Harriet Tubman’s Shawl

1897

Harriet Tubman was one of the most famous "conductors" of the Underground Railroad, which was a secret network that brought African Americans to freedom during the slavery era. She made several perilous journeys back to Maryland’s Eastern Shore, where she had once been enslaved, risking her life to free her loved ones. During the Civil War, she worked as a spy for the Union Army, securing the freedom of hundreds of enslaved African Americans in South Carolina. Tubman ultimately moved to Auburn, New York, where she established a church and founded a home for aging formerly enslaved African Americans. She fought for freedom and equal rights throughout her life. In 1897, England’s Queen Victoria showed her admiration for Harriet Tubman when she gifted her with this shawl.