The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to the mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada.The network was assisted by abolitionists and others sympathetic to the cause of the escapees.The enslaved persons who risked escape and those who aided them are also collectively referred to as the "Underground Railroad". Various other routes led to Mexico, where slavery had been abolished, and to islands in the Caribbean that were not part of the slave trade. An earlier escape route running south toward Florida, then a Spanish possession (except 1763-1783), existed from the late 17th century until approximately 1790.However, the network now generally known as the Underground Railroad began in the late 18th century. It ran north and grew steadily until the Emancipation Proclamation was signed by President Abraham Lincoln. One estimate suggests that by 1850, approximately 100,000 enslaved people had escaped to freedom via the network. Contents: Henry Box Brown William Wells Brown James Hambleton Christian Theophilus Collins Seth Concklin William and Ellen Craft Frederick Douglass Abram Galloway and Richard Eden Charles Gilbert Samuel Green Jamie Griffin Harry Grimes James Hamlet and Others Josiah Henson John Henry Hill Ann Maria Jackson and Her Seven Children Harriet Jacobs Jane Johnson Matilda Mahoney Mary Frances Melvin Aunt Hannah Moore Alfred S. Thornton

For those interested in the abolition of slavery and the Slavery Act in America, 'Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl' is an autobiography by Harriet Ann Jacobs, a mother and fugitive slave. The book covers Jacobs' life as a slave and how she fought for freedom for herself and her children. With deep historical prominence, the autobiography covers the struggles she faced, including the sexual abuse that female slaves had to endure. Published in 1861 and filled with accounts of heroism and courage, 'Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl' will leave you shocked and brimming with admiration for Harriet Jacobs. This is perfect for fans of Fredrick Douglass' memoir 'Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave'. Harriet Ann Jacobs was an African-American writer, whose autobiography, 'Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl', is now considered an important American classic. Born into slavery in North Carolina, Jacobs was sexually harassed by her enslaver and when he threatened to sell her children if she didn't allow him to abuse her, she hid in a tiny gap under the roof of her grandmother's house for seven years. She finally managed to escape to the free North where she was reunited with her two children and her brother. During the Civil War, she went to the Union-occupied parts of the South with her daughter and founded two schools for fugitive and freed slaves. They kept boarding houses together until 1887-88, when Harriet became too ill to continue. She died in 1897 in Washington D.C.