In celebration of our national heritage, we continue our Pride in America series by honoring one of the famous freedom fighters of the 19th Century, Harriet Tubman. 

The woman history knows as Harriet Tubman was actually born as Araminta Ross in c. 1822 in Dorchester County, Maryland. She was born into slavery, and as a result, her childhood was marred by regular violence. When she was a teenager, she sustained a severe head injury from being struck by a two-pound weight on the back of her head. The blow split open her skull and left her with a permanent and, at times, debilitating disability. She struggled with seizures, headaches, and narcolepsy throughout the remainder of her life.   

From an early age, Araminta dreamt of freedom. She met her husband, John Tubman, on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, and the two were married in 1844. Upon their union, she changed her name to “Harriet” after her mother. In 1849, driven by her faith and the unrelenting desire to live as a free woman, she escaped slavery with the help of the Underground Railroad and was “guided by the stars” to Philadelphia.

In 1850, Tubman decided to return to Maryland to free her family. Her first mission was a success, and she successfully led members of her family and a few friends to freedom. Her second trip was also a success, and on her third, she went back for her husband. Unfortunately, she found him remarried with a pregnant wife, believing Harriet had been killed.

Over the course of a decade, she made approximately 13 missions from Maryland to Canada and personally rescued more than 70 enslaved men, women, and children. Her efforts earned her the nickname "Moses," likening her to the Biblical figure who led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. 

During the Civil War, Harriet expanded her role in the fight against slavery. She served the Union Army as a field nurse, cook, scout, and even a spy. In 1863, she and Union Colonel James Montgomery led an armed expedition in the war, the Combahee River Raid, which freed more than 700 enslaved people in South Carolina. Her leadership and bravery became something akin to folklore amongst Union and Confederate soldiers alike. 

Harriet believed her life’s calling was fighting for freedom, and she did so long after the War’s conclusion. She is famously credited with saying, “There was one of two things I had a right to, liberty or death; if I could not have one, I would have the other.” In her later years, she was active in the women's suffrage movement and continued to advocate for equality for all Americans. 

Her life is a testament to extraordinary courage and an unyielding commitment to freedom. Her life and legacy remind us that there is no cost too high for freedom.