Category: Key People

Harriet Tubman (1822–1913), also known as the Moses of her people, was an abolitionist. As a formerly enslaved person, Tubman helped hundreds of enslaved people escape to freedom through the Underground Railroad. In addition, she served as a scout, spy, guerilla soldier, and nurse for the Union Army during the Civil War. Consequently, she is considered the first African American woman to serve in the military.

Maria Stewart (1803–1897) was an activist, essayist, lecturer, abolitionist, and women’s-rights activist. In 1831, she became the first woman to respond to abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison’s request for Black women to write for his newspaper, The Liberator. She is also referred to as the first Black woman to lecture in public on political issues.

Queen Nanny, also known as Granny Nanny or Nanny or Nanny of the Maroons, was an 18th-century leader of the Windward Maroons. According to Ian Bernard of BlackPast.org, “Nanny limited her attacks on plantations and European settlements and preferred instead to farm and trade peacefully with her neighbors. She did, however, make numerous successful raids to free slaves held on plantations, and it has been widely accepted that her efforts contributed to the escape of almost 1,000 slaves over her lifetime.”