Historic Sotterley Board Vice President, Gwen Bankins, addressing visitors during 2022's Day of Unity and Healing event
International Underground Railroad Month Events
Celebrate International Underground Railroad Month this September by taking a guided tour or attending an event to honor the courageous journeys of famous and lesser-known freedom seekers.
Historic Sotterley Board Vice President, Gwen Bankins, addressing visitors during 2022's Day of Unity and Healing event
International Underground Railroad Month Events
September 2025
Honor these daring heroes by attending a menu of programs and events offered throughout September. Discover people who have triumphed in their fight to overcome oppression. Uncover the myriad ways they found freedom and set the seeds for the ongoing journey toward civil rights.
The Catoctin Furnace was in blast in 1776 in time to supply munitions for the Continental Army and for many years the stories told about the historic ironmaking village that grew up around the furnace were centered on the Johnson brothers and other, subsequent furnace owners. Theresa Donnelly will discuss the evolving interpretation of the village with a particular focus on the lives and labor of the enslaved workers who powered the furnace and made the wealth of its owners possible. She will share recent research findings and discuss efforts by those enslaved at the furnace to gain their freedom. The Catoctin Iron Furnace is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site.
Recommended for ages 12 and up. Please register on www.pgparks.com. Call 301-464-5291 or email [email protected] for more information. Free event.
Wednesday, September 3, 2025
Noon - 1 p.m.
Marietta House Museum
5626 Bell Station Road
Glenn Dale, MD
301-464-5291
Apostle of Liberation: AME Bishop Paul Quinn And The Underground Railroad book by Dr. Cheryl Janifer LaRoche.
Join Dr. Cheryl LaRoche for a conversation about her new book Apostle of Liberation: AME Bishop Paul Quinn And The Underground Railroad. This book illuminates Quinn’s importance, showing why his life and courageous efforts deserve more attention and appreciation. Come for an engaging discussion, meet the author and get your book signed. Bring lunch if you choose.
Riversdale House Museum and Historic Site is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site.
Wednesday, September 3, 2025
Noon - 1:30 p.m.
Riversdale House Museum Historic Site
4811 Riverdale Road
Riverdale Park, MD 20737
301-864-0420
Riversdale House
Join us for a guided tour of the historic house as we interpret the history of people who lived and worked at this former plantation from the house’s construction in 1801 through Emancipation in 1864. Visitors engage in facilitated dialogue with Tour Guides while being led through rooms of the historic house and dependency buildings. See the new interpretive silhouettes throughout the house that depict actual enslaved workers in each room. The silhouettes were created using descendants of historical characters as models for the artwork.
Tours are offered every Friday and Sunday at noon and 2 p.m. Please arrive at the Visitor Center 5 - 10 minutes prior to the tour to get registered. Pre-registration or walk-ins are welcome.
Riversdale House is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Site.
Adults: $5 per person
Seniors and Groups of 10 or more: $4/person
Ages 5 - 18 and Students with ID: $2/person
Ages 4 & under: Free
Friday, September 5, 2025 Noon - 1 p.m. and 2 - 3 p.m.
Sunday, September 7, 2025 Noon - 1 p.m. and 2 - 3 p.m.
Friday, September 12, 2025 Noon - 1 p.m. and 2 - 3 p.m.
Sunday, September 14, 2025 Noon - 1 p.m. and 2 - 3 p.m.
Friday, September 19, 2025 Noon - 1 p.m. and 2 - 3 p.m.
Sunday, September 21, 2025 Noon - 1 p.m. and 2 - 3 p.m.
Friday, September 26, 2025 Noon - 1 p.m. and 2 - 3 p.m.
Sunday, September 28, 2025 Noon - 1 p.m. and 2 - 3 p.m.
Riversdale House Museum Historic Site
4811 Riverdale Road
Riverdale Park, MD 20737
301-864-0420
Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park's Underground Railroad Experience Trail.
Learn about the experience of 19th-century freedom seekers and Montgomery County residents in a guided hike of the Underground Railroad Experience Trail. Discover techniques freedom seekers used for navigation, eluding detection, and finding food and shelter. The Underground Railroad Experience Trail is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program.
The hike is 2 miles roundtrip on a natural surface hiking trail. The trail is not ADA accessible or stroller friendly. Woodlawn Museum admission is included in the program cost. Appropriate for ages 7 and up; fee charged for ages 6 and up.
Cost: $10.00 adults, $8.00 Seniors (55+)/Children 6-17
Advance online tickets are highly recommended through Active Montgomery. Online sales close 12 noon the day before the program. Limited walk-in availability based on advance ticket sales.
Saturday, September 6, 2025
10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park
Montgomery County Parks
16501 Norwood Rd.
Sandy Spring, MD 20860
301-929-5989
Take a guided walk around Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum. Explore the lives of Native Americans, African Americans, colonists, tenant farmers and more who have shaped and been shaped by our landscape for millennia.
Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site.
Registration is recommended. Walks begin at the Museum Services parking lot. Free program.
Saturday, September 6, 2025
11 a.m. - noon
1 - 2 p.m.
Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum
10515 Mackall Road
St. Leonard, MD 20685
410-586-8538
Discover the birds and wildlife that Harriet Tubman would have encountered during her journeys to freedom on the Underground Railroad on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Join Harriet Tubman Tours and Delmarva Birding Weekends as we go birding along the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway in Caroline County.
The tour begins at Linchester Mill in Preston. During the first two hours of the guided, self-driven tour, we’ll learn about the many daring escapes led by the famed freedom seeker and human rights activist known as “The Moses of Her People.” In Caroline County, Harriet Tubman found shelter and assistance as she traveled along the Underground Railroad to Delaware. The driving route courses through the farms, forests and Underground Railroad sites of Caroline County. We’ll also tour the Choptank River with River City Cruise Company in Denton.
From there, we will explore the upper reaches of the Choptank during a two-hour cruise aboard a pontoon boat. Downriver, landings and points along the Choptank served as sites for perilous escapes by boat. The shallow waters of the Upper Choptank provided crossings for freedom seekers heading north toward Sandtown, Delaware. During the cruise, we’ll also search for Bald Eagles, Osprey, Wood Ducks, and other species. For a list of the 19 species tallied during the September 2023 tour, click here.
The Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program.
Registration required.
Cost: $100/person
Thursday, September 11, 2025
2 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Delmarva Birding
Preston, MD
Outside Lincoln’s White House
Most histories of Washington, D.C. during the Civil War only talk about President Lincoln, Congress and the familiar national landmarks of the city. Come learn about the ordinary people who called Washington City and the surrounding Maryland and Virginia countryside home during the War of the Rebellion. Using photographs, original writings and other documents, U.S. Park Ranger Bryan Cheeseboro brings to light the stories of “everybody else” and presents a diversity of Union and Confederate men and women, Blacks and Whites, and free and enslaved in and around Washington during the war. Discover the lesser known and forgotten people of the era. This program is hosted by Peerless Rockville.
This program is free.
Thursday, September 11, 2025
7 p.m. - 8 p.m.
Glenview Mansion
603 Edmonston Dr.
Rockville, MD 20851
Immerse yourself in the story of the Revolutionary War Era community at Catoctin Furnace in a race against time to cast shells for the decisive battle of Yorktown. Performances of Iron Will occur each day from September 11 - 14. During each performance, three tour groups of 30 people will see the show.
Catoctin Iron Furnace is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site.
Room blocks are available for groups at TownePlace Suites Frederick and Fairfield Inn & Suites.
Thursday, September 11, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Friday, September 12, 2025 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, September 13, 2025 at Noon, 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Sunday, September 14, 2025 at Noon and 4 p.m.
12610 Catoctin Furnace Road
Thurmont, MD 21788
240-288-7396
Celebrate perseverance, education, and the cultural heritage of Africans, African-Americans, and Caribbean people of African descent at the 34th Annual Kunta Kinte Heritage Festival! The Kunta Kinte Heritage Festival is a free, family-oriented cultural celebration for all to enjoy live music and dance performances, world foods and artisan vendors, as well as heritage and history of the African Diaspora.
Kunta Kinte was one of 98 enslaved people brought to Annapolis aboard the ship Lord Ligonier in 1767. Despite many years in bondage, he never lost his connection to his African heritage. His great, great, great, great-grandson Alex Haley recorded this history, and the documentary Roots, dedicated to the Haley’s family Griot, reveals this story.
In Gambia, West Africa, where Kunta Kinte was born in 1750, an International Kunta Kinteh Day Celebration is also held, including Diaspora Return Home speeches.
Saturday, September 13, 2025
10 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Navy Marine Corps Stadium (Blue Lot)
511 Taylor Avenue
Annapolis, MD 21401
Meet the author, Amina Luqman-Dawson, who will lead a reading from her book FREEWATER, which explores themes of enslavement and freedom. The Family Book Club event is an engaging and educational series designed for families with children ages 10 and up.
Participants will also be able to enjoy the historic Button Farm-Maryland’s only living history center depicting 19th-century plantation life. Situated on 40 acres, inside Seneca Creek State Park in Germantown, Button Farm provides unique interactive experiences. Enjoy close encounters with farm animals, quizzes and artifact identification and a scavenger hunt.
Button Farm’s Almanac Tour is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program.
Registration required. Register here.
Saturday, September 13, 2025
10:30 a.m. - noon
Button Farm Living History Center
16820 Black Rock Road
Germantown, MD 20874
202-903-4140
In honor of International Underground Railroad Month, Mount Clare Museum will present a book talk with author and journalist Scott Shane. Shane will discuss his new book, Flee North: A Forgotten Hero and the Fight for Freedom in Slavery’s Borderland.
Scott Shane's Flee North, tells the astonishing story of Thomas Smallwood, born into slavery near Washington, who bought his freedom, became a shoemaker and began organizing mass escapes from slavery from Washington, Baltimore and the surrounding counties. With the help of a younger white abolitionist, Charles Torrey, he took wagonloads of men, women and children into Pennsylvania, urging them not to stop until they reached Canada.
Flee North was named one of the best 10 books of 2023 by Publishers Weekly who described the book, "This astonishing and propulsive narrative rights a historical wrong by returning Smallwood to prominence. It’s an absolute must-read.” Flee North was named one of the top 20 books by Amazon, whose review said, “Scott Shane’s narrative account is visceral, a stunning feat of historical storytelling as you’re transported into the terrifying life of an enslaved person in 1800s Baltimore." Henry Louis Gates Jr. called it "riveting" and Taylor Branch called it "a treasure."
Come for an engaging discussion, meet the author, and get your book signed. The program is free. Light refreshments will be served from noon - 3 p.m. The museum is open for self-guided tours from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Register through eventbrite. For more information, contact [email protected].
Mount Clare Museum is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site.
Saturday, September 13, 2025
11 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Mount Clare Museum House
1500 Washington Blvd.
Baltimore, MD 21230
410-837-3262
Celebrate the remarkable life of Harriet Tubman (1822-1913) who made her first attempt to reach freedom on September 17, 1849. Tubman not only claimed her own freedom but secured the liberation of others, returning a dozen times to Maryland to lead some seventy friends and family members out of bondage.
Founded at Button Farm in 2017, Tubman Day reveals Harriet's achievements through hands-on activities for visitors of all ages. Artifacts will be displayed related to Tubman’s life story. Presentations, exhibits and vendors are offered in the pavilion.
To mark this global celebration, The Button Farm Almanac Tour, a Network to Freedom program will be offered. The hands-on tour includes an interactive exploration of this former plantation landscape. The tour provides a sensory experience of the elements used by freedom seekers for their own liberation and provides participants with a deeper understanding of both the local and international Underground Railroad movements. It uses 19th- century artifacts, architecture, agriculture, and historical accounts to illuminate stories of freedom seekers and the impact they had on the surrounding communities and abolitionism.
The Button Farm Almanac Tour is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program.
This event is free.
Saturday, September 13, 2025
Noon - 3 p.m.
Button Farm Living History Center
16820 Black Rock Road
Germantown, MD 20874
202-903-4140
Take a guided tour of the grounds at Josiah Henson Museum and Park to learn about the features and artifacts that inform our understanding of Rev. Josiah Henson’s life at the Riley Plantation. This 30-minutes tour is appropriate for ages 6 and up. Pre-registration is not required. The cost is $3 per person, which does not include admission to the museum.
Josiah Henson Museum and Park is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site.
Saturday, September 13, 2025
1:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Josiah Henson Museum and Park
11410 Old Georgetown Road
North Bethesda, MD 20852
301-765-8790
In honor of International Underground Railroad Month, Marietta House Museum is offering a screening of the 2019 biopic of Harriet Tubman, followed by a Q & A. Closed captions and an ASL interpreter will be provided. Call 301-464-5291 or email [email protected] for more information. Free event.
Marietta House is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site.
Saturday, September 13, 2025
1 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Marietta House Museum
5626 Bell Station Road
Glenn Dale, MD
301-464-5291
Join the Harriet Tubman Museum and Educational Center for Tubman’s First Escape: A Commemorative Walk and Concert. Between September and October, 1849, Harriet Tubman made her first attempt to walk to freedom. We will commemorate that walk by leading a narrated history tour down Harrisville Road, the place of her birth. A concert by David B. Cole and Mainstreet Blues will follow the walk at Emily’s Farm and Produce.
Register online. For more information, contact [email protected]
Sunday, September 14, 2025
10 a.m.
Location TBD
410-228-0401
In honor of International Underground Railroad Month, Marietta House Museum will present a book talk with author and journalist Scott Shane. Shane will discuss his new book," Flee North: A Forgotten Hero and the Fight for Freedom in Slavery’s Border Land". "Flee North" focuses on the Underground Railroad in Washington, D.C. and Prince George’s County.
Shane discovered the amazing freedom collaboration between Underground Railroad conductors Thomas Smallwood, a Black shoemaker in D.C., and Charles Torrey, a white abolitionist from Massachusetts. Small bought his own freedom, and helped hundreds escape slavery. Torrey died in prison.
Come for an engaging discussion, bring lunch, meet the author, and get your book signed.
Recommended for ages 8 & up. Registration is recommended but not required. Register at www.pgparks.com, or email [email protected]. $5/person.
Riversdale House Museum is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site.
Wednesday, September 17, 2025
Noon - 1:30 p.m.
Riversdale House Museum
4811 Riverdale Road
Riverdale, MD
301-864-0420
Witness a live enactment of Frederick Douglass on Constitution Day with the Mid-Shore Constitution Alliance as they host, “Our Journey to Liberty and Freedom,” at the Academy Art Museum. Renowned actors Darius Wallace as Frederick Douglass and Kurt Smith as Thomas Jefferson will be featured, performing a conversation between the two.
Wednesday, September 17, 2025
4:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Academy Art Museum
106 South Street
Easton, MD 21601
410-770-8000
Learn about the experience of 19th-century freedom seekers and Montgomery County residents in a guided hike of the Underground Railroad Experience Trail. Discover techniques freedom seekers used for navigation, eluding detection, and finding food and shelter.
The hike is 2 miles roundtrip on a natural surface hiking trail. The trail is not ADA accessible or stroller friendly. Woodlawn Museum admission is included in the program cost. Appropriate for ages 7 and up; fee charged for ages 6 and up.
Cost: $10.00 adults, $8.00 Seniors (55+)/Children 6-17
Advance online tickets are highly recommended through Active Montgomery. Online sales close 12 noon the day before the program. Limited walk-in availability based on advance ticket sales.
The Underground Railroad Experience Trail is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program.
Saturday, September 20, 2025
10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park
Montgomery County Parks
16501 Norwood Rd.
Sandy Spring, MD 20860
301-929-5989
Learn about the Underground Railroad and its connection to Harford County, the Susquehanna River, and the Chesapeake Bay through the exhibit The Underground Railroad: Other Voices of Freedom. This class will include a lesson and story. Afterwards, families can explore the Maritime Museum.
The experience is designed for children ages 5 - 10 years old. Parents must accompany their children. Pre-registration is required. Cost is $5 per child. Admission to the museum is free with purchase of the class.
The Underground Railroad: Other Voices of Freedom exhibit is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program.
Saturday, September 20, 2025
11 a.m. - Noon
Havre de Grace Maritime Museum
100 Lafayette Street
Havre de Grace, MD 21078
410-939-4800
Trace the journey of notable Marylanders and explore their impact both nationally and internationally. This two-hour walking tour, offered by Watermark Journey in partnership with the Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Foundation and named a “Heritage Award Winner” by the Chesapeake Crossroads Heritage Area, starts at Market House Park across from Annapolis City Dock, where slave ships entered 300 years ago. The Alex Haley statue that marks the significance of the author of Roots and the journey of his ancestor Kunta Kinte is featured.
Symbolically, the stroll continues uphill through local history to the State House and the statue of Thurgood Marshall, the first African American Supreme Court Justice. Hear of famous Marylanders, such as Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass. Your period-attired guide will highlight the importance of the Underground Railroad in the Chesapeake Bay region. During colonial times, the labor of both the enslaved and free blacks was the cornerstone upon which the tobacco economy was built. In the 19th century, Maryland was home to more free African Americans than any other state.
Presently, Maryland continues to grow because of the important contributions made by her African American residents. Offered by Watermark Journey. The Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Foundation receives 20% of the proceeds.
Registration required.
$24 /Adult $13/Child
Saturday, September 20, 2025
1 - 3 p.m.
Market House Park
25 Market Space
Annapolis, MD 21401
410-268-7601
Established in 1748, Frederick County and the northern and central area of Maryland is the perfect case study for African-American cultural history. It was once a border county within a border state during the American Civil War, situated below the Mason and Dixon Line, and north of the Potomac River and the Confederate state of Virginia.
This four-part course reflects the history shown through the documentary film Up from the Meadows: A History of Black Americans in Frederick County, Maryland, produced by instructor Chris Haugh. The course covers the time periods from slavery to emancipation, and from segregation to civil rights equality within a divided Maryland. Instructor Chris Haugh also offers Black History walking tours of Mount Olivet Cemetery for groups.
The cost of the in-person course is $79. The course is held at the Key Chapel in Mount Olivet Cemetery on Tuesday nights from 6 - 8 p.m. on the following dates:
Tuesdays: September 23 and 30, and October 7 and 14
6 - 8 p.m.
Key Chapel
Mount Olivet Cemetery
515 South Market Street
Frederick, MD 21701
240-285-8510
Jim Johnston, author of From Slave Ship to Harvard: Yarrow Mamout and the History of an African-American Family tells the story of this remarkable man who was brought to Maryland on a slave ship in 1752 and enslaved for the next forty years. Yarrow didn’t become a free man until he was 60 years old. He then acquired a house in Georgetown and enough money to retire on the interest from loans to white merchants and on stock dividends. In 1819, the great portrait painter Charles Willson Peale learned of Yarrow and painted him as a testament to racial equality.
This program is recommended for ages 12 and up. The cost is $5 per person. Tickets are available online and on site. Parking is only located at Wall Local Park, 5900 Executive Blvd. North Bethesda, MD 20852.
Arrive early and take a self-guided tour of the museum. Josiah Henson Museum and Park is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site. Doors open at 5 p.m. Light refreshments will be provided.
Thursday, September 25, 2025
6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Josiah Henson Museum and Park
11410 Old Georgetown Road
North Bethesda, MD 20852
301-765-8790
Local historian Susan Pearl will present her research on the enslaved families who lived and labored at the Fairview tobacco plantation. For ages 12 and up. Children must be accompanied by an adult.
This is a hybrid program. In-person registration is not required for in-person attendees. Online attendees must register on www.pgparks.com and use the ticket code: MHM-SPEC-GA-20250925 to receive the link for the program. Cost is $5 per person. For more information, contact [email protected].
Marietta House Museum is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site.
Thursday, September 25, 2025
6:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Marietta House Museum
5626 Bell Station Road
Glenn Dale, MD
301-464-5291
Join local Public Historian Kennedy Thomason and her family aboard River City Cruise Co. for a floating history tour! The History on the Choptank River cruise offers a two-hour exploration of the river’s rich past. Along the way, you’ll hear about key historical moments, such as Native American history, the Revolutionary War, the Choptank’s role in the Women’s Suffrage movement, and its connection to the Underground Railroad.
There are artifacts, books, photos and documents for you to peruse for an immersive experience. As you cruise, enjoy the peaceful beauty of the river’s flora and fauna. Tickets are $32 per person and include light refreshments. For more information, contact [email protected].
The Choptank River is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site.
Saturday, September 27, 2025
10 a.m. - noon
River City Cruise Co.
10282 River Landing Road
Denton, MD 21629
Join Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission’s Archaeology Program and Montpelier House Museum for a commemoration highlighting how archaeological discoveries can facilitate discussions on the lasting legacies of enslavement in Prince George’s County.
Walk the indoor and outdoor spaces where the enslaved at Montpelier, lived, worked and loved. Learn how archaeology can interpret the lives of underrepresented people in history. Listen to the stories and experiences of the lasting impacts of enslavement on today’s society. Engage with others during a fireside chat for reflections on the day.
This event is free. Sign up online for updates.
Saturday, September 27, 2025
4 p.m. - 9 p.m.
Montpelier House Museum
9650 Muirkirk Road
Laurel, MD
301-377-7817
A full day celebration including a parade, welcome ceremony, children’s village, marketplace, exhibits, book signings, geocaching, a keynote speaker and entertainment.
September 27, 2025
10 A.M.
Easton, MD
This guided hike is a special evening opportunity to learn about techniques used for nighttime travel by 19th century freedom seekers. Learn about the challenges and opportunities the stars and moonlight presented travelers on the way to freedom. Discover techniques used for navigation, eluding detection, and finding food/shelter.
The hike is 2 miles roundtrip on a natural surface trail, which is not ADA accessible or stroller friendly. Participants are encouraged to bring a flashlight and wear light colored or reflective clothing. Woodlawn Museum admission is included and is open 30 minutes prior to the tour. The Underground Railroad Experience Trail is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program.
This hike is appropriate for ages 15 and up. Advance registration is required by 5 p.m. Wednesday, September 24 through Active Montgomery. No tickets will be sold onsite the evening of the program.
Cost: $10.00 adults, $8.00 Seniors (55+)/Children 6-17
Saturday, September 27, 2025
6:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park
Montgomery County Parks
16501 Norwood Rd.
Sandy Spring, MD 20860
301-929-5989
As the War of 1812 raged into the summer of 1814, British troops sailed up the Patuxent River in a bid to take Washington, D.C. On their way, they stopped at the port of Lower Marlboro in what is now Owings to commandeer supplies and offered freedom to local enslaved men and women in exchange for their service to the British war effort. Fourteen people won their freedom that day, on what we now commemorate as Lower Marlboro Freedom Day.
Festivities include walking tours, speakers, entertainment, food and exhibits at the historic Lower Marlboro United Methodist Church and Lower Marlboro Hall in Owings.
Download the Walking Tour Brochure
Saturday, October 18, 2025
11 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Lower Marlboro Hall
3911 Lower Marlboro Road
Owings, MD 20736
Lower Marlboro United Methodist Church
6519 Lower Marlboro Lane
Owings, MD 20736
