One may wonder why slaves were so eager to escape. They were forced to work fourteen hour days planting, tending, and picking cotton. They were torn from their families and harshly beaten. Slaves were unable to read or write, but most of all, they were negated their freedom (Reed par.3-4). Slaves would resist in anyway possible. They would work slowly, act sick, destroy property, or even hurt themselves.
When slaves made the decision to runaway, they were taking many risks. If they were caught they could be beaten, jailed, or sold. Once slaves were on the move, they could be questioned by anyone. Most slaves traveled at night, on foot carrying the little food they could grab. Most runaways lived off stolen fruit and unripe corn (Scher 8). Also, as soon as the slave’s master realized his slave had escaped, he would immediately start searching for him. Slave hunters were hired just for that purpose. They would make their living off the rewards offered by slave owners. To confuse slave hunters and their specially-trained hunting dogs, slaves would wade in rivers to remove their sent and throw off their trail (Scher 8).
The use of the Underground Railroad was spread by word of mouth, stories, and through songs. Slaves would escape from their plantations at night and run as fast as they could to the first station. Slaves knew they were headed north by feeling the sides of tress. Moss grows thickest on the northern side of a tree. Slaves also used the North Star as a compass, and the Big Dipper helped slaves locate the North Star. Directions to stations were hidden in the lyrics of songs. “Follow the Drinking Gourd” was a song with lyrics advising slaves to stay close to riverbanks and that two rivers would be crossed during the journey. Once slaves arrived at a safe house, they used special knocks or passwords to assure the owners of the safe house that they were runaway slaves and not slave hunters. Some safe houses used lit lanterns in windows signaling that it would be safe to approach (Scher 14-15). Conductors often hung quilts along clotheslines or fences with secret messages disguised in the pattern (“Secret Language” par. 6-7).
Many people went to extreme measures to gain freedom for themselves and others. Virginian slave, Henry “Box” Brown, had a carpenter build a wooden box big enough for Henry to fit inside. He got inside the box carrying provisions and had himself mailed to the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society. Henry arrived twenty-six hours later. Some people built wagons with fake bottoms and transported slaves to freedom. Elijah Lovejoy had a secret room behind a fake wall at his home. Once the slaves were safely inside, the opening was covered by a desk. Others had tunnels, attics, or cellars that were used to temporarily house runaway slaves. People who were caught helping slaves escape could be put in prison as a result of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 (Scher 5-7).
Some freed slaves joined the Union army to fight for the abolition of slavery. Many of these soldiers were captured by the Confederates and put in the Andersonville prison. The conditions were much worse than the lives the soldiers had endured as slaves. Thirteen thousand Union soldiers died in this prison – “a death camp—maybe the only real one to exist on American soil” (Rinaldi 165).
The Underground Railroad successfully helped gain freedom for thousands of slaves. It is a great testimony to the will of human beings who are committed to a cause that stirs great passion. The risks were great to the people who supported the railroad, but they were willing to undergo the risks because they valued freedom and believed all humans should be free.
Works Cited
McElrath, Jessica. “The Underground Railroad.” African American History. 2008. About.com. Feb. 24, 2008 <>.
Reed, Jennifer. "Follow the Drinking Gourd: North to Freedom." Crinkles. March/April 2001. SIRS Discoverer. 13 Feb. 2008. >.
Rinaldi, Ann. Numbering all the Bones. New York: Scholastic Inc., 2002.
Scher, Linda. Underground Railroad. New York: Mark Levine, 2005.
"The Secret Language of Freedom." Boys' Life. Feb. 2000. SIRS Discoverer. 13 Feb. 2008. <>.
"The Underground Railroad." The Underground Railroad (U.S. Dept. of the Interior) 1996. SIRS Discoverer. 13 Feb. 2008. <>.
