Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway
Common in the mid-19th century, this cabin is a rare survivor today. James H. and Mary Ann Webb built this one-room house in the 1850s, using materials found in the surrounding landscape. Hand-hewn log walls rest on a foundation of ballast stones from ships that plied the Chesapeake Bay. The interior has fireplace, a root cellar, and a loft. It is typical of homes occupied by both free and enslaved blacks, including Harriet Tubman's parents, Ben and Rit Ross, who lived nearby at Poplar Neck.
As a free man, James Webb was forced to purchase the freedom of his wife and their children. The free family farmed their land while living in a community dependent on slavery. Roughly seventy percent of blacks in Caroline County were free; to the south, in Dorchester County, about half were. The Webb's home was located with the Underground Railroad's network to freedom.
| HM Number | HM1I4S |
|---|---|
| Series | This marker is part of the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway series |
| Tags | |
| Marker Condition | No reports yet |
| Date Added | Tuesday, December 2nd, 2014 at 1:02pm PST -08:00 |
| UTM (WGS84 Datum) | 18S E 422399 N 4290056 |
|---|---|
| Decimal Degrees | 38.75580000, -75.89310000 |
| Degrees and Decimal Minutes | N 38° 45.348', W 75° 53.586' |
| Degrees, Minutes and Seconds | 38° 45' 20.88" N, 75° 53' 35.16" W |
| Driving Directions | Google Maps |
| Area Code(s) | 410 |
| Closest Postal Address | At or near 23459 Grove Rd, Preston MD 21655, US |
| Alternative Maps | Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap |
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