The Underground Railroad
Bibliography by Carole Marks, MLS '94, College of Library
and Information Services, University of Maryland.
Primary Resources
Originally it was thought that there existed few primary
sources on the Underground Railroad. Research instead has shown a
wealth of material in scattered sources. Autobiographical
narratives by the slaves as well as correspondence of
abolitionists and conductors on the railroad would be major
primary sources. Generally speaking, unless otherwise mentioned,
most of these sources were located in Victor and LOCIS.
American Missionary Association records (mss, Amistad
Research Center microfilm 1846-82), Manuscript Division, Library
of Congress. In NUCMUC a reference to these records was also
made. Fisk University Library holds 53 ft. or ca. 150,000 items
in the American Missionary Association Archives, 1839-79. Papers
relating to the Underground Railroad (UGRR) are located here.
Cope family. Papers, 1795-1896. 600 items. Haverford College
Library, Quaker Collection. In part handwritten transcriptions.
Contains papers relating to Thomas Garrett, including "pictures
of Thomas Garrett, and letters from him to Friends in Ireland
regarding his work in helping slaves to escape to Canada." NUCMUC
Bradford, Sarah Hopkins, 1818 - ?. Harriet Tubman, the Moses
of her people. New York: Corinth Books, 1961. The American
experience series. First edition published in 1869 under title:
Scenes in the life of Harriet Tubman. Reprint of the expanded
second edition of 1886. Reference was found in the Women of Color
and Southern Women database at Mckeldin to a more recent edition
of this book in 1987 from Citadel Press in Lecaucus, NJ.
Dover, NH, Papers, 1640-1967. 350 items. Contains the Civil
War letters of Stephen M. Thompson relating in part "to the UGRR
operated by local Quakers, especially in Lee, NH." NUCMUC.
Duke University Library, Durham, NC. Negroes (Slave and
Free) 1770-1944. 881 items and 4 v. Includes correspondence and
other papers on many slavery related issues such as the UGRR.
NUCMUC.
Elgin, IL, and the Civil War collection,1960s. US Army
Military History Institute, Carlisle Barracks, PA. Includes
material relating to "Elgin and Kane Counties before and during
the war and attitudes toward runaway slaves in the UGRR and
wartime refugees. Most articles quote contemporary letters,
diaries, newspapers, and other primary sources." NUCMUC.
Fairbank, Calvin, 1816-1898. Rev. Calvin Fairbank during
slavery times : how he "fought the good fight" to prepare "the
way." [microform /] ed. from his manuscript. Chicago: Patriotic
Publishing Co., 1890. "Copied from the original in the Library of
Congress." Microfiche. Louisville [Ky.] : Lost Cause Press,
1977. 4 microfiches ; 10 x 15 cm.
Five slave narratives : a compendium. New York: Arno Press,
1968. Reprinted from copies in the Moorland-Spingarn Collection,
Howard University and at the New York Public Library. It
includes the narrative of Lunsford Lane. 1842.--The fugitive
blacksmith, by J. W. C. Pennington. 2d ed. 1849.--Narrative of
William W. Brown. 1847.--My life in the South, by J. Stroyer. New
and enl. ed. 1898.--Narrative of the life of Moses Grandy, by G.
Thompson. 2d American ed. 1844.
The Frederick Douglass papers (mss, microfilm 1841 - 1967),
Manuscript Division, Library of Congress. or 5 volume set edited
by John W. Blassingame, New Haven: Yale University Press, 1979- .
Speeches, debates, and interviews: (v. 1) 1841-46, (v.2) 1847-54,
(v.3) 1855-63, (v.4) 1864-80, anc (v.5) 1881-95.
Garrett family papers, 1738-1934. Historical Society of
Delaware collections (Wilmington). These papers include Thomas
Garrett's (Quaker businessman and abolitionist) letters with
other abolitionists and minutes of the Abolition Society of
Delaware. NUCMUC.
Johnson, Homer Uri. From Dixie to Canada : romance and
realities of the underground railroad. Vol. 1., 1st thousand.
Orwell, O., H. U. Johnson ; Buffalo: C.W. Moulton, 1894.
Microfiche (negative) Louisville, [Ky.], Lost Cause Press, 1977.
4 sheets. 10.5 x 14.5 cm.
Jury trial. United States Circuit Court. 1848, 5mo 26 (?).
Three notes of evidence in the case of Charles W. Glanding v.
Thomas Garrett - a suit for value of seven runaway slaves aided
by Garrett. held at the Friends Historical Library manuscript
collection, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA.
Lull, Cabot, 1835-1925. Papers, 1832-1925, 740 items.
University of Alabama Library (Tuscaloosa). This includes
position papers of a judge of Elmore County, Ala. on slavery and
the UGRR and other concerns of his time. He was a judge of
"probate and concern deeds." NUCMUC.
McGowan, James A. Station master on the underground railroad
: the life and letters of Thomas Garrett. Moylan, PA: The Whimsie
Press, 1977. Personal copy.
James McGowan spent many hours searching manuscripts,
viewing microfilms, and checking indexes and references in many
libraries and historical societies in the Philadelphia, PA /
Wilmington, DE areas where Thomas Garrett lived. Garrett's
letters expressed what he thought and how he felt about what he
did, and are the most important, reliable testimony and primary
source for McGowan's work. Another source for McGowan were the
records of the Wilmington Monthly Meeting of Friends where
Garrett was a member for 39 years (i.e., church records).
Histories of the locales where Garrett lived were sources of
genealogical information about Garrett. The History of Upper
Darby, the History of Delaware County Pennsylvania, and the
History of the original settlements on the Delaware are examples.
Mitchell, William M. The underground railroad from slavery
to freedom. London: W. Tweedie, 1860. Microfiche Louisville,
Ky., Lost Cause Press 1958. 6 sheets. 11 x 15 cm.
Northey family. papers, 1688-1964. Essex Institute (Salem,
Mass.) (Quaker family of Salem, Mass.) Cynthia Northey's papers
include chiefly correspondence with the "developing abolitionist
movement which involved many Quaker women." Rebecca Maria Northey
Buffum's papers contain correspondence "relating to lectures
given by William Lloyd Garrison and her meeting with the
president of the UGRR in 1860."
Pettit, Eber M. Sketches in the history of the Underground
railroad, comprising many thrilling incidents of the escape of
fugitives from slavery, and the perils of those who aided them.
With introduction by W. McKinstry. Fredonia, NY: W. McKinstry &
Son, 1879.
Microfiche (negative) Louisville, KY: Lost Cause Press,
1977. 3 sheets. (Slavery, source material and critical
literature)
Siebert, Wilbur Henry, 1866-1961. The underground railroad
from slavery to freedom. New York: Arno Press, 1968 [c1898].
Wilbur H. Siebert provided carefully documented histories of
the underground railroad and gathered reminiscences from many
surviving abolitionists and their families. He collected
recollections of fugitive slave days from books, newspapers,
letters, and diaries. His extensive research labeled him the
foremost authority in the field.
Siebert, Wilbur Henry, 1866-1961. Materials on the UGRR. 32
ft. Ohio Historical Society collections (Columbus). Includes
transcripts. Gift of Mr. Siebert, 1948, 1951. NUCMUC.
Thomas, Nathan Macy,1803-1887. Papers, 1818-1889. Univ of
Michigan, Michigan Historical Collections. This Quaker
abolitionist and physician of Mt. Pleasant, Ohio and Schoolcraft,
Mich., was active in antislavery activities, and there is
correspondence between him and others such as Erastus Hussey,
James G. Birney, Lucius Lyon, S.B. Thayer, and members of his own
family involved in this work. NUCMUC.
A woman's life-work labors and experiences of Laura S.
Haviland. [microform : ] Cincinnati : Printed by Walden & Stowe
for the author, 1882. 520 p., [5] leaves of plates : ill., port.
Microfiche. Louisville, Ky.: Lost Cause Press, 1982. 7
microfiches ; 10.5 x 15 cm.
Williams, James, b. 1825. Life and adventures of James
Williams, a fugitive slave, with a full description of the
Underground Railroad. 5th ed. Philadelphia: A. H. Sickler, 1893.
Preface signed: John Thomas Evans (formerly) now James Williams.
Includes narratives of the escape of several fugitive slaves.
Microfiche (negative) Louisville, [Ky.]: Lost Cause Press, 1972.
3 sheets. 10.5 x 14.5 cm.
Wilmot, Franklin A. Disclosures and confessions of Frank A.
Wilmot, the slave thief and Negro runner. With an accurate
account of the Under-ground railroad! What it is and where
located! By a late conductor of the same. Also--full particulars
of the plans adopted for running off slaves from the Southern
states to the Canadas. Added to which is a history of the
abduction of Miss Lucille Hamet, the planter's daughter, and a
true description of slave life on a plantation. Philadelphia:
Barclay & co. [1860]. Microfiche (negative) Louisville, Ky.:
Lost Cause Press, [197?].
Wright, Samuel Guild, 1809-1890? Diaries, 1840-1890. Knox
College Archives, Galesburg, IL. This traveling preacher's
diaries cover his mission travels, sermons, and his part in the
UGRR. NUCMUC.
Secondary Sources
Blockson, Charles L. The Underground railroad. New York:
Prentice Hall, 1987. He also wrote a 36 page article for the
National Geographic, July 1984 issue on the UGRR.
Preface begins with: "My great-grandfather James escaped out
of slavery from Seaford, Delaware in 1856." The author was later
able to verify his grandfather's stories in William Still's
classic work on the UGRR. His research at libraries, historical
societies, and private collections has been extensive. He found
some of William Still's letters at Temple University's Blockson
Collection, one mentioning Still's intention to write a history
of the UGRR. One of the strong assertions of the book is that
"Black freemen were the most assiduous organizers of networks to
freedom." His comprehensive bibliographic essay would be a prime
source for any current researcher on this topic.
Brandt, Nat. The town that started the Civil War. Syracuse,
N.Y.: Syracuse University Press, 1990. Discusses the UGRR and
fugitive slaves in Ohio.
Breyfogle, William A. Make free : the story of the
underground railroad. Philadelphia: Lippincott, [1958].
Gara, Larry. The liberty line : the legend of the
underground railroad. Lexington, KY: Univ of Kentucky Press,
1967.
Khan, Lurey. One day, Levin ... he be free : William Still
and the underground railroad. New York: E.P. Dutton, [1972].
Summary: Chronicles the efforts of William Still, son of an
escaped slave, to help his people through his work with
Philadelphia's Anti-slavery Society and the Underground Railroad.
Mabee, Carleton. Black freedom : the nonviolent
abolitionists from 1830 through the Civil War. New York:
Macmillan, 1970. A whole chapter is devoted to the UGRR in this
well researched resource.
Stephenson, Clarence David, 1919- The impact of the
slavery issue on Indiana County [PA]. Marion Center, Pa.:
Mahoning Mimeograph & Pamphlet Service, 1964. Indiana County
historical series, no. 2.
Strother, Horatio T. The underground railroad in
Connecticut. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press, 1962.
Other Sources
Sources that include both primary and secondary sources
The Black Abolitionist Papers. Chapel Hill, NC: Univ of
North Carolina Press, 1985, 5 vols. Mention is made of the UGRR
in the 5th volume, covering the period from 1859-1865, in
reference to Chicago, Ohio, Philadelphia, and Harriet Tubman.
This resource covers only ten percent of the complete papers,
hence there must be more out there to discover.
Blassingame, John W., ed. Slave testimony : two centuries of
letters, speeches, interviews, and autobiographies. Baton Rouge,
LA: Louisiana State University Press, 1977, 777 p. Contains 111
letters, 129 interviews and 13 autobiographies of slaves.
Buckmaster, Henrietta, pseud. Let my people go : the story
of the underground railroad and the growth of the abolition
movement. New York, London, Harper & Brothers [c1941]. London
edition (V. Gollancz Ltd.) has title: Out of the house of
bondage. "Summary: A story of the Underground Railroad told
through the lives of courageous men and women who took part in
the movement." This was later reprinted in New York by Crowell in
1958 and in paperback in Boston by Beacon Press in 1959.
Coffin, Levi, 1798-1877. Reminiscences of Levi Coffin. New
York: Arno Press, 1968. Reprint of the 3rd ed., published 1898.
Slavery in the United States--Ohio.
Coffin, Levi, 1798-1877. Reminiscences of Levi Coffin, the
reputed president of the underground railroad. New York: A. M.
Kelley, 1968. Reprint of the 1876 ed. Slavery in the United
States--Ohio.
Haviland, Laura S., 1808-1898. A woman's life work : including thirty
years' service on the UGRR and in the War. Memorial edition. Chicago:
S.B. Shaw, 1902, 637 p. Source: Afro-Americana (Library Company of
Philadelphia).
Rawick, George P., ed. The American slave : a composite
autobiography. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Co., basic set
19 vols, 1972; supplement: Series 1, 12 vols., 1977; supplement:
Series 2, 10 vols., 1979. This massive work of over 20,000 pages
in 41 volumes is a word-by-word record of 3,500 interviews with
thousands of former slaves of the antebellum South. The
interviews were conducted during the Depression by the WPA.
AND Jacobs, Donald Martin, ed. Index to the American slave.
Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1981. There is a slave
identification file of all 3,500 interviewees, a subject index
with more than 100 categories, and a name index by states.
Source: Afro-American reference.
Siebert, Wilbur Henry, 1866-1961. The mysteries of Ohio's
underground railroads. Columbus, Ohio, Long's College Book Co.,
1951. 330 p.
Smedley, Robert Clemens, 1832-1883. History of the
underground railroad. New York: Arno Press, 1969. Reprint of the
1883 edition titled "History of the Underground railroad in
Chester and the neighboring counties of Pennsylvania." By R.C.
Smedley M.D. ... Lancaster, Pa., Office of the Journal, 1883.
Still, William. The Underground rail road : a record of
facts, authentic narratives, letters, etc., narrating the
hardships, hairbreadth escapes, and death struggles of the slaves
in their efforts for freedom as related by themselves and others,
or witnessed by the author; together with sketches of some of the
largest stockholders, and most liberal aiders and advisers, of
the road. Philadelphia: Porter & Coates, 1872, 780 p. (a revised
edition was done by Still in 1886. source: Afro-Americana)
(reprinted in 1968 by the Arno Press).
William Still, a Black man living in Philadelphia, was the
Chairman of the Vigilance Committee of the Pennsylvania
Antislavery Society. He had the assignment of personally
interviewing the slaves that the Society had helped to freedom.
He recorded all his observations at great risk, guarding them
carefully. They were published after the Civil War in 1872, and
are a major primary source.
Current Newspaper Sources
Ethnic NewsWatch database, Hornbake Library. Cites 17 newspaper
articles and includes two full text articles under articles 'about' the
UGRR. For example, From the Washington Afro-American of Aug 7, 1993,
Shelia Higgs' article on the "Underground railroad not forgotten,"
presents a call from the National Park Service for oral histories from
families with ancestors who were involved. By the end of 1994 the NPS
will present a report to Congress on commemorating, preserving and
interpreting the UGRR's history.
FirstSearch NewsAbs database, listed 26 articles under UGRR
and slavery. The most recent article from Jan 24, 1994 is in the
Chicago Defender, and discusses plans in Canada to restore the
residence at the end of the Midwest UGRR (near Detroit) in
Dresden, Ontario. Other articles have recently appeared in the
Michigan Chronicle, Detroit News & Free Press, Christian Science
Monitor, Amsterdam News, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, Call &
Post, Journal & Guide, Washington Post, and USA Today.
NewsBank database(at Hornbake Library) listed 14 relevant
articles on microfiche available from such diverse newspapers as
Trenton NJ Times, New Haven CT Register, San Jose CA Mercury
News, Houston Post, Chicago Sun Times, Poughkeepsie NY Journal,
Baltimore Daily Record, Asbury Park NJ Press, Philadelphia
Inquirer, and LA Times.
Civil War to Present Newspaper Sources
The New York Times Index. At McKeldin, starting from 1858 (I
only looked through to 1862), only a few relevant articles were
found here, which is revealing in itself. These were found under
the subject heading "slavery," and in articles that had fugitive
slaves in the title. There were two articles specifically
mentioning the UGRR. On Mar 28, 1959, was the article titled
"Underground railroad depot for slaves, Canada, being built." On
March 8, 1860, an editorial was titled "South objections to
slaves escaping to Canada by underground railroad." There were a
number of articles discussing the Fugitive Slave Law. Microfiche
is available on campus at MCK and HBK from 1851.
Newspapers and periodicals by and about Black people, by the
North Carolina Central University School of Library Science,
1978, lists over 1000 titles held in locations in six southern
states. Concerning newspapers that might discuss the UGRR since
the Civil War and which are most often found at these locations,
one might research the Afro-American (1892), Chicago Defender
(1905), Journal and Guide (1899), and Pittsburgh Courier (1910).
The latter has been called the largest Negro weekly in the world
and is on microfilm at MCK from 1923-. Only current issues of the
others are kept at UMD but LOC may have them also.
White newspapers, particularly southern white newspapers
from major towns and cities of the south would also be a good
source. For example, in a book on the UGRR I read about an
article that appeared in the Baltimore Sun on June 29, 1850
concerning the tarring and feathering of a couple for being
conductors of the UGRR.
Milner, Anita Cheek. Newspaper indexes : a location and
subject guide for researchers. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press,
1977-, is a union list of newspapers for the United States, and
would be helpful in locating strong runs of these newspapers.
Ante-Bellum Newspaper Sources
Blassingame, John W. and Mae G. Henderson, eds. Antislavery Newspapers
and Periodicals : an annotated index of letters, 1817-1871. Boston:
G.K.Hall, 1980-1984, 5 vols. Series: Reference Publications in
Afro-American Studies. Available at UMBC. Indexes approximately 40,000
letters by people of all races. Some of the newspapers indexed in
volume I (1817-1845) are Philanthropists, Emancipator, Genius of
Universal Emancipation, Abolition Intelligencer, African Observer and
the Liberator. Volume II (1835-1865) Anti-Slavery Record, Human Rights,
and the Observer. Volume III (1836-1854) Friend of Man, Pennsylvania
Freeman, Advocate of Freedom, and American and Foreign Anti-Slavery
Reporter. Volumes IV and V (1840-1860)and (1861-1871) index the
National Anti-slavery Standard, published by Aaron Powell and mentioned
in James McGowan's book on Thomas Garrett.
Index to the Schomburg clipping file. Schomburg Center for Research
in Black Culture. Alexandria, VA: Chadwyck-Healey Inc., 1986. This
resource is composed essentially of periodical and newspaper clippings.
There are two indices, one general and one on subjects relating to
Africa. The clipping file is on microfiche. Relevant subject headings
were found under UGRR, Harriet Tubman, Slave Narratives, Slavery -
United States - Anti-Slavery Movements.
Jacobs, Donald M. Antebellum Black newspapers : indices to
New York Freedom's Journal (1827-1829), The Rights of all (1829),
The Weekly advocate (1837), and The Colored American (1837-1841).
edited by Donald M. Jacobs, assisted by Heath Paley, Susan
Parker, and Dana Silverman. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1976.
Even though UGRR was not a subject heading, there were relevant
articles under slavery, runaway slaves. One article of interest
from Jan 9, 1829 Freedom's Journal is titled "Canada refuses to
return American runaway slaves." And on Jan 23, 1829, "British
Parliament discusses what to do with American fugitive slaves in
Canada."
The Washingtoniana Division of the Martin Luther King Public
Library, Washington, DC has on microfilm all the major daily
newspapers published in Washington, DC since 1800. Indexes are
available for the Evening Star, Washington Post, and Washington
Times. Knowing the names of local DC stationmasters, one could
research these names in their newspaper holdings as well as their
archival manuscript collections.
"Microfilmed copies of the newspapers under consideration
here can be found scattered in a variety of research facilities
including the New-York Historical Society, the Boston Public
Library, the American Antiquarian Society of Worchester,
Massachusetts, the Schomburg Center of the New York Public
Library, the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, the Guggenheim
Memorial Library of Monmouth College, the Library of Congress,
and the Moorland-Spingarn Research Center of Howard University.
None of these libraries had complete runs of all of the pre-Civil
War Black newspapers; ...... Frederick Douglass's papers were the
exception in their availability; most issues of these are at the
Library of Congress and at the Schomburg Center." (Source:
Hutton, Frankie. The early Black press in America, 1827 to 1860.
Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1993, p. xv) Most black editors at
this time were "also staunch abolitionists and Underground
Railroad operatives.." (Source: same, p. 118)and clergy or lay
churchmen.
Library of Congress: On LOCIS, I did locate a number of
these newspapers at the Library of Congress as being on
microfilm: the North Star, Ram's Horn, Frederick Douglass' paper
(microfilmed by LOC for the Committee on Negro Studies of the
American Council of Learned Societies), Freedom's Journal, the
Liberator, and Colored American. The National Standard edited by
Aaron Powell is available on microfilm from the New York Public
Library (Schomburg).
Vanden Heuvel, Jon. Untapped sources : America's newspaper
archives and histories. prepared for the American Society of
Newspaper Editors' Newspaper History Task Force by the Gannett
Foundation Media Center at Columbia University in the City of New
York. edited by Craig LaMay and Martha FitzSimon. New York:
Gannett Foundation Media Center, 1991. This has a chapter on
Research on Newspapers / Ethnic newspapers and a chapter on "An
Inventory of major newspaper archives. This book discusses
antebellum newspapers up to present newspapers.
A future source will be the U.S. Newspaper Project which
will enable researchers to view newspapers held at different
repositories around the country on a nationwide database.
Maps
(Located at Library of Congress)
Federal Writers' Project. Underground railroad map of the
United States. ca. 1838-1860. 1941? 4 shee
