The Underground Railroad

The transatlantic slave trade and the fugitive slave laws in the late 18th century led to a significant increase in the number of people seeking freedom. Runaway slaves were often aided in their escape by a growing network of people who saw slavery as morally reprehensible. This network, the Underground Railroad, was first organized in the 1830s and continued on through the Civil War, growing and evolving as owners hunted down runaways. The system eventually disappeared with the official end of