Harriet is born enslaved on Edward Brodas's Maryland plantation to parents known as Old Rit and Benjamin Ross.

Six-year-old Harriet is hired out to work for Mr. and Mrs. Cook, her first experience laboring away from home.

Harriet blocks an overseer at a cornhusking celebration to help another slave escape, and the overseer strikes her head.

Edward Brodas attempts to sell a badly injured Harriet but cannot find a willing buyer due to her poor health.

Harriet escapes alone from the Brodas plantation at night and travels through a series of Underground Railroad safe houses.

Harriet arrives in Pennsylvania, experiences freedom for the first time, and connects with the Philadelphia Vigilance Committee.

Harriet returns to Maryland and rescues her sister Mary and Mary's two children from an impending slave auction.

Harriet returns to fetch husband John Tubman, discovers he has remarried, and leads other enslaved people to freedom instead.

Harriet's daring rescue missions earn her the legendary nickname Moses among enslaved people throughout Maryland.

Harriet leads a group of eleven slaves from Maryland all the way to Canada, beyond the reach of slave catchers.

Harriet disguises herself as an elderly woman and successfully travels to Maryland to free her aging parents.

Harriet meets abolitionist John Brown and agrees to help recruit freedom-seeking men in Canada for his large-scale liberation plan.

Harriet begins delivering public lectures about escaping slavery at abolitionist meetings after Franklin Sanborn encourages her to speak.

Harriet joins the Union Army as a scout and nurse, then helps rescue 750 enslaved people on the Combahee River.

Harriet Tubman dies, and the city of Auburn commemorates her courage and her rescue of over 300 enslaved people.

Pool 1 traces the headline events of Harriet Tubman's life, from her birth into slavery on a Maryland plantation to her death as a celebrated American hero. After suffering a devastating head injury while protecting a fellow slave, Harriet escapes north alone through a network of Underground Railroad safe houses and connects with abolitionist allies in Philadelphia. She returns to Maryland repeatedly, rescuing her sister, earning the name Moses, and ultimately leading eleven enslaved people all the way to Canada. Her activism grows to include rescuing her own aging parents, forming alliances with abolitionists like John Brown, and delivering public lectures about her experiences. During the Civil War she serves as a scout and nurse, commanding her most daring rescue of all on the Combahee River, before dying in Auburn as one of the most revered figures in American history.

Harriet Tubman's journey from enslavement to freedom to legendary conductor.

Enslaved people secretly gather in Benjamin's cabin at night to discuss Denmark Vesey's failed insurrection and dreams of freedom.

Harriet is hired out to Miss Susan and must keep a crying baby quiet all night, being whipped when it cries.

Harriet runs away from Miss Susan's house after taking a lump of sugar and hides in a pig pen for days.

Old Rit nurses Harriet back to health over several months after the overseer's blow leaves her near death.

Harriet marries free Black man John Tubman and brings her handmade patchwork quilt to live in his cabin.

Harriet hires a lawyer and discovers her mother Old Rit was illegally cheated out of her freedom years earlier.

A farmer on Harriet's escape route hides her under a pile of vegetables in his wagon and drives her north.

Harriet works for a year as a hotel cook in Philadelphia, saving money and adjusting to life as a free woman.

Harriet learns about the Fugitive Slave Act and realizes that even the northern free states no longer guarantee safety.

A man in Harriet's group of eleven demands to turn back, and Harriet aims her gun at him to force him forward.

Harriet and her brothers hide together in a fodder house on Christmas Day, waiting to begin their journey north.

Benjamin Ross blindfolds himself before walking with the departing group so he can honestly say he never saw the runaways.

Harriet rescues fugitive slave Charles Nalle from police custody in Troy, New York, with help from an angry crowd.

Harriet is denied any salary or pension by the government despite her documented contributions to the Union Army war effort.

Harriet donates her Auburn home and land to the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church to house elderly people in need.

Pool 2 fills in the deeper texture of Harriet Tubman's life with significant moments that shaped but did not headline her story. From secret nighttime gatherings about Denmark Vesey to brutal working conditions under Miss Susan, these events show the daily reality of enslavement and the small acts of resistance that sustained hope. Her marriage to John Tubman, her discovery of her mother's stolen freedom, and her year working as a hotel cook in Philadelphia reveal the private person behind the public legend. Key episodes on the Underground Railroad — a farmer hiding her under vegetables, the gun standoff with a frightened runaway, and Benjamin blindfolding himself on Christmas night — capture the impossible stakes of every mission. The pool closes with Harriet's post-war struggles and her final generous act of donating her home to the church for the care of the elderly.

The hidden moments, supporting characters, and quiet struggles behind Harriet's story.

Old Rit and Benjamin fear their children will be sold after learning Brodas regularly sells enslaved people to traders.

Harriet falls ill while working for the Cooks and is brought home, where Old Rit nurses her back to health.

Harriet matures into a young woman and first hears rumors about a mysterious underground road used by escaped slaves.

Harriet hears the full story of Nat Turner's violent insurrection against slaveholders and his eventual capture and execution.

Harriet prays for God to kill Edward Brodas; days later, Brodas falls gravely ill and dies.

Doctor Thompson inherits the Brodas plantation and promises the enslaved people that he will not sell them outside Maryland.

Benjamin Ross teaches Harriet wilderness survival skills, secretly equipping her with the knowledge she needs to one day escape.

John Tubman threatens to report Harriet to the plantation master if she ever attempts to run away to the North.

Harriet attempts to escape north with her brothers, but they panic and force her to return to the plantation.

Harriet sings a spiritual hymn about leaving for the Promised Land to secretly signal her planned escape to other slaves.

Harriet decides she must escort escaped people all the way to Canada, where the Fugitive Slave Act cannot reach them.

Harriet discovers that Black residents of St. Catharines, Canada can vote, serve on juries, and run for political office.

Harriet purchases a small house in Auburn, New York for her elderly parents after they cannot endure Canada's cold winters.

Harriet's premonition that John Brown is in danger is confirmed when she learns of his capture and his sons' deaths.

An elderly Harriet sells vegetables door to door through Auburn, sharing vivid stories of her life as a conductor.

Pool 3 focuses on the pivotal revelations and choices that redirected Harriet Tubman's life at every stage. Her early years are marked by accumulating discoveries — whispered rumors of an underground road, the terrifying story of Nat Turner, and the shocking death of Brodas following her desperate prayer. Her father secretly prepares her for escape through wilderness lessons, while her husband's threat and her brothers' fear force her to act entirely alone. After escaping, her recognition that Canada offers genuine freedom — where Black men could even vote and hold office — reshapes her entire mission as a conductor. The pool closes with Harriet's premonition of John Brown's fate, her purchase of a home for her parents, and her final transformation into a beloved community storyteller in old age.

The decisions, discoveries, and moments of realization that shaped Harriet's path.