William Still 
Underground Railroad 
A Selection of Authentic Narratives

First published in 1872, The Underground Railroad is a fascinating collection of slaves’ own narratives of their escapes from bondage. Their accounts provide a horrifying window into the reality of the ‘peculiar institution’ and the trials they had to endure to escape it. This abridged collection consists of a wide variety of slave narratives faithfully recorded by William Still, a conductor on the underground railroad. Along with the narratives are contemporary newspaper articles and personal correspondence between slaves and members of the underground railroad that place the reader back into the world of the abolitionist movement in America.