54th Regiment Civil War Trading Cards
The park is offering free trading cards featuring figures of the Civil War who had ties to New Bedford. The ten cards are part of a series of 189 cards available at participating national parks throughout the northeastern United States while the National Park Service observes the Civil War 150th anniversary (2011-2015). Click the names below to learn more about a few of New Bedford's heroes.

Charles Douglass

Isaiah King

James Grace

Lewis Douglass

Robert Gould Shaw

Samuel Harrison

Tobey and Coggeshall Building

William Carney

William Jackson

William Powell

How do I earn a set of Civil War trading cards?

1. Answer this question: Who was the first African American to earn a medal of honor? Tell a front desk staff member the answer and you will receive a set of cards.

2. Bring in trading cards from another participating site.

3. Take a photo in front of the 54th Regiment Plaza in downtown New Bedford.

4. Show us your ipod: Download YAP!'s song, 54 for free on Soundcloud and show us your ipod or recite lyrics from the song.

5. Cards are also available to veterans and active duty military personnel.

Fugitive Slaves in a Whaling Port:
New Bedford's Underground Railroad History
In the mid-19^th century, New Bedford was the whaling capital of the world. The success and global, exploratory nature of the whaling industry helped to create a bustling, cosmopolitan seaport community, and one of the richest and most diverse cities in the world. Opportunities for individuals and families from all backgrounds to make a living and prosper were readily available at sea, and in the shore-side businesses that supported the whaling industry. New Bedford was attractive to slaves seeking freedom because of the opportunities for employment presented by the whaling industry, a large Quaker population and free population of color, and a coastal trading system that provided escaping slaves opportunities to hide on vessels heading to New Bedford from southern ports. By the 1840s New Bedford had become home to some 300-700 escaped slaves, and, as escaped slave George Teamoh put it, "our magnet of attraction."

Follow in the footsteps of Frederick Douglass, Henry "Box" Brown, the soldiers of the 54^th Regiment, and others by taking a Ranger-led tour (offered in July and August on Saturdays and Sundays, or year-round by appointment) or a self-guided walking tour using the park's Underground Railroad: New Bedford brochure. Both programs are part of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom.