This was a disaster for free Black communities in the North. This act made it both possible and profitable to hire slave catchers to find and arrest freedom seekers. Photo by Nyttend, Public Domain, Īfter Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, Canada became a haven for many attempting to obtain their freedom. It was not until the northern states and Canada adopted emancipation laws that they became safer destinations for freedom seekers. Before the mid-1800s, Spanish Florida and Mexico were the favored destinations for many escaping bondage. Slavery also proliferated in northern states, making escape difficult. Newly enslaved Africans often ran away in groups intending to establish new communities in remote areas. Colonial North America – including Canada and northern states in the US – was deeply involved in the slave trade. Origins of the Underground RailroadĮnslaved people have always sought freedom, even in the earliest days of slavery. In other instances, particularly after the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, the Underground Railroad was deliberate and organized. In some cases, the decision to assist a freedom seeker may have been a spontaneous reaction. This gave the impression that there was an organized “underground” network. In the 1820s and 1830s, the United States saw an increased effort to assist freedom seekers. Many freedom seekers completed their self-emancipation without assistance. This effort was often spontaneous, with enslaved people beginning their journey to freedom unaided. The Underground Railroad was a covert and sometimes informal network of routes, safehouses, and resources spread across the country that was used by enslaved African Americans to gain their freedom. A United States map showing the differing routes that freedom seekers would take to reach freedom.
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