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Underground Railroad Online Handbook

From the National Park Service and Dickinson College

  • Home
  • Overview Essays
    • Dedication
    • Foreword by Diane Miller
    • Introduction by Matthew Pinsker
    • Epilogue by RJM Blackett
  • Thematic Essays
    • Five Steps to Understanding Freedom Seekers (Cohen)
    • US Constitution and Fugitive Slave Laws (Finkelman)
    • State Laws and Freedom Seeking (Baker)
    • The Abolitionist Underground (Sinha)
    • Religion and the Underground Railroad (LaRoche)
    • Women on the Underground Railroad (Larson)
    • Violence and Black Resistance (Jackson)
    • The Politics of Fugitive Slaves (Oakes)
    • Civil War “Contraband Camps” (Manning)
    • Underground Railroad Historiography (Crew)
    • Myths of the Underground Railroad (Bordewich)
  • Regional Essays
    • Escaping on the Northwestern Frontier (Johnson)
    • Freedom Seekers on the Southwestern Frontier (Baumgartner)
    • Southern Maroon Communities (Pargas)
    • The Atlantic Coastal Freedom Network (Newby-Alexander)
    • The Underground Railroad in the Ohio River Valley (Churchill)
    • Escaping In and Around Washington, DC, Maryland & Virginia (Harrold)
    • The Underground Railroad in the Middle Atlantic Region (Foner)
    • The New England Network to Freedom (Grover)
    • Reconsidering the Underground Railroad in Canada West (Barker)
  • Timeline
  • Network To Freedom
  • Resources
    • Index of People
    • Map Room
    • Image Gallery
    • Featured Videos
    • Student Projects
    • Web Guide
    • Further Reading
    • About the Authors
  • Home
  • Overview Essays
    • Dedication
    • Foreword by Diane Miller
    • Introduction by Matthew Pinsker
    • Epilogue by RJM Blackett
  • Thematic Essays
    • Five Steps to Understanding Freedom Seekers (Cohen)
    • US Constitution and Fugitive Slave Laws (Finkelman)
    • State Laws and Freedom Seeking (Baker)
    • The Abolitionist Underground (Sinha)
    • Religion and the Underground Railroad (LaRoche)
    • Women on the Underground Railroad (Larson)
    • Violence and Black Resistance (Jackson)
    • The Politics of Fugitive Slaves (Oakes)
    • Civil War “Contraband Camps” (Manning)
    • Underground Railroad Historiography (Crew)
    • Myths of the Underground Railroad (Bordewich)
  • Regional Essays
    • Escaping on the Northwestern Frontier (Johnson)
    • Freedom Seekers on the Southwestern Frontier (Baumgartner)
    • Southern Maroon Communities (Pargas)
    • The Atlantic Coastal Freedom Network (Newby-Alexander)
    • The Underground Railroad in the Ohio River Valley (Churchill)
    • Escaping In and Around Washington, DC, Maryland & Virginia (Harrold)
    • The Underground Railroad in the Middle Atlantic Region (Foner)
    • The New England Network to Freedom (Grover)
    • Reconsidering the Underground Railroad in Canada West (Barker)
  • Timeline
  • Network To Freedom
  • Resources
    • Index of People
    • Map Room
    • Image Gallery
    • Featured Videos
    • Student Projects
    • Web Guide
    • Further Reading
    • About the Authors

Thematic Essays

  • Anthony Cohen, Five Steps to Understanding Freedom Seekers
  • Paul Finkelman, US Constitution & Fugitive Slave Laws
  • H. Robert Baker, State Laws and Freedom Seeking
  • Manisha Sinha, The Abolitionist Underground
  • Cheryl Janifer LaRoche, Religion and the Underground Railroad
  • Kate Clifford Larson, Women on the Underground Railroad
  • Kellie Carter Jackson, Violence and Black Resistance
  • James Oakes, The Politics of Fugitive Slaves
  • Charndra Manning, Civil War “Contrabands Camps”
  • Spencer Crew, Underground Railroad Historiography
  • Fergus M. Bordewich, Myths of the Underground Railroad

 

Credits

Editor
Matthew Pinsker
House Divided Project
Dickinson College
Carlisle, PA 17013
Tel: 717-245-1865
hdivided@dickinson.edu

Publisher
NPS Network to Freedom
Ka’mal McClarin
Diane Miller

Contract Partner
ASALH
Sylvia Y. Cyrus

Essay Authors
H. Robert Baker
Gordon S. Barker
Alice L. Baumgartner
R.J.M. Blackett
Fergus M. Bordewich
Robert H. Churchill
Anthony Cohen
Spencer Crew
Paul Finkelman
Eric Foner
Kathryn Grover
Stanley Harrold
Kellie Carter Jackson
Déanda Johnson
Cheryl Janifer LaRoche
Kate Clifford Larson
Chandra Manning
Cassandra L. Newby-Alexander
James Oakes
Damian Alan Pargas
Manisha Sinha

Assistant Editors
Rick Beard
Cooper H. Wingert

Student interns
Forbes
Charlotte Goodman
Gabe Pinsker
Jordan Schucker

Disclaimer

This material was produced through a contract with the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), funded by the Department of the Interior, National Park Service.  Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of ASALH, Dickinson College, or the Department of the Interior.

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How to Cite this Page

Underground Railroad Online Handbook (May 29, 2025) Thematic Essays. Retrieved from https://housedivided.dickinson.edu/sites/ugrr/thematic-essays/.
"Thematic Essays." Underground Railroad Online Handbook - May 29, 2025, https://housedivided.dickinson.edu/sites/ugrr/thematic-essays/
Underground Railroad Online Handbook August 10, 2021 Thematic Essays., viewed May 29, 2025,<https://housedivided.dickinson.edu/sites/ugrr/thematic-essays/>
Underground Railroad Online Handbook - Thematic Essays. [Internet]. [Accessed May 29, 2025]. Available from: https://housedivided.dickinson.edu/sites/ugrr/thematic-essays/
"Thematic Essays." Underground Railroad Online Handbook - Accessed May 29, 2025. https://housedivided.dickinson.edu/sites/ugrr/thematic-essays/
"Thematic Essays." Underground Railroad Online Handbook [Online]. Available: https://housedivided.dickinson.edu/sites/ugrr/thematic-essays/. [Accessed: May 29, 2025]

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