Harriet tubman biography timeline templates
Written solely for the National Park Service. Do not otherwise cite, quote or copy.
Margaret Washington
Cornell University
January 2014
Harriet Tubman--White Paper
INTRODUCTION
On March 25, 2013, President Barack Obama proclaimed Maryland's Eastern Shore the site for the Harriet Tubman Underground National Monument. "We are grateful to President Obama,” stated Governor O'Malley. "Thanks to the hard work and commitment of many, Harriet Tubman's legacy will live on forever."
As President Barack Obama's Proclamation maintains, the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Monument, commemorates her life and work in its broadest civic scope. Desig
This is a biographical report flip book for writing about Harriet Tubman.
The booklet includes:
- Mini Biography
- A Day in My Life
- Timeline with cut-and-glue pieces
MINI BIOGRAPHY
Students will research Tubman to find out where she lived, was born and died, and her "Claim to Fame." They will also write a summary of her life focusing on important facts and accomplishments.
A DAY IN MY LIFE
This page lets students practice a different style of writing: a news report about one important event in Harriet Tubman's life. Students should include factual information such as dates, locations, other people present, and sequence of events.
TIMELINE
This page features a timeline template and pre-written facts about Harriet Tubman. Students will research each event to find out when it happened. They will then glue each event onto the timeline in the correct order and add the corresponding date.
DIGITAL ACTIVITY
This product is enabled as an Easel Activity, so you can assign it to students through your online learning platform (LMS) to be completed on any device. The biography flip book has already been prepared for digital use with text boxes for students to type in.
Tubman was born into slavery in 1822, and later escaped from Dorchester County, Maryland to Philadelphia where she lived as a freewoman
Once free, Tubman dedicated her life to the abolition of slavery as a conductor on the Underground Railroad. She brought approximately 70 enslaved African Americans to freedom in the north
Tubman remained a philanthropist well into her later years, founding the Home for Aged & Indigent Negroes and supporting women’s rights
"I had reasoned this out in my mind; there was one of two things I had the right to, liberty or death; if I could not have one, I would have the other.” – Harriet Tubman, 1886
Early Life
Born Araminta Ross (and affectionately called "Minty") in March of 1822 to parents Harriet (Rit) Green Ross and Benjamin Ross, Tubman was one of nine children. The Ross family were enslaved in Dorchester County, Maryland. Chattel slavery determined that Black people were property that were bought and sold. The children of enslaved women were also considered enslaved, regardless of whether their fathers were enslaved or not. Such was the case for Tubman and her siblings as Benjamin was free, but Rit was not (University at Buffalo). The Ross’ enslaver, Edward Brodess, did not allow the family to remain together and worked to split them up through the assignment of work. Separated from Benjamin Ross at a young age, Rit, Araminta and her siblings worked on a different farm owned by the Brodesses in Bucktown, Maryland (NPS n.d.).
Griffith, Dennis, James Thackara, and J Vallance. Map of the State of Maryland laid down from an actual survey of all the principal waters, public roads, and divisions of the counties therein; describing the situation of the cities, towns, villages, houses of worship and other public buildings, furnaces, forges, mills, and other remarkable places; and of the Federal Territory; as also a sketch of the State of Delaware shewing the probable connexion of the Chesapeake and Delaw
Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad
Lesson Plan Details
During the first half of the 19th century, the size and popularity of the railway system in the U.S. contributed to the code names slaves and abolitionists used to describe the operations of the Underground Railroad, such as “passenger”, “cargo”, “station”, “depot”, “stockholder”, and “conductor”. Because many slave and abolitionists were well-versed in the bible, they also used biblical code words, such as “River Jordan”, “Heaven”, “Promised Land”, and “Moses”.
The facilitators, or conductors, of the Underground Railroad, typically comprised free black persons in the North, formerly escaped slaves, and abolitionists of all backgrounds, such as Thaddeus Stevens, William Still, Thomas Garrett, Isaac Hopper, John Brown, Elijah Anderson, Levi Coffin, and, of course, Harriet Tubman. While it was harder to for slaves to flee from the most southern states—like Alabama and Mississippi—because they were surrounded by other slave-holding states, nearly every state had some Underground Railroad activity. Refer to this list of historic Underground Railway locations to see if one is in your area.
According to the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom, the preferred term for an enslaved person running away from bondage toward freedom is a “freedom-seeker.” The terms “fugitive,” “escapee,” or “runaway” all suggest that the person fleeing forced labor was somehow at fault for seeking liberation.
Similarly a person who kept slaves as property is a “slave holder” and not a “slave master” or “slave owner,” since the latter two terms connote a relationship of superiority over other human beings. These vocabulary terms and others—such as personal liberty laws, redemption, and manumission—can be found on the "Language of Slavery”page hosted by the National Park Service.
NCSS.D2.His.1.9-12. Evaluate how historical events and developments were shaped by unique circumstances of time and place