I was born into slavery in 1819 or 1820, in Dorchester County,
Maryland. Given the names of my two parents, both held in slavery, I was of purely African ancestry. I was whipped even as a small child and
received a serious headwound when I refused to help tie up a run-a-way
slave. At the age of 25, I married John Tubman, a free African American. Five years later, fearing I would be sold, I made my escape. I was given a piece of paper by a white neighbor with two names, and told how to find the first house on my path to freedom. At the first house I was put into a wagon, covered with a sack, and driven to my next destination. Following the route to Pennsylvania, I initially settled in Philadelphia, where I met William Still, the Philadelphia Stationmaster on the Underground Railroad.
…
