Silk lace and linen shawl given to Harriet Tubman by Queen Victoria

Object Details

Created by

Unidentified

Owned by

Harriet Tubman, American, 1822 - 1913

Caption

Harriet Tubman escaped the bonds of slavery as a young woman in the early 1800s. She returned to the South many times as a "conductor" on the Underground Railroad to lead other African Americans to freedom. During the Civil War, Tubman served as a spy, nurse, and cook for Union Forces. In 1863, she helped free more than 700 African Americans during a raid in South Carolina - a feat that earned her the nickname "General Tubman." England's Queen Victoria gave Tubman this shawl around 1897.

From Changing America: The Emancipation Proclamation, 1863, and the March on Washington, 1963.

Description

White, square-shaped shawl made of silk lace and linen.

Credit Line

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Charles L. Blockson

ca. 1897

Object number

2009.50.39

Restrictions & Rights

No Known Copyright Restrictions

Type

shawls

Medium

silk lace and linen

Dimensions

H x W: 36 1/2 x 28 1/2 in. (92.7 x 72.4 cm)

See more items in

National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Classification

Slavery and Freedom Objects

Clothing-Historical

National Museum of African American History and Culture

Topic

African American

Clothing and dress

Slavery

Record ID

nmaahc_2009.50.39

Usage of Metadata (Object Detail Text)

CC0

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd5e626c62e-bd45-44ed-bb87-bd2f87abf700