Following In Their Footsteps

The Underground Railroad is defined as "the resistance to slavery through escape and flight." In the past, accounts of the Underground Railroad often consisted of nameless and faceless freedom seekers. The perspectives of the brave men and women who assisted freedom seekers dominated storytelling of the Underground Railroad.

Yet - historians today know a great deal about the paths that freedom seekers took in order to achieve thier freedom. In some cases, historians can even trace the routes that individual freedom seekers took as they made their way to a new life. The story maps below help to refocus the narrative on the freedom seekers themselves, and provide a window into what freedom seekers experienced when they bravely escaped slavery.

The National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom is continuously creating more Story Maps to tell the stories of freedom seekers. Stay tuned for more!

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Joshua Glover