E. Statement of Historic Contexts
G. Geographical Data
H. Summary of Identification and Evaluation Methods
I. Major Bibliographical References
Endnotes
Theme Study Home
Properties considered under the Underground Railroad Theme Study are ones associated with some aspect of the Underground Railroad between the American Revolution and the Civil War, with emphasis on the period between the formal organization of the abolitionist movement in 1820 and the end of the Civil War. They include the following property types:
1. "Stations" on the Underground Railroad. These are buildings, structures, or sites where fugitives were harbored and their use as such has been documented. Stations are entire buildings or structures, not individual rooms or parts of larger structures.
2. Properties associated with prominent persons. These include abolitionists who were actively involved in harboring fugitives or aiding them in other ways. All abolitionists did not consent to aiding fugitives, and one should not assume that all abolitionists were active in the Underground Railroad. This property type may also include properties importantly associated with known runaways, for example places where runaways made their home after escaping slavery.
3. Slave rebellion sites. Organized slave rebellions are considered important precursors to the Underground Railroad, as early slave resistance illuminates aspects of slave life from which those who participated sought to escape.
4. Properties associated with legal challenges to slavery. These will most often be courthouses. However, they may also include places where slaves or those who aided fugitives resided or were detained awaiting trial.
5. Properties associated with documented slave escapes. These include plantations from which slaves successfully escaped and that were later documented in slave narratives or other writings. Like slave rebellion sites, an examination of plantation life lends context to the conditions from which slaves were fleeing. Runaway ads alone are not sufficient for identifying these properties -- sources must be able to document what the life of a slave at that particular site was like.
6. Properties associated with documented fugitive rescues. These may include homes of individuals who were primary figures in rescues, as well as the locations at which fugitives were rescued from authorities and places where they were harbored.
7. Churches associated with congregations active in the Underground Railroad. Although slaves were probably not often harbored in churches, church congregations often provided monetary or other assistance to fugitives. Evidence of these acts may be documented in church records.
8. Maroon communities. Before the spread of the abolition movement, small groups of runaways were sometimes successful in forming small settlements of their own. Because these maroon communities were semi-permanent at best, few resources associated with them are extant and they are difficult to document.
9. Archeological sites. Any property that is associated with the Underground Railroad where archeological study has been undertaken may be eligible for information potential. In other cases, archeological investigation may help to define the boundary of a property or fill in gaps in more traditional sources of documentation.
10. Others. Properties related to the Underground Railroad in some other way may include, for example: resources associated with William Still or Wilbur Siebert, two early historians of the Underground Railroad, or a building that served as the headquarters of an abolitionist newspaper that was sympathetic to aiding runaways.
Transportation routes have not been included as a property type for several reasons. Chief among these is that, while the general direction of fugitives from slavery can be traced, the specific route followed by each individual or group of runaways was unique. Another important factor is that the actual flight from slavery left no physical imprint on the landscape by which a route may be defined. While it may be possible to document a train station where fugitives were known to have boarded or a road where they were known to have traveled, these transportation-related resources, especially those still in use, are by their nature dynamic and have often suffered a considerable loss of integrity.
DOCUMENTING UNDERGROUND RAILROAD PROPERTIES
While it is true that many aspects of the Underground Railroad were clandestine in nature and, as such, were never recorded in writing, there are numerous sources of information that offer insight into the operation of the Underground Railroad and can be used to document a property. The NPS publication Exploring A Common Past: Researching and Interpreting the Underground Railroad (see bibliography) provides detailed information on various documentary sources and the kinds of information they are likely to contain. This booklet, which is the basis for the information provided below, is available upon request from National Park Service, National Register, History, and Education, 1849 C. Street NW, Room NC 400, Washington, D.C. 20240.
When researching a subject that is the stuff of legend, keep in mind that all information, especially those accounts that were produced many years after the events that they recount occurred, should be corroborated. The researcher must also always be mindful of the biases of the person keeping the record, and the social, historical, or political context in which he or she is writing. With this in mind, consult the following sources for information:
PRIMARY SOURCES
Oral Tradition. Oral tradition is often cited as the only "proof" of a property's use in the Underground Railroad. It can contain references to names, dates, location, and events, which should always be corroborated by other kinds of evidence. Oral tradition, however, is often the starting point of Underground Railroad research.
Autobiography and Memoir. Between the years 1820 and 1860, many escaped slaves worked with abolitionists to publish accounts of their escape from slavery. While these were often edited or enhanced by abolitionists for political reasons, the validity of the facts contained within them may be cross-referenced with other primary source material. In the late nineteenth century, elderly abolitionists or their families published accounts commemorating the efforts of abolitionists who aided fugitives. While these accounts also have their limitations, they often contain accurate accounts of the antebellum lives of the abolitionists in question.
Local Histories. Local histories range from professional public relations pieces to promote tourism, to straight accounts of local organizations or businesses. Because primary source material is rarely cited in these accounts, they should be used as a starting point to locating primary source materials.
County and Township Records. These will include property ownership deeds, household probate inventories, bills of sale for slaves, emancipation and manumission registers, slave registers for tax purposes, local and regional maps, legal documents, court records and insurance records.
City Directories, Almanacs, and Gazetteers. These records are vital in locating individuals and their place of business or residence in the years between the federal censuses.
Calendars. Contemporary calendars are useful in verifying dates mentioned in other accounts.
Images and Photographs: While few photographs directly relate to the Underground Railroad, some artists' renderings of Underground Railroad subjects were widely distributed. Again, caution must be excercised in using images produced long after the fact, as they are likely conjectural.
Foreign Documents. Fugitives sometimes settled in foreign territories. Canadian sources may be especial useful in this regard.
Records of Anti-Slavery Societies, Vigilance Committees, Benevolent Groups, and Churches. These documents are useful for establishing historical context and locating names, dates, and events. Organized abolition societies often published minutes of meetings, annual reports, and propaganda materials that may include reference to fugitives aided by members.
Contemporary Newspapers and Periodicals. These sources document daily living conditions, historical events, people and places, and serve as a gauge to popular opinion. Abolitionist papers often published reports about fugitive slaves, successful and failed escape attempts, and information about legal statutes affecting slavery and fugitive slaves.
Legal Documents and Court Records. Because many who fled slavery were captured and returned to slavery, court records provide invaluable information about slaves who attempted escapes and those who aided them. Legal papers also include descriptions of buildings and properties and specialized maps recorded for real estate transaction or disputes.
Manuscript collections. Personal and Family Manuscript collections may include correspondence, diaries, newspaper clippings, record books, photographs, and ephemera from the period.
Maps. Maps show territorial, state, and local boundaries; natural features, distances between locations, and transportation routes. They can be used to check accounts of escape routes. The Sanborn Company produced a series of fire insurance maps for towns throughout the nation from the mod 1800s until 1950. These provide information about property ownership, building materials and dimensions, and neighborhood characteristics.
SECONDARY SOURCES
Scholarly Sources. Books, articles, theses, dissertations, and unpublished
manuscripts provide necessary context when examining the historical significance
of any property. This document contains an overview of scholarship
on the Underground Railroad.
REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS
No single "station" on the Underground Railroad can be considered the most significant one in its community, State, or Nation. Because historians can only estimate at best how many fugitives passed through any station, an attempt to seek out the stations assisting the most fugitives is not possible. Nor is it particularly meaningful, as a property that sheltered one runaway who became, for example, the subject of a nationally-publicized court case might meet the test of national significance, while a property that commonly sheltered fugitives may not. And while many abolitionists had widespread local and regional impact, few can be considered nationally significant for their Underground Railroad related activities. Underground Railroad properties will in most cases be eligible for National Historic Landmark designation under Criterion 1, and sometimes under Criterion 2 and Criterion 6. Underground Railroad properties may be eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places primarily under Criteria A, B and D, although they may also be eligible under Criterion C for other reasons. The requirement for each are discussed below.
National Historic Landmarks Criterion 1
A Property may be eligible under NHL Criterion 1 if it retains high integrity and relates to the Underground Railroad in one of two ways:
1) A property may be connected with a nationally-significant event, such as a slave rescue, court case, or slave insurrection. Not all rescues, court cases or insurrections had national impact. The ones that did were ones that had a documented effect in terms of the interpretation, repeal, or passage of legislation affecting the rights and movements of slaves, fugitives, and those who owned or aided them. The property must have a direct and meaningful documented association with the event and must be evaluated in context with any other extant resources associated with the same event.
2) A property may be importantly representative of a broad pattern of events in some meaningful national context. While, as mentioned above, no one Underground Railroad Station can be said to possess the most significance of any in the nation, several have been designated for their national importance in a representative context (see examples in section H). These are properties that vividly represent, through a combination of extant resources possessing high integrity and solid documentation, the contribution of a particular social, political, or ideological group to the functioning of the Underground Railroad. While properties that outstandingly represent some other aspect of the Underground Railroad -- such as the property that represents the environment from which slaves were fleeing, or one that represents how or where a slave would have been concealed -- may be eligible for National Register designation on the State or local level, it is highly unlikely that any exist that would qualify for National Historic Landmark designation. This is because the circumstances in which slaves were concealed and from which they escaped varied widely, and no single site can be said to be representative in this regard. Like properties relating to a significant event, all representative properties must also be evaluated in context with other extant properties that may have the same representative value.
National Historic Landmarks Criterion 2
There are few national figures of the Underground Railroad. The exceptions that come to mind most readily are Frederick Douglass -- perhaps America's most famous runaway, William Lloyd Garrison, John Brown -- America's most infamous abolitionist, Gerrit Smith, and Harriet Tubman. Properties eligible for National Historic Landmark designation under criterion 2 for these individuals must have a significant association with the individual and his or her Underground Railroad activity. This means that not every place that Harriet Tubman visited or spoke is nationally significant for association with her, likewise the home where Frederick Douglass first established his new life as a free man has more national significance in terms of the Underground Railroad than the resort home he built in the late years of his life. A discussion of the national prominence of an individual is not an argument that the property meets the criterion. Documentation of the Underground Railroad activities of the person must be connected to the property itself. Again, comparative analysis with other extant properties relating to the individual is necessary.
National Historic Landmarks Criterion 6
Archeological investigation can also be used to positively identify the use, construction date, or location, or boundaries of resources eligible under National Historic Landmark Criteria 1 or 2, or National Register Criteria A or B. For example, it may positively identify the location of outbuildings that were an integral part of a complex, or define the historic boundaries of a property. National Historic Landmark Criterion 6, however, can only be claimed for a site at which archeological data affect theories concerning American History to a major degree. Additional guidance about archeological resources associated with the Underground Railroad currently is under development through a series of cooperative multiple property documentation projects. The objectives for these projects include collection and analysis of archeological data that are useful to evaluate site significance, preparation of model multiple property documents that can serve as guides, and development of definitions for the appropriate range of archeological site types. The comprehensive results of these projects, including professional review through the National Historic Landmarks Archeology Committee and the Society for Historical Archeology, will be made available as soon as possible. For further information about current status contact Richard C. Waldbauer, NHL Archeological Initiative Coordinator, at (202) 343-4101.
National Register Criterion A
In order to be eligible under National Register Criterion A, a property must retain integrity from the historic period and be associated with some event, or represent some broad aspect of the working of the Underground Railroad locally, statewide, or regionally. Properties must possess a documentable association with the Underground Railroad.
National Register Criterion B
The success of the Underground Railroad depended largely on local "conductors" who assisted fugitives in a variety of ways. Leaders of local abolition societies -- and often entire leading families, ministers, and free blacks were often important players locally, regionally, and statewide in the Underground Railroad. Properties associated with these individuals and their Underground Railroad activity may be eligible for listing in the National Register under Criterion B.
National Register Criterion D
These resources are eligible for listing in the National Register when they are examined and evaluated in terms of a specific research design. Used in conjunction with other types of sources, data from archeological investigation can lead to a broader understanding of the Underground Railroad, its related phenomena, and its operation.
In order for a property to be eligible for National Historic Landmark designation or inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places under the Underground Railroad Theme Study, its period of significance must fall between the American Revolution and the end of the Civil War, and, for National Historic Landmark designation, it retains high integrity and meets one or more of the National Historic Landmarks Criteria as discussed above. For National Register listing, it must meet one or more of the National Register Criteria as discussed above and retain integrity from the period of significance. A discussion of integrity follows.
Integrity
Integrity is the ability of a property to convey its significance. The evaluation of integrity is somewhat of a subjective judgment, but it must always be grounded in an understanding of a property's physical features and how they relate to its significance. The National Historic Landmarks and National Register criteria recognize seven aspects or qualities that define integrity including location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association.
For National historic Landmark designation, a property must posess these aspects to a high degree and the property must retain the essential physical features that enable it to convey its historic significance. For National Register listing, a property must possess several, and usually most, of these aspects.
The essential physical features are those features that define both why a property is significant (criteria and themes) and when it was significant (periods of significance). They are features without which a property can no longer be identified as, for instance, a 19th century farm or church building.
To assess integrity one must 1) define the essential physical features that must be present to a high degree for a property to represent its significance; 2) determine whether the essential physical features are apparent enough to convey the property's significance; and 3) compare the property with similar properties in the nationally significant theme.
A property that is significant for association with the Underground Railroad should have integrity of setting and location and retain the essential physical features that made up its character or appearance during the period of its association with the important event, historical pattern, or person(s) for which the property is being nominated. If the historic building associated with the event, pattern, or person no longer exists, the property probably has lost its historic integrity.
For properties to be considered under National Historic Landmarks Criterion 6 or National Register Criterion D, integrity is based upon the property's professionally demonstrated intactness of archeological deposits and features. These are important for identifying whether a site has the potential to yield data that may address nationally significant research questions.
Properties being considered under National Historic Landmarks Criteria
1 and 2 or National regsiter Criterion A or B must not only retain essential
physical features, but the features must be visible enough to convey their
significance and historic identity. This means that even if a property
is physically intact, its significant features should not be concealed
under modern construction. Archeological properties by nature may not require
visible features to convey their significance.
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