Lets talk about someone special, Harriet Tubman (1820-1913) born a slave and over her life rescued about 70 people from slavery. At the age of five she was rented out by her owners as a domestic servant. When she was young she suffered a traumatic head wound after an irate slave own threw a metal weight at another slave but it hit Harriet instead. As a result of this she had pain and dizzy spells for the rest of her life.
In 1849 she escaped slavery and often returned to the south to help take others to freedom. During the civil war she worked for the union army as a cook, a nurse, an armed scout and a spy (now that's multi-tasking)! Harriet was the first woman to lead an armed expedition in the war which resulted in her infantry liberating over 700 slaves. After the war she helped to create a home for elderly African American's which she eventually lived in. In her later years she was also an active member of the woman's suffrage movement.
I recently listened to a podcast called "You're dead to me" which featured her, if you want more amazing facts about her check it out. I am honestly in awe of the woman and so this block is inspired by her.
It is believed that quilts were used to communicate information to slaves about how to escape to their freedom via the Underground Railroad.
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