Stories

In 1842, freedom seekers George and Rebecca Latimer arrived in Boston after escaping slavery in Virginia. Though Bostonians quickly secured George’s freedom, the Latimer case provided antislavery activists the political capital to usher in a statewide Personal Liberty Law, known as the "Latimer Law." Though largely remembered for the law that bears their name, the Latimers’ story also provides a powerful lesson of family resilience, community protest, and social change.

From the lives of young, immigrant women who worked the textile mills at Lowell National Historic Park to those of the female shipyard workers who were essential to the home front during World War II at Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historic Park, women’s history can be found at every park. If you want to understand our nation’s history, explore the remarkable legacies of American women.

On the night of June 1, 1863, Harriet Tubman and the soldiers of the 2nd South Carolina Volunteers sailed up the Combahee River. By the time they returned, they had liberated more than 750 people on what became known as the Combahee River Raid.

In 1872, William Still, an abolitionist, prominent businessman, historian, and former chairman of the Vigilance Committee, published "The Underground Railroad." After the Civil War, Still decided to share the accounts of freedom seeking and bravery completed by some of the nearly 1,000 people he aided in seeking freedom towards the North.

After the Battle Fort Pulaski became a beacon of freedom for many escaping enslaved people.

But what was the “Underground Railroad”? Were there special trains running in tunnels underground? No, there were no trains. The “Underground Railroad” was a network of people who thought slavery was wrong.

The Black man in Lyddie’s cabin introduces himself as Ezekial. He had been enslaved in the South and is making his way to Canada.

The story of Forest Joe, the notorious maroon who led raids throughout lowcountry South Carolina.

Belle Grove Plantation relied on the labor of over 100 enslaved people during its peak as one of the largest farms in Frederick County, Virginia. They worked in the main house, extensive grain fields, and as skilled craftsmen. On several occasions, African Americans enslaved at Belle Grove took steps to attain their own freedom. Whether through escape, purchase by loved ones, or manumission, their stories are important to understanding the history of the plantation.

The famous Black abolitionist William Wells Brown once remarked that "no part of our slave-holding country is more noted for the barbarity of its inhabitants than St. Louis." This exhibit aims to tell the story of slavery in St. Louis through the use of primary source documents, historic images, and individual stories of enslavement. Read stories from nine different banners that were created as part of this exhibit. They cover the founding of St. Louis in 1764 to the Reconstruction era.