Akron Public Library

"Robert Smalls was a true American patriot. Despite the burdens America laid upon him, he loved our country. He believed in the "inherent justice" of American democracy and in the principles espoused in the Declaration of Independence"--Afterword.

"Born into slavery, young Harriet Tubman knew only hard work and hunger. Escape seemed impossible--certainly dangerous. Yet Harriet did escape North, by the secret route called the Underground Railroad. Harriet didn't forget her people. Again and again she risked her life to lead them on the same secret, dangerous journey"--Amazon.com.

"A gripping and true story about five boys who were kidnapped in the North and smuggled into slavery in the Deep South -- and their daring attempt to escape and bring their captors to justice, reminiscent of Twelve Years A Slave and Never Caught"--

Details the history of the Underground Railroad from the roots of slavery through the post-Emancipation era by focusing on the lives of the participants.

The newly discovered slave narratives of John Washington and Wallace Turnage-and their harrowing and empowering journey to emancipation. Slave narratives, among the most powerful records of our past, are extremely rare, with only fifty-five surviving post-Civil War. This book is a major new addition to this imperative part of American history-the firsthand accounts of two slaves, John Washington and Wallace Turnage, who through a combination of...

Traces the search for freedom by a black man and wife who traveled to Boston and eventually to England after their escape from slavery in Georgia.

Draws on extensive genealogical resources and new archives and materials to capture Harriet Tubman's complex life and personality, revealing her personal life, accomplishments, and influence.

Five accounts of black slaves who managed to escape to freedom during the period preceding the Civil War.

"Soon after American colonists had won independence from Great Britain, Ona Judge was fighting for her own freedom from one of America's most famous founding fathers, George Washington. George and Martha Washington valued Ona as one of their most skilled and trustworthy slaves, but she would risk everything to achieve complete freedom. Born into slavery at Mount Vernon, Ona seized the opportunity to escape when she was brought to live in the President's...