This month, February, is black history month. 28 days to celebrate the history of African Americans. Every week we will post a historical event, person, or date involving blacks from over time. This week we chose Harriet Tubman.
Harriet Tubman (Araminta), was born March 10, 1913 by Harriet Green and Ben Ross. Growing up Harriet faced much physical violence that cause permanent injuries. The line between being free and being a slave was a blurred one for Harriet and her family. Her father was freed at the age of 45, but Rit (Harriet’s mother) and her children were not as lucky.
As Harriet reached adulthood, most African Americans were free on the eastern shore of Maryland. In 1844, Harriet married John Tubman, a free black man. The blurred lines between slavery and freedom were starting to become more clear.
In 1849, Tubman escaped from slavery. She fled to Philadelphia with her two brothers Ben and Henry on September 17th. There was a $300 reward for their return. Harriet’s brothers ended up returning to the plantation while she went on to the north. When she crossed the line she says “There was such glory over everything.” Rather than staying in freedom, she made it her mission to rescue her family and other bound in slavery. One of the main reasons she is known. When Tubman died, she was buried with military honors at Fort Hill Cemetery in Auburn, New York.
By Whitney Martin