The arrest and trial of Anthony Burns under the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 touched off riots and protests by abolitionists and citizens of Boston in 1854. A portrait of the twenty-four-year-old Burns is surrounded by scenes of his life.
Some slaves escaped on their own. They took a chance. In time, more slaves learned about another choice. It was known as the Underground Railroad.
The Underground Railroad was not a real railroad. It wasn’t underground either. It was a secret network of people working together. Its goal was to help slaves escape to freedom.
The Underground Railroad was run by people who were against slavery. Some of these people were called Abolitionists. They wanted to outlaw or “abolish” slavery. The people working on the Underground Railroad were willing to break the law to help slaves escape. Often they led slaves out at night. Along the way, they’d hide the runaways in their homes and barns. There were even some runaway slaves working with the Underground Railroad. They risked sneaking back into the South to bring others out. They were especially helpful because they knew the area and back roads so well.
The arrest and trial of Anthony Burns under the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 touched off riots and protests by abolitionists and citizens of Boston in 1854. A portrait of the twenty-four-year-old Burns is surrounded by scenes of his life.
Slaveholders hated the Underground Railroad. They did whatever they could to stop it. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 made helping slaves escape illegal. Later, the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was passed. It strengthened the earlier law. Slaveholders tried to have the Underground Railroad workers arrested and punished. They offered large rewards for their capture. Often Southern courts gave the workers large fines. Most Underground Railroad workers were not rich. A very large fine could put them out of business.
These people are helping escaping slaves on a stop on the Underground Railroad.
Other times slaveholders took matters into their own hands. They had Underground Railroad workers beat up. They destroyed their property. They tried to force them out of the South.