Lesson 2-Heading Toward War

Some people claimed that owning slaves was morally wrong. Other people claimed that slavery was necessary to preserve their way of life.

The Fight over Slavery People that wanted to abolish, or end slavery were called abolitionists. Sarah and Angelina Grimke were two sisters from South Carolina. They were abolitionists and said that the abolition of slavery was a cause worth dying for. William Lloyd Garrison was another famous abolitionists. He founded The Liberator (abolitionist newspaper) and the Anti-American Slavery Society.

Frederick Douglass also spoke out against slavery. He was born into slavery and escaped! After he escaped, Frederick Douglass published The North Star (an anti-slavery newspaper). Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin in 1852. This novel described the cruelty that enslaved people endured. The book turned many people against slavery! Why would former slaves write about their experiences? (Although, Harriet Beecher Stowe was not a former slave.) STOP! NEWSELA 

A Route to Freedom The Underground Railroad started in the 1830s. This was a secret network of trails, river crossings, and hiding places that people escape slavery! Passengers were people who decided to escape. Conductors helped enslaved people escape. Stations were the houses where passengers could rest and eat.

Jermain Loguen was a successful conductor on the Underground Railroad. He was an escaped slave that wanted to help others. Harriet Tubman, another escaped slave, was a famous conductor as well!

Open up the pdf link “Underground Railroad additional information” for more info about the Underground Railroad! Then listen to the song, Follow The Drinking Gourd!”