Underground Railroad in New York

Why did New York play such an outsized role in the Underground Railroad, which guided nearly 100,000 enslaved people to freedom in the North and Canada? Abolitionists employed a vast network of churches, safe houses, and community sites in New York, as well as the 445-mile border with Canada, to help emancipate enslaved people.

Today, you can visit New York's Underground Railroad system from Brooklyn to Buffalo and everywhere in between, discovering the stories behind America's bravest abolitionists along the way. From The Harriet Tubman National Historic Park to the North Star Underground Railroad Museum to the Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center to the John W. Jones Museum in Elmira, there are many ways to learn about New York State’s and New Yorkers’ role in the Underground Railroad. Visitors should not miss the newly-launched trail  "Travel with Tubman", a National Parks Service initiative that guides visitors through eight states and 13 historic Harriet Tubman sites of significance, including six New York State historic sites. For additional information, please visit the New York State Department of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Underground Railroad page. Also, watch a panel discussion with top experts from Underground Railroad attractions to learn even more.