Bucktown in Dorchester County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Finding Freedom
The Call of Freedom
Dorchester County occupies a central place in the story of the Underground Railroad, the secret network of "stations" and "conductors" that sheltered and shepherded hundreds of enslave African Americans to freedom in the mid-1800s. The famed Underground Railroad conductor Harriet Tubman grew up here in Bucktown.
An Act of Defiance
Young Harriet Tubman made her first stand against the injustice of slavery at Bucktown village store. While on an errand with a plantation cook, she encountered a white overseer disciplining a slave. The overseer ordered Tubman to help tie the slave down. She refused — an astonishing display of defiance for any slave, much less a girl of about age 13. The young man broke free, and the overseer picked up a two-pound weight and hurled it at him. Instead, he hit Tubman on the head with a blow that nearly killed her. Many historians believe this injury was linked to the frequent seizures Tubman experienced as an adult. These episodes were accompanied by vivid dreams that the deeply religious Tubman regarded as messages from God.
The Flight of the Dover Eight
In 1857, Thomas Elliot, Denwood Hughes, and Henry Predo fled from a nearby farm then owned by Prichett Meredith. The three joined five others in making the way north to freedom, but the group was betrayed by their conductor and led straight to jail in Dover, Delaware. Still, the “Dover Eight” managed to make a dramatic escape through the sheriff’s private living quarters and out a window. All eight found their way to freedom in Canada. There, Elliott and Hughes became supporters of anti-slavery activist John Brown.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Abolition & Underground RR • African Americans • Women. In addition, it is included in the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1857.
Location. Marker is missing. It was located near 38° 27.55′ N, 76° 1.869′ W. Marker was in Bucktown, Maryland, in Dorchester County. Marker could be reached from the intersection of Bucktown Road and Greenbriar Road. This marker is on the north side of the Bucktown Village Store. Touch for map. Marker was at or near this postal address: 4303 Bucktown Road, Cambridge MD 21613, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 4 miles of this location, measured as the crow flies. Resistance (a few steps from this marker); Harriet Tubman (approx. 0.9 miles away); Brodess Farm (approx. 0.9 miles away); a different marker also named Finding Freedom (approx. 0.9 miles away); Pool One at Wildlife Drive (approx. 3½ miles away); The American Bald Eagle (approx. 3.6 miles away); The Chesapeake Bay Ecosystem (approx. 3.6 miles away); Muskrat and Nutria (approx. 3.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Bucktown.
Also see . . . Bucktown Village Store. Maryland Historical Trust Architectural Survey File PDF (Submitted on January 22, 2018, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland.)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 3, 2024. It was originally submitted on January 22, 2018, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. This page has been viewed 339 times since then and 18 times this year. Last updated on November 20, 2018, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on January 22, 2018, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. 6, 7. submitted on January 24, 2018, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. 8. submitted on November 20, 2018, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.