Harriet Tubman

Personal Statement:
My name is Harriet Tubman. I was born Armanita Harriet Ross to slave parents, Harriet Green and Ben Ross, in Dorchester County, Maryland in the 1820’s. There are no records of my birth, so I don’t quite know exactly when I was born. As a child, I took care of a younger brother and a baby, under the commands of a woman named Mary Pattison Brodess, who would beat me if I didn’t do my job right. My owners ran a large plantation near Blackwater River in Madison, Maryland, so as I grew older and stronger, I was assigned to bigger tasks in the field and forest. My mother, Rit, worked as a cook for the Brodess family, and my father, Ben, was a woodsman on the plantation. They had 9 children, including myself. However, our family struggled to stay together as slavery tore us apart. In my early life, I suffered a severe head injury when I was hit by a heavy metal weight. The injury caused seizures, narcoleptic attacks, headaches, powerful visionary, and dream experiences which occurred regularly throughout the rest of my life. Doctors believed I may have suffered from temporal lobe epilepsy, however, being a devout Christian, I liked to view my vivid dreams and visions as revelations from God. Around 1844, I married a free black man named John Tubman. Soon after the marriage was when I changed my name from Araminta to Harriet. In 1849, I became ill and my owner, Edward Brodess, unsuccessfully tried to sell me. A week later, Brodess died. Knowing we would all be sold, my brothers and I escaped from slavery on September 17, 1849. Edward’s widow, Eliza, posted a runaway notice offering a reward for each of us to be returned. My brothers managed to persuade me to return back with them. However, I managed to escape one more time with the help of the Underground Railroad. Along my way, I managed to help rescue more than 300 slaves. I took them on an exhausting and dangerous journey of nearly 90 miles, traveling by foot, northeast along the Choptank River, through Delaware and north into Pennsylvania. After I reached Philadelphia, I began thinking of my family, who still weren’t free even though I was. I began working any jobs I could find in order to save money. At this time, Congress passed the Fugitive Slave law of 1850, which forced law enforcement officials, even in states that had outlawed slavery, to aid in the capture of fugitive slaves, and imposed heavy punishments on those who aided escape. This, for us fugitive slaves, meant that we had to try to get to Canada, which had abolished slavery. That winter, I received a warning that my niece and her children were going to be sold, so I returned to my land of enslavement. They managed to escape, meeting with me so I could bring them safely to Philadelphia. In the spring, I headed back to Maryland to help rescue other family members. I began making more and more trips back to rescue all of my family members, while helping others along the way. In 1851, I returned to Dorchester County for the first time since my escape to find my husband John, who was married to another woman. I insisted they both return back with me but John refused, claiming he was happy where he was. As angry as I was, I respected his decision and instead found other slaves who wanted to escape and led them back to Philadelphia. In December of 1851, I guided 11 fugitives northward. For 11 years, I returned repeatedly to Maryland, rescuing about 300 slaves in my 19 expeditions. I also provided specific instructions for about 50-60 other fugitives to escape to the north. Despite my dangerous actions, I was never caught, and neither were the fugitives I guided. One of my last missions was to retrieve my aging parents. My father freed my mother when he purchase her from Eliza Brodess. Two years later, I received word that my father helped a group of escaped slaves and was at risk of arrest. So, I traveled to them and led them into Canada. In November 1860, I went on my last rescue mission. I was in search of my sister and her two children. Upon returning to Dorchester County, I discovered that Rachel had died, and I wasn’t able to save the children because I had no money to pay for their release. Not willing to waste my trip, I gathered another group of fugitives and we were well on our way north. I spent my remaining years in Auburn, tending to my family and others in need. I worked different jobs to support my parents and pay bills. I soon fell in love with a Civil War veteran named Nelson Davis. Even though he was 22 years younger than me, I married him in 1869 and we spent the next 20 years together. In 1874 we adopted a baby girl named Gertie.

Issue: 
Along my life long journey, I stumbled upon many issues. I fought against slavery and the fugitive slave law, and fought for women’s suffrage and civil rights. In being very religious, most of my goals towards these issues came from my strong beliefs in God and the Bible.

Solutions:
Escaping slavery, I made more than 19 missions to rescue more than 300 slaves using the Underground Railroad. I returned many times to rescue my family members still enslaved, guiding dozens of other slaves to their freedom. When the South passed the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, I helped guide fugitives farther north into Canada where slavery had been abolished. I later helped John Brown recruit men for his raid on Harpers Ferry. When the American Civil War broke out in 1861, I saw a Union victory as a key step toward the abolition of slavery. I joined a group of abolitionists heading to South Carolina. I became a fixture in the camps in Port Royal, assisting fugitives and serving as a nurse. When Lincoln passed the Emancipation Proclamation in January of 1863, I considered it an important step toward liberating blacks from slavery. I became the first woman to lead an armed assault during the Civil War. I accompanied Montgomery and his troops on an assault on a collection of plantations along the Combahee River, rescuing more than 700 slaves. For two more years, I worked for the Union forces. At the end of the war, I returned to my home in Auburn, New York. Despite my service, I had never received a regular salary and was denied compensation for years. In my later years, I worked to promote the cause of women’s suffrage. I began attending meetings of suffragist organizations, and I was soon working alongside inspirational women like Susan B. Anthony and Emily Howland. I traveled to New York, Boston, and Washington, D.C. to speak out in favor of women’s voting rights. I was a keynote speaker at the first meeting of the National Federation of Afro-American Women in 1896.

Relationships with Others:
I would feel comfortable talking with Susan B. Anthony, Lydia Child, Dorothea Dix, Lucretia Mott, Lyman Beecher, and Theodore Dwight Weld. I wouldn't feel comfortable talking to Andrew Jackson, John C. Calhoun, or Henry Clay.