Harriet Tubman

Harriet Tubman was a American political activist. She was popularly known for escaped 70 enslaved people with the help of 13 missions to rescue them by the route of the Underground Railroad. She was a leading abolitionist of America.

Who Was Harriet Tubman?

She was Born in March 1822 and die in 1913. She was born into slavery in Maryland, She risked her life to save hundreds of slave family members and other slave using the network of antislavery activists and safe houses which was also known as Underground Railroad. She was also served as an armed scout and spy of Union Army. She also worked for women suffrage during her later years. She dedicated her life to help of former slaves and elderly person. In 2016 U.S Treasury Department replace Andrew Jackson from the new $20 bill.

Early Life and about her Family

Although the exact Date of Birth of Tubman’s is unknown, but people says that it probably occurred between 1820 and 1825. Her father name was Ben Ross who as also enslaved and She was one of nine children born between 1808 and 1832 to enslaved parents in Harriet Greene Ross and Ben Ross in Maryland. Her Father was owned by Anthony Thompson and her mother was owned by Mary Pattison Brodess. Early life of Tubman was really very hard. Her three sister were sold by Mary Brodess’s Son Edward to a distant plantations. Her parents gave her a nick name “Minty” and her Original name was Araminta Harriet Ross but at the time of her marriage she change her name to gave honor to her mother and added Harriet Tubman name. Harriet was her mother’s name as well.

As a slave she along with her family was used to faced physical violence on a daily basis and due to such violence she suffered permanent physical injuries. After escaping from the slavery she said, they bashed up more then 4-5 times on her before starting her breakfast even some of the marks and scars were on her face and body. She had most grievous injury when she was young, Her supervisor ordered to restrain the runaway as some of the slave had left the fields without the permission of supervisor but she refused to do so, then her supervisor thrown very heavy stone that stuck on her head and due to it Tubman had life time headaches and narcoleptic episodes . She also used to experienced dream states regularly for the whole life time. She got married in 1844 with a free black man named John Tubman at the time when around half of the African American people were free. But later on John was not able to stay with her as she wanted to go on the underground Railroad but John want to stay with her new wife in Maryland. In 1869 she again married to a Civil War veteran person named Nelson Davis and in 1874 both adopted a baby girl whose name was Gertie.

What is The Underground Railroad?

During 1850s till next decade she did around 19 trips from South to North America along with 300 people including her parents and her siblings and give them freedom and that’s the same route known as The Underground Railroad, She got a nick name of “Moses”. In 1849 when her owner got died due to illness than at the same time she escaped from the slavery and found the route of Underground Railroad and at the same time she decided to escape all other slavery from Maryland. She was worried about her family that after her death her family would be further served slavery. Her two brothers Ben and Harry were also with her and helped her on September 17, 1849. But when a notice published in the Cambridge Democrat and they were offered $300 reward for the return of Araminta, Harry & Ben thought to return to the plantation but Tubman had already fixed there mind not to return. Using the Underground Railroad she traveled around 90 miles of Philadelphia and when she crossed the free state of Pennsylvania, She recalled this state with the relief feeling that “When I found I had crossed that line, I looked at my hands to see if I was the same person. There was such a glory over everything; the sun came like gold through the trees, and over the fields, and I felt like I was in Heaven.”

Tubman helped here entire family to journey in Philadelphia during her first The Underground Raildroad. When she received a warning that her niece Kessiah was going to be sold along with her two young children. John Bowley won that bid and married with Kessiah in Baltimore and then at the same time she helped entire family to rescue from Baltimore (City in Maryland) to Philadelphia.

When a new low enforced in 1850 and changed the old Law with the stated that escaped slaves could be captured in North and returned to the slavery from where they escaped. Due to this low, She re-routed the Underground Railroad to Canada where the Law was not applicable. In 1858 she met Jonh Brown who guided her to use violence to destroy the slavery system.

During Civil War, She worked fro Union Army as a cook and nurse and she later on turned into armed scout and spy for Union Army.

In 1859, She purchased a small piece of land from Senator William H. Seward in the outskirts of Auburn, New York. But unfortunately this land become a reason of downfall for Tubman’s Family. She never had financially secure despite of that much fame and reputation. Although her friends and family where always support her by raising fund for her. Sarah H.Bradford wrote in a biography on her the biography name is Life of Harriet Tubman.

Death

Tubman died around the age of 93 due to pneumonia on March 10, 1913, Even the head injuries she had become more painful with the age and that’s why she went to Boston’s Massachusetts General Hospital for brain Surgery. Later on where she was admitted in the hospital’s room get name with the name of Tubman. Even she got military honors at Fort Hill Cemetery in Auburn when she died.