Many enslaved African Americans freed themselves from bondage whenever possible. Most runaways were young men; enslaved women generally stayed behind with their children. Courageous Americans who opposed slavery helped enslaved individuals reach freedom in the North, Mexico, Caribbean, and the Indian territories. Beginning in the early 19th century, a movement called the Underground Railroad (a few sites are pictured above) helped enslaved people flee the South. Operating without formal organization,participants in the Underground Railroad included both white and black abolitionists, enslaved African Americans, American Indians, and members of such religious groups as the Quakers, Methodists, and the Baptists.

The Fugitive Slave Act

The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 permitted the recapture and extradition of escaped slaves with the assistance of federal marshals. To combat the perceived success of the Underground Railroad, one of the provisions of the Compromise of 1850 levied fines and prison sentences on individuals who helped runaways. The spectacle of African Americans reenslaved on slightest pretext brought the reality of slavery forcibly into the northern life. Unscrupulous traders also kidnapped free African Americans and during this period and sold them south into slavery. The Fugitive Slave Act forced runaways to flee to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and even Europe. One couple, Ellen and William Craft, found their way to safety abroad after their remarkable escape from the South by train in ingenious disguises.

Methods of Escape

Slaves passed information about methods of escape by word-of-mouth, in stories, and through songs. No actual trains existed on the Underground Railroad, but guides were called conductors and the hiding places that they used, depots or stations. Runaways escaped to the North along a loosely connected series of routes that stretched through the southern border states. Guided north by the stars and sometimes singing traditional songs like "Follow the Drinking Gourd," most runaways traveled at night on foot and took advantage of the natural protections offered by swamps, bayous, forests, and waterways. Others who escaped from the South traveled into the western territories, Mexico, and the Caribbean. Some runaways took refuge in cities such as Baltimore and New Orleans and blended into the free black population.

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