Harriet Tubman- Underground Railroad Conductor, Activist, Hero (Famous Americans Series)

In the fifth episode of Check This Out, hosts Amy Contreras and Cece dive into the remarkable life of Harriet Tubman, an incredible figure in American history known for her bravery and commitment to freedom. Did you know she wasn't just a conductor on the Underground Railroad? But she was also a patriot, a spy, a nurse, and a feminist?!

Enjoy a lightning round of true or false questions to test your existing knowledge about Tubman's life. 

Beyond her work in the Underground Railroad and the Civil War, the episode highlights Tubman’s advocacy for women’s suffrage and her lifelong dedication to improving the lives of others, including her efforts in creating schools for freed blacks and co-founding the National Association of Colored Women.

As always the episode ends wth three fun facts for listeners to explore further about Tubman’s legacy, along with a poem to help remember her contributions. 

Join Amy and Cece in this engaging and educational exploration of Harriet Tubman's life, and discover how her courage and actions still resonate today!

Transcript

Cece: Welcome to “Check this out!” 

Amy: A podcast series for kids (and their grownups) where we explore interesting people, places, and ponderings that shape the world around us.   My name is Amy Contreras and I’m Cece! And we are excited to welcome you to episode 5 of Check this out.  

At “Check this out” we discuss  everything from the history of sports, famous scientists and inventors, to the 7 wonders of the world.  

In today’s episode we are going to learn about an amazing woman who escaped enslavement and helped others escape enslavement as well.  I hope you’re as excited as I am to talk about Harriet Tubman. She was a conductor on the underground railroad (choo choo train sound), a patriot, a spy, a nurse, and a feminist!  (hand clapping sound) And that is just a few of the ways Harriet made an impact on the world around her.  You may already know her name, but after today’s episode you’re going to know so much more about how she helped people around her throughout her life!  Now let’s get into it! 

Cece: Listeners, keep your ears open 

Amy: Because at the end of the episode we will share 3 facts that you can continue to check out on your own.  (Ding Ding Ding for 1,2,3) We hope you use the Check this out podcast as a tool to fuel your learning journey!  So keep your ears open and see if you can guess which facts we will highlight at the end.  

Let’s start by seeing what you already know about Harriet tubman.  And if it is nothing then take your best guess, because by the end of the episode you’ll know it all!  

True or false: Harriet Tubman is alive today 

(ding) The answer is false.  Harriet Tubman died in 1913 

True or false: Harriet Tubman saved over 50 people from enslavement 

(ding) The answer is true.  Harriet tubman saved about 70 people from slavery 

True or False:  Harriet Tubman wrote 2 books in her life 

(ding) The answer is false.  She never wrote a book but authorized author Sarah Bradford to write a book about her life called Harriet, the moses of her people.  

True or false: Harriet Tubman was a conductor on the underground railroad? 

(ding) The answer is true!  I hope you knew that one, i did say it as i was introducing the episode… 

True or false: Harriet Tubman was born a free black woman in 1820 

(ding) The answer is false. She was born into enslavement - we will talk more about her journey to freedom in this episode 

True or false: Harriet Tubman was a soldier in the civil war.  

(ding) The answer is false.  But she did help a lot in the civil war by taking on a lot of different types of jobs like nurse, spy, and cook.  

True or false:  Harriet Tubman is on the $20 bill 

(ding) The answer is False but only for a little while because there are plans to replace the image of andrew jackson on the $20 bill with Harriet Tubman.   It should be happening soon! 

(Count 105) Nice work on those true or false questions!  And if you got all of them wrong, have no fear! We are going to take a walk through Harriet Tubman’s life and get to know her more deeply.  

(Count 111) Cece: CHECK THIS OUT! 

Before we dive in, do you know what the underground railroad was? It was a secret network of people and safe houses that were organized to help enslaved people escape to freedom. The underground railroad was part of the resistance to slavery.  It assisted enslaved people with escaping from the south.  This will matter because the underground railroad was a key part of Harriet Tubman’s life!  

(Count 118) Harriet Tubman was born in Maryland as an enslaved person.  This meant that the records of when she was born aren’t the most reliable.  We know she was born around 1820, some accounts say 1822, others say 1821.  So we will just say around 1820.  Her birth name was Araminta Ross, but she later took her mother's name, Harriet when she married in 1844. 

Harriet had several names and nicknames throughout her life. I’m going to list a couple of nick names she had.  See if you can guess which ones belonged to her hint its a few of them!  

(Count 149) What were her nick names

1. Harry
2. Moses
3. Train Girl
4. Conductor
5. Minty 
6. Tubbers 

If you guessed Moses, Conductor, and Minty you’re right!  I don’t know that she would have loved being called tubbers…. 

(Count 160) Harriet was born into enslavement, meaning she and her family were forced to work without pay and had no freedom. (Cece saying “Thats terrible!” ) This meant from a young age she did hard labor and worked in various jobs such as a woodcutter and field worker.  When Harriet was about 12 there was a violent incident between Harriet, a slave overseer and a fugitive slave.  During the incident the overseer hit Harriet on the head with an iron weight and badly injured her.  (Cece saying Ouch!) This injury turned into a sleeping disorder called narcolepsy.  She had head pain throughout her life as a result, and ultimately had to get brain surgery in 1898.  Interesting fact: She opted not to go under anesthesia for her brain surgery!!! She stayed awake and bit a bullet for the pain.  Something she had seen soldiers in the civil war do.  Can you imagine?!    

In 1849, Harriet heard she might be sold to another owner.  So she  escaped enslavement and ran to the North, where she could live freely.  She had to leave behind her husband because he refused to leave. She also left her parents and siblings. (Cece saying “that must have been hard) After she experienced freedom Harriet wanted to EMANCIPATE others.  She believed in EMANCIPATION for all enslaved people.  

Cece: Check this out! 

Do you know what emancipation means? It is the process of being set free from legal, social, or political restrictions.  In other words liberation.

In December of 1850 she ran her first rescue mission, emancipating her niece and 2 children.   Between 1850 and 1860, Tubman made over a dozen journeys across the Mason-Dixon line, bringing about 70 enslaved people to freedom. She eventually led her 3 brothers to freedom in 1854.  Harriet Tubman was known as a meticulous planner within the underground railroad.  She shared her plans with other conductors on the underground railroad, which resulted in another 50-60 enslaved people being helped to freedom from her plans.  Harriet Tubman’s dedication and success on the underground railroad earned her the nickname “Moses," it was said she never lost someone she was leading to freedom.  

(Count 247) Her role in the underground railroad is what made Harriet Tubman famous. She was often wanted and written about in newspapers because what she was doing was technically illegal, because slavery was still allowed in the south at the time.  There were even rewards for her capture!  BUT this also helped her get connected with abolitionists and politicians in the north, where slavery was not permitted.  It helped her connect with critical people based in the northern united states and canada who were also fighting against slavery in the south.  

Cece Check this out! 

Abolitionists were people who were against slavery and wanted to abolish it, or get rid of it.  

Because of Harriet’s notoriety she was recruited to get involved when the American civil war started in 1861.   As I mentioned at the beginning she held many roles throughout the civil war.  This included nursing soldiers, recruiting black soldiers, cooking, and even sometimes stepping into the role of being a scout and spy!  (Cece saying “She had a lot of jobs!) 

(Count 283) In the summer of 1863, Harriet became the first woman to ever lead a military operation in U.S. history.   (Gun/cannon sounds) She helped coordinate a military assault that resulted in more than 700 people being freed from slavery in Combahee Ferry, South Carolina.  (Cece saying “thats amazing!) 

How much do you think Harriet Tubman was paid for her contributions to the Civil War? (Cha-ching sound) 

Something that makes me sad is that although she spent years helping win the civil war through her various roles and contributions, Harriet was paid so little for her work in the civil war she had to sell homemade baked goods on the side to survive.  Eventually she received a $20 per month pension from the US government for her efforts.  But she had to apply multiple times and the pension didn’t come until 34 years after the war had ended.  

After the civil war and the abolishment of slavery she moved to new york and she continued her legacy of helping others.  She worked with politicians and other abolitionists like Frederick Douglass, William Henry Seward, Susan B. Anthony, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and more. 

In New York, she helped create schools for freed blacks.  She also co founded the National Association of Colored Women in 1896.  This organization demanded equality and suffrage for African American women. 

Check this out! 

Suffrage means fighting for the right to vote.  Keep in mind Black women were not permitted to vote in the united states until 1965! 

In 1908 she purchased 25 acres of land with the hopes of opening the Harriet Tubman Home of the Aged to improve the lives of the old and poor in the community.  Unfortunately she couldn't raise funds to open the facility and gave the property to the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church in exchange for them operating the home.  The facility operated from 1908 until the early 1920s, and Harriet herself was a patient there until she died in 1913.   

(Count 351) She was an amazing lady.  Harriet Tubman has 2 national parks dedicated to her do you have any idea where they might be?  Think about where she was born and lived… 

1. The first park is in Dorchester County, Maryland - remember she was born in maryland.  And is called The Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park 
2. The 2nd park is the Harriet Tubman National Historical Park in Auburn, New York, where she lived after the civil war.  

We still learn about Harriet Tubman today because of her bravery, impact, and how she led through action in the underground railroad, civil war, in her advocacy and philanthropic work until the end of her life.  

At the start of the episode Cece told you to keep your ears open because we would give you 3 facts we love for you to check out later.  I wonder if you can guess what they will be!  

Cece: Here are 3 of our favorite facts 

1.  Harriet Tubman was the first woman in us history to lead a miliary raid.  Check out more about the Combahee Ferry Raid
2. Harriet Tubman took 13 trips to the south and saved about 70 people from enslavement including members of her own family 
3. Harriet fought for the rights of others and for the dignity of others until the end of her life - learn more about the institutions she helped create after the civil war, like the Harriet Tubman home of the aged.  

Harriet Tubman accomplished so much! How will we ever remember it? Well we don’t just love investigating cool people, places, and ponderings from history.  

Cece: We also love to rhyme!  

Here is a poem we created about Harriet Tubman to help you remember a bit more about her 

In Maryland's fields, young Minty did toil,

With dreams of freedom, from slavery she recoiled 

She heard the call, “Escape, don’t delay!”

As an underground railroad Conductor she lit the way.  

Through nights full of danger, with courage so bright,

She freed many souls, bringing hope into light! 

Her path was long, impacts were many 

When the civil war came she was ready 

All her life, helping others was her aim 

Today we honor her, and celebrate her fame 

At the “check this out” we know it can be hard to know if information you find online is accurate!  We use verified sources to build the stories you hear about. Our sources for this week's episode are encyclopedia britannica, the national museum of african american history & culture, the national women’s history museum, history.com, and the national park service, .  

Cece: Thanks for listening 

https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/harriet-tubman 

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Harriet-Tubman 

https://www.womenshistory.org/exhibits/harriet-tubman?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAmfq6BhAsEiwAX1jsZ1mSqdmm_L6SxbQSbvvXkvpD7X8YhBQ6vrxwuHtmcf9_flx3s3lEbxoCK7QQAvD_BwE 

https://guides.loc.gov/chronicling-america-harriet-tubman 

https://www.nationalparks.org/connect/blog/beacon-resilience-and-love-harriet-tubman#:~:text=With%20her%20smarts%2C%20boldness%2C%20unwavering,%E2%80%9CMoses%20of%20her%20people.%E2%80%9D 

https://www.npca.org/articles/2314-5-facts-you-might-not-know-about-harriet-tubman?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAm-67BhBlEiwAEVftNs6OhNdxThPcwjoNTQo9Y20c-YhbKEFXuTipnTGNXr_okW7z1WQM0hoC76MQAvD_BwE https://www.nps.gov/places/tubmanagedhome.htm 

https://www.history.com/news/black-women-pensions-civil-war