Following the trail to freedom

Before the Civil War, thousands of slaves were able to escape to the free Northern states with the help of the Underground Railroad. Some of the places associated with the effort to emancipate slaves still exist and can be toured. Below are some sites significant in black history; more can be found at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, www.freedomcenter.org, and National Park Service websites, www.nps.gov/ugrr and www.cr.nps.gov.

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What: John Brown Farm State Historic Site

Where: Lake Placid, N.Y.

Information: (518) 523-3900, nysparks.state.ny.us. Grounds open all year.

Significance: The body of the abolitionist activist is buried at his farm.

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What: Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged

Where: 180 South St., Auburn, N.Y.

Information: (315) 252-2081; www.nyhistory.com/harriettubman. Tours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays; winter tours by appointment.

Significance: Home of the former slave, who escaped to Philadelphia and became a leader in the community and the Underground Railroad.

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What: Freedom Schooner Amistad

Where: Mystic Seaport, Conn.

Information: (888) 973-2767, (860) 572-5315, www.amistad.mysticseaport.org. April to October 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; November to March 10 a.m.-4 p.m. daily.

Significance: A replica of the vessel that enslaved Africans took over in a mutiny in 1839. They were captured and, after a series of trials, were freed by the U.S. Supreme Court.

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What: Putnam Historic District

Where: Putnam, Ohio

Information: (800) 743-2303, www.visitzanesville.com.

Walking and driving tour maps available from Zanesville Chamber of Commerce, 205 N. 5th St., Zanesville, Ohio.

Significance: The district was a hotbed of anti-slavery activity. Frederick Douglass spoke here, and it was the site of two conventions of the Ohio Abolition Society.

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What: Frederick Douglass National Historic Site

Where: 1411 W St., S.E., Washington, D.C.

Information: (202) 426-5961, www.cr.nps.gov/nr/travel. Fall and winter hours: 9 a.m.4 p.m. daily; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. spring and summer.

Significance: The abolitionist statesman and former slave lived in this house from 1877 to 1895.

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What: Harpers Ferry National Historical Park

Where: West Virginia

Information: BTD (304) 535-6029 or (304) 535-6298, www.nps.gov.hafe.

Significance: Scene of John Brown’s famous but ill-fated raid on the federal armory Oct. 16, 1859.

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What: Slave Haven Underground Railroad Museum, a.k.a. the Burkle Estate

Where: 826 N. 2nd St., Memphis, Tenn.

Information: Heritage Tours Inc.; (901) 527-3427, slavehavenundergroundrailroad.org.

Significance: German immigrant Jacob Burkle operated an Underground Railroad way station and hid escaped slaves in the cellar of this house.