At its peak, it is estimated that Still helped as many as 60 slaves escape each month, offering his home as a hide out.

William Still, a Black abolitionist who was based in Philadelphia, is often referred to as the 'father of the Underground Railroad'. The Underground Railroad is based on a true story of a secret network designed to help slaves escape. using a schooner called The Pearl.ĭespite their efforts, the boat was seized by a steamboat on the Chesapeake Bay near Maryland, before the slaves were sold to traders and brought to the Deep South. The Pearl incident of 1848 has been recorded as the largest escape attempt in US history, with 77 slaves attempting to flee Washington D.C. Women and children especially faced difficulties when escaping, as they were rarely allowed to leave the plantation. After escaping herself, she then took part in dozens of missions to help others to freedom in the North.īelieving slavery went against religious teachings, many of the volunteers were also Quakers, Reformed Presbyterians and Methodists. Harriet Tubman was one of the most famous conductors and was a member of the free Black community. So-called 'conductors' were made up of free-born Black people, those who had previously been enslaved, white sympathisers and Native Americans.

This could have jeopardised the integrity of the routes and the entire operation. The routes were communicated by abolitionist sympathisers and slaves, as there were no printed maps or guides. Assisted by abolitionist sympathisers, the railroad consisted of secret routes and meeting points, as well as safe houses known as 'stations'.

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