Highways to History: The Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway in Delaware

In 2009, the Underground Railroad Coalition of Delaware and the National Park Service's National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom sponsored an application nominating a succession of Delaware roads and highways for designation as the "Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway." Maryland already has a Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway that starts in Dorchester County, where Tubman spent her childhood. But until now the byway ended abruptly at the Delaware border, leaving history buffs and descendants of those extraordinary freedom seekers literally at loose ends. Thanks to the Coaltion, we can all "follow the drinking gourd" now, from Maryland through Delaware to the free state of Pennsylvania and eventually New York.

The proposed Tubman Byway crosses the Maryland/Delaware border near the unassuming village of Sandtown on Route 10 in Kent County. It follows Route 10 through Petersburg to Camden, where there was a strong Quaker Community. Take the Camden Wyoming Avenue loop around Camden to Route 13, and turn north to follow the Byway to Dover.

Eight of the nine Delaware sites that are part of the Park Service's Underground Railroad Network to Freedom are also part of the proposed Tubman Byway. The first is the historic State House in Dover, where Samuel Burris was tried for assisting escaped slaves. The Governors Mansion in Dover, "Woodburn," may also have been a "station" on the Underground Railroad.  Alledgedly, there was once a secret tunnel linking the mansion with the St. Jones River where escaping slaves could sail to freedom on the Delaware River.

From the State House the Tubman Byway follows State Street to Route 15, then north to Middletown. From Middletown take Route 299 east to historic Odessa. The Byway passes two important sites in Odessa - the Appoquinimink Friends Meeting House and the Corbit-Sharp House, a National Historic Landmark and part of the Historic Houses of Odessa Foundation.

Lucky for us, the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway in Delaware is not only historic but scenic! In fact, the route from Odessa to New Castle, a portion of the "Route 9 Coast Heritage Scenic Byway," traverses some of the most beautiful wetlands and bird sanctuaries in the country.

New Castle is the most historic community in Delaware - its association with the Underground Railroad being just one of many reasons. The National Landmark New Castle Court House is where Underground Railroad "station master" and Harriett Tubman partner, Thomas Garrett, personally assisted in the escape of a slave family; and it's the location of the infamous trial of station master, John Hunn, who was convicted of violating the Fugitive Slave Acts.

The Tubman Byway continues on Route 9 to Wilmington, where the final four sites are located. They include: Fort Christina State Park where fugitive slaves landed by boat; Tubman-Garrett Park, commemorating the legacy of Harriett Tubman and Wilmington's Thomas Garrett; the site of Garrett's Wilmington home; and, the Friends Meeting House and Cemetery in historic Quaker Hill, a hotbed of the anti-slavery movement in northern Delaware and the burial site of Thomas Garrett, himself. From Wilmington, Garrett arranged passage for more than 2,700 slaves to the free state of Pennsylvania via historic Kennett Pike (Route 52), the last leg of the Tubman Byway in Delaware. For more information about Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad in Delaware, check out Harriett Tubman.com.

Delaware has a multitude of scenic byways and just as many historic highways, but no route is more scenic and historic than the proposed Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway!

TravelTip: Byway travelers really need to have a copy of the 139-page Tubman Byway nomination package with them to fully appreciate the depth and breadth of the research that has gone into this project. A pdf copy can be downloaded from http://dspace.udel.edu:8080/dspace/handle/19716/3411 at the University of Delaware.