Harriet Tubman between 1868 and 1869 (Photo: Benjamin F. Powelson via Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Abolitionist Harriet Tubman, who escaped slavery and bravely made missions on the Underground Railroad to save others, was recognized for her military achievements on Veteran’s Day. During the Civil War, Tubman served as a Union Army scout and spy and was the first woman to oversee American military action during a war. And now, over 150 years later, she’s been named a general.
Tubman is widely recognized for her efforts in the 1863 Raid on Combahee Ferry. In this military mission, she guided steamboats with 150 Black Union soldiers toward several plantations that they were able to raid. The 750 slaves at the plantations, forewarned by Tubman’s network of what was happening, boarded the steamboats and sailed toward freedom.
At the time, Tubman was hailed for this achievement, which added around 100 men to the Union Army. However, it would take more than a century for her to work to be consolidated into a military ranking. On Monday, at the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad State Park in Maryland, Governor Wes Moore was on hand to posthumously name Tubman a one-star brigadier general in the state’s National Guard.
“With each act of courage, Harriet Tubman helped bring us together as a nation and a people,” shared Gov. Moore. “She fought for a kind of unity that can only be earned through danger, risk, and sacrifice. And it is a unity we still benefit from to this day.”
Tubman’s great-great-great-grandniece Tina Martin Wyatt was on hand to represent the family and receive the proclamation. Several other descendants were also present for the ceremony, which featured ceremonial music by the Maryland Army National Guard’s 229th Army Band and a flyover by the Maryland Air National Guard’s 104th Fighter Squadron.
Wyatt was touched by the ceremony and Tubman’s inclusion into military ranks on Veteran’s Day. “Aunt Harriet was one of those veterans informally, she gave up any rights that she had obtained for herself to be able to fight for others,” Wyatt said. “She is a selfless person.”
On Veteran’s Day, Harriet Tubman was posthumously named a one-star brigadier general in Maryland’s National Guard.
Photo: Maryland.gov
Tubman served as a Union Army scout and helped soldiers free 750 slaves during the Raid on Combahee Ferry, making her the first woman to oversee American military action.
Illustration of the Raid of Combahee River. Found originally within “Harper’s Weekly,” July 1863 (Photo: Unknown author via Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
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