The Abolitionist Movement: A Brief History
A Brief Timeline
Slavery in the United States began with the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Through this system, 10.7 million African men, women, and children were brought into captivity into the Americas (Equal Justice Initiative, 2020). In 1808, the international slave trade was banned due to the inhumane nature of the practice (Equal Justice Initiative, 2020). However, slavery continued within the borders of the United States (Equal Justice Initiative, 2020). Freedom seekers began their journeys towards fighting for equality from the initial moments of captivity. However, in 1850, the Fugitive Slave Act was passed (National Park Service, 2022). This established the illegality of escaping slavery and made those who aided freedom seekers criminals as well (National Park Service, 2022). In 1861, 11 Southern states decided to secede from the United States in an effort to maintain the practice of enslavement. In that year, the Civil War between the North and the South began (Equal Justice Initiative, 2020). Eventually, the South surrendered to the Union in 1865 (Equal Justice Initiative, 2020). Two years prior, in 1863, the Emancipation Proclamation by Abraham Lincoln was delivered which legally established the freedom of all African Americans from slavery (Equal Justice Initiative, 2020).
What is the Underground Railroad?
The Underground Railroad was an entire movement, dedicated to the freedom and liberation of enslaved African Americans (National Park Service, 2022). Throughout the United States, slavery became common practice and slaves experienced inhumane bondage to slave owners (National Park Service, 2022). In an effort to create a structured system to allow for slaves to escape these situations, the Underground Railroad was constructed as a means to help slaves travel from the South to the North (National Park Service, 2022). While the North was in the process of freeing more slaves, the South was more stern with the concept of enslavement. Thus, the path of freedom seekers is seen to move away from the South and into the North (National Park Service, 2022).
The Underground Railroad started in the South, and the paths followed natural and man-made modes of transportation (National Park Service, 2022). For example, some routes included the Atlantic Coast, ferries, river crossings, roads and trails. Furthermore, "maritime industry" was used as a means of delivering information, providing employment, and allowing for transportation (National Park Service, 2022). In fact, this industry was used during the Civil War as well. This allowed individuals to work for the Union army and used military service as a means to seek freedom (National Park Service, 2022).
*Note: Current literary language is moving away from calling these individuals "escaped slaves" and instead recognizing them as "freedom seekers" to more accurately define their acts of self-emancipation.
People:
There were many notable individuals involved in the Underground Railroad System. Some notable figures are Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, and Harriet Beecher Stowe.
Frederick Douglass was notable in his literary and abolitionist movements. As a prominent abolitionist, Douglass became an orator who gave speeches and sold copies of his autobiography in an effort to increase awareness and prompt freedom of all African Americans (National Park Service, 2023). Furthermore, he aided people in the Underground Railroad and supported political parties that were anti-slavery (National Park Service, 2023). Later, he started his own newspaper, The North Star, wherein he continued to challenge slavery and segregation as he did in all of his literature (National Park Service, 2023).
Harriet Tubman was known as an Underground Railroad "Conductor" as she was a prominent figure in helping organize and move individuals from the South to the North (National Park Service, 2023). During the Civil War, she was a spy, scout, and nurse which allowed her unique access to help freedom seekers to gain access to the North (National Park Service, 2023). Furthermore, she was an advocate for women's suffrage as well and made important strides for a woman's right to vote after the Civil War (National Park Service, 2023).
Harriet Beecher Stowe was a unique component of the freedom fight as she used the power of literature and the advent of the novel as a means to pursue liberation for African Americans (National Park Service, 2023). In her novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin, written in 1852, she explores slavery and American attitudes towards African Americans (National Park Service, 2023). This was considered a historical literary landmark and was extremely significant in the movement for freedom seekers (National Park Service, 2023).
New York City: The Underground Railroad traversed much of the Eastern United States and Southern Canada. New York City was one of the main hubs for freedom seekers during this time. In particular, many Churches and shops were the sites of UGRR activity. For example, the Bridge Street Church was a stop on the Underground Railroad and used its basement as a means to help slaves escape to freedom. Especially in New York City, there was little information regarding the Underground Railroad System. Since its purpose was to be "underground", or "hidden", there is little documentation to support its existence in these communities. However, a major contributor to the preservation of history for the Bridge Street Church in particular is oral history. In other words, word of mouth is a powerful tool to allow for the spread of information and history, especially for pieces of the past that were meant to be hidden. Thus, many accounts of the Underground Railroad are passed down throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, and have only been recently written down in historical records by scholars. In fact, in the Brooklyn Poly Archives, there is little to no information regarding the details of the function of the Wunsch Building as a stop on the Underground Railroad. However, there are disparate pieces of information that can be pieced together to understand that the Bridge Street Church and previous Churches were all important factors in the community that contributed to the Underground Railroad as well as the Abolitionist movement in the 18th century.
An Analysis:
The journey of African Americans is important to recognize as a coherent story rather than miscellaneous facts. The generation of the Bridge Street Church and its establishment as a stop on the Underground Railroad occurred through a string of stories and events, each leading to one another. Thus, it is important to acknowledge the roots of the system and to ask why and how the Church and similar churches were established. First and foremost, the system of slavery has existed since the establishment of the United States of America. Since the beginning of the slave trade, there was an effort to to escape to the North. Thus, the North became a place of sanctuary, at least temporary, for many freedom seekers. As a result, the churches and other organizations led by free African Americans were a location to which many slaves targeted their journey. One of these target locations could have been the Bridge Street Church. Thus, by understanding the history and the journey of freedom seekers, it is possible to gain a better understanding of the role that our building at NYU Tandon has played throughout history.