Harriet Tubman was a legendary lady that made an impact on the world at a crucial time. Born as Araminta Ross, she later changed her first name to Harriet, after her mother. She is most notably known as a “conductor” on the Underground Railroad during the 1850s, where she risked her life to help slaves escape to freedom in the North. Originally born a slave on Maryland’s eastern shore, she lived in a one-room cabin with her family, which included 11 children. At around the age of six, she left her family to work as a house servant, and seven years later she was sent to work in the fields with the rest of the slaves.

At the age of 13, Tubman suffered a serious head injury when she was visiting a neighboring town. It is said that Tubman was at the wrong place at the wrong time, when a slave owner tried to throw an iron weight at another slave’s head, and she was in the way. This accident nearly killed her, and it caused her to have dizzy spells and blackouts for the remainder of her life.

Around 1844, she married a free black man by the name of John Tubman (whose name she happily took). In 1849, Tubman fled slavery, leaving her husband and family behind to escape the harsh reality that was her life. By following the North Star at night, Tubman made her way to Pennsylvania and Philadelphia, where she eventually was able to find work and save up money. After a year of working, she returned to Maryland to help her sister and her sister’s two children escape to freedom. Once she rescued her sister and her children, she took another dangerous trip to the South to rescue her brother and two other men. On her third return, she attempted to rescue her husband, only to find that he had found another wife while she was away. Feeling defeated, Tubman found a passion for helping other slaves find freedom, and she worked hard to escort hundreds of them to the North.

Some other interesting facts about Harriet Tubman, include:

• Tubman’s nickname as a child was “Minty”
• After helping her parents escape from slavery, she bought them a house in Auburn, New York
• Slave owners offered a reward of $40,000 for Tubman’s capture
• She led 19 different escapes from the South to the North Tubman had one daughter named Gertie, whom she had with her second husband named Nelson Davis
• Before her death in 1913, Tubman told her friends and family, "I go to prepare a place for you."
• She was buried with military honors in Fort Hill Cemetery in New York

Our Legendary Ladies: Harriet Tubman

At Our Legendary Ladies, our passion is to encourage parents to not only read to their children at a young age, but to go beyond the basics of numbers, colors, and animals by learning about prominent historical women. If you’re ready to teach your little one about the remarkable Harriet Tubman, order our children’s book online today!