Women of Valor: Harriet Tubman

Women of ValorGodFreedom
Written By Meg Elizabeth Brown

Image of Harriet Tubman c. 1868–69. Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (reproduction no. LC-DIG-ppmsca-54230)

Before Her Calling:

 Born into slavery in Dorchester County, Maryland, in 1822, a little baby girl named Araminta Ross was one of nine children born to her parents, Harriet (Rit) Green and Benjamin Ross. They nicknamed her “Minty,” for short. Benjamin was free, but Rit wasn’t, and therefore, all of her children were considered enslaved due to chattel slavery rules. Soon, their enslaver, Edward Brodess, separated the family on purpose and sent them to work on another farm in Bucktown, Maryland.

As Harriet grew, she wasn’t what Brodess considered a ‘good’ enslaved person. She didn’t clean well, got sick often as a child, and fell asleep randomly.[1] Her master frequently “leased” out the enslaved people that he had no work or patience for; Araminta was one of them.

But Tubman’s lessees returned her to the Brodess’ farm due to her sicknesses. Her mother nursed her back to health and right back into slavery. Brodess leased her out again, and this time as a nurse and maid, even though she was only six years old. She worked around the clock trying to keep the baby from crying, but one of her overseers slept with a whip under her pillow. Tubman learned to wear extra padding under her clothes. Her new master whipped her neck so many times that according to one of Harriet’s biographers, Bradford, her skin appeared to be branded like cattle.

During her childhood, Harriet prayed regularly for God to save her from her situation. At 13, she witnessed an enslaved person’s attempted escape. She refused to help the enslaver try to recapture the freedom seeker, so he threw a two-pound weight that hit Harriet’s head rather than hitting the freedom seeker. It fractured her skull and almost took her life. From this moment on, Harriet fought through physical pain, headaches, seizures, and narcolepsy. But in those moments of seizures, Harriet had visions of freedom and escape.

Her Competence:

Harriet began negotiating what work she would do for her enslaver as she grew, and he agreed. Later, she spent time working with her father in the timber fields. This instance familiarized her with Black sailors, who were travelers along the coast and well-connected. They helped her tap into a network of those seeking liberation.

Even though she was never formally educated, Harriet used Biblical literary tools, like parables. These traits helped her to be persuasive and unforgettable later in life.

Her Call:

In 1844, at around 22, she married freedman John Tubman, and she changed her name from Araminta to Harriet after her mother. When learning that her master was possibly hurting financially and would sell her and her brothers, Harriet decided to escape with them past the Mason-Dixon line. Even though her brothers turned back in fear, Harriet continued, making connections with abolitionists in Philadelphia and safehouses along the Underground Railroad.

Harriet tasted freedom but was burdened to return for her friends and family. She decided it was worth putting herself back in danger to lead others to freedom. After crossing the line, Harriet became a conductor herself (led the journey for other freedom seekers). She made three journeys immediately after finding freedom and, in 1851, returned for her husband. He thought, however, that Harriet was dead and had remarried. She asked if they wanted freedom since his new wife was pregnant, but they refused.

Her Character:

Although she worked tirelessly, she neither received a salary nor compensation for her work in the Underground Railroad nor the Union Army. From 1850 to 1860, Tubman helped 70 individuals, including her parents, to achieve freedom. She stated, “I never ran my train off the track, and I never lost a passenger.”[2]

Her Courage:

In 1850, the Fugitive Slave Act changed the course for conductors like Tubman. It made it illegal to assist a freedom seeker. If you refused to return an enslaved person, you could pay up to $1,000 in fines. But that didn’t stop her. Tubman conducted more than 11 trips from Maryland to Canada. She began to be dubbed “Moses” because the free and enslaved people called her a hero.

Later, Tubman settled in Auburn, New York, with her family. In 1857, she met John Brown, an abolitionist. Harriet had seen him in some of her visions, and they worked together on the raid on Harpers Ferry. They formed a dear friendship, and she provided him with geographical data and helped recruit formerly enslaved people. The raid, however, ended in failure, and Brown was captured and found guilty at trial for “treason, murder, and inciting slave rebellion.” The state of Virginia hung him for his rebellion and crimes.

Her Legacy:

In 1861, she joined the Union Army as a nurse, using natural remedies to help treat the wounded. She continued to support the Union through the recruitment of enslaved people and helping coordinate raids, and due to this, she was the first woman in US History to be recognized for both planning and leading a military raid. During this time, she met and married her second husband, Nelson Davis. They settled in Auburn, and together, they were able to help free family members and even adopt a daughter, Gertie. It was in Auburn that she founded the Home for the Aged, where institutional care was given for those with paralysis, epilepsy, and vision impairment/blindness.

Harriet worked closely with suffragists in her later years and attended several women’s rights conferences. After Nelson’s passing, Harriet continued to pour herself into philanthropic effects for 25 years. At her passing, she quoted John 14:3, “I go away to prepare a place for you, that where I am, you also may be.”  

Her Impact on Me:

I remember the first time I heard of Harriet Tubman when I walked the halls of my tiny elementary school in Clay Center, Nebraska. A teacher had plastered the walls with historical men and women who had furthered our country. She was one of the few women on the wall. As I read about Harriet’s life, it almost seems she walked through several lives, each season different from the first. Her truly traumatic childhood seemed to give her a bent towards freedom that others in her same family seemed to shy away from (hence her brothers turning back from escape.)

What I noticed most about her was her way of relying on God, even when people didn’t believe her. A lot of historians discount her visions/epilepsy as being scientific, not a broken piece of her that God used for His glory. It makes me take into consideration the autoimmune disease that wreaks havoc upon my body and the healing that hasn’t come. It makes me wonder if, without this disease, would I actually rely upon God for strength? Probably not.

She pushed ahead when no one else would. She rose above when her first husband remarried (after she hadn’t returned for some time) and forgave him by offering to help him if he and his new wife (and child) wanted to escape. She worked alongside men to help free people and push our country towards freedom for all. She also continued to work towards women’s rights while maintaining her faith and hope in the God who gave her heart freedom.

Historians quote her saying,

“And I prayed to God to make me strong and able to fight, and that’s what I’ve always prayed for ever since.” 

For those of us who have weaknesses, illnesses, diseases, and trauma, maybe we should make that our prayer today as well.

END NOTES 

[1] Clara Small, historian and emeritus history professor, Salisbury University

[2] Prescod-Weinstein, 2022.

Meg Elizabeth Brown

Meg Elizabeth is a writer and Hebrew Bible scholar, a wife and mother to her four kiddos. She founded the Behold Collective when the Holy Spirit alerted her to the need for a discipleship ministry for women in the local church.

https://www.thebeholdcollective.com
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