Come Take a Ride on The Underground Railroad

To Educators:

The Underground Railroad was circulated around effort, spontaneous actions, risks, and the capabilities of specific individuals. These characteristics can also be found within some of your own students! In this unit, students will be forced to see life from a different perspective and learn the history of this famous railroad. Specifically, they will learn about the specific routes that were traveled on, the Conductors, Harriet Tubman, Henry “Box” Brown, Josiah Henson, Abolitionists, and the beginning of The Civil War. Students will soon begin to realize that the Underground Railroad was NOT an actual railroad either!

Learning Objectives:

After this lesson students will be able to:

• Understand the variety of routes used throughout the Underground Railroad
• Understand who Harriet Tubman is
• Understand why the Civil War was fought and what the outcome was
• Explain the difference between a Conductor and an Abolitionist
• Analyze how some escapees managed to escape the south

What is the Underground Railroad?

Hint: Not an actual Railroad system!

Who is Harriet Tubman?

“On my Underground Railroad, I never ran my train off the track and I never lost a passenger”

Who is Henry “Box” Brown

“The Greatest Escape”

Who is Josiah Henson?

What is an Abolitionist?

Were they used to help or hurt the escapees?

The Civil War

What caused the war between the north and the south?

Underground Railroad Review:

Conductors: Free individuals who helped fugitive slaves traveling along the Underground Railroad. Conductors helped runaway slaves by providing them with safe passage to and from stations

Harriet Tubman: Enslaved, escaped, and helped others gain their freedom as a “conductor” of the Underground Railroad.

Henry “Box” Brown: Traveled from Virginia to Pennsylvania in a box to escape slavery.

Josiah Henson: Escaped slavery in 1830, heading to Canada where he founded a settlement for escaped slaves and served as a conductor on the Underground Railroad

Abolitionists: A person who advocated or supported the abolition of slavery in the U.S.

The Civil War: War fought in 1861, between the southern and northern states.

Discussion Questions:

Now that you all have gained a better understanding of the Underground Railroad, let’s see the role you would have played during this time.

• Would you take the risk of escaping through the Underground Railroad? Why or Why not?

• What role would you have taken on? Would you be a conductor or abolitionist if you could? Why or Why Not?

• Would you have done anything differently? Explain your reasoning.