The Underground Railroad

the underground railroad

where the journey begain to freedom

The underground railroad was not a railroad it was its name for the people who escaped it was actually a safe house where all the slaves hid.It was very dangerous conductors could be left hanging dead. Slavery had bin in north america for over 300 years when the underground railroad was found. In 1650 100 africans were shipped to jamestown but only 20 survived the trip. By the early 1800 there were over 600,000 slaves in the united states.

what the safe house looks like

slavery were perticuly in the world south so the promest to freedom in the world north were abolish by governments. That's why slaves had to cross the country to the north so they could be free. When crossing the country that is when the underground railroad comes in. Slaves would go to the underground railroad to spend the night or just to take a break so they would have more energy to walk to the north.

Slaves No More!

Between 1810 and 1850, the Underground Railroad helped to guide one hundred thousand enslaved people all to Canada, they all were different but they all had one thing in common, they were all slaves wishing for freedom. They would use the Big Dipper which was known as the drinking' gourd at that time. It helped them find stations, their only hint was to look for some lanterns in the windows of the houses. It was hard for the conductors and the slaves, slaves always being tracked, conductors killed. The first literal underground railroad did not exist until 1863. It was so called because they who took passage on it disappeared from public view as really as if they had gone into the ground. To go to the stations they could only go at night without being caught and put back to work. But still so many slaves were killed, at least 2 million Africans, 10 to 15 percent died trying to go to Canada known as´´Free state´´or ´´Heaven.´´