Harriet Tubman Facts – 36 Interesting Facts About Harriet Tubman

Facts About Harriet Tubman

She worked with the Union Army as a chef, a nurse and worked on dangerous intelligence gathering missions.

She married Nelson Davis and adopted a child, Gertie after the Civil War.

She was diagnosed with Narcolepsy or sleeping spells and would fall asleep at any place or time and was caused by a blow to her head. She believed that her hair which she never combed cushioned the blow and might have saved her life.

She was troubled with constant headaches, seizures and had vivid dreams caused by the traumatic injury she suffered as a teen. She later attributed her powerful visions to god and helped her guide on many rendezvous to the North, while leading slaves to freedom.

She had a premonition about her impending end when she told her friends and family “I go to prepare a place for you.” She was buried with full military honors in 1913.

She was considered the best known ‘conductors’ of Underground Railways.

By the start of 1835, nearly 50% off the African American population on the eastern shore of Maryland was free.

Harriet along with her two brothers, Harry and Ben were able to escape but her brothers were not very excited by the idea of being free and returned to the plantation. Harriet however did not look back and successfully made it to the Pennsylvania, a free state.

Harriet used the Underground Railroads to ferret fugitive slaves into free territories. She was helped in this venture by abolitionists and Free African Americans. They established secret passages and a network of safe houses which were used extensively.

The first family which was freed by Harriett was her niece Kessiah and her husband John Bowley and their two kids in 1850.