Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway
Places to Visit

• 

  Atkins Arboretum at Tuckahoe State Park (MD)

  The Atkins Arboretum offers programs and tours, while the rest of the park offers boating, fishing, camping, hiking, biking, horseback riding, canoeing, hunting, and picnicking opportunities along Tuckahoe Creek, a quiet country stream that slaves fleeing from the west would have had to cross.

  Location:	13070 Crouse Mill Road Queen Anne, MD 21657

• 

  Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge (MD)

  The isolated wetlands and forests in this 27,000-acre refuge have changed little since the mid-19th century. Almost completely surrounded by water, Dorchester County has a unique tidewater geography that presented freedom-seeking slaves with the prospect of crossing unknown tidal marshes and waterlogged forests floors, where drowning or quicksand were real hazards.

  Location:	2145 Key Wallace Drive Cambridge, MD 21613

• 

  Bucktown Village and Store (MD)

  It was in Bucktown, MD, around 1835, that Harriet Tubman committed her first act of defiance by refusing to assist an overseer subdue another slave. In the melee that ensued, Tubman received a blow to her head that fractured her skull. As a result of the injury, she experienced lifelong health problems and “visions” that clarified her beliefs and guided her actions. Today, only one store remains. The Bucktown Store has been lovingly restored to represent that seminal point in Tubman’s life.

  Location:	At the intersection of the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad byway and Bestpitch Ferry Road

• 

  Cambridge (MD)

  Founded in 1669, Cambridge’s history is entwined with slavery and Civil Rights. As the Dorchester County seat, it was the scene of slave auctions and trials. After the Civil War, it was a hub of African American life. Many found work in the booming oyster industry. In the 1900s, though segregated, the black community thrived. Cambridge became known as Groove City, and national performers came to perform in shows and dances. Today, the byway helps bring people together.

  Location:	Southeastern Maryland on the Chesapeake Bay and Choptank River

• 

  Choptank Village (MD)

  This tiny river town, known as Leonard’s Wharf in 1855, was a port and steamboat landing for the town of Preston. Little changed from the 19th century – the landing and harbor are still in use today. The village was the scene of at least one documented slave escape.

  Location:	Southeastern Maryland on the Choptank River Latitude 38.68 14 82 Longitude -75.95 09 21

• 

  Church Creek (MD)

  The waterfront town of Church Creek was a major shipbuilding center. Ben Ross, Harriet Tubman’s father, worked in the surrounding woods identifying the best trees for shipbuilding. During Tubman’s lifetime, scores of enslaved people fled from farms and shipyards in this area. Today, the farms and agricultural landscapes surrounded by water and woods have changed little since the early 19th century, when Tubman and her father lived and worked nearby.

  Location:	On either side of MD 16 from the intersection with Pig Neck Road to Stewart’s Canal in Madison

• 

  Dorchester County Courthouse (MD)

  The Dorchester County Courthouse, built in 1854, replaced an earlier one destroyed by fire. At that time, it was acceptable to hold slave auctions on the courthouse steps, and this was the scene of some daring escapes. In 1850, Harriet Tubman devised the rescue of her niece with two children, and in 1857, Rev. Samuel Greene, a free black suspected of helping fugitive slaves, was jailed for owning the book Uncle Tom’s Cabin. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

  Location:	206 High Street Cambridge, MD 21613 Latitude 38 34 25 21; Longitude 76 0440 51

• 

  Dorchester County Visitor Center (MD)

  The Dorchester County Visitor center, a Regional Information Center for the Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network, is the entry point to the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad's southern portion. The center showcases exhibits on the region's history and culture, particularly the Underground Railroad.

  Location:	On the south side of the Choptank River just off Route 50 East Latitude 38.571684 Longitude -76.063661

• 

  East New Market National Historic District (MD)

  Founded in 1673, East New Market (ENM) was a thriving center of commerce, including slave traders, for nearly three centuries before it was eclipsed by larger markets. Today, ENM boasts numerous fine examples of 18th, 19th, and 20th century architecture, best viewed on a self-guided walking tour.

  Location:	In the Town of East New Market on Linkwood Road between its two intersections with MD 16

• 

  Greensboro (MD)

  Freedom seekers traveling north along the Choptank River would secretly pass through the Greensboro landscape as they made their way north to the shallows at Red Bridges. It was at transportation and trading hubs like this one that free and enslaved blacks worked side-by-side. At times, information was exchanged, and plans for escape were hatched. Many years ago among these fields, Hugh Hazlett was captured with eight other fugitives and sent back to Cambridge for trial.

  Location:	Greensboro landscapes lie along the byway, MD 313, between MD 317 and MD 287 at the Mason and Dixon Line. The Town of Greensboro is located at Latitude: 38 58 24 08; Longitude: 75 48 21 01