slaves.  Ann Maria was worried of her fate.  An abolitionist lawyer had been able to purchase the freedom of Ann Maria’s mother and brother.  However he refused to sell Ann Maria.  Price had an inkling Ann Maria might attempt escape.  He made her sleep on the floor of his room.  However, she did get away, and made her way to Washington D.C. where her mother and brother were living.  A reward of $500 was offered, and slave hunters in the D.C. area were on the look-out for Ann Maria. 

The lawyer was still helping the family, and an intricate plan was devised for her to get out of the city.  J. Bigelow, the lawyer, as a doctor to help in the plan.  The Dr. was driven by coach to the White House.  Making it look like he had business.  Ann Maria, now disguised as Joe Wright, the coachman, took over at the coach, and then starting heading out of the city.  In this way they made their way to the home of an Under Ground Railroad member.  She was invited to eat, still disguised as Joe Wright.  When the manager came in, she still kept up her disguise until she went outside where the manager followed her.  She then revealed who she was, as she had been cautioned to tell no one who she was but the manager. 

She was assisted on her way to Dresden in Canada where she was met by her aunt and uncle who lived there.

Slave Fugitives: Margaret and Robert Garner; Murderer?

The Ohio River froze over the winter of 1855-56.  Margaret and her family, husband and four children and Robert's parents took advantage, and even though the river was carefully patrolled, they managed to escape into the Cincinnati area.  However they were seen as the crossed the river.
They went to the home of free blacks, the Kites, family of Margaret.  However they were worried they may be tracked to the home, so Elijah Kite went to visit Levi Coffin, prominent Under-ground Railroad supervisor.  Coffin advised him to move the family to a black neighborhood as quickly as possible while he made plans to get them north.
However these actions were too late.  By the time Kite returned home the home was being surrounded by their owners, the law and proslavery men.  The Fugitive Slave Act put all the power in the hands of the owners.  Margaret and her husband decided to fight rather than return to slavery.  "Mother, before my children shall be taken back to Kentucky, I will kill every one of them!" Margaret announced to her mother-in-law.  Robert shot the first deputy that entered the home, wounding him.  However others followed and overcame Robert.  Margaret grabbed a knife and killed her two and a half year old girl; she tried to kill the other children and herself but was overpowered.
This case then became a legal struggle.  Ohio wanted to prosecute the murder case, so in court the horrors of slavery could be exposed.  Kentucky wanted the return of property, and the slave owner would determine what to do.
The court ruled in favor of the owners, and their owner quickly old the family to others.  However, in being transported to their new home, they were traveling by boat.   Margaret grabbed the baby and flung herself into the water in a suicide attempt.  She was dragged from the water, but her baby was not. 

Biography: Harriet Tubman: Slave Fugitive, UGRR Conductor, Union Spy

Harriett Tubman,  this information is gleaned from the chapter in “Bound for the North Star.  It gives additional information I was not aware of.  For example she went through life with a dent in her head and suffering from some sort of narcolepsy.  This was from an incident when another slave was running away while they were in the grocery store.  The owner picked up a can to throw at the fugitive, missed and hit Harriet Tubman.  She had periods throughout her life when she would suddenly lose consciousness and nod off asleep, and then after a time would wake up without knowing she had been asleep.  She would also wear a bandana to cover the dent in her head because it made her easily identifiable. 

Tubman would use song to communicate with people.  In the songs would be hidden messages.  The promised land was the “North”.  She escaped slavery in 1849 but following the north star.  Her husband refused to go with her.  However she could not totally enjoy her freedom without her family.  She became familiar with people on the Underground Railroad, and with this knowledge returned to the South to help her family.  She first helped her sister Mary Ann and her children, and then made more trips for other family members, and others not from her family.  As she made rescue after rescue, the slaves began to call her Moses.  She would usually leave with slaves Saturday evenings, when they were less well guarded.  She would often borrow the buggy and horses of slave owners.  This way she earned the knick name “Old Chariot”. 

If a runaway would become fearful, and want to return, this would jeopardize the entire party.  Tubman would pull a loaded pistol she kept in her pocket and threaten the fugitive, “You go on or die!”   This way she helped many who would have gone back to slavery.  “Go Down Moses” was her fighting song.  If she were to sing it several times, it would let fugitives she might be picking up know that the coast was clear.  If she sang just once and then stopped, there was trouble afoot and people would stay hidden.  For someone observing they would just see a little old lady (one of her favorite disguises). 

She was so successful she was able to help over 300 men women and children escape slavery.  Some of the last were her own elderly parents.  There was a reward of $40,000 placed on her (about $800,000 in today’s money).  Harriet took no thought of this, feeling God would protect her, and if it was her time to go then so be it. 

Harriet’s exploits did not end with helping people reach freedom.  She was also active in the Civil War, spying for the North.  She scouted, and then directed the raid up the Combahee River in South Carolina.  This raid freed more than 700 slaves.  This has been called the only military in U.S. history planned by a woman. 

Her post Civil war days were lived in poverty.  She remarried, and nursed her husband who suffered from tuberculosis for 20 years.  She was always poor, because she was always giving to others.  She had a final dream, a home for elderly.  She accomplished this, and this is where she died in 1913.

Slave Fugitive: John Price and the Oberlin-Wellington Rescue

John Price

The Oberlin-Wellington Rescue of John Price is one of the shining examples of people stepping out against the Fugitive Slave Act, even at their own peril.  John Price was a fugitive slave, who had settled in Oberlin.  Oberlin was a community where most citizens were sympathetic to fugitive slaves, and many were active participants in the Under Ground Rail Road.  Oberlin College fostered this sense of what was right with regards to the slave issues.  They enrolled female and black students at Oberlin College.  John Mercer Langston, Black Oberlin Graduate was elected as township clerk, the first black man elected to office in the United States. 

Oberlin was so defiant of the Fugitive Slave law that President Buchanan and others in the government wanted to make an example of them. 

John Price had lived in Oberlin for two years after his escape.  Anderson Jennings, slave hunter, decided to visit Oberlin with the goal of retaking John and John’s  cousin who had escaped with him.  He employed a lad, whose father was a slavery sympathizer, to go and entice the fugitives with employment.  John couldn’t accept as he was nursing his cousin, but went with the lad to introduce him to someone else.  He was captures on the way.  The rushed him to the nearby town of Wellington, where they were waiting for the 5:13 train.  While in route, John was able to get the attention of a young man walking on the road, Amasa Lyman, student of Oberlin College.  Lyman was able to spread the alarm, and hundreds of people from Oberlin were headed to Wellington.  Those who could not get a carriage walked and ran the distance of nine miles. 

Jennings and his part had holed up in an attic floor of a hotel.  Looking down they could see the building was surrounded and they were greatly outnumbered.  There were men, both black and white in the crowd.  They could not make the train, but the issue was at a stalemate.  The crowd clamored for the release of Price, and they refused to release him.  The crowd became inpatient when it was rumored that federal troops were on their way to enforce the Fugitive Slave Act.  Near sunset, two small groups decided to effect a rescue.  One group approached through the front door.  The other group of five or six through the back door.  As they converged on the slave catchers, one of the rescuers threatened, “The first man who keeps us from going upstairs I will shoot.”  There was a shot fired, but at the last minute the gun was knocked upward and bullet went into the ceiling.  During the melee three young men from the college got Price out and effected the rescue.  He was taken all the way to Canada for his own safety.

The federal government, in making an example of the case, arrested 25 people from Oberlin and 12 from Wellington in violating the Fugitive Slave Act.  Many of them felt it a privilege to  have defied what they called an unjust law.  While in prison they were visited by 4000 people, paying them honor.  This included school children from Oberlin.  For Oberlin’s part, they arrested the slave catchers with charges of kidnapping.  Although the charges couldn’t stick, they made their point. 

The government realized that the arrest of the people had to opposite effect to what they desired.  It fostered more anti-slave sentiment rather than quelling it.  The men were released after three months.

Slave Fugitive: William Wells Brown

William Wells Brown from the book "Bound for the North Star by Dennis Brindell Fradin

William’s mother had seven children by seven different men.  His master, Dr. John Young, would loan his slaves to his brothers so they could rape them and breed them.  Because he was the nephew of the doctor he was a house slave, while his mother had to be in the fields at 4:30 every morning.  One morning his mother was late to work by ten minutes, and received a beating from the overseer.  Brown described how helpless he felt as his mother was tortured.  He was called William, but then the family adopted another nephew named William and insisted he change his name.  His refusal lead to many beatings.

The family moved to St. Louis.  Slowly the members of the family were sold, as the doctor had financial problems.  When his sister was sold he went to see her in jail.  Jail said he should take his mother and run away.  Mother had previously been sold to a tinsmith but still lived in St. Louis.  She was hesitant to go, but he finally convinced her.  He knew where a boat was kept, and they snuck out to the boat, and he used a board as an oar to get across the river to Illinois.  From there they headed north.  He did not think slave catchers would be after them, but he was wrong.  They were caught and returned to St. Louis.

His mother was sold South.  He was able to see her at the barge as she was leaving.  Her final word to him was “Now try to get your liberty.”  At first he was too depressed as a result of being separated from his mother.  However he was sold to a River Boat operator.  He was obedient for many months, but when they visited Cincinnati he took his chance.  Grabbing a trunk, he headed down the gang blank looking like he was doing a chore.  He just kept going, hiding in a swamp, and from there headed north.  He got caught in winter weather with no food.  He knew he must get help or die.  He tried to approach someone, but his mouth was too frozen for him to talk.  Shortly, another gentleman, a Quaker, came and took him into their house where they nursed him back to health.  He had a high fever and frozen feet.  He took the name of this gentleman. 

Later William Wells learned to write.  He was the first African American to publish a novel in the United States.  He was also the first African American to publish a play in the United States as well.

Book Review: Making Freedom: The Underground Railroad and the Politics of Slavery

Making Freedom: The Underground Railroad and the Politics of Slavery, by R.J.M. Blackett, The University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, 2013.

This is an interesting addition to the story of the underground railroad.  It reviews slavery, mostly in the state of Pennsylvania, and the results of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850.  It tells a few stories, but in much greater detail than other books I have read.  There are two topics which intrigued me.

Commissioner Richard McAllister was appointed by Supreme Court Justice Robert Grier.  The law of 1850 required a review before someone could be returned using the Fugitive Slave Act.  However, McAllister  deliberately tried to thwart any semblance of judicial review.  He would hold courts early in the morning or late at night so defense lawyers would not know of the proceedings, he would not recognize lawyers defending accused slaves.  He would not let people speak, or consider their statements.  He held hearing in uncomfortable small rooms to avoid large crowds, and to make things inconvenient.  In the end, he always sent accused slaves back to bondage.  His was a kangaroo hearing, and it became such he was eventually forced to resign, and no one took his place.  Hearings had to travel to Philadelphia. 

The other issue covered extensively was the deliberate kidnapping of free blacks by conniving men.  The goal was to quickly get those kidnapped out of Pennsylvania, and into Maryland and whisked south on a train.  They were quickly sold at market, and lost their liberty.  This happened many times, and it was difficult to prosecute those involved, however there were some prosecutions that slowed the practice.  However many free blacks lost their freedom in this way.

This book has the underground railroad playing a large role in slave escapes, often sponsoring people to live in the South and encourage slaves to seek their freedom, provide assistance.  However at the same time, the book warns against downplaying the role of the slaves their selves in seeking their own freedom. 

Very good review of these issues.  The argument was made by someone at the time that it was the underground railroad which created dissatisfaction, and slaves would have been happy with their lot if left alone.  They almost forced them to runaway, and then abandoned them where they could be protected by their master.  However the arguments against this idea are overwhelming.  People seek out freedom, and many of the slaves were willing to die for that opportunity.

Book Review: Fugitive Slaves and the Underground Railroad

Fugitive Slaves and the Underground Railroad in the Kentucky Borderland by J. Blain Hudson, McFarland and Company, Jefferson, NC, 2002.

This person really did their homework.  There are so many stories about slave escapes, and those who assisted the slaves that my head is spinning.  There are a couple of chapters that rely mostly on reports in the newspapers.  This includes ads from a slave holder offering reward for the return of a runaway slave.  It also includes some information from court reports or just stories of interest.  There is a chapter and the likely routes, focusing on the places where crossing were made of the Ohio.  It also talks about those that escaped via the river on river boats.  The most interesting chapter is when the author goes into greater detail talking about a few people, fugitives and helpers.

The conclusion of the author:  The slave escape routes often mirrored where there were large populations of free African Americans.  The underground railroad was not always an organized situation, in fact it very much wasn’t until the 1850s, when the Fugitive Slave Act required it to be more organized.  Not all fugitive slaves received assistance.  Those giving assistance were primarily African Americans, with also assistance from some white abolitionists.  Sometimes both fugitives and helpers paid consequences.  Several people were imprisoned for helping slaves.  There was an instance where three fugitive slaves were executed for insurrection as the result of a mass escape.

The courage of those on both sides of this issue must have truly amazing—to stand up against a law, even if you know it is a poor law, is difficult to do.  When standing up against it could result in incarceration, or death, it takes even more courage.  It wasn’t until much later that these people were recognized as heroes. 

Documentary Review: Slave Catchers and Slave Resisters

This is a presentation from The History Channel which gives a history of the means used by slave honors to keep their "property" and maintain the institution of slavery.  It points out that the reason for slavery is that it made some man very wealth even though their was the immorality of it, and even though their were slave escapes, and always the fear of slave uprising.  There was some reason for white people to be weary of this possibility.  The Stono rebellion of a group of slaves trying to make it to Florida and freedom (as offered by the Spanish who were at war with England) resulted in the execution of white people.  The revolt started with 20 men but swelled to about 100.  They were led by Jemmy.  Eventually the militia was called out and the revolt was crushed, many Blacks being killed, some gaining freedom and other executed.
Over time, the tactics used to recapture slaves changed, but finally landed on the slave catchers to pursue and bring back runaways.  All whites could be pushed into being slave catchers, but those most successful were those who did it professionally for the chance of reward. 
This movie also talks about the revolt of Nat Turner, and those who followed him.  Turner was a preacher and felt he had been called to avenge the slaves.  His was a very bloody rebellion.  They killed any white people they saw.  Eventually the rebellion was crushed, but Turner was at large for some time.  During this time of heightened alarm, many black people were executed as being complicit, or just because.  In this case the federal government and local militia were both called in.  Slavery was codified in our constitution, and the South had a great deal of political power. 
The fugitive slave act of 1850 in essence made every citizen a slave catcher.  This did not set well with abolitionist.  Although it did work to have slaves returned, it also galvanized the country.  This contributed to the final test with regards to slavery, that of the Civil War.
The Civil War was not the final say on race relations.  After the war the Klu Klux Klan sprang up which kept the struggle for white domination of blacks alive. 
Link on slave uprisings
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/african-americans-many-rivers-to-cross/history/did-african-american-slaves-rebel/
This movie has its strengths.  I generally do not like historical reenactment as a documentary method.  However in this case it is well done and appropriate to the story.  There is also sufficient interviews and other information to make it OK.  

Book Review: Underground Railroad

Underground Railroad, Division of Publications, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C., 1998.

This book is produced by the National Park Service at the request of congress.  It is a book which tells the story of the Underground Railroad, and not so much as to where or what building were involved.  Because accurate records were generally not kept on purpose, as they could be incriminating, many of the stories have basis in fact, but also tend to myth. 

This book gives the best history of slavery I have come across.  450,000 Africans were sold into slavery in the United States.  This was due mostly to the need for labor and slaves worked in agriculture, mining and other businesses.  The journey from Africa could be hazardous.  Slaves were generally transported in the hold, with a roof between four and two feet.  They were very crowded, and often feet and heads over lapped.  There was no facility for using the restroom, and so the slaves had to lie in their own filth.  It is said that you could tell a slave ship was coming by the smell, before you could see it.  The mortality rate was always over 10 percent, and sometimes much higher.  It is estimated several million African died being shipped to the Americas (both North and South). 

Slavery was practiced in all the original thirteen colonies.  However all of the Northern States eventually did away with slavery.  By 1860 only 15 states allowed the practice of slavery.  In this year there were almost 4 million slaves in the United States.  There were 488,000 free blacks.  These were from self-purchase, children of freed blacks, and because in the North many owners had freed their slaves as laws with regards to slavery changed.

In the South, it was difficult for a slave family to remain intact.  The statement, “sold down the river” referred to the process of the slave trade, where the more northern Southern states were used for breeding, and then the slaves were sold south to the cotton fields or other needs.

The Underground Railroad was active from when the first slave tried to escape.  For the most part this was a way to refer to those helping escaped slaves.  They used railroad terms, but in no way ran an actual railroad.  Terms used included conductors (those who helped the fleeing slaves), stations (homes where they could layover), routes, cargoes (fleeing slave), packages and passengers.  The word underground refers to the clandestine nature of the help, not to an actual tunnel.  The goal for most fleeing slaves was Canada.  This is because in 1830s the British Empire had outlawed slavery, and British courts had ruled there was no requirement to return slaves.  Other destination might include Europe, Mexico, the West, and the Caribbean.  There are many daring tales of escape.  This include shipping yourself in a box, the wife of a husband and wife pair dressing her as a Southern master and traveling in disguise.  There are also many heroes of the Underground railroad, including Blacks and Whites.  Frederick Douglas was an outgoing spokesman, as well as a station master.  Some cities were known for their efforts in this regard, including Oberlin and Ripley, Ohio, Washington D.C. and other communities. 

After the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act in 1850,  even free Blacks were kidnapped and taken south.  There were groups formed to keep an eye on slave-hunters.

This book is very concise and very informative.  I enjoyed it greatly.

Book Review: The Underground Railroad: A Primary Source History of the Journey to Freedom

The Underground Railroad: A Primary Source History of the Journey to Freedom, Philip Wolny, Primary Sources in American History, Rosen Publish, New York, NY., 2004.

 

I like this book.  The idea of including primary source material in the book is very good, and at the end of the book there is transcribed versions of some of the material used.  This book focuses on the abolitionist movement and the Underground Railroad.  It includes a political map of the United States, and shows the great division in terms of free and slave states.  It also talks of the Underground Railroad as an entity of people helping slaves reach freedom.  Some traveled to the South, and went disguised as a gentleman or a field hand, so as to get close to the slaves and inform them of the chance to run.  Others worked behind the scenes, helping the slaves head North.  Canada was the likely destination as there they were beyond the reach of the slave hunters.  This talks provides information about anti-slave newspapers, the climate in which these newspapers were published, and the measure people went to, to gain their freedom, including shipping yourself in a box.  Secret messages were passed in songs, and in quilt squares.  It talks about the conductors, people who lead the slaves, and the station houses, houses where runaways could hole up..  Often these homes were marked with a candle in an upper room.  Hiding places were sometimes elaborate.

The book talks about prominent abolitionists including Frederick Douglas and John Brown.  One of the primary sources was excerpts from the statement made by John Brown before he was hung.  Open revolt was rare, but it did occur.  The most famous was Nat Turner, who with a group of other slaves murdered over 55 people in a rampage before he was caught.  Those murdered were all white and included women and children.  John Brown predicted that the only way to resolve the issue of slavery was with much blood.  He was right.  This book concludes with Abraham Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation.

I didn’t like the introduction.  It uses the imagine if you and tries to put the reader in the shoes of a runaway slave.  Imagine if doesn’t get to me. 

Movie Review: Harriet Tubman: Family History Classics

Nest Entertainment produced this animated historical film using the talents of Richard Rich.  This is generally an accurate portrayal of Tubman's exploits.  She was truly a hero.  She was a slave, who ran to freedom, and then returned to slave country to rescue her family and others.  There were a couple changes I would like to have seen.  One of the characters shows a map of the underground railroad.  I do not think any such map would have been used as people did not want to leave such physical evidence.  Above all the system was secret, and each person would do their bit, but avoid knowing too much about the next person.
I also would have changed the music.  I understand Tubman would sing "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" to let people know she was around, and that conditions were good to make a run away.  This presentation had a syrupy modern song.  The original African music would have been more appropriate. 
The presentation points out the Tubman made 17 dangerous trips into slave territory, even when there was a $40,000 reward on her head.  She brought over 300 people to freedom.  She was known as Little

Moses to the slave community. The film ends showing them taking this picture when she was 93 years old.

Book Review: His Promised Land: The Autobiography of John P. Parker Former Slave and Conductor on the Underground Railroad

This is a fascinating book.  I had never read the word of someone who had been a slave.  This man had some fascinating stories to tell.  John P. Parker was part of the Underground Railroad in Ripley, Ohio, just across from Kentucky on the Ohio River.  But the story starts before this.  Parker was a slave.  His mother was a slave, and his father was the white owner.  He was sold down the river, to work on the plantations.  Something I learned is that the Northern states generally did not use slaves for labor, but would breed slaves, and then ship them south.  It had been illegal for sometime to import slaves.  Parker said he inherited a couple things from his father.  Intelligence and creativity; and anger.  He talked of his trip south, and the callous nature of the overseers.  Someone he was chained with almost drowned.  However he says the worst of slavery was not the physical hardship; but the humiliation of not being a person.  He was bought by a doctor.  He learned to read.  He was able to use books of the doctor, and in fact went away to school with the doctor's sons.  However this was too far north, so he was brought home again.  He did runaway, and talks about this experience.  He was caught.  However the doctor did not punish him.  He was put up for sale again, and Parker convinced a widow to buy him, and then allow him to buy his freedom from her.  He was a foundry worker, and he would work extra and make extra money to pay for his freedom.  When he bought his freedom he headed north, but not before he finished a fight with a rival.  He went to Cleveland to work in the foundry business, and eventually made his way to Ripley.  He tells several humorous stories of his involvement with helping slaves make it to freedom.  Ripley had a large population of abolitionists, but now everyone felt this way.  This activity was scary and dangerous.  Even so, he helped over 400 people make it through Ripley and to places further north.  He would take a boat across the river, and help bring people back.  Some did not have good sense to be quiet, and he would have to threaten them.  One time he went into a master's bedroom to rescue a couple's baby because the master worried the slave parents might try to runaway.  He was not directly involved in the story of Eliza from "Uncle Tom's Cabin" which he knew of as she went through Ripley.  The Parker had a keen sense of humor.  However he was also a man who lived with danger.  He would always walk in the middle of the road, for fear someone might come out of an alley to get him. 
This book is edited by Stuart Seeley Prague, and is based on manuscript of interviews by Frank M Gregg with Parker conducted in the 1880s.  This presents some cause for alarm.  Could Parker have been saying what he thought his white interviewer wanted to hear, or could the years of passing effected his memory.  However, the story very likely mostly accurate.  Even with years, these type of experiences are remembers.  Parker had kept a diary of people helped rescue.  However he burned it in the foundry with over 300 names, when the Fugitive Slave Act which established serious penalties for those who helped runaway slaves.  He could have been thrown in jail and his property confiscated.
This is a fascinating story.  That men would put their own safety, property and even lives on the line for other people's freedom shows a special kind of character and courage.

Book Review: The Price of Freedom: How One Town Stood Up to Slavery

Judith Bloom Fradin and Dennis Brindell Fradin (2013) A Walker Book for Young People

This tells the story between one town, Oberlin, Ohio and the Fugitive Slave Act and slave hunters.  John Price had run away from Kentucky with his cousin Dinah and a friend Frank.  They followed the underground railroad North to the town of Oberlin, which boasted Oberlin College, numerous former slaves, as well as a population against slavery, feeling there was a higher law of what was “right” than the law of the land.  John and his friend stayed in Oberlin for some time.  His cousin went a separate way to avoid recapture.  John was captured by slave hunters.  As he was being driven off, he said to a college student that he was being kidnapped.  As soon as he was out of sight of the slave hunters, he ran to Oberlin to say what was happening.  John Price was being held in the Wadsworth Hotel in Wellington, Ohio.  Anderson Jennings had been promised $500 for the slave in Kentucky.  He planned to take the railroad.  Numerous citizens from Oberlin surrounded the hotel, demanding Price’s release.  The train showed up at 5:13, but Jennings did not try to make the train.  Reportedly there were federal Marshalls due to arrive on the 8 p.m. train.  They decided to storm the room.  They did so without anyone getting hurt, and rescued John Price.  It is assumed we fled to Canada.  President Buchanan decided to make an example of the citizens of Oberlin.  37 men were charged and convicted  of violating the Fugitive Slave Act.  They were sentenced to three months in jail.  Upon their release there was a big celebration.  The town pledged, “No fugitive slave shall ever be taken from Oberlin either with or without warrant, if we have power to prevent it.”  This was one of the things that fostered poor relations between the North and the South which eventually lead to the Civil War.

Documentary Review: Underground Railroad: History Channel

This documentary is well done.  It doesn't rely on historical reenactmenty, but research, and lets the story tell itself.  It starts off by pointing to the myths.  The underground railroad was not a railroad and it was not underground.  However it was a network of people helping people who were seeking freedom.  The message was spread through song, such as "Follow the Drinking Gourd" which gave instruction on the trail to follow, the drinking gourd being the big dipper which pointed to the north star. http://whilhelmsthoughts.blogspot.com/2014/03/poetry-i-like-follow-drinking-gourd.html "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" was a song used by Harriet Tubman to warn of danger. "The Gospel Trains A' Coming" would let people know they were preparing to run. 

This film also talks about the people of the under ground railroad.  This is called the first civil rights movement, with white people and black people working together.  Frederick Douglas, a former slave, was an outspoken voice against slavery.  Harriet Tubman was also African American, had fled to freedom, but went back and helped at least 200, many relatives, reach freedom.  She had been beaten by a slave owner when young, which resulted in a seizure disorder.  She bragged of never losing anyone on her "train."
Ripley, OH was a city just north of the Ohio River from Kentucky.  This city was to goal for many fleaing slaves.  John Rankin's home in Ripley was used as a safe house.  Another individual, John Parker, who was a former slave, would cross the river nightly, and search for fleeing slaves to ferry them across the river.  He would take them home, or to the home of John Rankin. 
Anthony Burns had escaped slavery, but as a result of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, when he was captured and taken to jail, and tried, his return to slavery was a forgone conclusion.  He was not allowed to talk in his own defense.  In Boston they were near riot with regards to the recapture of Anthony Burns.  The government had to spend almost $100,000 between preventing the riot by hiring guards and the trial.  When he was returned to slavery in Virginia, his owner wold him for $900.  Eventually his freedom was purchased by those in the North. 
Dread Scott had been living free for sometime, and sued for his own freedom.  He felt sure he would win, but when his case was heard by the Supreme Court, which had many members appointed by presidents form slave states, the court ruled against him.  This two cases infuriated citizens of the North.  Roger B, Taney, the Chief Justice presented the outcome, indicating the slaves were property, no people.
Antislavery sentiment in the North was further fostered by a novelist.  Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote "Uncle Tom's Cabin" which was published in 1852.  One abolitionist who put his sentiments into action was John Brown.  John Brown was raised in an abolitionist home, and carried this sentiment.  He hoped to carry the underground railroad to all the slaves, by provoking an uprising.  He was able to take the armory at Harper's Ferry, but the federal government reacted harshly.  Many of Brown's men were killed, and Brown was tried and hung.
It was an important battle of the Civil War which lead to the Emancipation Proclamation and freedom of the slaves.  This was a long time in coming.