Answer Close-Reading Questions
Have students write their responses, or use the Close-Reading Questions to guide a discussion.
• Who was Harriet Tubman? What details support the idea that she was “the most successful Underground Railroad agent”? (Text Evidence)
Harriet Tubman was a famous abolitionist who was born into slavery in Maryland in the early 1820s. In 1849, she fled Maryland by way of the Underground Railroad. Over the years, she returned as a “conductor,” helping about 70 other Black people escape to freedom. The skills Tubman learned from her father, such as how to navigate the woods and search for food, helped her succeed in her mission.
• How did archaeologists find the site of Tubman’s father’s home? What artifacts did they find there? (Key Details)
Archaeologists used land records to determine where Ben Ross’s cabin once stood. They had been digging for two weeks when Julie Schablitsky, using a metal detector, found a coin from 1808—the year Tubman’s parents were married. Since then, she and her team have found pieces of pottery, bricks, glass, and buttons.
• How does the map support the article? (Text Features)
The map shows which states did and did not allow slavery in 1860. It also shows the major routes of the Underground Railroad. Most of the routes went north to free states and Canada, while some went south to Mexico, Cuba, and the Bahamas.