The underground railroad
The underground railroad was an informal system that helped slaves escape to the Northern States and Canada during the mid-1800's. The system was neither underground nor a railroad. It was called the underground railroad because of the swift, secret way in which the slaves escaped. The slaves traveled by whatever means they could, moving almost entirely at night and hiding during the day. The fugitives and the people who aided them used many railroad terms as code words. For example, hiding places were called stations, and people who helped the runaways were known as conductors.
The underground railroad had no formal organization. Free blacks and some whites in both the South and the North provided the runaways with food, clothing, directions, and places to hide. Some Southern slaves also helped fugitives escape. In the North, many Quakers and other white abolitionists furnished hiding places and helped slaves move from one refuge to the next.
The term underground railroad was first used about 1830. From then until 1860, the system helped thousands of slaves escape.
Excerpt adapted from the "Underground railroad" article, The World Book Encyclopedia © 1999