Click here to be directed to a Bing map of this travel itinerary's sites to get directions including street addresses and coordinates.
For a more detailed map of escape routes of the Underground Railroad produced by the National Park Service Cartographic Staff at Harpers Ferry Center.
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Click on map for states with featured
properties |
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General directions of escape |
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Free state--slavery prohibited |
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Slave state--slavery permitted |
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Territories where slavery permitted
by local decision |
WV |
The state of West Virginia was created in 1863 as a free state |
There were
probably at least as many attempts at escape from slavery in
the North America of the late 1600s and the 1700s, both individual
and in groups, as in the 1800s when various forces, from the
national Constitution to the local slave patrols, were all aligned
to prevent escapes. While primary attention is given to the drama
of slave escapes to the free states of the North and to Canada,
there was also a flow of runaways into Spanish Florida and into
Spanish Mexico and the subsequent Mexican Republic. Although
the numbers escaping across the southern borders never threatened
to destabilize slavery, there were very serious consequences
for American diplomacy. Indeed, American foreign policy in the
antebellum era was often driven by the need to secure the national
borders and prevent slave escapes. The majority of assistance
to runaways came from slaves and free blacks and the greatest
responsibility for providing shelter, financial support and direction
to successful runaways came from the organized efforts of northern
free blacks.
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