Experts Digging In Maryland Have Finally Solved An Enduring Mystery About Harriet Tubman

Deep in the woods of Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay, a diminutive woman struggles through the hostile terrain. Following in her footsteps is a stream of escaped slaves making a desperate bid for freedom and liberty in the north. Two centuries later, the story of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad is well known. But one mystery has endured across the years.

Buried beneath the marsh

Now, thanks to the work of a Maryland archaeologist and her team, that mystery has finally been solved. Since 2020 Julie Schablitsky has been investigating a tract of land operating as a reserve by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. And she’s found something incredible buried beneath the marsh.

A hazy history

So what exactly did Schablitsky and her colleagues unearth at the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge? And what can it tell us about the life of one of America’s most famous abolitionists? For years, Tubman’s role in history has been taught in colleges and schools — but one aspect of her story has remained curiously obscured.

Delving into the past

By delving into the marshy forests of Tubman’s home county, though, Schablitsky has managed to uncover more of the American heroine’s past. And what she’s discovered provides a fascinating insight into the woman who led scores of slaves to freedom. At last, the truth about the former slave’s early years has been revealed.

Early struggles

The daughter of Ben Ross, an Underground Railroad conductor, and his wife Rit, Tubman was born into a life of slavery. And back then, even marriage wasn’t a guarantee that African-American families could stay together. When she was just six years old, Harriet was sent away to work in a stranger’s home.

Specializing

As she grew older, Tubman began to specialize in outdoor work. Under her father’s guidance, she learned a number of useful skills, including breaking flax to make linen, trapping and using a team of oxen to transport logs. Though she measured just five feet in height, Harriet was a hard worker and soon grew surprisingly strong.

A degree of autonomy

In the harsh world of pre-Civil War America, Tubman’s skills gave her a degree of autonomy. And after her father was freed and granted a tract of land, she was able to live with him in the cabin that he had built. But that wasn’t the only useful thing to come out of her time spent working the land.

Navigating the distance

You see, Tubman would go on to become one of the great heroes of the resistance, helping dozens of slaves escape to the free states in the north. It was, of course, a dangerous business, and one that involved traveling through vast tracts of remote and wooded land. Luckily, though, the young woman knew just how to navigate such challenging terrain.

Wilderness knowledge

“Her father taught her things like how to make your way through streams, rivers and marshes,” Kate Clifford Larson, who wrote a biography of Tubman, Bound for the Promised Land, told The New York Times in April 2021. “And how to navigate that landscape without getting trapped.” But where exactly did these life lessons take place? Historians have never been sure.

Freedom went north

When she was 22, Tubman got married and moved out of her father’s home. But she was still far from a free woman, and in 1849 she got wind of a plot to sell her to another family. Harriet decided to flee. At the time, slavery was still legal in Maryland and the neighboring state of Delaware, but freedom awaited in the north.

A special bit of knowledge

In fact, slaves had been emancipated in Pennsylvania since 1780, long before the rest of the United States would follow suit. And so, Tubman set out on a perilous journey, traveling some 140 miles to Philadelphia. Despite a price on her head, she succeeded. Harriet’s father had told her that moss grew towards the north and she used this to guide her journey.

Moving slowly forward

Navigating the woods of Maryland and beyond, Tubman used her survival skills to find her way north, remaining undetected as she crept through the landscape. But when she finally reached Philadelphia — and freedom — she did not settle into a quiet life. Instead, she turned around and went back to help those still enslaved in the south. 

Disguised over the years

Over the next 10 years, Tubman made at least 13 separate journeys back to Maryland — often in disguise — each time guiding escaped slaves to safety in the north. And according to historians, she helped some 70 people to find freedom in this way — including her own brothers, parents and friends.

An expansive network

Tubman, you see, was part of the Underground Railroad — the network of safe houses and escape routes that ran across the United States in the mid-19th century. Through this network, countless slaves were able to flee their bondage and relocate to the free states, Canada or even further afield. Historians estimate that as many as 100,000 people may have been liberated in this way.

Icon of the railroad

Of course, such a complex operation involved the cooperation of countless sympathetic supporters, and many of these people remain unsung heroes to this day. Tubman, though, has gone down in history. Dubbed “Moses” by those she helped, she remains one of the most famous icons of the Underground Railroad.

Immortalized in history

Given Tubman’s fame, artifacts and relics relating to her life continue to be popular today. Take her shawl and hymn book, for example, which currently reside in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. Through them, we are afforded a glimpse into the life of a woman who changed America.

Monument status

Similarly, tourists flock to the Harriet Tubman National Historic Park, a collection of properties in Auburn, New York, where she spent her later years. But what of her home back in Maryland, the place where she learned the skills she would need to survive on the Underground Railroad? Surely, you would think, that building should be an equally significant monument?

Unverifiable location

As it turns out, historians have never actually been able to pinpoint the spot where Tubman spent her earlier years. But for some time there have been rumors that the home was located on the land now occupied by the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge. Because the site has been in private hands, though, would-be archaeologists have been unable to take a closer look.

Re-purchased land

Then, in 2020 the land was purchased by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service with the aim of replacing lost habitats in the region. And when new manager Marcia Pradines arrived, she began to wonder about the site’s fascinating past. So, she reached out to Maryland archaeologist Julie Schablitsky, and a plan began to take shape. 

Drawing a blank

But where to even start looking for the cabin of Harriet’s father, Ben Ross? Initially, Schablitsky and her team turned to historical records, which gave them a vague idea of where the structure might once have stood. Even after digging in over 1,000 test sites, though, they were still drawing a blank.

Bust out the metal detectors

“We were coming up basically empty-handed,” Schablitsky told the Washington Post in April 2021. “I’m like, ‘Where is this place? Where is this place?’” Then, with little else to go on, the archaeologist decided to use her metal detector in a new location. And it was here that the mystery finally began to unravel.

Hitting the jackpot

As Schablitsky moved her device over the surface of an old road, it let out a telltale sound. Finally, she was in luck. After recovering a couple of small artifacts, the archaeologist hit the jackpot: an old coin covered in mud. As she wiped it clean, she saw that it was dated 1808 — the year of Ben and Rit’s marriage. 

The 'Eureka moment'

“When I looked at the date I couldn’t believe it,” Schablitsky continued. “It was totally a eureka moment.” Now confident that they were closer to their target, the team returned to the area in March 2021 and continued to dig. And before long, a number of additional artifacts were discovered.

More and more items

In fact, the relics just kept on coming. Old nails, pieces of broken brick, everyday items such as buttons and pipe stems: archaeologists unearthed them all one by one. But perhaps the biggest clue came in the form of several ceramic shards, each bearing patterns that allowed the team to date them.

Buried for years

According to reports, experts believe that the shards date from between the 1820s and the 1840s. In other words, their age coincides with the period during which Ben lived at the cabin. Speaking to the Washington Post, Schablitsky said, “That’s when we had our… moment. That’s when we knew this was it. Because it couldn’t be anywhere else.”

Establishing certainty

Finally, the team were able to confirm their suspicions: they had located the site of the cabin where Tubman lived as a young woman. But how could they know for sure? Of the momentous discovery, Schablitsky explained, “It’s not just one artifact that tells us we have something. It’s the assemblage. It’s the multiple pieces.”

Announcing it to the world

On April 20, 2021, officials held a press conference to announce their discovery, sending a ripple of excitement through the historical community. According to Larson, the cabin forms a vital part of Tubman’s legacy. She told the Washington Post, “Think of it as a place where [she] came of age in a loving household within a close-knit community.”

Shining a light on history

“That landscape became her classroom,” Larson continued. “Those years she lived with her father were absolutely crucial to the development of Harriet Tubman.” Meanwhile, Schablitsky agreed that the discovery shines a light on an important part of her story — one that has remained in the shadows until now.

Putting the pieces together

“A lot of us think we know everything… about Harriet Tubman,” Schablitsky told the Washington Post. “This discovery tells us that we don’t, and that we have the opportunity to… understand her not just as an older woman who brought people to freedom, but… what her younger years were like.” 

Understanding her origins

Speaking to The New York Times, Larson reiterated the importance of the find. She said, “This gives insight into a time and place in Tubman’s life we know very little about. The community really created this woman, and we can’t fully understand her until we understand the place she came out of.”

Spreading the news

As the story of the discovery began to spread, more facts emerged about the years that Tubman spent at the cabin. According to The New York Times, it wasn’t just Harriet’s father that taught her vital survival skills while living in the woods. Apparently, she also associated with mariners en route to the shipyards of Baltimore.

Valuable navigating skills

“She knew a lot of those African-American mariners, who were called Black jacks,” Larson told The New York Times. “They taught her how to read the stars and told her about other places beyond the Eastern Shore where it was and wasn’t safe to go.” Years later, Tubman likely used these skills to navigate successfully through the Underground Railroad.

Growing more popular

Although Tubman was considered a hero during her lifetime by many, her popularity appears to be growing in recent years. Larson continued, “Since I started researching her back in the ‘90s, she’s become more and more interesting to people. With very few resources, she was able to do amazing things.”

Destiny of the cabin

So what will happen to the cabin once Schablitsky and her team have finished their excavations? According to Pradines, the site will eventually become part of the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway. Popular with tourists, this self-drive tour connects over 30 places of significance in the famous abolitionist’s life.

The official route

Stretching for 125 miles from eastern Maryland to Philadelphia, the route gives visitors a chance to learn more about Tubman’s story. And with the inclusion of her father’s cabin — or at least the site where it was located — officials hope to bring even more of this history to life. 

Ambitious future plans

Eventually, there are also plans to create a network of trails surrounding the spot where the cabin once stood. But before any of these projects can be realized, Schablitsky and her team have more excavating to do. As work continues through summer 2021 they hope to uncover more relics from Tubman’s father’s time in the woods.

In search of more artifacts

“We hope to find artifacts that will tell us more about the personal life of Ben Ross,” Schablitsky told The New York Times. “Personal objects, like a tobacco pipe, that will help us recreate what his life would have been like and that will help us find out more about who he was.” But, if certain predictions are to be believed, they are running out of time.

Threats to the research

Already, the team is struggling against rising groundwater that threatens to engulf their delicate work. According to The Guardian, parts of the refuge are predicted to be completely submerged within the next 80 years. Speaking to the British newspaper, refuge manager Marcia Pradines confirmed, “Where it is, if you waited many more years, it might be lost forever.”

The family is involved

Currently, the site is closed to the public in order to protect it, and even descendants of Tubman have been unable to visit. They have, though, received photographs of the artifacts uncovered during the dig. Speaking to CNN in April 2021 Harriet’s great-great-great-grandniece Tina Wyatt said, “It means so much to the family to be able to see all of this.”

Closer than ever to history

In fact, Schablitsky’s discoveries have enabled Tubman’s relatives to feel closer than ever to their famous ancestor. Wyatt continued, “The other thing that is so wonderful about it is that it’s pretty much untouched since the time that she was here, that he was here, so we’re really able to see what she saw, hear what she heard.” Hopefully, this connection will be preserved for generations to come.