The Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) unveiled a new, updated roadside historical marker Wednesday in Cambridge, which honors the life and legacy of Maryland native Harriet Tubman.
The ceremony, held at the Harriet Tubman Freedom Center, brought together relatives of the abolitionist, state and local leaders as well as community members. The event took place during International Underground Railroad Month and on the date Tubman escaped slavery in 1849.
“We remember Harriet Tubman for her fearless and selfless service to others,” MDOT Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs and Strategy Jawauna Greene said via a press release.
The marker has updated language that Tubman’s relatives helped craft and corrects an inaccurate sign that was put in place in 1967 as part of the Civil War centennial. The former sign included false information about Tubman’s birthplace and the number of enslaved people she helped lead to freedom.
The new marker is sitting along Greenbrier Road in Bucktown in front of the former farm of Tubman’s enslaver Edward Brodess.
In addition, the roadside marker is part of a MDOT and Maryland Historical Trust initiative to review markers spotlighting Maryland’s untold stories and correct ones with inaccuracies.
The old marker will be donated to the Harriet Tubman Freedom Center and used as a teaching tool to demonstrate the importance of historical accuracy and how language around slavery is evolving, according to MDOT.
More information on the Maryland Roadside Historical Marker program can be found , and to find a historical marker near you, click .