Harriet Tubman (circa 1822-1913) National Historic Person

 
A group of people trying to move down a path
Harriet Tubman's Underground RailroadFootnote 1
© Paul Collins, collinsart.org
 

 

Harriet Tubman was designated as a national historic person in 2005.

Historical importance: courageously led many refugees from American enslavement to safety; became the public face of the Underground Railroad in British North America.

Commemorative plaque: 92 Geneva Street, St. Catharines, OntarioFootnote 2

Harriet Tubman (c. 1822–1913)

Born on a Maryland plantation, Harriet Tubman escaped slavery to become one of the great heroes of the 19th century. The most famous “conductor” on the Underground Railroad, she courageously led many of the people she rescued from American slavery on dangerous, clandestine journeys to safety and freedom in Canada. Tubman helped these Black refugees settle after their arrival and played an active role in the fight to end slavery. She became the public face of the Underground Railroad in British North America, attracting attention and funding to the abolition movement.

The Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada
English plaque inscription

 

Old sepia image of a woman sitting
Portrait of Harriet Tubman, circa 1867-1870
© Library of Congress
Illustration of Harriet Tubman
Artistic representation of Harriet TubmanFootnote 3
© Wang Qijun, 2003

Harriet Tubman

Born to slaves in Maryland in 1820 or 1821, Harriet Ross faced a life of cruelty and hardship. But by the time of her death nearly a hundred years later, the woman known as the “Black Moses” was acknowledged as one of the great heroes of the Abolition Movement in the United States and British North America.

Historic black and white photograph of a woman
Harriet Tubman, circa 1885
© National Portrait Gallery / Smithsonian / NPG.2006.86

Tubman gained her own freedom in 1849, escaping to Philadelphia to avoid the prospect of being sold to slave owners in the Deep South. She left her husband, free-Black John Tubman, behind when he refused to join her.

It wasn’t long before she returned south, this time to lead other slaves to safety. She would repeat the trip as many as 19 times, even with the danger posed by a $40,000 reward on her head. As the most successful ‘conductor’ of the Underground Railroad, Tubman led about 300 slaves north to safety. She was never caught.

Her connection to Canada began after the passing of the American Fugitive Slave Act in 1850, which made it unsafe for African Americans to remain in the northern states. Tubman courageously led many refugees from American slavery to safety in St. Catharines, Canada West (now Ontario).

Tubman herself settled in St. Catharines in 1851. While providing assistance to refugees in the Province of Canada, she became one of the most influential members of the Abolition Movement. She was a leading figure of the Refugee Slaves’ Friends Society of St. Catharines, an interracial organization formed in 1852 that also served as the local auxiliary of the Anti-Slavery Society of Canada.

Tubman returned to the United States in 1858 to be near her elderly parents, whom she had rescued from Maryland the year before. She remained active for almost 50 years, until her death in 1913.

Perhaps Tubman’s greatest contribution was to lend the Canadian Abolition Movement her name. She became the public face of the Underground Railroad in British North America, attracting attention and funding to the Abolition Movement. Her presence lent credibility to Canada West’s reputation as a haven for Black refugees and encouraged more refugees to cross the border.

Backgrounder last update: 2009-07-15

The National Program of Historical Commemoration relies on the participation of Canadians in the identification of places, events and persons of national historic significance. Any member of the public can nominate a topic for consideration by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada.

Get information on how to participate in this process

Date modified :