Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park (Episode 15)

Send us Fan MailMost of what we learned about Harriet Tubman in school fits in two paragraphs. The truth is so much larger.The two-pound weight thrown at her head that cracked her skull and gave her epileptic seizures for life. The 13 trips south — not just to free her family, but to liberate strangers. The Christmas Eve escape of 1854 when she blindfolded her own father so he could truthfully say he never saw her. The Combahee River Raid of June 1863 — a full month before Gettysburg — when she helped liberate 700 enslaved people in a single military operation.Ranger Tim Van Cleve joins The Parks Podcast from Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park in Church Creek, Maryland to tell the full story.In this episode: — How the park came to be — grassroots organizations in the 1970s, a national byway, and eventually a national monument under President Obama — Harriet Tubman's full story — from the two-pound weight to 13 trips south to the Combahee River Raid — The coded letter sent to Jacob Jackson in 1849 — how information traveled through the Underground Railroad — The Christmas Eve escape of 1854 — and why she blindfolded her own father — The Underground Railroad network — not just Maryland's Eastern Shore, but Iowa, Indiana, Texas, and Mexico — What to see and do at the park — the visitor center, the 16-minute film, the walking trail, the passport program — Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge — winter birding, thousands of ducks and geese, right next door — The Harriet Tubman Byway — 45 historical stops from southern Dorchester County to PhiladelphiaLinks mentioned: — Plan your visit: nps.gov/hatu — Harriet Tubman Byway: harriettubmanbyway.org — Visit Dorchester: visitdorchester.com — Soldier of Freedom film: YouTubeSupport the show