Step back in time and immerse yourself in the journey to freedom enslaved people took across Maryland as they slipped silently from the South, hiding in basements and clinging to hope.
Maryland happens to harbor many Underground Railroad sites that are open to the public. Since September is International Underground Railroad Month, Patch has put together a list of stops along the network that Marylanders can visit yet this fall.
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One notable site is the Mt. Clare Station in Baltimore where visitors enter an actual 19th century railroad station through which documented freedom seekers traveled. That railroad had one path heading north, although traveling by train could be risky, historians note. Built in 1851, Mt. Clare Station also is the oldest surviving building on the historic B&O Railroad Museum campus and is a National Historic Landmark.
The Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad State Park and Visitor Center in Church Creek spans 17 acres and sits on the fields, marshes and waterways where Tubman was born into slavery. Although she escaped slavery, Tubman repeatedly returned to Maryland to help family members and others escape.
The visitor center details Tubman's childhood and early life in Maryland to her escape from from slavery and then her work as an Underground Railroad conductor. There's also a documentary, museum store and research library at the center.
The Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad State Park anchors the 125-mile Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway.
Eastern Shore
- Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park & Visitor Center — 4068 Golden Hill Road, Church Creek, MD 21622
- Harriet Tubman Museum and Educational Center — 424 Race St., Cambridge, MD 21613
- Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Scenic Byway — Visitor information: 2 Rose Hill Place, Cambridge, MD 21613
- Button's Creek/Jane Kane Escape Site — MD Route 335 at Blackwater River, Church Creek, MD 21622
- Dorchester County Courthouse — 206 High St., Cambridge, MD 21613
- Long Wharf — 100 High St., Cambridge, MD 21613
- Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge — 2145 Key Wallace Drive, Cambridge, MD 21613
- Staplefort Farm/Bob Manokey Escape Site at Blackwater — Access through Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, 2145 Key Wallace Drive, Cambridge, MD 21613
- Malone's Methodist Episcopal Church — 4753 White Marsh Road, Madison, MD 21648
- Parson's Creek/Keene Family Escape Route — Parson's Creek at Route 16, Madison, MD 21648
- Poplar Neck Plantation at Marsh Creek — Poplar Neck Road at the northwest side of Marsh Creek Bridge, Preston, MD 21655
- Joseph Cornish Escape From Gilpin's Point — Holly Park Drive, Harmony, MD 21655
- Caroline County Courthouse and Jail — 109 Market St., Denton, MD 21629
- Denton Steamboat Wharf — 10219 River Landing Road, Denton, MD 21629
- Choptank River/Wharves of Choptank — 10215 River Landing Road, West Denton, MD 21629
- Richard Potter Home Site — 9 N. Fourth St., Denton, MD 21629
- William Still Interpretive Center — Caroline County 4-H Park, 8230 Detour Road, Denton, MD 21629
- Isaac Mason Escape Site — 101 Spring Ave., Chestertown, MD 21620
- Henry Highland Garnet Escape Site — MD Route 291 west of MD Route 290, Chesterville, MD 21620
- St. Stephen's AME Cemetery at Unionville — 9467 Unionville Road, Unionville, MD 21601
- Frederick Douglass Park on the Tuckahoe — 13213 Lewistown Road, Queen Anne, MD 21657
- Tuckahoe Neck Meeting House — 24820 Meeting House Road, Denton, MD 21629
- Perryville Railroad Ferry and Station Site — Perry Point VA campus; GPS/visitor destination: 59 Avenue D, Perry Point, MD 21902
- Chesapeake & Delaware Canal Museum — 815 Bethel Road, Chesapeake City, MD 21915
- St. Augustine Church — 310 George St., Chesapeake City, MD 21915
- Turkey Point Farm/Turkey Point Lighthouse — 4395 Turkey Point Road, North East, MD 21901
- Union Bethel AME Church of Cecilton — 159 Church St., Cecilton, MD 21913
Harford County
Howard County
- Elkridge Furnace — 5745 Furnace Ave., Elkridge, MD 21075
- 1843 Howard County Courthouse — 8360 Court Ave., Ellicott City, MD 21043
- Howard County First Courthouse Site — Ellicott Mills Drive at Main Street, Ellicott City, MD 21043 (The courthouse no longer stands; this is the historic site.)
- Howard County Jail — 1 Emory St., Ellicott City, MD 21043
- Museum of Howard County History — 8328 Court Ave., Ellicott City, MD 21043
Baltimore and Baltimore County
- Dugan's Wharf Underground Railroad Marker — National Aquarium Pier 4, 501 E. Pratt St., Baltimore, MD 21202
- Historic President Street Station — 601 President St., Baltimore, MD 21202
- Mount Clare Museum House — 1500 Washington Blvd., Baltimore, MD 21230
- Mount Clare Station/National Museum of Railroad History & Innovation — 901 W. Pratt St., Baltimore, MD 21223
- Frederick Douglass Freedom and Heritage Trail — Fells Point, Baltimore (This is a walking route rather than a single building.)
- Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture — 830 E. Pratt St., Baltimore, MD 21202
- Hampton National Historic Site — 535 Hampton Lane, Towson, MD 21286
- Reddy Gray Burial Site at Loudon Park National Cemetery — 3445 Frederick Ave., Baltimore, MD 21229
Annapolis and Anne Arundel County
- Maryland State House — 91 State Circle, Annapolis, MD 21401
- Banneker-Douglass-Tubman Museum — 84 Franklin St., Annapolis, MD 21401
- Goshen Farm — 1420 Cape St. Claire Road, Annapolis, MD 21409
- Annapolis City Dock/Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Memorial — 1 Dock St., Annapolis, MD 21401 (This waterfront area interprets Annapolis' connections to slavery and African American history.)
Prince George's County
- Belair Mansion — 12207 Tulip Grove Drive, Bowie, MD 20715
- Northampton Plantation and Slave Quarters Archaeological Park — 10915 Water Port Court, Bowie, MD 20721
- Marietta Historic Site & Museum — 5626 Bell Station Road, Glenn Dale, MD 20769
- Riversdale Historic Site & Museum — 4811 Riverdale Road, Riverdale Park, MD 20737
- Darnall's Chance House Museum — 14800 Governor Oden Bowie Drive, Upper Marlboro, MD 20772
- Mount Calvert Historic Site — 16801 Mount Calvert Road, Upper Marlboro, MD 20772
- Concord Historic Site at Walker Mill Regional Park — 8000 Walker Mill Road, District Heights, MD 20747
- Berry Farm at Oxon Cove Park/Oxon Hill Farm — 6411 Oxon Hill Road, Oxon Hill, MD 20745
- Mouth of Swan Creek Escape Site at Fort Washington Park — 13551 Fort Washington Road, Fort Washington, MD 20744
- Elizabeth Keckly Burial Site at National Harmony Memorial Park — 7101 Sheriff Road, Hyattsville/Landover, MD 20785
Montgomery County
- Underground Railroad Experience Trail at Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park — 16501 Norwood Road, Sandy Spring, MD 20860
- Josiah Henson Museum and Park — 11420 Old Georgetown Road, North Bethesda, MD 20852
- William Chaplin Arrest Site at Jesup Blair Park — 900 Jesup Blair Drive/Road, Silver Spring, MD 20912
- Forging Freedom Underground Railroad Walking Tour — Starting point/visitor information: 29 Courthouse Square, Rockville, MD 20850
- Button Farm Living History Center — 16820 Black Rock Road, Germantown, MD 20874 (Button Farm)
- Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park — Great Falls/Potomac area — 11710 MacArthur Blvd., Potomac, MD 20854
Frederick County
Southern Maryland
- Historic Sotterley — 44300 Sotterley Lane, Hollywood, MD 20636
- Old Jail Museum & Leonardtown Visitor Center — 41625 Court House Drive, Leonardtown, MD 20650
- Port Tobacco Courthouse — 7215 Chapel Point Road, Port Tobacco, MD 20677
- Jails at Port Tobacco Courthouse Site — 8430 Commerce St., Port Tobacco, MD 20677
- Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum — 10515 Mackall Road, St. Leonard, MD 20685
- Commemorative to Enslaved Peoples of Southern Maryland at St. Mary's College — 47777 Mattapany Road, St. Mary's City, MD 20686
- Camp Stanton — South side of MD Route 231/Prince Frederick Road, Hughesville, MD 20637 (This is an outdoor historic site rather than a building with a numbered address.)
- Point Lookout State Park & Civil War Museum — 11175 Point Lookout Road, Scotland, MD 20687
Western Maryland