Underground Railroad

Web Guide

Underground Railroad Links Prepared by Dr. Tracey Weis http://muweb.millersville.edu/~ugrr/sitelist.html
Prepared by Profesor Tracey M. Weis of Millersville University, Millersville, Pennsylvania and updated for the From Christiana to Harper's Ferry NEH Landmarks Workshop 2006
Aboard the Underground Railroad: A National Register Travel Itinerary http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/travel/underground/
	This website contains a comprehensive listing of historic sites along the Underground Railroad (by state) as well as a description of each site complete with sketches and/or photographs. Furthermore, the site provides detailed historic context for each site.
Afrolumens Project Central Pennsylvania African American History for Everyone http://www.afrolumens.org/
	The Afrolumens Project provides a detailed resource on African American history in central Pennsylvania. Among the website’s several components, the section on the Underground Railroad contains a comprehensive and easily-navigable combination of primary and secondary sources. Specifically, the site includes:
	Articles and Features Fugitive slave incidents in central Pennsylvania (including descriptions of the Christiana Riot and the McClintock Slave Riot in Carlisle) A Case Study: the Rachel Parker Case References and Databases Adams County Runaway Slave Removal List Notices for Runaway Slaves in Harrisburg (1766-1820) Notices for Southern Freedom Seekers Harrisburg Underground Railroad sites Other Dauphin County Underground Railroad sites Chronology of Underground Railroad Activity in Harrisburg List of those buried in the Upper Allen Freed Slave Cemetery (with a map of gravesites) Who’s Who in Pennsylvania’s Underground Railroad history (with documentation and a short description of each) Research Section Various correspondence, queries, and images.
Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers’ Project, 1936-1938 (American Memory, Library of Congress) http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/snhtml/snhome.html
	The Federal Writers’ Project offers over 2,300 slave narratives integrated into a highly-searchable and easily-navigable database. The collection has been reproduced using OCR (Optical Character Recognition) which allows readers to search documents for particular words, phrases, or names. Among the site’s valuable features are:
	An Introduction to the WPA [Works Progress Administration] by Norman R. Yetman (A comprehensive explanation of the collection and the process of collecting, recording, and restoring the contents.) Voices and Faces from the Collection. (This is a particularly valuable education tool because it contains a small sample of narratives that paint divergent pictures of slave life, from cruelty and fear to nostalgic reminiscences.
Documenting the American South http://docsouth.unc.edu/
	From the Website: “Documenting the American South (DocSouth) is a digital publishing initiative that provides Internet access to texts, images, and audio files related to southern history, literature, and culture. Currently DocSouth includes ten thematic collections of books, diaries, posters, artifacts, letters, oral history interviews, and songs.” One of Documenting the American South’s most useful collections is “North American Slave Narratives.” It contains several hundred digitized books and pamphlets written by former slaves who either bought their freedom or escaped captivity, as well as accounts by other notable African Americans that provide an invaluable, first-hand perspective on slavery, the Civil War, and the Underground Railroad. Some key full-text digitized sources include: Bradford, Sarah H., Scenes in the Life of Harriet Tubman (Auburn: Moses Printer, 1869). Coffin, Levi. Reminiscences of Levi Coffin, the Reputed President of the Underground Railroad; (Cincinnati: Robert Clark & Co., 1880). Griest, Ellwood. John and Mary; or, The Fugitive Slaves, a Tale of South-Eastern Pennsylvania (Lancaster: Inquirer Printer and Publishing Company, 1873).
The Geography of Slavery in Virginia http://www.vcdh.virginia.edu/gos/
	From the Website: “The Geography of Slavery in Virginia is a digital collection of advertisements for runaway and captured slaves and servants in 18th- and 19th-century Virginia newspapers. Building on the rich descriptions of individual slaves and servants in the ads, the project offers a personal, geographical and documentary context for the study of slavery in Virginia, from colonial times to the Civil War.” The site includes:
	Runaway Slave Advertisements from 1706-1803 Ability to race slave escapes by individual OR by county in Virginia An extensive "Documents" section with: Official Records including House of Burgesses Journals and other materials such as Thomas Jefferson’s legal argument for a runaway slave named Howell Newspaper Material Slaveholder Records Carter Family correspondence Charles Yates letterbook Literature and Narratives such as Francis Moore’s account of Senegambia and The Poor Unhappy Transported Felon’s Sorrowful Account of servitude in Virginia A “Resources” section includes Teacher Materials
The Historical Society of Pennsylvania: Fugitive Slaves and the Underground Railroad in Pennsylvania [Primary Sources] http://www.hsp.org/default.aspx?id=854
	The Historical Society of Pennsylvania provides a series of online sources that focus primarily on the Vigilance Committee of Philadelphia and a selection of excerpts from William Still’s journals. Each source can be accessed through a PDF file that contains an original image as well as a transcription. The selection of journals here dates from September 1853 to January 1856.
The National Geographic Underground Railroad http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/99/railroad/
	The National Geographic Underground Railroad site contains useful background information on escape routes, prominent abolitionists, and the hardships slaves faced. Specifically, the site includes:
	An interactive “journey” through the Underground Railroad (includes pictures and symbols used by slaves and “conductors”) A “Routes to Freedom” map A comprehensive timeline of events relating to the Civil War and the Underground Railroad (1501-1865) Brief biographies of prominent abolitionists Jermain Loguen Lucretia Mott Frederick Douglass John Whittier Allan Pinkerton Josiah Henson Thomas Garrett Mary Ann Shadd William Garrison Susan B. Anthony Jonathon Walker William Still “Classroom Ideas” Section (useful for younger classes)
OhioPix: The Underground Railroad The Ohio Historical Society http://www.ohiohistory.org/etcetera/exhibits/ohiopix/galleries.cfm?Gallery=18
	Wilbur H. Siebert, professor at Ohio State University from 1891 to 1935, devoted much of his career to studying the Underground Railroad. This website presents his collection of images, consisting predominantly of portraits of Underground Railroad participants and photographs of major sites along the Railroad. (226 images).
Pennsylvania Civil War Newspapers Pennsylvania State University http://www.libraries.psu.edu/digital/newspapers/civilwar/
	From the Website: “ Pennsylvania Civil War Era Newspapers contains all the words, photographs, and advertisements from selected newspapers published during the pivotal years before, during, and after the U.S. Civil War. Newspapers played a prominent role in the conflict. They helped mobilize public opinion for, or against, the war, relayed battlefield developments to their readers, and documented political life on the homefront. Beyond military or political concerns there is much on cultural topics including travel, arts and leisure, sports and contests, and local social events.” The database allows users to search the newspapers by date, provides a full view of the paper, and a very user-friendly magnification option. Specifically included in the database are:
	Democratic Watchman 11/28/1855-10/27/1871 (Bellefonte) Franklin Repository 10/7/1863-10/25/1865 (Chambersburg) Columbia Spy 7/17/1847-12/31/1870 (Columbia) Erie Weekly Observer 5/21/1853-3/5/1859 (Erie) Erie Observer 3/12/1859-5/27/1869 (Erie) Republican Compiler 9/1//1854-5/1/1857 (Gettysburg) Compiler 5/18/1857-5/14/1866 (Gettysburg) Gettysburg Compiler 5/21/1866-12/25/1868 (Gettysburg) Huntingdon Globe 1/8/1855-6/18/1856 (Huntingdon) Globe 6/25/1856-12/13/1870 (Huntingdon) Press 8/1/1857-7/30/1864 (Philadelphia) Reading Eagle 8/20/1868-3/22/1869 (Reading) Village Record 1/3/1862-6/15/1871 (Waynesboro) Waynesboro Village Record 6/29/1871-12/31/1874 (Waynesboro) Agitator 7/13/1854-11/22/1865 (Wellsboro) Tioga County Agitator 11/29/1865-12/20/1871 (Wellsboro) Wellsboro Agitator 1/3/1872-11/25/1873 (Wellsboro)
Territorial Kansas: A Virtual Repository for Territorial Kansas History, 1854-1861 http://www.territorialkansasonline.org/cgiwrap/imlskto/index.php
	Territorial Kansas contains a comprehensive collection of primary resources on the debate over Kansas’ entrance into the Union. The website is divided into five major sections: Territorial Politics and Government Border Warfare Immigration and Early Settlement Personalities The Debate About Kansas Each section is further divided into “sub-topics” that contain both an image and transcription of each primary source. The website also contains a variety of additional resources, including a timeline of events (1854-1861, complete with links to the primary sources), D. W. Wilder's The Annals of Kansas, 1541-1885 (a day-by-day listing of significant events, several detailed lesson plans, a listing of historic sites, and a comprehensive bibliography for additional reading.
Their Own Words Dickinson College http://deila.dickinson.edu/theirownwords/
	Dickinson College’s Their Own Words contains full text searcheable on-line reproductions of works by individuals associated with Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania or in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as a whole. The full texts of the writings of several authors may be used as valuable Underground Railroad resources:
	Moncure Daniel Conway, thinker, writer, and abolitionist, graduated from Dickinson College in 1849. His writings provide a personal account of the struggles and divisions that faced the country at the onset of the Civil War as well as the rifts that developed within families. His abolitionist views caused him to covertly release his father’s slaves even though his two brothers joined the Confederate army. Several of his works are in the collection, notably his 1864 Testimonies Concerning Slavery William Still was the clerk for the Philadelphia Anti-Slavery Society for fourteen years and was one of the Underground Railroad’s most prominent leaders. In his book, The Underground Railroad, published in 1872, he describes his personal experiences and provides critical insight into the workings of the Railroad. R.C. Smedley, M.D., wrote History of the Underground Railroad in Chester and the Neighboring Counties of Pennsylvania. It was published posthumously in 1883. Wilbur Henry Siebert, professor of history at Ohio State University, wrote a groundbreaking book on the Underground Railroad based on careful research and extensive study. The book, titled The Underground Railroad: From Slavery to Freedom, was published in 1898. William Uhler Hensel wrote a book, The Christiana Riot and the Treason Trials of 1851: A Historical Sketch, to commemorate the sixtieth anniversary of the incident.
The Underground Railroad Project The Vermont Historical Society http://www.vermonthistory.org/educate/ugrr.htm
	The Vermont Historical Society provides not only general resources on the Underground Railroad, but also a “Teacher Packet” of materials. The sources are designed and presented for the use of teachers and students in the classroom: Each primary source – letters and newspaper articles – comes with a series of questions that check for understanding. A case study on the Robinson family of Ferrisburg, Vermont (Rowland T. Washington helped found the Vermont Anti-Slavery Society). Vermont time-line of relevant Underground Railroad events. A comprehensive “Teacher Suggestions” section A guide to key secondary and primary sources beyond the website.
The Valley of the Shadow: Two Communities in the American Civil War http://valley.vcdh.virginia.edu/
	From the Website: “The Valley of the Shadow is a digital archive of primary sources that document the lives of people in Augusta County, Virginia, and Franklin County, Pennsylvania, during the era of the American Civil War. Here you may explore thousands of original documents that allow you to see what life was like during the Civil War for the men and women of Augusta and Franklin. The Valley of the Shadow is different than many other history websites. It is more like a library than a single book. There is no "one" story in the Valley Project. Rather, what you'll find are thousands of letters and diaries, census and government records, newspapers and speeches, all of which record different aspects of daily life in these two counties at the time of the Civil War. As you explore the extensive archive and you'll find that you can flip through a Valley resident's Civil War diary, read what the county newspapers reported about the battle of Gettysburg, or even search the census records to see how much the average citizen owned in 1860 or 1870." The website is further divided into three distinct sections: the eve of war (1859-1861), the war years (1861-1865), and the aftermath (1865-1870). User-friendly search engines allow researchers to compare these two locations with a variety of sources:
	1860 and 1870 statistics Church and official records Freedmen Bureau Records Censuses and tax records Soldier recollections Letters and diaries Newspapers Reference center with timelines ________________________________________________

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