Underground Railroad

Baltimore is set to designate President Street Station, an 1850s train depot with chapters in the histories of both the Underground Railroad and the Civil War, as a city landmark. But the city's plan to also seek a long-term tenant to revitalize the vacant building has a group of history buffs fearful that the building's past will get swallowed up in any future use. This summer, the Planning Department expects to issue a request for proposals on how to reuse what is believed to be the oldest surviving urban train station in the country.

As the nation begins a new political chapter with President Barack Obama, there is renewed momentum to honor a Maryland-born heroine who also sought to bring change to America: Harriet Tubman. Bills are once again before Congress to create state and national parks that would celebrate the life of Tubman, who was born a slave named Araminta Ross on Maryland's Eastern Shore. "We believe she was born in early 1822, February or March, based on several documents that have been unearthed in the past 10 years or so," said historian Kate Clifford Larson, author of the 2003 biography Bound for the Promised Land: Harriet Tubman, Portrait of an American Hero.

Reprinted from The Sun of Monday, February 25, 1861. Mr. Lincoln's Secret Passage through Baltimore - Immense Gathering at Calvert Station - Arrival of the Special Train from Harrisburg - Disappointment - The Republican Committee - Mrs. Lincoln and Family on the Train - Their Departure for Washington - Mr. Lincoln's Appearance at Washington - Interviews with Mr. Buchanan and Gen. Scott. Saturday was the day appointed for the passage of Mr. Lincoln, President elect, through Baltimore, and as a matter of course curiosity was on tiptoe to behold the man who had been chosen to stand at the helm of the ship of State.

Cambridge - For decades, the people who came to trace the route of the Underground Railroad and the life of Harriet Tubman arrived on tour buses from New York and other urban centers. From black churches and civic groups, pilgrims came to see for themselves how Tubman led slaves to freedom, scooping up dirt from her designated birthplace. Recently, though, more and more visitors - predominantly white - are coming from Maryland's Western Shore to travel the back roads of Dorchester and Caroline counties in search of Tubman's legacy.

Harriet Tubman, the abolitionist and leader of the underground railroad, might finally be getting long-awaited recognition. The state approved yesterday a $208,000 purchase of 20 acres on the Eastern Shore to create a visitors center and educational complex devoted to the woman who led many slaves to freedom. The Tubman center, which could cost more than $12 million, will be on Route 335 near Key Wallace Drive in Dorchester County, near where Tubman was a slave before escaping. Gov. Martin O'Malley led the Board of Public Works in approving the project.

Using a quill pen and a bottle of ink, the students took turns writing the first chapter of a book about two slave children. The students from Harford Friends School had studied the lives of slave children, including how some were severely punished for sleeping late and made to work even when they were sick. "After learning about the lives of slave children, it was hard for me to write about," said Sarah Waldron, 12, of Havre de Grace, who along with classmates wrote on paper made from cotton.

Bill seeks to halt Costco construction A Baltimore County Council member has drafted a bill that could block the construction of a Costco store in the Hillendale area. The bill, to be introduced at Monday's council meeting by Councilman Vincent J. Gardina, would prohibit warehouses used for membership retail and wholesale operations in areas zoned for light manufacturing. Gardina, a Towson-Perry Hall Democrat, said a developer is planning to build a Costco outlet in the 1100 block of Taylor Ave., a location that he deems unfit for the plans because the area is surrounded by homes.

It's late in the afternoon -- 5 o'clock, you reckon by the setting of the sun -- and your breath rises in clouds as you look at the pile of straw beside your feet. It's a goodly stack, 2 feet high if it's an inch, as big a one as you've made all day. You look over at the other slaves in the field -- Rebecca, Charles, Anne and the rest -- and you see it's bigger than theirs. You hope the slave driver comes by and takes notice. It might get you a little more to eat tonight, maybe a blanket to keep the cold away.

Harriet Tubman 1820-1913 For her freedom was like heaven Harriet Tubman, born a slave on a plantation in Dorchester County, was 29 years old when she seized the opportunity to escape to freedom in the north. The year was 1849 and as she stood on a hill in Pennsylvania, a free woman for the first time in her life, her thoughts raced. "I looked at my hands to see if I was the same person," recalled the woman who came to be called the "Moses" of her people. "There was such a glory over everything.